Zhang Xuecheng’s Method Of "Saving Tao From Breaking"

As a famous thinker in the Qing Dynasty,Zhang Xuecheng has been studied from different perspectives by scholars at home and abroad.This article starts with the issue of"the split of Taoism",analyzes Zhang Xuecheng’s efforts to"save Tao from breaking"from multiple perspectives,and attempts to reveal Zhang Xuecheng’s thoughts from a new perspective.In the first chapter,this paper first reveals the source of"the break of Tao".Zhang Xuecheng regards the division between Zhou(周公)and Kong(孔子)as the axis of academic rise and fall in ancient and modern times,and"the break of Tao"originates from the separation of officials and teachers,governing and teaching at this node,which has resulted in two results:the birth of the Six Classics makes it possible to separate Tao from Qi(器),while the liberation of personal temperament makes Tao different because of people.In the second chapter,this paper will discuss how Zhang Xuecheng used the method of collation to see through the problem of"the break of Tao".First of all,the first break of Tao by all classes of authors was accompanied by Liu Xin’s Qilue(《七略》).The establishment of the four categories(四部)is the concentrated embodiment of the second break of Tao.Although Zhang Xuecheng found the problems,he could not solve"the break of Tao"with the method of collation like Liu Xin.The third chapter of this paper will discuss Zhang Xuecheng’s efforts to"save the Tao from breaking"at the practical level in detail,which is divided into three parts.The first is to solve the problem of scholars’favoritism by"self satisfied learning".The second is to solve the problem of"the sense of struggle breaking the Tao"by returning to the"public words".The third is to solve the problem of family disputes by"metaphysics must be traced to history".This paper argues that Zhang Xuecheng’s investigation of"the break of Tao"and his efforts to"save Tao from breaking"can not only run through the great source of traditional Chinese learning,but also go deep into the specific social and historical reality of his own era,which is of great significance for us to understand Chinese traditional thoughts and solve"the break of Tao"since modern times.