Chinese Thought and Culture

tiānxià 天下 Tianxia (All Under Heaven) 古多指天子统治范围的全部土地及统治权。古人认为，大夫的统治范围是“家”，诸侯的统治范围是“国”，天子的统治范围是“天下”。“天下”字面义是“普天之下”，实质指天子统治或名义之下的“家国”统合体所覆盖的全部疆域，并包括天下所有的人及国家的统治权。后演变指全民族或全世界。 This term referred mainly to all the land under the name of the Son of Heaven and the right to rule on such land. The ancient Chinese held that the rule of senior officials was over their enfeoffed land, and that of dukes and princes was over feudal states. […]

tiān 天 Tian (Heaven) “天”是中国古代思想中具有神圣性和终极意义的一个概念。主要有三种不同的含义：其一，指自然意义上的天空或人世之外的整个自然界，其运行呈现出一定的规律和秩序；其二，指主宰万物的具有人格意志的神灵；其三，指万事万物所遵循的普遍法则，同时也是人的心性、道德以及社会和政治秩序的依据。 Tian (天) is a sacred and fundamental concept in ancient Chinese philosophy. It has three different meanings. The first is the physical sky or the entirety of nature (not including human society), the operations of which manifest certain laws and order. The second refers to a spiritual being, which possesses an anthropomorphic

tǐyòng 体用 Ti and Yong “体用”有三种不同含义：其一，形体、实体为“体”，形体、实体的功能、作用为“用”。其二，事物的本体为“体”，本体的显现、运用为“用”。其三，行事、行为的根本原则为“体”，根本原则的具体施用为“用”。在“体用”对待的关系中，“体”是基础，“用”是依赖于“体”的。 Ti (体) and yong (用) can be understood in three different ways: 1) a physical thing and its functions or roles; 2) the ontological existence of a thing and its expression and application; and 3) the fundamental code of conduct, and its observance. In any ti–yong relationship, ti provides the basis on which

tǐxìng 体性 Style and Temperament 作品风格与作者个性的统一与结合。是关于文学风格的重要术语。“体”指文章风格，“性”指作者个性因素。源出于刘勰《文心雕龙·体性》，该文分析了作者个性特点与文章风格有着内在的关联，文如其人。这启发了后人从作者个性着眼去分析文学作品不同的风格类型，奠定了中国古代文学风格论的基本思想。 This is an important term about literary style that stresses the unity and integration of the styles of writings with the temperaments of their authors. The term originated from Liu Xie’s The Literary Mind and the Carving of Dragons. One chapter of the book discusses how the styles of

tàixué 太学 Imperial Academy 由朝廷创办的设于京师的最高学府和最高教育行政机构。西周时期即有“太学”之名，但真正创设是在汉武帝时期（公元前124年）。太学的教授称“博士”，由精通儒家经典、有丰富教学经验、德才兼备的著名学者担任；学生称“博士弟子”“太学生”等，最多时达万人。其后至明清，中央政府一般都在京师设立太学，或设与太学相同职能的教育机构，名称不一，具体制度也有变化。作为官立的中央最高学府，它和地方教育机构、私人教育组织一起构成了中国古代完备的教育体系。它对于传播儒家经典和以儒家为主的主流价值观起到重要作用。 The imperial academy was the highest educational institution and educational administrative department in feudal China. The term first appeared in the Western Zhou Dynasty, but the first imperial academy was not officially established until 124 BC during the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. Teachers of the imperial

tàijí 太极 Taiji (The Supreme Ultimate) “太极”有三种不同的含义：其一，指世界的本原。但古人对“太极”的世界本原之义又有不同理解：或以“太极”为混沌未分的“气”或“元气”；或以之为世界的普遍法则，即“道”或“理”；或以之为“无”。其二，占筮术语。指奇（—）偶（–）两画尚未推演确定或蓍草混一未分的状态，是卦象的根源。其三，指空间的最高极限。 Taiji (the supreme ultimate) has three different meanings. First, it refers to the origin of the world. The ancient Chinese saw it either as qi (vital force) or yuanqi (primordial vital force) that permeates the chaotic world, or as a universal principle, i.e. Dao or li (理), or as wu (无).

shùntiān-yìngrén 顺天应人 Follow the Mandate of Heaven and Comply with the Wishes of the People 顺应上天的旨意和民众的意愿。“天”即“天命”，指上天旨意。古人认为，有德行的人秉承上天意志而确立政权，成为君主，故称为“天命”。“人”指人心、民意。它与西方“君权神授”思想相似，但它还强调人心、民意，体现了人本思想。在古代它常被用于称扬新朝代的建立和社会重大变革的实施，以表明其正当性、合法性。 The ancient Chinese believed that virtuous men followed the will of heaven in establishing a political regime and becoming its sovereigns; hence their success came from the mandate of heaven. This thought is similar to the Western notion of

shūyuàn 书院 Classical Academy 唐宋至明清时期出现的一种文化教育机构，是私人或官府所设的聚徒传授、研究学问的场所，兼具教学、研究、藏书等多种功能。它渊源于佛教禅林和私人藏书楼，萌生于唐，兴盛于宋。南宋初年，朱熹、张栻、吕祖谦、陆九渊等学者兴办书院，使之成为讲学及学派活动的基地。书院独立于官学之外，多设于环境宁静优美之地，由名师硕儒主持，追求学术自由与创新，注重言传身教、人格塑造，不图科举功名。南宋末年，书院逐步趋于官学，并与科举制度贯通。书院的兴衰与宋明理学的兴衰互为表里。1901年清政府下令书院全部改为学堂。书院前后存在一千多年，对中国古代教育和文化发展、推动中国文化走向海外产生过重大影响。 Classical academies were cultural and educational institutions that existed in China from the Tang and Song dynasties through the Ming and Qing dynasties. They were established either by the public or the government to serve the multiple purposes of education, research, and library service. Their origins were Buddhist monasteries and

shǐ cái sān cháng 史才三长 Three Strengths of a Good Historian 指修史或治史的人所必须具备的史才、史学、史识等三项专长。是唐代著名史学理论家刘知几提出的史学观点。“史才”指史书撰述能力；“史学”指丰富的历史知识和资料；“史识”指分析和评判历史的思想见识。刘知几认为，修史或治史的人必须同时具备这三种能力，其中“史识”最为重要。 According to the renowned historiographer Liu Zhiji of the Tang Dynasty, those who study and write history must have three strengths, namely, the ability to compose historical works, rich knowledge of history and historical materials, and deep insight that enables them to analyze

shī yuán qíng 诗缘情 Poetry Springs from Emotions. 诗歌缘于诗人内心的情感。西晋陆机《文赋》提出，诗人情动于心，而后才有诗歌创作。“诗缘情”说与“诗言志”说互为补充，强调文学的抒情性与审美特征，表现出魏晋时代文学观念的变迁。因此，“诗缘情”也成为中国古代关于诗歌与文学本质看法的另一代表观点。 Poems originate from the poet’s heart-felt feelings. Lu Ji of the Western Jin Dynasty said in “The Art of Writing” that a poet must have a surge of feeling deep in his heart before he could create a poem. This view, complementing the concept of “poetry