The Interaction Between Confucianism And Science In Late Ming Dynasty

During the social and political fading of the Ming dynasty,Confucianism did its self-renewal and transformation with the logic of external stimulus and internal development,that is to say,it formed the field of ShiXue,presenting the practical academic trend,where the classics,virtues,and ShiXue are used.When the missionaries,represented by Matteo Ricci,went through a zigzagging and finally set foot in China,the ShiXue of the practical academic trend made a bridge of the Confucianism and western science,which means the beginning of 300 years historical interaction between Confucianism and western science.Under the mutual cooperation of Ming scholars who had the urgent pursuit for the ShiXue and the academic mission which made by Matteo Ricci and featured with attachment,complementation and agreement to Confucianism,many scholars participated in the interaction between Confucianism and science in the late Ming dynasty,in which,Xu Guangqi was a typical representative.As a guidance of the word,a good scholar will make an official,Xu Guangqi was heavily influenced by the practical academic trend,including classics,virtues,ShiXue,and he was the leading advocate of practical academic trend thought.At the same time,he was the pioneer in contacting,disseminating,translating the western scientific writing works.It can be said that the construction and practice of Xu Guangqi' s practical thinking was also a concrete representation of the interaction between Confucianism and science in the late Ming dynasty.In brief,the construction of his practical thought was divided into the following stages:(1)Kernel establishment stage.The missionaries thought to appeal the Chinese to follow the path of God,with the help of Elements of Geometry,featured the rigorous logical structure and the function of ShiXue,however,Xu Guangqi reinterpreted it in his own cultural background.He interpreted Elements of Geometry as the source of math,and saw it as a model of the basic serviceability.Therefore,on the one hand,he paid much attention to the ShiXueof Elements of Geometry,on the other hand,he treated the triumph of axiomatic system and the pursuit for reason as the basic serviceability,which provided the inner support for Xu Guangqi to regard the source of math as the kernel of learning.He got it by three ways:setting mathematics as the original source in order to remove the obstacles for it to be the core of ShiXue;interpreting mathematics attaching great importance to the empirical in order to provide method assurance for it to be the core of ShiXue;expanding mathematics in order to build content framework for it to be the core of ShiXue.(2)Frame construction stage.His practical thought was built on the framework of mathematics which expanded ten different aspects.Holding the view of mathematics,he was influenced by Chinese ancient mathematics and western geometry,which formed his understanding for mathematics.The frame construction had several characteristics:the content melted into the east and the west;the development related to the national situation;promotion of complement from the support of friends and disciples.(3)Implementation phase.The development of his practical thought combined with 2 clues,which divided into dominant and implicit parts.The dominant development clue was based on the hope of saving political and social crisis in chronological order.The Pythagorean theorem should be the first urgent development for it was useful in water and land treatment.The introduction of western hydraulic engineering knowledge and tools by translating Taixishuifa had become a response to the frequent occurrence of floods and droughts.In the face of the increased threat of Later Jin dynasty,he shifted his practical focus to the military field,emphasizing the introduction and imitation of western artillery and platform.Finally,when the calendar error had to be taken care of,he took on the task of changing the calendar and presided over the revision of Chongzhen Almanac.The implicit development clue was based on the fact that his understanding of western science was gradually comprehensive and deepened.The translation of Elements of Geometry enabled him to realize the study of mathematics as the basis.His practices in the field of Pythagorean theorem,hydraulic engineering and military field was a comprehensive application of western scientific knowledge,methods and techniques.His insistence on the use of western method in Chongzhen Almanac showed that he had a profound understanding of western scientific content,methods and way of thinking.The two clues were parallel and mutually reinforcing.(4)Logical completion stage.Xu Guangqi formulated the reform plan which understood thoroughly with Datong calendar,but he tried to use the western method.The seemingly contradiction was actually the choice and response to tension of Confucianism and western science in the late Ming dynasty.Under the strong scientific tension,using the western method became his inevitable choice with the objective comparison of the western and Chinese calendar and the deep identification of logical self-consistency and consistent thinking mode as well as the demarcation of calendar.And the reform plan swept away the disadvantages of specific situation analysis and avoided the occurrence of similar events,for example,Nanjing Religious Case,which was caused by discussing the western calendar.It showed his wise response to the Confucianism tension.Chongzhen Almanac became the final presentation and logical conclusion of his practical construction,which was the latest date showing the comprehensive and mature stage in handling the relationship between Confucianism and science.Moreover,the harmonious response between using the western method and the interlinked communication in Chongzhen Almanac also showed that the tension between Confucianism and science could be weakened or transformed in many ways.In short,the construction of practical ideas emphasized the ShiXueand its significant meaning in seeking for the reason a transitional form of learning,which set the interaction between Chinese and western culture as the era background,and based on mathematics as the kernel,and built the content framework with ten expanding items,and made Chongzhen Almanac as a logic completion.During the specific interaction between Confucianism and western science,he updated the Confucianism knowledge and broke through the core concepts of Confucianism,for example,investigating things and verity,and also blend the western scientific methods and thinking mode into the Confucian tradition.From the fruitful results and the later influence of the interaction between Confucianism-represented by Xu Guangqi and western science in the late Ming dynasty,we could get the conclusion that on the whole the two different culture presented benign interactive situation.The development of practical application in ShiXuehad also provided a theoretical basis for Confucianism and science.Until now,science has a foothold growth in China after experiencing the throes of modernization,and the traditional culture represented by Confucian culture gets a revival development.There is an objective existential tension of Confucianism and science,we can get the same true that Confucianism and science in the modern society can also realize the benign interaction,coordination development after the historical inter-actual comparison between Confucianism and science in late Ming dynasty.