Chinese Thought and Culture

zǐ zhī duó zhū 紫之夺朱 Purple Prevailing over Red 指社会生活与文学艺术等领域以邪乱正、真伪混淆的现象。朱指红色，古人认为是正色，而紫色则看作杂色，“夺”是胜过的意思。孔子对于在春秋时期出现邪正不分、淫靡的音乐取代雅正音乐的现象十分反感，提出要加以正本清源、拨乱反正。南朝刘勰借此批评有的作者在文章写作上背离了儒家经典，迎合人们的猎奇心理。后世以此倡导确立儒家的文学标准与规范。 This refers to evil prevailing over good and falsehood being mistaken for truth in literature and art as well as in social life. It is red, not purple, that was viewed as a truly proper color by the ancient Chinese. Confucius, upset by the loss […]

zīwèi 滋味 Nuanced Flavor 诗歌中能够使欣赏者反复回味的意蕴，实即诗歌美感。南朝诗论家钟嵘在《诗品》中提出，五言诗歌创作时应重视内容与形式的配合，从而使欣赏者在品读中回味无穷。后来“滋味”也指从事文艺创作时的一种趣味。 This term refers to an effect that allows lasting satisfaction and rewarding in poetry appreciation, which is a particular sense of beauty offered by poetry. In the Southern Dynasties, poetry critic Zhong Rong proposed in “The Critique of Poetry” that in writing five-character-per-line poems, one should pay special attention to the

zhōngyōng 中庸 Zhongyong (Golden Mean) 孔子和儒家所肯定的最高德行。“中”指言行没有过或不及的状态或标准。凡事都有某种限度，超过和达不到这个限度都是不好的。“庸”包含两个相关的含义：其一指平常，其二指恒常。“中”只有在平常日用之中才能恒常不易。“中庸”即指在人伦日用中始终遵循、符合无过无不及的标准。 Zhongyong (golden mean) was considered to be the highest level of virtue by Confucius and Confucian scholars. Zhong (中) means moderate in one’s words and deeds. Everything has its limits, and neither exceeding nor falling short of the limits is desirable. Yong (庸) has two meanings. One is common or ordinary and

zhōnghuá 中华 Zhonghua “中华”是“中国”与“华夏”复合的简称。“华”同“花”，喻指文化灿烂。华夏的先民建国于黄河中下游，自认为居天下之中央，且又文化发达，所以称“中华”。随着华夏族为主体的多民族国家的不断扩张，凡所统辖之地，皆称中华。在近现代历史中，“中华”成为指称中国、中国人及中国文化的一种符号。 This term is an abbreviation of the compound word formed by Zhongguo (中国) and Huaxia (华夏). Here, hua (华) also means “flower” or “flowery,” which was used as an analogy for a splendid culture. The ancestors of the Huaxia people established their state in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow

zhōngguó 中国 Zhongguo (China) 古代华夏族、汉民族以黄河中下游流域为中心生活和活动的区域。“中国”最初是一个地域兼文化的概念。华夏族多建国于黄河流域一带，以为居天下之中，故称“中国”（与“四方”相对）。后泛指中原地区以及在中原地区建立的政权和国家。清以来，“中国”始专指我国的全部领土与主权，现在只作为“中华人民共和国”的简称。 This term refers to the areas along the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River where ancient Huaxia (华夏) people or the Han people lived. Originally, the term Zhongguo (中国) meant both this region and its culture. The Huaxia people established their states along the Yellow River. Believing the

zhíxún 直寻 Direct Quest 诗人即兴而感，直接抒写。这是南朝钟嵘《诗品》中针对诗歌过多使用典故的现象提出的创作主张，他汲取了道家的自然思想，通过考察前人的优秀诗篇，提炼出一种新的诗歌创作方式——“直寻”，即直接描写所感知事物，直接抒发内心情感并创造出情景契合的审美意象。明清时期诗学的“性灵说”受到其影响。 A poet should directly express his thoughts and sentiments when he is inspired. This is a concept for writing poems proposed by poetry critic Zhong Rong of the Southern Dynasties in his work “The Critique of Poetry” as a reaction to the excessive use of allusions and quotes from earlier

zhīyīn 知音 Resonance and Empathy 体会和理解文艺作品的意蕴与作者的思想感情。原指音乐欣赏中的知己，后经魏晋南北朝时期文艺批评家的阐释，用来泛指文艺鉴赏中的心心相印、互相理解。“知音”作为文学批评的核心概念，涉及文艺创作与鉴赏中的个体差异与共性等诸多问题，有着丰富的精神蕴涵，与西方的读者反应批评理论、接受美学、解释学等基本思想有一致之处。 The term is about appreciating and understanding the ideas in literary and artistic works and the thoughts of their authors. The original meaning was feeling a sense of resonance with music. It was later extended by literary critics in the Wei, Jin, and Southern and Northern dynasties to mean

yuánqǐ 缘起 Dependent Origination 梵文pratītyasamutpāda的意译。“缘起”就是“依缘（一定的条件）而起（发生）”。意思是一切事物、现象乃至社会的一切活动都是因缘和合体，都处于相续不断的因缘关系中，依一定条件而有生灭变化。“缘起”是佛教思想的起点，也是佛教各宗派所共有的理论基础。佛教以此解释宇宙万物、社会乃至各种精神现象变化无常、生灭变化的内在法则。 The term is a translation of the Sanskrit word pratītyasamutpāda. Yuan (缘) means conditions; qi (起) means origination. That is to say, all things, phenomena, and social activities arise out of the combinations of causes and conditions. They exist in the continuous relationship between causes and conditions. Thus all things originate, change,

yǒuwú 有无 You and Wu “有无”有三种不同含义：其一，指个体事物的不同部分，实有的部分为“有”，空虚的部分为“无”；其二，指个体事物在生成、存在、消亡过程中的不同阶段或状态，既有之后、未消亡之前的状态为“有”，未有之前与既终之后的状态为“无”；其三，有形、有名的具体事物或其总和为“有”，超越一切个体事物的无形、无名的本体或本原为“无”。就第三个意义而言，有些哲学家认为“无”是世界的本体或本原，“有”生于“无”；另一些哲学家则认为“有”才是更根本的，反对“有”生于“无”。在“有无”对待的关系中，“有”与“无”既相互区别，又相互依赖。 The term has three definitions. First, it describes two different dimensions of things: One is with form and the other without form. Second, it refers to two different stages or states of a thing during its generation, existence, and demise. You (有) refers to the state of a thing after

yǒujiào-wúlèi 有教无类 Education for All Without Discrimination 任何人都可以或必须接受教化；而人接受了教化，也就没有了因贵贱、贫富等而产生的差异。（一说：在教学时对学生一视同仁，不会按地位、贫富等将学生分成差等。）“教”指礼乐教化，即“人文”；“类”即种类，指贵贱、贫富、智愚、善恶、地域、种族等差别、区分。“有教无类”所昭示的是一种超越等级、地域、种族等差别的普及教育思想，更是一种主张平等待人、反对种种歧视的“人文”精神。 Education can and must be provided for all. It eliminates the differences in social status and wealth. (Another explanation is that education should be provided to students without discrimination on the basis of social status or wealth.) Education consists of teaching of social norms, music, and moral