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REVEALING CONTINGENCY THROUGH SHUN'S 舜 ASCENSION TO THE THRONE

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 November 2020

Youngsun Back
Youngsun Back*
Affiliation:
Youngsun Back, 白英宣, Sungkyunkwan University, College of Confucian Studies and Eastern Philosophy; email: [email protected].
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Abstract

This article examines the story of Shun's 舜 ascension to the throne. This story has drawn considerable attention throughout Chinese history because of its significance with regard to political succession. However, in this article, I shed light on a different dimension of the story: its relevance to the issue of contingency. I investigate four texts, two excavated and two transmitted: Qiongda yi shi 窮達以時 (Failure and Success Depend on Times), Tang Yu zhi dao 唐虞之道 (The Way of Yao and Shun), the Mengzi 孟子, and the Xunzi 荀子. At one extreme, Qiongda yi shi highlights that Shun became a king by pure chance, while at the other extreme, Xunzi interprets the event as a necessary one, emphasizing that Shun cannot but succeed Yao. The other two texts fall somewhere in between the two extremes. I use these four texts to showcase different ways of thinking about areas over which humans are believed to lack control. My claim is that these four texts offer different accounts of the same event—Shun's ascension—because they see the event from different perspectives: from a perspective of the chosen, from a perspective of the chooser, from a mise-en-scène, and from a perspective of not of this world, respectively. I argue that the diverse perspectives of these texts entail the different understandings of several related issues such as the degree of human control over the event, the important features of the event, and the content of the moral and political lessons that we draw from the event.

提要

提要

本文考察了舜登基的故事。此故事因其對帝位繼承的重要意義而在中國歷史上引起了極大的關注。然而，本文闡明了故事的另一個層面： 它與權變理論的關聯性。為此，我探討了四篇文獻， 即兩篇出土文獻和兩篇傳世文獻: 《 窮達以時 》, 《 唐虞之道 》, 《 孟子 》, 《 荀子 》。《 窮達以時 》是一個極端的例子，強調了舜完全靠偶然的機會成為一國之君，而另一個極端是《 荀子 》，則將這一事件解釋為必要事件，並強調了舜不能不繼承堯。 其他兩篇介於兩個極端之間。 我通過這四篇文獻的分析展示了人們對未知領域的不同理解方式。 我的觀點是，此四篇文獻對舜登基的同一事件提供了不同的解釋，因為它們從不同的角度看待這一事件： 從被選者的角度, 從選擇者的角度, 從場景的角度, 以及從超出這一世界的觀點。我認為這些文獻的不同觀點導致對幾個相關問題有不同理解，例如人類對該事件的控制程度, 該事件的重要特點, 以及該事件所具有的道德和政治教訓的內容。

Keywords

ShunYaoMengziXunziexcavated textsroyal successionabdicationcontingency舜堯孟子荀子出土文獻王位繼承禪讓命
Type
Articles
Information
Early China , Volume 43 , September 2020 , pp. 61 - 92
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Copyright © The Society for the Study of Early China and Cambridge University Press 2020

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Footnotes

I would like to thank Eirik Lang Harris, Sungmoon Kim, Andrej Fech, and two anonymous reviewers for their thoughtful criticisms and helpful suggestions on an earlier version of this article.

References

1. Mark Csikszentmihalyi points out that in Confucian writings, much of the normative political discourse has been transmitted through stories rather than abstract theories. In a similar vein, Andrew Seth Meyer writes, “Anecdotes were not only instrumental for ancient authors engaged in the task of historiography (viz. the recording and interpretation of the past), but were a versatile and important component of the philosophical toolkit employed by the producers of Master’s writings.” Csikszentmihalyi, Mark, “Confucianism,” in God’s Rule: The Politics of World Religion, ed. Jacob, Neusner (Washington DC: Georgetown University Press, 2003), 223–24Google Scholar; and Meyer, Andrew Seth, “The Frontier between Chen and Cai: Anecdote, Narrative, and Philosophical Argumentation in Early China,” in Between History and Philosophy: Anecdotes in Early China, ed. van Els, Paul and Queen, Sarah A. (Albany: State University of New York Press, 2017), 80Google Scholar. My analysis and comparison of four different versions of the story of Shun is also a way to find different philosophical implications.

2. This story appears in two chapters of “Yao dian” 堯典 (Canon of Yao) and “Shun dian” 舜典 (Canon of Shun) chapters of the Shu jing. Shisan jing zhushu fu jiaokanji 十三經注疏附校勘記, ed. Ruan Yuan 阮元 (Beijing: Zhonghua, 1980).

3. “Yao dian” 堯典 of the Shu jing. Shisan jing zhushu fu jiaokanji, 123, a.

4. Sarah Allan points out that Shun was not completely non-kin since he was a son-in-law of Yao. Accordingly, Shun’s story is not diametrically opposed to hereditary rule, but instead, it plays a mediating role between the conflicting principles of virtue (without hereditary) and hereditary (without virtue). Allan, Sarah, The Heir and the Sage: Dynastic Legend in Early China, revised and expanded edition (Albany: State University of New York Press, 2016), 38Google Scholar.

5. The doctrine of Heaven’s Mandate has been generally considered a Zhou invention, particularly that of the Duke of Zhou 周公, a son of King Wen and a younger brother of King Wu. According to Herrlee Creel, the Duke of Zhou devised the discourse of Heaven’s Mandate in order to legitimate the Zhou’s conquest of Shang and to win over the remnants of the Shang people. Creel, Herrlee, The Origins of Statecraft in China (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1970), 85Google Scholar.

6. Michael Nylan, The Five “Confucian” Classics (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2001), 133–36. However, according to Sarah Allan, although the date of the “Yao dian” 堯典 is probably late, it includes some material that has an early origin. Sarah Allan, The Shape of the Turtle: Myth, Art, and Cosmos in Early China (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1991), 57–62. The earliest mention of Yao’s elevation of Shun is found in “Shang xian” 尚賢 (Elevating Worthies), one of the core chapters of the Mozi 墨子. Excavated texts involving the issue of abdication include Tang Yu zhi dao 唐虞之道 (The Way of Yao and Shun) from the Guodian Chu Tomb One, Zi Gao 子羔 and Rongchengshi 容成氏 from the Shanghai Museum collection, Bao xun 保訓 (Cherished Instruction) from the Qinghua [Tsinghua] University collection, the newly found Zhou xun 周訓 (Instructions of the Zhou) from the Peking University collection, and other examples. For studies of these texts on abdication, see Yuri Pines, “Disputers of Abdication: Zhanguo Egalitarianism and the Sovereign’s Power,” T’oung Pao 91.4–5 (2005), 243–300; Sarah Allan, Buried Ideas: Legends of Abdication and Ideal Government in Early Chinese Bamboo-Slip Manuscripts (Albany: State University of New York Press, 2015); and Andrej Fech, “The Zhou xun 周訓 and ‘Elevating the Worthy’ (Shang Xian 尚賢),” Early China 41 (2018), 149–178. For a brief outline of the evolution of the legend of Yao and Shun, see Allan, Buried Ideas, 19, and Pines, “Disputers of Abdication,” 245–52.

7. Sarah Allan makes an interesting observation that, in transmitted texts, the legend of the Yao-Shun abdication was presented in a way that supported the idea of hereditary dynasties, whereas in the excavated texts, we find more fluid and more diverse political stances. Allan, Buried Ideas, 20.

8. Pines, “Disputers of Abdication” and Allan, Buried Ideas.

9. Yuri Pines notes that Shun’s rise is not only unlikely and exceptional, but also has an egalitarian appeal. Pines, “Disputers of Abdication,” 273.

10. I focus on the parts of the texts that relate directly to the particular event of Shun’s ascension. In addition, the reason I selected these four particular texts among many is that they show marked differences in their perspectives, which will be explained below. In addition, it should be noted that the view that appears in the “Zheng lun” chapter is not consistent with other parts of the Xunzi, such as the chapter “Chengxiang” 成相 (Working Songs), which presents a similar view to that of Qiongda yi shi.

11. Contingency, in this article, broadly refers to what happens beyond human understanding and control. In early Chinese writings, contingency variously relates to notions such as Heaven (tian 天), timing (shi 時), and fate (ming 命). One thing to be kept in mind is that what humans cannot understand and control is predicated on what humans can understand and control. For a more detailed discussion of the concept of contingency in the Analects and Mengzi, see Youngsun Back, “Confucian Heaven: Moral Economy and Contingency,” European Journal for Philosophy of Religion 8.1 (Spring, 2016), 51–77. For a recent study on the concept of fate (ming 命) in early China, see Mercedes Valmisa, “The Reification of Fate in Early China,” Early China 42 (2019), 1–53.

12. These slips are 26.4 cm long and were originally bound with two straps about 9.5 cm apart. On average, each slip contains 20 characters, and altogether the text contains 289 characters. See Jingmen shi bowuguan, ed., Guodian Chumu zhujian 郭店楚墓竹簡 (Beijing: Wenwu, 1998). For a detailed textual study of this text, see Dirk Meyer, Philosophy on Bamboo: Text and the Production of Meaning in Early China (Leiden: Brill, 2011), 53–76 and 269–82; and Scott Cook, The Bamboo Texts of Guodian: A Study and Complete Translation (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2012), 429–64.

13. This is the general theme, but scholars seem to have slightly different emphases: e.g., self-justification of failure, motivation for self-cultivation, and promotion of moral autonomy. See Mercedes Valmisa, “Beyond Our Control? Two Responses to Uncertainty and Fate in Early China,” in New Visions of the Zhuangzi, ed. Livia Kohn (St. Petersburg, FL: Three Pines Press, 2015), 16.

14. A similar theme regarding the distinction between Heaven and man appears in the “Dazongshi” 大宗師 chapter of the Zhuangzi 莊子 and the “Tian lun” 天論 (Discourse on Heaven) chapter of the Xunzi. For a comparison of these texts with Qiongda yi shi, see Valmisa, “Beyond Our Control?” and Cook, The Bamboo Texts of Guodian, 441–48.

15. The other six examples are the encounter of Shao Yao 邵繇 with Wu Ding 武丁, the encounter of Lü Wang 呂望 with King Wen, the encounter of Guan Zhong 管仲 with Duke Huan of Qi 齊桓公, the encounter of Sunshu Ao 孫叔敖 with King Zhuang of Chu 楚莊王, the encounter of Baili Xi 百里奚 with Duke Mu of Qin 秦穆公, and finally, the encounter of the excellent horses with the excellent rider, Zao Fu 造父. In addition to these success stories, the demise of Wu Zixu 伍子胥 is presented as a supplementary case, with the lesson being that one’s failure is not due to one’s lack of worth.

16. In his study of Lüshi chunqiu 呂氏春秋, James Sellmann notes that in the pre-Qin texts, time (shi 時) does not refer to an objective condition, but rather to a historical interpretation with moral and cosmic lessons. In addition, he distinguishes two senses of time (proper timing): extrinsic and intrinsic. Intrinsic timing is associated with the proper fit between the action and its performer, whereas extrinsic timing is associated with the proper fit between human actions and external conditions. In addition, Sellmann identifies three realms in which the art of rulership is concerned with proper timing in Lüshi chunqiu: that is, cosmic (natural environmental), political, and interpersonal realms. I think these categorizations are conducive to future research on timing and contingency. James D. Sellmann, Timing and Rulership in Master Lü’s Spring and Autumn Annals (Lüshi chunqiu) (Albany: State University of New York Press, 2002).

17. Identification of the right age with the right ruler seems to indicate that as long as the right ruler is in place, he is sure to recognize and employ the worthy. In other words, it posits a necessary connection between the presence of a sage ruler and his recognition of the worthy.

18. Slip 12) … [芝蘭生於幽谷非] Slip 13) [以無人] 嗅而不芳。璑茖堇逾寶山石，不為[，非人知其] Slip 14) 善倍己也。: “[The flower zhilan grows in dark valleys, and it is not because it cannot] be smelled by man that it is not fragrant. The beautiful stone of jade is covered in mountain stones, and it is not because of [no one knows its] goodness that it neglects itself.” This is Dirk Meyer’s translation. See Meyer, Philosophy on Bamboo, 271. Scott Cook, however, connects Slip 13 with Slip 15. Slip13) 璑茖堇逾寶山石，不為[非人見而] Slip 15) 不理: “Colorful gems and precious jades are concealed within mountain stones; they do not [fail to] hold patterns just because [no one sees them].” Cook, The Bamboo Texts of Guodian, 462–64. The analogy of flower appears in the chapter entitled “You zuo” 宥坐 (The Right-Hand Vessel) of the Xunzi and the seventh chapter of the Hanshi waizhuan 韓詩外傳.

19. Slip 11) … 動非為達也，故窮而不 Slip 12) 怨。隱非為名也，故莫之知而不吝。: “Thus, to move does not necessarily mean to succeed; from this follows that a man of worth does not harbor resentment even if failing. He simply hides and does not achieve his name; from this follows that he is without regret even if nobody recognizes him.”

20. The expression “inward turn” is used by Michael Ing to challenge the dominant interpretation of early Confucianism that moral cultivation is under one’s control. Michael David Kaulana Ing, The Dysfunction of Ritual in Early Confucianism (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2012), 74–78. Valmisa also employs a similar expression to describe the view of Qiongda yi shi: using the term, “turning inward,” as opposed to Zhuangzi’s focus on “turning outward.” According to Valmisa, the “turn outwards” in the Zhuangzi is a means to take advantage of every single situation or embracing what you cannot control in order to make the most of it. Accordingly, it is more of making an opportunity rather than awaiting it as prescribed in Qiongda yi shi. See Valmisa, “Beyond Our Control?”

21. Of course, if Shun were not a virtuous person, there would be no possibility for him to be recognized by the right ruler. In this sense, we cannot say that there is no connection at all between Shun’s moral excellence and Yao’s recognition of Shun. In my view, however, for the author of Qiongda yi shi, Shun’s moral excellence is a precondition, because it gives the advice to the worthy. Once the precondition is met, Shun needs to be born in the right age governed by the right ruler, which is indeed beyond his control.

22. Accordingly, this text may have written by a political advisor for candidates to office. I owe this observation to an anonymous reviewer.

23. These slips are 28.1~28.3 cm long and were originally bound with two straps about 14.3 cm apart. On average, each slip contains 25 characters. For a detailed textual study of Tang Yu zhi dao, see Cook, The Bamboo Texts of Guodian, 521–64; and Allan, Buried Ideas, 79–133. Unlike Qiongda yi shi, this text does not seem to have corresponding parts in transmitted texts. According to Sarah Allan, the radical nature of the abdication doctrine promoted in Tang Yu zhi dao is hard to survive in history. Allan, Buried Ideas, 80. In addition, while this text is generally considered to be a Confucian text, some scholars disagree and associate it with the Mohists or Yang Zhu 楊朱. See Carine Defoort, “Mohist and Yangist Blood in Confucian Flesh: the Middle Position of the Guodian Text ‘Tang Yu zhi Dao’,” Bulletin of the Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities 76 (2004), 44–70.

24. In contrast, however, Sarah Allan raises the possibility that this text may have been addressed to the worthies, potential successors, rather than to rulers. Allan, Buried Ideas, 116. In a similar way, in her analysis of the concept of ming, Valmisa reads this text in line with Qiongda yi shi. Valmisa, “The Reification of Fate in Early China,” 38–44. I agree that both Qiongda yi shi and Tang Yu zhi dao, even including the Mengzi, do not present drastically different assumptions about the world and human agency. However, my goal is, instead of looking for the general assumptions they share, to find out what kinds of subtle and nuanced differences they present in their understanding of the world and human agency.

25. Slip 20) … 禪也者，上德授賢之謂也。 For discussion of the controversy over the characters 禪 and 傳, see Allan, Buried Ideas, 92–94; and Defoort, “Mohist and Yangist Blood in Confucian Flesh,” 47–50.

26. Slip 27) 《虞詩》曰：「大明不出，萬物皆暗。聖 Slip 28) 者不在上，天下必壞。」According to Yuri Pines, this poem is not found in the Shi jing 詩經 (Book of Odes) and the language of this poem suggests its relatively late provenance. Pines surmises that this poem was created in order to bolster the theme of this text. Pines, “Disputers of Abdication,” 262.

27. Given that this text tells us that a ruler resigns in order to nurture his own health, Carine Defoort connects this text with Yangists. I do agree that this nurturing dimension reflects a strand of Yangism. In my view, however, the ultimate aim of resignation is the continuation of social harmony and order, and the nurturance of a ruler’s health may be secondary. Carine Defoort, “Mohist and Yangist Blood in Confucian Flesh.”

28. Loubna El Amine reconstructs a political theory of early Confucianism focusing on the concept of political order, instead of rulers’ virtue. Loubna El Amine, Classical Confucian Political Thought: A New Interpretation (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2015).

29. For the identification and implications of the six thearchs, see Allan, Buried Ideas, 102–4.

30. Many scholars point out a conflict between filiality and loyalty because to abdicate rulership to non-kin is against familial virtue. However, it seems to me that the author of this text does not present these two qualities as contradictory, but rather as complementary: filiality is required during any good reign and loyalty is required for abdication upon a ruler’s retirement. Sarah Allan also makes a similar point by showing how abdication exemplifies both qualities of filiality and loyalty in Tang Yu zhi dao. Allan, Buried Ideas, 98–102. For a discussion of reconciliation of these two values in Tang Yu zhi dao and other texts, see also Kenneth W. Holloway, Guodian: The Newly Discovered Seeds of Chinese Religious and Political Philosophy (New York: Oxford University Press, 2009), 104–30.

31. Sarah Allan argues that the reason that a ruler should retire in old age is because his health is correlated with the celestial order as a natural organism. Allan, Buried Ideas, 107–8.

32. Slip 1) 禪而不傳，聖之2)盛也。In his analysis of Tang Yu zhi dao, Yuri Pines argues that abdication is praised for revealing the ethical value of a ruler rather than for political effectiveness. However, I think that the opposite is actually the case: abdication is necessary for its political effectiveness, while its ethical value is derivative. Pines, “Disputers of Abdication,” 258.

33. Accordingly, if Qiongda yi shi was written for prospective candidates for office, this text must have written for rulers in office or potential rulers.

34. Another discovered text, Zi Gao, makes exactly the same point. 子羔曰，堯之得舜也，舜之德則誠善 … … 與? 伊堯之德則甚明與？ 孔子曰，均也。: Zi Gao asks [to Confucius], “That Yao obtained Shun, was it because Shun’s virtue was truly good, … or was it because Yao’s virtue was extraordinarily brilliant?” Confucius answers, “They were equal.” See Allan, Buried Ideas, 175.

35. A description of the virtues of Shun, which must have drawn the attention of Yao, is absent in Qiongda yi shi. Another feature that is missing in Qiongda yi shi is the ability of Yao to recognize the worthy. Accordingly, the author of Qiongda yi shi seems to take for granted the virtues of both sages.

36. Pines, “Disputers of Abdication,” 263. Sarah Allan also makes the same point that the proposal of abdication in this text is not presented as the ideal form only applicable to the predynastic period, but for all era. Allan, Buried Ideas, 82.

37. For a comprehensive account of various descriptions of Shun, see Allan, The Heir and the Sage, 33–58.

38. According to my understanding of the text as a whole, “being sagely” in the above passage means that Yao can abdicate, and “being benevolent” means that Yao can benefit the world during his reign. However, both tasks are, to a certain extent, susceptible to external conditions.

39. The above passage is followed by a description of Shun: the appearance of a worthy person, whose virtue is not under the sway of external conditions. Slip 15) … 夫古者 Slip 16) 舜居於草茅之中而不憂，身為天子而不驕。居草茅之中而不憂，知命 Slip 17) 也。 身為天子而不驕， 不專也。求乎大人之興，美也。今之戴於德者 未 Slip 29) 如此也。: “In ancient times, when Shun dwelled in a thatched hut, he was not resentful; when he himself became the Son of Heaven, he was not arrogant. That he dwelled inside a thatched hut and was not resentful is because he knew ming. That he himself became the Son of Heaven and yet was not arrogant is because he did not give himself up to pleasure. To prosper by being sought out by a great man is magnificent. As for those of the present day who emulate virtue, they are not yet thus.” This description of Shun aligns with the suggested message in Qiongda yi shi. This demonstrates that both texts basically share the same assumptions of the world, but with slightly different focus. I owe this observation to an anonymous reviewer.

40. This is one possible way of understanding this cryptic passage. For instance, Sarah Allan reads this passage in a different light because she follows the slip order in a different sequence. Her interpretation seems to be in line with the message of Qiongda yi shi. Allan, Buried Ideas, 108–9. Valmisa shares a similar view in her interpretation of this passage. Valmisa, “The Reification of Fate in Early China,” 41–42. I believe that the correct ordering of slips and the precise deciphering of scripts are the most essential component of studying the excavated/discovered texts. At the same time, I believe that comparing them with other received and excavated texts and finding out their internal logic can contribute to a fuller understanding of these texts by adding other possibilities.

41. If a ruler’s virtue is contingent upon external conditions, then it may be possible that the virtue of the worthy is also contingent upon external conditions. In other words, although the author of Qiongda yi shi seems to have believed that one’s virtues are within one’s full control, this may be an exaggeration. The emphasis on moral autonomy in the realm of self-cultivation may be a result of the emphasis on our lack of control in the realm of external success.

42. As I emphasized, even though the different perspectives of the texts render their understandings of various related issues different, it does not mean that they have completely different assumptions about human agency, moral development, and the role of contingency in political success. I owe this observation to an anonymous reviewer.

43. 否。天子不能以天下與人。 For the translation of the Mengzi, I generally follow and modify Irene Bloom’s translation. Irene Bloom, Mencius (New York: Columbia University Press, 2009).

44. One of the main reasons that Mengzi was believed to support hereditary rule is the stability of political authority. For a discussion of Mengzi’s view on royal succession, see Cook, The Bamboo Texts of Guodian, 530; El Amine, Classical Confucian Political Thought, 37–44; and Sungmoon Kim, “Confucian Constitutionalism: Mencius and Xunzi on Virtue, Ritual, and Royal Transmission,” The Review of Politics 73 (2011), 371–99.

45. Tang Yu zhi dao does not mention Heaven (tian天), but it does mention times (shi 時). The related concept of fate (ming 命) is not mentioned in Qiongda yi shi, but it is mentioned in Tang Yu zhi dao. At any rate, these terms, tian 天, shi 時, ming 命, and shi 世, are all related to the notion of contingency in one way or another.

46. 非人之所能爲也，天也。Exactly the same phrase appears in Mengzi 5A6 as well. Valmisa has an interesting interpretation of this distinctive pattern of 非 X 也, Y 也, in reading ming as an agency. See Valmisa, “The Reification of Fate in Early China,” 44–52.

47. However, according to Sungmoon Kim’s analysis, it was actually feudal lords and ministers of the noble families, not laypeople, who were entitled to approve royal power. Sungmoon Kim. “Confucian Constitutionalism.” And also see, Justin Tiwald, “A Right of Rebellion in the Mengzi?” Dao: A Journal of Comparative Philosophy 7.3 (2008), 269–82.

48. In light of this pivotal role of Yao’s recommendation of Shun, Yuri Pines points out that because any decision on to whom to transfer power is the prerogative of the reigning ruler, the idea of abdication is not supposes to undermine the absolute power of the ruler. Pines, “Disputers of Abdication,” 280. Sungmoon Kim makes a stronger claim, “According to Mencius’s most developed doctrine of abdication, therefore, the Mandate of Heaven is relegated to the will of the Son of Heaven, and the will of the Son of Heaven is placed, albeit tacitly, over the royal candidate’s moral virtue and the people’s approval.” Kim, “Confucian Constitutionalism,” 384. I agree that Yao’s recommendation plays an important role. Recall, however, that the very reason that Yao recommended Shun was Shun’s virtue, and the primary reason for Shun’s ultimate ascendancy was the people’s acceptance of him.

49. Sarah Allan quotes a very relevant passage from the Huainanzi (13/15b): 未有功而知其賢者堯之知舜，功成事立而知其賢者市人之知舜也。 “To realize a man’s worth before he has accomplished anything, this is the way in which Yao knew Shun. Knowing his worth when his merit was achieved and his affairs completed, this is how the men in the market knew Shun.” Allan, The Heir and the Sage, 51.

50. In addition to filiality, as we have seen, Tang Yu zhi dao adds another qualification: loyalty.

51. 施澤於民久。(Mengzi 5A6).

52. Here, the contrast between inward virtues and outward virtues are a matter of focus. It is not that there are two different types of virtues. For example, the filiality of Shun can be described as “inward,” if we focus on his character trait, but it can also be described as “outward,” if we focus on his actual service to his parents. It is actually Shun’s inward virtue that led him to fulfill his outward virtue. I think, Joseph Chan’s “service conception” of political authority pinpoints this aspect of outward virtue, the actual service to the people. See Joseph Chan, Confucian Perfectionism: A Political Philosophy for Modern Times (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2014), 29–32.

53. The reason for this extended period of regency is due to Yao’s longevity. As Confucius says, “Life and death are a matter of ming; wealth and honor depend on tian” 死生有命，富貴在天。 (Lun yu 12.5).

54. This is actually what happened in the Yu-Yu’s son transmission, as explained in Mengzi 5A6. Unlike Dan Zhu, Yu’s son, Qi 啓, was worthy, and he became a king, instead of Yi 益, a minister appointed by Yu.

55. For example, Shun’s virtue became strong enough to attract the virtuous ruler from a far. For this positive role of virtue, see and Youngsun Back, “Virtue and the Good Life in the Early Confucianism,” Journal of Religious Ethics 46.1 (2018), 37–62.

56. I do not think that this statement is a simple negation of the abdication doctrine.

57. Yuri Pines classifies the Zhuangzi, the Han Feizi, together with the Xunzi in an anti-abdication group. Pines, “Disputers of Abdication,” 282–93.

58. For translation of the Xunzi, I generally follow and modify Eric Hutton’s translation, citing by chapter and line number as in Hutton’s translation. Eric Hutton, Xunzi: The Complete Text (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2014).

59. 以桀紂爲常有天下之籍則然，親有天下之籍則不然，天下謂在桀紂則不然。

60. Similarly, Eirik Harris explains the different usages of the term jun 君 (lord) with the distinction of being descriptive and normative. He also offers a more complicated discussion of the term qun 群 (community) in light of this distinction. See Eirik L. Harris, “Xunzi’s Political Philosophy,” in Dao Companion to the Philosophy of Xunzi, ed. Eric L Hutton (Dordrecht: Springer, 2016), 99–106.

61. For a brief discussion of the distinction between the ruler as an office and the ruler as a person holding the office, see Chan, Confucian Perfectionism, 30–31.

62. If Xunzi’s primary expectation of the Son of Heaven was its nature as an office rather than an agent who holds the office, the following sentence in the Xunzi should be rendered differently: 天子者，埶位至尊，無敵於天下，夫有誰與讓矣。 Eric Hutton translates it: “As for the Son of Heaven, his power and position are supremely revered, and there is no rival to them in the whole world. To whom could he yield the throne?” (Xunzi 18.259–262). In my view, an alternative translation would be, “As for the Son of Heaven, the power and position of this office is supremely high and there is no matching position in the world. Who could possibly yield this position [to another]?” The second translation emphasizes the point that the office of the Son of Heaven cannot be utilized. This office is the title given to the supreme governance of the whole world.

63. In Hutton’s original translation, he transliterates yi 義, which is often translated into righteousness. Here, I follow Eirik Harris’s translation of yi as proper social norms, the major function of which is to set up the proper roles and titles. Harris, “Xunzi’s Political Philosophy,” 99.

64. To be more specific, according to Eirik Harris, it is the ruler’s ability to effectively facilitate the members within his society and gain the potential benefits together that justifies his rulership. Harris, “Xunzi’s Political Philosophy,” 117.

65. 道德純備, 智惠甚明, 南面而聽, 天下生民之屬, 莫不振動從服以化順之, 天下無隱士, 無遺善, 同焉者是也, 異焉者非也, 夫有惡擅天下矣? (Xunzi 18.263–267).

66. Loubna El Amine argues that meritocratic principles do not extend to the position of king based on a passage in the Xunzi saying, “Although a man may be the descendant of commoners, if he has acquired learning, is upright in conduct, and can adhere to ritual principles, he should be promoted to the post of prime minister or counselor” (Xunzi 9.1). El Amine, Classical Confucian Political Thought, 41. I think, however, that if Xunzi assumed that the incumbent king is the highest sage, then we may assert that the meritocratic principles cover all strata of society.

67. Accordingly, Yuri Pines notes that for Xunzi, abdication means a dysfunction of the perfect mechanism. Pines, “Disputers of Abdication,” 289–90. Sungmoon Kim calls Xunzi’s political institution lizhi 禮治 constitutionalism, as opposed to Mengzi’s dezhi 德治 constitutionalism, which relies on an individual king’s personal charisma. Kim, “Confucian Constitutionalism.”

68. Xunzi mentioned two other scenarios including: 1) there are no sages left after an incumbent sage king has passed away and 2) when an incumbent sage king has passed away, the subsequent sage is among his descendants.

69. I think this passage clearly shows that even though Xunzi may be against the abdication doctrine, he is not against the non-hereditary rule by virtue.

70. Of course, someone may raise a question. The reason that Shun’s ascension is very much expected is entirely because Shun lived in the world of the sage Yao. In other words, if Shun were born in the world of tyrants like Kings Jie or Zhou, the situation would have been different. This is exactly the main point of Qiongda yi shi. In my account, however, Xunzi would not agree with the view of Qiongda yi shi. In the same chapter, “Zheng lun,” Xunzi also points out that the depravity of Kings Jie and Zhou would drive the people away from them and move the people toward the virtuous kings such as Tang and Wu (Xunzi 18.75–86). Accordingly, in Xunzi’s envisioned world, either orderly or disorderly, Shun’s moral perfection would have led him to ascend the throne.

71. I should qualify this claim as Xunzi’s view within the chapter “Zheng lun.” For example, in the chapter “Chengxiang” 成相 (Working Songs), Xunzi advocated a contingent view similar to that of Qiongda yi shi (Xunzi 25.161–169). Accordingly, I think the view presented in “Zheng lun” has a particular political purpose.

72. In this sense, the distinction between lesser and greater entities, that is, states and all under Heaven, plays a critical role. It is probable that Xunzi’s discussion of states is something of the actual world (or non-ideal condition), whereas his discussion of the whole world relates to something beyond (or ideal condition).

73. Kim, “Confucian Constitutionalism,” 391. Yuri Pines also points out that Xunzi avoids a historical discussion in favor of a theoretical one. Pines, “Disputers of Abdication,” 290. Also, in her discussion of Xunzi’s treatment of hegemons, Loubna El Amine makes a similar argument distinguishing Xunzi’s theoretical account from the historical account. She argues, “What Xunzi offers in the comparison between virtuous kings and hegemons is an idealized model of the latter, which can be seen as building upon the historical hegemon’s achievements, to imagine what their principles of government should have been like.” El Amine, Classical Confucian Political Thought, 58.

74. 諸侯有老，天子無老。(Xunzi 18.339–341).

75. In his translation, Eric Hutton footnotes that this should not mean literally. Instead, he suggests that the Son of Heaven lives so well that he does not experiences the ills of old age. Hutton, Xunzi: The Complete Text, 193.

76. Sungmoon Kim is right in pointing out that it is “the imperishability of kingship” that Xunzi was highlighting, not the imperishable body of the king. However, I would like to modify his statement, “the healthy body of the king signifies a viable body politic.” In my view, the body politic itself is Xunzi’s primary concern, not the king’s healthy body. Kim, “Confucian Constitutionalism,” 395–96.

77. El Amine, Classical Confucian Political Thought, 122.

78. In his comparison of Mengzi’s and Xunzi’s thought, Sungmoon Kim defies the conventional reading that aligns Mengzi with realism and Xunzi with idealism. Instead, he tries to find common ground in their constitutional political theories. Kim believes that both thinkers developed fairly realistic political theories. Kim, “Confucian Constitutionalism.” In my account of Xunzi’s view, however, I am not sure in what sense we can call Xunzi’s political ideal, at least presented above, realistic.

79. Then, we may understand the perfect world governed by sages (the supreme entity) reflects Xunzi’s ideal theory, while non-supreme entity governed by non-sages concerns his non-ideal theory. Eirik Harris argues that we can find Xunzi’s political philosophy both an ideal theory and a non-ideal one. Harris, Eirik L., “The Role of virtue in Xunzi’s Political Philosophy,” Dao: A Journal of Comparative Philosophy 12.1 (2013), 93–110CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

80. According to Robert Solomon, we do not appeal to fate or fatalism in just any situation or just any event in our lives. He notes, “Particularly subject to fate are those definitive moments in life: birth, marriage, children, going broke, finding oneself at war, or being caught up in a natural calamity and, of course, death.” Solomon, Robert, “Fate and Fatalism,” Philosophy East and West 53.4 (2003), 436CrossRefGoogle Scholar. Likewise, Chinese thinkers did not appeal to ming or tian for ordinary human experiences. Accordingly, the fact that the terms such as tian and ming are frequently related to the story of Shun’s ascension demonstrates its momentous significance in human lives.

81. It is noteworthy that Xunzi brought up another popular saying that Yao failed to transform his own son, Dan Zhu, and Shun failed to transform his stepbrother, Xiang. According to this popular saying, Dan Zhu’s unworthiness is also the responsibility of Yao. 世俗之爲說者曰，堯舜不能敎化，是何也? (Xunzi 18.351–352).