Chinese Thought and Culture

sī 思 Reflecting / Thinking 心所具有的思考与辨别的能力。儒家认为“思”是人心所独有的重要功能。心能“思”，因此可以不像耳目之官一样被外物牵引或遮蔽。人只有通过心之“思”，才能发现内在于心的道德品性的根基，并由此通达于“天道”，从而确立人之所以为人的本质。如果缺少“思”的工夫，人将丧失其主体性与独立性。 The term means the ability to reflect and evaluate. Confucian scholars considered this a unique quality of the human mind. By reflecting, a person will keep himself from being led astray or getting confused by what he sees or hears. Through reflecting, a person will discover the foundation of […]

shíshì-qiúshì 实事求是 Seek Truth from Facts 根据事物实际情况，正确地对待和处理问题。本指古人治学时注重事实，以求得出正确的见解或结论。后多指依据实际情况进行思考或表达，如实、正确地对待和处理问题。它既是一种关于思维或认识的方法论原则，也是一种做人的基本态度或伦理操守。其基本理念是求真、务实或诚实。 This term means handling things correctly according to realities of the situation.The term was originally used to describe the rigorous attitude of ancient Chinese scholars who paid great attention to acquiring solid facts in order to arrive at the correct understanding or conclusion. Later, it has come to

shī zhōnɡ yǒu huà, huà zhōnɡ yǒu shī 诗中有画，画中有诗 Painting in Poetry, Poetry in Painting 诗中有画意，画中有诗情。指诗歌与绘画作品所呈现出的审美意境融合相通的美学效果。语出苏轼《书摩诘〈蓝关烟雨图〉》。绘画是造型艺术，通过众多物象构成画面给人以审美感受；诗歌是语言艺术，通过文字营造意境给人以审美感受。前者是“无声有形”的艺术，后者是“有声无形”的艺术。这一术语旨在提倡“诗歌”与“绘画”的相互渗透与融合，进而创造出天然清新、具有“诗情画意”的审美境界。苏轼这一思想对后世文学与绘画艺术的发展有着深远的影响。 This expression highlights the connection between poetry and painting in their ability to create aesthetic imagery. This idea was first put forward by Su Shi in his “Notes to Wang Wei’s Painting of Mist and Rain over Languan.” Painting

shīshǐ 诗史 Historical Poetry 指诗歌的内容能够真实反映某一历史时期广阔的社会现实和重大的历史事件而具有“史”的价值。《诗经》有些诗篇反映当时历史，孔子据此提出《诗经》“可以观”，即包含了对《诗经》以诗征史的肯定，汉代学者很看重诗歌承载历史的功能。后来的诗论家大都强调优秀诗歌须将审美与反映现实结合起来，从而彰显诗歌的审美与认识、教育功能的统一。唐代诗人杜甫的诗歌被称作“诗史”，就是因为他的诗能够反映“安史之乱”时的真实社会，体现出深刻的忧国忧民之情。 This term refers to poetry that reflects social realities and major events of a historical period, thus possessing historical value. Some of the poems in The Book of Songs were about the realities of its time, which prompted Confucius to exclaim that “The Book of Songs enables one to understand society.” This

shīchū-yǒumínɡ 师出有名 Fighting a War with a Moral Justification 兴兵开战要有正当的名义或理由。泛指做事有正当的理由。它包含两层意思：其一，师直为壮，谓出兵理由正当，则士气旺盛，战斗力强，否则难以服众；其二，无故不得兴兵，防止因贪、怒而穷兵黩武。其核心在于强调战争的正义性。这是文明精神的体现。 To wage a war, one must have a legitimate cause, just as we ought to have such a reason in doing all things. The term has two meanings. The first is that moral justification is a source of strength when waging a war. With moral

shényùn 神韵 Elegant Subtlety 指文学艺术作品中清远淡雅的意蕴和韵味。原本是对人物的风度神情的评价，魏晋时人认为人格之美在于内在精神气韵，不同于汉代人推重外形。后来这一概念进入书画理论，指作品内在的精神韵味。明代人从书画理论引入诗歌理论，使神韵成为对诗歌风格的要求，清代王士祯是“神韵说”的发扬光大者，他特意编选了《唐诗神韵集》，借编选理想的诗歌阐发自己的审美趣味，又在诗歌理论著作中大力倡导，构建起独具特色的诗歌艺术审美体系，从而使“神韵说”得以完善定型，最终成为清代诗学的一大流派。 This term refers to the subtle elegance of literary and artistic works. It was originally used to depict a person’s mien and manner. During the Wei and Jin dynasties, the propriety inherent in a person was valued, whereas during the previous Han Dynasty, a person’s external appearance was stressed. Later

shén yǔ wù yóu 神与物游 Interaction Between the Mind and the Subject Matter 文艺创作中人的精神与外物交融、自由驰骋的构思活动。在这一构思活动中，一方面人的精神感觉和想象投射到客观事物上，使客观事物具有了审美色彩；另一方面，虚无缥缈的精神感觉和想象也借助客观事物得以表达和呈现。“神”与“物”的自由融合，超越了时间与空间的限制，形成艺术形象，然后经过语言的表现，产生了美妙的文艺作品。这一术语源自《庄子》的“乘物以游心”，后经南朝刘勰《文心雕龙》的系统阐发，成为对“神思”这一术语的概括性论述，突出艺术构思过程中心灵与物象交融、自由想象的特点，既说明了艺术创作中的构思活动，也高度概括了文艺创作中的审美心理与创作自由的特点。 This term refers to the creative process through which a writer interacts with subject matter and gives free rein to his imagination. During the process, he projects onto real objects his mental sensations and imaginings, and endows them with an aesthetic

shànɡshànruòshuǐ上善若水 Great Virtue Is Like Water. 最完美的善就像水的品性一样，滋润万物却不与万物相争。出自《老子》，老子以水的这种柔弱之性比喻至善的执政者应有的品德。执政者面对百姓，应如水之于万物，辅助、成就百姓的自然而不与百姓相争。后多指为人处世时能像水一样滋润万物，尽己所能帮助他人却从不争名逐利，或者具有坚忍负重、谦卑居下的品格。 The greatest virtue is just like water, nurturing all things without competing with them. This term was first used by Laozi to advocate the belief that a virtuous ruler should govern with gentle and accommodating qualities as demonstrated by water. He should assist and provide for people just

shànɡdì 上帝 Supreme Ruler / Ruler of Heaven 主要含义有二：其一，上古传说中指主宰宇宙万事万物的最高天神。也叫“天帝”。商周时期，巫是联通人与上帝的媒介，巫通过卜筮向上帝请示，传达上帝的旨意。其二，指帝国或王朝的最高统治者，即帝王、君主，包括远古或死去的帝王、君主，犹言“天子”。基督教传入中国后，基督教教士又借用“上帝”一词作为对其所崇奉之神God的译称。 The term has two meanings. One is the supreme ruler of the universe, also known as the Ruler of Heaven. During the Shang and Zhou dynasties, wizards were the intermediaries between humans and the supreme ruler. They asked for his orders by means of divination and

sānxuán 三玄 Three Metaphysical Classics 《老子》《庄子》《周易》等三部著作的合称。汉代五经之学盛行，魏晋时期思想大变，《老子》《庄子》《周易》为学者所关注。经由何晏、王弼、向秀、郭象等人的注解，这些经典被赋予了新的意义。“三玄”既是魏晋名士清谈的中心内容，也是玄学家借以发挥自己哲学思想的基本素材。“三玄”之学集中探讨了个体生命与外在世界之间的矛盾，也充分展现了儒家和道家思想之间的冲突与互补。 The term refers to three metaphysical works: Laozi, Zhuangzi, and The Book of Changes. During the Han Dynasty, the study of the Five Classics was the prevailing trend; but during the Wei and Jin dynasties, the way of thinking changed considerably. Scholars turned their attention to Laozi, Zhuangzi, and