美国著名政治学家亨廷顿逝世 Samuel Huntington Died on Christmas Eve

美国著名政治学家亨廷顿(1927-2008)在圣诞节前夕逝世。亨廷顿在他工作事业后期，以‘文明的冲突’学说而闻名，即关于‘西方与其余者’之间不可避免的摩擦。
在《文明的冲突与世界秩序的重组》中坚持关注文化课题，而文化在传统上被其他政治学家认为是个软课题。他确定八种世界文明：西方、儒家（中国、韩朝和越南）、日本、回教、印度教、东正教（以俄罗斯为核心）、拉丁美洲、以及非洲文明。
源于发表于政治期刊‘外交季刊’的1993 年的一篇文章，三年后出版成书。它辩证说冷战后摩擦的主要根源不是国家或理念，而是文化。冲突是亨廷顿对那些认为在共产党垮台后西方价值普遍胜利的敏捷回应。西方傲慢的认为自己文化具普世性，会蒙蔽了他们看到其他文明挑战者的出现，尤其是回教与中国。
文明冲突立刻在学术界引起争议与辩论，尤其是它与福山的看法截然不同。福山是个有影响力的历史学家。他在冷战平和落幕后，写了‘历史的终结’，辩说西方自由民主的出现，是人类理念演变的终点和人类政府最后形式的信号。
那些认为世界政治主要演员是国家而不是文明的人自然的批评他的观点简化当前政治形势。他被指责替西方在国外的军事干预制造理由。
亨廷顿一直站稳他的文明冲突学说立场。去年，他自哈佛退休前说：‘我的见解还是一样，就是文化的一致、敌对、关联在国与国关系中不但扮演一个角色，而且会扮演一个重要的角色。’
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Samuel Huntington (1927-2008), an American political scientist passed away on Christmas Eve. He achieved fame late in his career for his "Clash of Civilisations" theory concerning the inevitability of conflict between the ‘West and the Rest’, notably Islam.
The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order was a hard-headed look at what political scientists had traditionally dismissed as a soft subject: culture. He identified eight major civilisations in the world: ‘Western, Confucian, Japanese, Islamic, Hindu, Slavic-Orthodox, Latin American and African civilization.’
Originating as a 1993 article in the policy journal Foreign Affairs, and published three years later as a book, it argued that the key sources of post-Cold War conflicts would not be national or ideological, but cultural. Clash was Huntington’s riposte to those who thought the fall of communism meant the universal triumph of Western values. The West’s arrogance about the universality of its own culture would blind it to the ascent of ‘challenger civilisations’, particularly Islam and China.
The Clash of Civilizations prompted immediate controversy and debate within the academic world, particularly as it contrasted so starkly with the vision of the influential historian Francis Fukuyama, who had written about the End of History, following the largely peaceful resolution of the Cold War. In the book, Fukuyama argues that the advent of Western liberal democracy may signal the end point of mankind's ideological evolution and the final form of human government.
Those who believe that nation-states rather than civilisation are the primary actors in world politics would naturally criticise his view as oversimplification of current political situations. He was accused of framing arguments that justified Western military intervention abroad.
Huntington always stood by his clash of civilisations thesis. ‘My argument remains that cultural identities, antagonisms and affiliations will not only play a role, but play a major role in relations between states,’ he said last year, after retiring from Harvard.

子曰：必也正名乎 Confucius: Rectification of Names

孔子认为要有一个秩序良好的社会，重要的是执行它所谓的正名。就是说，每一样东西都要有正当的名字。
子路曰：‘卫君待子而为政，子将奚先？’
子曰：‘必也正名乎？…….. 名不正，则言不顺，言不顺，则事不成，事不成，则礼乐不兴，礼乐不兴，则刑罚不中，则民无所错手足。故君子名之必可言也。言之必可行也。君子于其言，无所苟而已也。’
正名亦表示事物要符合它所取的名字。在社会关系上，每个名字都意含其责任与职责。统治者、臣子、父亲、儿子都是社会关系中的名字，每一个人在各自名分下都应该适当的履行他们的责任与职责。
所以孔子说：‘君君臣臣父父子子。’
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Confucius held that in order to have a well-ordered society, the most important thing is to carry out what he called the rectification of names. That is to say all things should be called by their proper name.
Zilu said, ‘The ruler of Wei awaits your taking on administration. What will you consider the first thing to be done?’
Confucius replied, ‘What is necessary is to rectify names . . . . If names are not rectified then language will not flow. If language does not flow, then affairs cannot be carried on to success. If affairs cannot be carried on to success, ritual and arts will deteriorate; if the rites and arts deteriorate, justice goes astray; and if justice goes astray, the people will stand about in helpless confusion. Therefore a superior man considers it necessary that the names he uses may be spoken appropriately and also that what he speaks may be carried out appropriately. What the superior man requires, is just that in his words there may be nothing incorrect.'
The rectification of names also means that things should conform to the name they already have. Every name in the social relationships implies certain responsibilities and duties. Ruler, minister, father, and son are all the names of such social relationships, and the individuals bearing these names must fulfil their responsibilities and duties accordingly.
Therefore, Confucius said: ‘Let the ruler be ruler, the minister be the minister, the father be the father, and the son be the son.’

华人春联 Chinese Spring Couplets

春联时是对联中的一种。春联是在华人新年的一种装饰品。对联可以常年挂，而对联则是贴在屋子前门的新年应景装饰，犹如外国万圣节或圣诞节的装饰品。
春联时写在红色直挂纸的对联，给新年传达快乐、希望、鼓励的信息。
第一张直挂（上联）纸贴在前门的右边。
第二张直挂（下联）纸贴在前门的左边。
另外，还可写第三张横贴门的上面。
下面二副春联是写于猪年（右）与鼠年（左）的：
1。人逢盛世情无限，猪拱华年岁有余。
2。灵鼠迎春春色好，金鸡报晓晓光新。
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Chunlian is a special type of Duilian, or couplet. It is used only during the Chinese New Year as part of its celebration. While duilian is permanent, chunlian is a temporary decoration to be placed on the entrance of the house, somewhat akin to Halloween and Christmas decorations. Duilian comprises of a couplet written on vertical strips of red paper which conveys happy, hopeful, uplifting message(s) about a better New Year to come.
The first (called upper) line is posted on the right side of the front door.The second (called lower) line is posted on the left side of the front door.
In addition, a third horizontal piece may be posted across and on top the door.
The two couplets shown here are written for years of pig (right) and rat (left)respectively.
1. Boundless love blooms during this good time; Prosperity grows in this year of Pig
2. Intelligent mouse welcomes the spring that comes with wonderful colours; Golden rooster announces the daybreak that brings in new light.

布什总统访伊拉克遭“飞鞋”袭击Shoes thrown at President Bush on Iraq Trip

12月16日报章报道，美国总统布什对伊拉克的突然访问，在巴格达记者招待会中发生了伊拉克记者向他抛丢鞋子的事件而大为失色。这是布什明年1月任满前，最后一次走访伊拉克。
新闻招待会半途时，伊拉克电视台记者扎伊迪站起来，丟第一只鞋时用阿拉伯语喊道：“这是来自伊拉克人民的礼物，这是告别之吻，你这条狗。” 布什总统闪过。
阿拉伯文化中，向别人显示鞋底是对他轻蔑侮辱。骂人是狗也是大耻辱。
扔第二只鞋时，扎伊迪说：“这是来自寡妇、孤儿和所有在伊拉克丧生的人。”布什总统也闪避了。
记者认为这次攻击很有象征性。萨罕姆被推翻后，伊拉克人就以鞋子丢和敲打他的铜像。
可是，事后总统先生对记者说不觉得自己被丢鞋而受到侮辱。他还形容这事件引人发笑和很有趣，是自由社会的现象。
更重要的是，总统先生说：‘那家伙想在电视上做秀，他成功了。我不知道他想抱怨什么，但不管是什么，我相信有人听到他了。’
好家伙，想不到西方也有阿Q。
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According to newspaper reports on 16 Dec, a surprise visit by US President George Bush to Iraq has been overshadowed by an incident in which two shoes were thrown at him during a news conference. This is a last visit by him before his term ends in Jan 2009.
In the middle of the news conference, Iraqi television journalist Muntadar al-Zaidi stood up and shouted in Arabian language "this is a goodbye kiss from the Iraqi people, dog," before hurling a shoe at Mr Bush which narrowly missed him.
Showing the soles of shoes to someone is a sign of contempt in Arab culture. And scolding someone a dog is also a great insult.
With his second shoe, which the president also managed to dodge, Mr Zaidi said: "This is for the widows and orphans and all those killed in Iraq."
Correspondents said the attack was symbolic. Iraqis threw shoes and used them to beat Saddam Hussein's statue after his overthrow.
However, the President told a journalist later that he wasn't insulted by the shoe-throwing. He described the incident as amusing and interesting, and it's a sign of a free society.
And more importantly, the President said: ‘the guy wanted to get on TV and he did. I don't know what his beef is. But whatever it is I'm sure somebody will hear it.’
Well said. Now we know there are Ah Qs in the West as well.

Note: Ah Q is famous for ‘spiritual victories’, Lu Xun's euphemism for self-talk and self-deception even when faced with extreme defeat or humiliation.

子曰：人之生也直Confucius said: Man is Born for Uprightness

孔子详细的谈到他人生精神的发展。我们的印象是他是个有决心和思想独立的人。也可以说他相信人性本同，只是习惯的不同才使到人有不同。
什么是共同的人性呢？子贡曾经说：‘夫子之言性与天道，不可得而闻也。’《论语·公冶长》 意思是老师谈到人性与天道，不是听了就能理解的。
从论语记载看来，孔子谈到人性时说法并不一致。
a. ‘人之生也直’《论语·雍也》
b. ‘我未见好仁者、恶不仁者’《论语·里仁》
c. ‘唯上知与下愚不移’《论语·阳货》
对人性的看法变成重要是因为它决定了人会追求怎样的理想和他如何尽力而为。
儒家后来对人性有了两种重要的看法。
孟子(372-289 BC)所持的一种看法是所有人类都有一个善良的内心，可以教育与自修来助长。
另一方面，荀子(453-221 BC) 持着相反的看法，礼仪是用来改正这种恶本性最重要方法。
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Confucius talked in great detail on the life journey of his own spiritual development. One gets the impression of a man of conviction and independence of mind. One can also say that he believed that human nature is common but practice make it different one from another.
But what is this common nature? Zogong once said: The master’s “discourses about man’s nature, and the way of Heaven, cannot be understood easily by just listening to him.”
In the Analects, it would appear that inconsistent views were expressed by the Master on human nature.
a. ‘Man is born for uprightness’ (6.19)
b. ‘I have not seen a person who loved virtue, or one who hated what was not virtuous.’ (4.6)
c. ‘There are only the wise of the highest class, and the stupid of the lowest class, who cannot be changed.’ (17.3)
The position on human nature becomes important as it shapes our ideas on what ideals men can aspire to and how they are best encouraged to do so.
Two significant positions on human nature were developed later among the Confucians.
Mencius (372-289 BC) holds one position that all human beings share an innate goodness that can be cultivated through education and self-discipline.

On the other hand, Xunzi (453-221 BC) holds the opposite view and that ritual is crucial for reforming humanity’s original bad nature.

辜鴻銘：中国人的心灵与毛笔 Gu Hongming: The Chinese Mind and the Soft Brush

辜鴻銘 (1857 - 1928) 马来西亚的华人学者。作为一个王室和儒学价值的拥护者，在清朝被拖翻后，他还继续保留他的辫子。晚年对文化感兴趣。十岁时到苏格兰读书。获得爱丁堡大学的文学士与莱克锡大学的土木工程专科。在欧洲念完书后才学华文，听说华文字写得不好看。
他写了几本英文书，包括‘中国人的精神’。虽然我们可能不完全同意他所说的，这本书还是反映了一个被称为‘文化异数’的华人学者的思想。
下面从这本书录了一段关于中国人缺乏精确的特征：
‘那么在中国人的生活方式中缺乏精确的原因是什么呢？我还是要说，原因就是因为中国人过着一种心灵生活。心灵是精细和敏感的微妙平衡。它不像是坚硬、僵化、严格的仪器的头脑或者理智。你不可能像用头脑或者理性一样，用心灵也作如此稳定、如此严格的思考。至少要做到这一点，是非常困难的。事实上，中国毛笔，这种柔软的刷子，可以作为中国心灵的符号。它非常难于书写和作画，而一旦你掌握它的用法，你可以用它以一种硬钢笔无法做到的优美和雅致来书写和作画。’
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Gu Hongming (Ku Hungming 1857 - 1928) was a Malaysian Chinese scholar. As an advocate of monarchy and Confucian values, he preserved his plait even after the overthrow of Qing Dynasty. Gu has become a kind of cultural curiosity late in his life. He was sent to Scotland to study when the boy was 10. He earned a degree in Literature at the University of Edinburgh, and earned a diploma in Civil Engineering at the University of Leipzig. Subsequently, he went to Paris to study law. He acquired Chinese only after his studies in Europe, and was said to have a bad Chinese hand-writing.
He had written a number of English books, including The Spirit of the Chinese People. Although we may not agree all what he had said, it is a book worth reading as it reflects the mind set of an old Chinese scholar who has been treated as a ‘cultural oddity’.
Below is a paragraph from his book on Chinese want of exactness:
‘Now what is the reason for this want of exactness in the ways of the Chinese people? The reason, I say again, is because the Chinese live a life of the heart. The heart is a very delicate and sensitive balance. It is not like the head or intellect, a hard, stiff, rigid instrument. You cannot with the heart think with the same steadiness, with the same rigid exactness as you can with the head or intellect. At least, it is extremely difficult to do so. In fact, the Chinese pen or pencil which is a soft brush, may be taken as a symbol of the Chinese mind. It is very difficult to write or draw with it, but when you have once mastered the use of it, you will, with it, write and draw with a beauty and grace which you cannot with a nard steel pen.’

二元论：现代科学之诞生 Dualism: Modern Science Made Possible

我们可以说，笛卡儿(1596 – 1650)强调宇宙之双重本质时，他是强调心物二元论的思想。把这两种物质完全独立分开，他让自然科学自由地以机械来解释自然。
科学界可以忙着研究自然现象而不必管心灵之事了。科学也可以完全只管机械方面，而不必去想目的，目标或其他有关心和灵方面的特征了。它可以专注于探索所有有关身体行为与行动的规律。这样，现代科学就可能产生了。
伽利略(1564 – 1642)严厉地把物理与形而上学分开来。伽利略是现代动力学的发明者。他认为形而上学与物理是两种完全分开，不能互相转移的学说，而他只对物理有兴趣。因此，他可能是第一个专业科学家。
笛卡儿与伽利略对世界的看法，采取了不同的理性方式，但都导致了现代科学的诞生。和伽利略不同的是，笛卡儿对形而上学想得很深，以致他被看做是现代哲学之父。由于形而上学被认为是信仰天主的理性解释，难怪伽利略会有不少强势的敌人，尤其是不少的传教士。
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We may speak of the thought of Descartes (1596 – 1650) as emphasizing the dualism of mind and matter, which is, stressing the two-fold nature of the universe. By making these two substances entirely independent, he left nature free from the mechanical explanation of natural science.
The sciences could busy themselves with a study of nature without having to worry about mind. Science could develop along purely mechanical lines without having to make room for purposes, goals, and other characteristics of mind and spirit. It could busy itself with the discovery of the laws by which all bodies act and moves. Indeed, in this way modern science was made possible.
Galileo (1564 – 1642) also sharply separated physics from metaphysics. Galileo was the founder of modern kinematics. He thought that metaphysics and physics were two separate, untranslatable discourses, and he was only interested in physics. This probably makes him the first professional scientist.
Descartes and Galileo adopted two different rational ways of thinking about the world and both led to the birth of modern science. For, contrary to Galileo, Descartes did think hard about metaphysics, so much so that he is considered the father of modern philosophy. Since metaphysics was the rational ground for believing in God, it is not difficult to understand why Galileo had made some powerful enemies, especially among the Jesuits.

老子：道法自然 Laozi: Dao Follows the Way of Spontaneity

我们注意到天道、地道和人道是形而下道。它们与形而上道有什么关系呢?
老子在道德经中说：‘故道大，天大，地大，人亦大。域中有四大，而人居其一焉。人法地，地法天，天法道，道法自然。’
所以道就是天、地、人道所遵守的最后之法。道法什么呢？道法自然。
这个自然需要解释。
在先秦，‘自然’二字几乎毫无例外是指‘自然而然’。自就是自己，然就是如此，自然就是自己如此。
后来，这个词的意思延伸指天然，物质世界，或自然的。这样，有些学者就把‘道法自然’错解为‘道师法自然界的规律’。
可以总结说，道不可名，无声，无形和无限。它就是自己如此而已。
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We noted that Dao of Heaven, Earth and Man are within-form Dao. What is their relationship with the Above-form Dao?
Laozi said in Daode Jing: ‘Therefore the Dao is a great; Heaven is great; Earth is great; and Man is also great. The four are great things in the universe, and Man is one of them. Man follows the way of Earth. Earth follows the way of Heaven. Heaven follows the way of the Dao. And the Dao follows the way of spontaneity.’
Dao is therefore the ultimate rule to be followed by Heaven, Earth and Man. But what rule does Dao follow? It follows the way of spontaneity.
The Chinese term ‘zi ran’ needs clarification.
During and before Qin dynasty (221-206 BC), the word ‘zi ran’ was used almost without exception to mean spontaneity or as-it-is. The word ‘zi’ means itself or on its own, and ‘ran’ means as it is. When the two words are put together, it means ‘as-it-is-ness’, or ‘as it is’.
However, the meaning of the term was later extended to mean also natural world, physical world, or naturally. As such, some scholars misinterpret the last sentence to mean ‘And the Dao follows the way of the Nature’.

One can therefore conclude that the Above-form Dao is unnamable, soundless, formless and boundless. It is itself and is ‘as-it-is’.

预兆即将成为事实：写在墙壁上的字 The Writing on the Wall

好像越来越多西方人关心亚洲人缺乏创造力。韩纳斯先生就是其中的一个。
韩纳斯会说十二这语言。他说东亚与西方国家比较，在科学与技术重要突破方面是失败的。他归罪于中国、日本、韩国的书写系统。
他写了‘汉字困境’、‘写在墙壁上的字’*之类的书。据一个网站说是‘依据认知科学和语言学识，及作者的东亚语文深刻经验’，‘为环球化中，现代亚洲所面对的一个重要问题，提供一个平衡和深思熟虑的解释。’
在中国书写系统中，每一个字对应一个音符。它是音节系统。
相比之下，西方的字母系统依赖完全抽象的字母，而单一字母并不代表一个音符。
因为东亚书写系统缺少字母的抽象特征，它们限制了科学创新所必具的分析和抽象思维。韩纳斯关注的是，沉浸于字体文化里的孩童会居于劣势，因为这些书写系统没有训练抽象思考能力。
他注意到西方的亚洲移民，在字母系统中工作，吸取和应用西方花费大量资源所创造的科学成果，来进行创意工作和赚取财源。
我们有理由相信他当他坚持他不是在批评亚洲人和说他们缺乏智力。
他本身写在墙壁上的字响亮和明显：东亚应该改用字母系统。
*注：英语The Writing on the Wall 直译是‘写在墙壁上的字’，真正的意思是指很明显的预兆（多指不祥的预兆）即将成为事实。一语双关的意图明显。
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More and more westerners seem to be quite concerned with Asians’ lack of creativity. One of them is Mr William C. Hannas.
Hannas who speaks 12 languages, blames the writing systems of China, Japan and Korea for what he says is the East Asia’s failure to make significant scientific and technological breakthroughs compared to the Western nations.
He has written books, such as ‘Asia’s Orthographic Dilemma’, ‘Writing On The Wall’, which, according to one Internet Website, are ‘based on the scholarship in cognitive science and linguistics, and the author's intimate experience with East Asian languages’, and provide ‘a balanced and thoughtful account of one of the important problems facing modern Asia in the age of globalization.’
In the Chinese writing system, each character corresponds to a syllable of sound. It is a system of ‘syllabaries’.
In comparison, the western alphabetic systems rely on letters that by themselves are pure abstractions since a single letter does not represent a syllable of sound.
Because the Eastern Asian writing systems lack the abstract features of alphabets, they hamper the kind of analytical and abstract thought necessary for scientific creativity. He is also concerned that children who are immersed in a character-based culture are at a huge disadvantage because such writing systems do not cultivate the ability for abstract thought.
He noted that Asian immigrants to the West, who work in an alphabetic system, do innovative work and make money by taking and applying the fruits of science that the West creates at great expenses.
One has good reason to believe him when he insists that he is not criticizing Asians and claiming that they lack intellect.
His own writing on the wall is also loud and clear: East Asians should switch to the alphabetic system.

语言与形象 Word and Image

在西方，自古以来，语言就很重要。咒语并非空言，而是有力量实现所表达的事件的语言。
就此而言，世界就是经上帝的语言而创造的。

圣经约翰福音1.1：‘太初有道，道与上帝同在，道就是上帝。这道太初与上帝同在。万物是借着他造的；凡被造的，没一样不是借着他造的。生命在他里头，这生命就是人的光。光照在黑暗里，黑暗却不接受光。’
中文读者要注意，这个‘道’不是中国哲学中的道，而是指语言。就意译而言，这个翻译确实神来之笔。圣经本意就是把语言当上帝的代理。当然，这个道是西方之道，和中国之道是完全不同的。
我们注意到逻各斯，希腊语意指‘说’，在希腊与基督教哲学中居重要地位。
相比之下，中国哲学习惯以阴阳，龙图象或其他奥秘符号来表达。这是因为华人相信‘书不尽言，言不尽意。’华人重象轻言。
王弼(226-249)在‘周易略例’把意、象、言的关系这样解释：
‘夫象者，出意者也；言者，明象者也。尽意莫若象，尽象莫若言。….. 故言者所以观象，得象而忘言；象者，所以存意，得意而忘象。’
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In the West, words are powerful since ancient times. A curse is not idle words, but words with power to carry out the thing expressed.
In this sense the world came into being through God's word.

Gen. 1:3; John 1:1. 'In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be. What came to be through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race; the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. '
Word is therefore treated as the agent of God in the creation of the world. It is noted that logos, a word derived from the Greek verb lego, ‘to say’, figures prominently in a number of Greek and Christian philosophical doctrines.
In contrast, the Chinese philosophy often features images of yin, yang, dragons and other esoteric symbols. This is because the Chinese believe that ‘writing cannot fully express spoken words, and spoken words cannot fully express ideas.’ The Chinese prefer symbols and images, not words.
Wang Bi (226-249) in his Zhou Yi Lueli explains the relationship between ideas, symbols and words:
'Symbols serve to express ideas. Words serve to explain symbols. For the complete expression of ideas, there is nothing like symbols, and for the complete explanation of symbols there is nothing like words… Therefore the purpose of words is to explain the symbols, but once the symbols have been grasped, the words may be forgotten. The purpose of symbols is to preserve ideas, but once the ideas have been grasped the symbols may be forgotten….'

王维：空山不见人 Wang Wei: Empty Mountain, No Man is Seen

王维是盛世唐朝重要诗人。他的诗主要描述自由、简单、平静、自然悠闲的人生，包含意味深长的美学思想。王维信佛，特别是禅学。他的美学思想受佛学影响很大，特别是南禅思想。
他的诗以简单悠闲景物和静山与河流为美的对象，展现它追求简单、出世、自由与自然人生，和外物与自身的理想和谐。
让我们看他这首杰作：鹿柴
空山不见人，但闻人语响。
返景入深林，复照青苔上。
树长深林加上日照青苔的景象应把自然之超逸具体化。至于为何如此，这就期望读者把隐藏在景象后的作者意向加以解码了。
这首诗有几组心像并排组成：空山与回音、复照与深山、青苔光与青苔、语声与青苔。这些并列心像互动而唤起源源不绝的象外之象和境外之境。
你可以想象王维坐在鹿柴中整日冥想，默察空与形（山）、无知（影）与智慧（光）、天与山、光线、青苔成长、人之现与隐之间的互动。
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Wang Wei (699-761) is a famous poet in the most prosperous age of Tang Dynasty whose poems mainly describe the free, simple, placid, and natural idyllic life, which contain profound aesthetic thoughts. Wang Wei believes in Buddhism and Chan philosophy in particular. His aesthetic thoughts have been influenced by Buddhism, especially by the South Chan philosophy.
His poetry, regarding the simple idyllic scenery and the quiet mountains and rivers as aesthetic objects, exhibits his pursuit of a simple, detached, free and natural life as well as an ideal harmony between the outside world and himself.
Let’s look at his master piece ‘Deer Park’:
Empty mountain, no man is seen,
Only heard are men's voices echoing;
The sunlight re-enters the deep wood,
Shining again on the green moss.
The scene of trees growing amidst hills with the sunlight shining on the moss is supposed to reify the notion of natural gracefulness. As to why this is so, readers are expected to decode the authorial intention lurking behind the scene by themselves.
This poem is built upon a number of imagery juxtapositions: the empty mountain and the echoing voices, the re-entering sunlight and the deep wood, the moss-shining sunlight and the green moss, and the voices and the moss. These imagery juxtapositions may interact to evoke unceasingly ‘image beyond image’ and ‘scene beyond scene.’
You can imagine Wang Wei sitting in day-long meditation in Deer Park observing the interplay between emptiness and form (the mountain), ignorance (shadows) and wisdom (light), sky and mountain, lights, the lowest mosses glowing, human presence and absence.