On Jiao Hong And Ming-Qing Confucianism

Late Ming and Early Qing,the period with profound significance and intricate complexity in the history of Chinese philosophy,was filled with Yangming teaching,Chengzhu teaching,Qi teaching,textual criticism,practical teaching,Buddhism,Taoism,popular religions and Catholicism etc.,which constructed an intellectual context within mutual collision,syncretism and innovation.And Ming-Qing Confucian must be the theme of this period undoubtedly.Here came Jiao Hong,the eminent one should be investigated in depth.As the disciple of late Taizhou School and scholar of textual criticism,Jiao Hong created the intellectualized Liangzhi teaching,which opened a new way in the late Ming intellectual world.The innovation of Jiao Hong’s new teaching lied in its methodology rather than the connotation of Liangzhi.The intellectualized method,to be specific,replaced the traditional intuitive method so that the intuitive Liangzhi status was revealed in an intellectual way.Accordingly,Jiao Hong,besides the intuitive method,provided a relatively objective and public way towards Liangzhi.Specifically,he turned to the intellectualized method from intuitive method,in terms of understanding "Liangzhi","Xing" and "Qing",while he kept in step with the traditional Liangzhi teaching in connotation.Due to the introduction of "Meaning-Reference" relationship,"consideration" into the comprehension of "Liangzhi" and the method of revealing "Xing",he completed the methodological replacement mission and laid an initial foundation of Liangzhi’s intellectualization.Further,Jiao Hong was an enthusiast in textual criticism whose long-term hard training strengthen the intellectualized method his fundamental thinking method.As a result,he chose the intellectualized method instead of intuitive method when facing the Liangzhi teaching.What’s more,his opinion on religious syncretism was also be intellectualized.By taking the Buddhist and Taoist teachings as explanatory tools,he took off the intuitive glasses and wore the intellectualized glasses on religious syncretism,which finally directed to the ideal of being a sage embodying both internal and external teachings.So,the intellectualized Liangzhi teaching,religious syncretism and the ideal of being a sage constituted his new teaching.As a final goal,the ideal of being a sage will be realized by the reveal of Liangzhi(the internal teaching)and the accumulation of textual criticism(the external teaching).And the reveal of Liangzhi called for the intellectualized explanation of Buddhist and Taoist teaching in religious syncretism which also needed the help of textual criticism.Briefly,the intellectualized method came mainly from the training of textual criticism,which led to the intellectualization of religious syncretism and then intellectualized the reveal of Liangzhi status.Because of the combination of Liangzhi status and the textual criticism,the ideal of being a sage can be realized finally.This is Jiao Hong’s new teaching.Then,as to the relationship between Jiao Hong and Ming-Qing Confucian transition,the position of Jiao Hong’s new Liangzhi teaching in the context of Ming-Qing Confucian transition,by comparing him with the theoretical teaching,textual criticism and religious syncretism of Ming-Qing Confucianism,was located.Firstly,his teaching,as to the theoretical teaching turning,was as same as the traditional Liangzhi teaching of Ming in terms of the connotation,while it also enlightened the intellectualized Qi teaching in Qing period or,in another word,provided the intellectualized methodology.Secondly,in the aspect of textual criticism turning,his teaching learned the style of Yang Shen’s textual criticism thoroughly,and further impacted the Phonology,Astronomy and Mathematics in Qing period specifically,which boosted the specialization and systematization of textual criticism of Qing.Thirdly,his teaching,in terms of the religious syncretism turning,reformed the religious syncretism of Ming intellectually,yet the issue of religious syncretism was canceled by Confucian scholars using the same intellectualized method in Qing period.Generally speaking,occupying the central position of Ming-Qing Confucian transition,Jiao Hong played a more momentous role than Gu Yanwu,Huang Zongxi and Fang Yizhi etc..Besides,his role can easily be found in the theoretical teaching turning and textual criticism turning,while hardly be found in the religious syncretism turning.In addition,Ming-Qing Confucian transition,the major issue of that age,cannot be decided by Jiao Hong himself merely.That is to say,he played a finite role rather than infinite one in this transition.