Chinese Thought and Culture

bùzhēnkōng 不真空 Emptiness as Non-substantiality “空”并非绝对虚无，事物因虚假故所以空。不真空的概念由僧肇（384或374—414）申明，主要针对东晋时对“本无”的误解而产生的各种空观。历代注疏家对“不真空”的解读大致可分两个方面：不真故空，确立万法不实的宗旨；同时，空并不真，强调虚假与绝对虚无的差别。 “Emptiness” is not absolute nothingness. Rather, it refers to the fact that existence does not last forever. This term was explained in detail by Seng Zhao (384 or 374-414), who opposed the views derived from a prevailing misunderstanding of “original non-being” in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. Commentators’ interpretations of […]

bùsìzhīsì 不似之似 Dissimilar in Form but Similar in Spirit 指艺术作品不刻意追求外形与描写对象的酷似，而是在传神达意上达到更高程度的相似。也说“不似而似”。唐宋元绘画理论重视“神似”超过“形似”，到了明代，以石涛（1641—1718?）为代表的画论观点，反对自矜神韵的重意轻形，亦反对刻意求似。他们认为最理想的状态是“不似之似”，“不似”是指笔情恣意，脱离陈旧套路，不过于追求外形的真实；“似”是指以生活真实为基础，而臻于传神写意的真实。不似之似相当于在艺术真实与生活真实中达到巧妙的平衡。 This happens when artists do not aim deliberately for virtual replica in form between works of art and the objects depicted but make every effort to achieve a resemblance in spirit. This is also known as “dissimilar in form but similar in spirit.” The Chinese

bù shè lǐlù, bù luò yánquán 不涉理路，不落言筌 Dispense with Theory and Logic; Take Care Not to Fall into Traps of Language 不关涉论理和逻辑，不落入语言的束缚。筌是竹制的一种捕鱼器，比喻束缚、拘碍，“言筌”即指语言文字的束缚。这是宋代严羽在《沧浪诗话》中所提出的有关诗歌学习及创作的要求。这一术语相当于对“妙悟”的解释，诗歌有独特的思维方式和审美要求，它的本质是吟咏情性，注重当下即是的感觉，而不是阐发义理、卖弄学问。学习诗歌，也要避免受到论理和语言文字的束缚。 Poets should not concern themselves with theory, logic or any other convention in the use of language. Quan (筌), originally a bamboo fish-catching device, later was used as a metaphor for any form of

bù nián bù tuō, bù jí bù lí 不黏不脱，不即不离 Neither Obsessed with nor Detached from the Objects Depicted 指诗歌的咏物不可太执著于物本身，应当既不黏滞又不脱落，既不太过接近又不完全离开。“不黏不脱，不即不离”包含两方面的内容：一指作品所使用的语言、意象等与所咏对象的关系，一指作品的主题与所咏对象的关系。它强调，如果用语太过切近，作品就缺乏味道，粘皮带骨，但如果不切题，又难免捕风捉影，过于浮泛。除了体物的要求，咏物诗还有寓意寄托的要求，寄托之意不能勉强，否则就落入教条。传神写意在微妙的离合之间，才能创作出好的咏物作品。 In writing poetry, poets should neither totally adhere to nor digress too much from the objects depicted. This term includes two aspects: the relationship between words, images and the objects depicted, and the relationship between the

bīng zhě, suǒyǐ jìn bào chú hài yě 兵者，所以禁暴除害也 War Is Fought to Stop Violence and Eliminate Evil. 战争是为了制止横暴、消除祸害。中国古人认为战争是违背人性的凶事，是不得已而采取的非正常手段，如果迫不得已而采取战争手段，也并非流于一般意义上的你争我夺、打打杀杀，而是坚持战争目的的正义性。这种战争观至今仍闪耀着人文主义的光辉。 The aim of war is to stop violence and eliminate evil. The people in ancient China regarded war as a violent action contrary to human nature, to be taken only as a last resort. If war

bīng xíng xiàng shuǐ 兵形象水 Troops Should Charge Forward like the Flow of Water. 用兵作战之法就像水流一样。这是古代兵家孙武（前545？—前470？）提出的兵学命题。意思是说，指挥打仗，不能拘泥于固定的战法，必须根据具体情况，迅即进行调整变换，扬长避短，就像水流随着地形地势的变化而呈现不同的形态一样。犹今之所谓采取灵活机动的战略战术，掌握战场主动权。 Troops should charge forward like the flow of water. This military concept was formulated by Sunzi (545?-470? BC), the ancient military strategist. It means that in directing a battle, one must not adhere to a predetermined plan. Depending on the

běnwú 本无 benwu / Original Non-being 绝对的空无。东晋时各家多用“本无”表达般若空义，指出事物根本上是不存在的。这种观点在僧肇（384或374—414）等人看来有将“无”坐实、落入虚无主义的危险，故僧肇著文批评，重申缘起性空的中道观。但在后世作品中，同样运用“本无”，有时指缘起性空义，而非绝对的虚无，需加以鉴别。 Benwu, or original non-being, is a term used to refer to void. Philosophical schools in the Eastern Jin Dynasty used it to bracket the doctrine of emptiness from the Prajñāpāramitā literatures (“The Perfection of Wisdom”), arguing that things are fundamentally non-existent. In the view of Seng Zhao (384 or

bàdào 霸道 Despotic Governance 霸者之道，指凭借武力与强权手段进行统治（与“王道”相对）。春秋时代，周王室式微，有的诸侯凭借自己的强大实力，操纵周天子和其他诸侯，维持秩序，成为诸侯领袖（初写作“伯”，后来写作“霸”）。他们的统治原理或政策，被称为“霸道”。它不重仁义道德，而重功利强权；不是以德服人，而是以力服人；不重文的感化，而重武的压迫；不使人怀德而使人畏威，甚至只顾本国利益，不顾他国苦难。中华民族崇文而不尚武，自古提倡“王道”，贬斥“霸道”。此为今日中国反对霸权主义、反对强权政治的历史文化渊源。 This term refers to the rule of a state by means of force and power as opposed to “benevolent governance.” The ruling court of the Zhou Dynasty began to decline in the Spring and Autumn Period while some of its vassal states grew stronger. Some state rulers, who were dukes

ài guó rú jiā 爱国如家 Love the Country as One Loves One’s Family 像爱自己的家一样爱自己的国。原本指帝王、诸侯等掌权者像爱自己的家一样爱国爱民——因为在古代中国，家国同构，后来演化为有志之士乃至一国内所有人都崇尚的基本操守。其中隐含着这样的观念：热爱祖国的人都不分彼此，如同一家人，每个人都像爱自己的家一样爱国爱民。爱国是中华民族深厚持久的传统，是中华民族精神的核心，是每一个中国人的坚定信念和精神依靠。 Originally, the concept denoted that kings, princes, and other rulers should love their kingdoms and their people the same way they did their own families. This is because in ancient China, family and state were considered same in structure. Later on,

āi jǐng xiě lè 哀景写乐 Depict Sorrowful Scenery to Express Happiness 以哀伤的景致描写愉快的情绪。属于情景相衬、对面落笔的描写手法。以乐景写哀伤比较常见，以哀景写快乐却不常见。因此，对“哀景写乐”的理解可以与“乐景写哀”综合起来，它们都是指言情而不直露，借用景物描写抒发情致，情与景互相映衬，彼此交融，作品的审美效果含蓄婉转，别有韵味。 Depicting sorrowful scenery to express happiness is a technique which integrates sentiment and scenery and indirectly expresses sentiment through describing scenery. Although it is quite common to express sadness through joyful scenes, artists rarely describe sorrowful scenery to express joy. Thus, we can