风云与阴影——“捕风捉影”说

借用身边的自然事物以喻指深刻哲理是中国哲学的一个显著特征,"风云"与"阴影"便是这样一组哲学语素。首先,这飘忽绵延、变幻不定的"风云"和其色晦深、幽湛难尽的"阴影",表征着"道"的不确定性与无限可能性,这乃是人类存在的一个基本情境。面对这个基本情境,人类通过揳入"节气时间"、"方位空间"、"五行"、"天干地支",乃至"数"及"数学方法"等相关元素来"捕风捉影",从而在这"不确定"中找"确定",更详尽地认知自己所生存的环境,以便能更好地生存。就此而言,这种"捕风捉影"的方法体现了人类在其生存环境中的积极主动性。但另一方面,这"捕风捉影"也体现了人类在具有不确定性与无限可能性的"道"面前的有限性,提示我们在"捕风捉影"时应当时刻保持一种谦逊、谨慎的态度。

Wind, Cloud, and Shadows: The Natural Items in Chinese Philosophy

It is a common way in Chinese philosophy to express an idea by the items familiar to us.Consequently,there are many morphemes that appear to be common and actually full of meaning in classical Chinese literature.The blowing wind,the changing cloud,and the dark shadows are metaphors of Tao,which is a basic set of human existence,uncertain and with infinite possibilities.Human beings try to grasp the wind,cloud,and shadows by solar terms,space,five elements,heavenly stems,earthly branches,and even digits,mathematical methods,apart from other related elements,so as to seek certainty from the changing world,to have a better understanding of our living environment,and ultimately to have a better life.In this regard,this practice reflects human beings’ positive initiative which is of humanistic and methodological significances.The attempts to grasp the wind,cloud and shadows nevertheless have obvious limitations.This reveals the limits of human beings when faced with the uncertainty and infinity of Tao,and an unambitious and prudent attitude to the world is suggested.