Richard J. Sage

The present article investigates several commentaries on Daoist works attributed to Song emperor Huizong; it also studies the role those commentaries played within the emperor’s overarching endeavor to install his vision of Daoism as the de facto state religion. Inspired by the political instrumentalization of exegetical literature during Wang Anshi’s reforms a half-century earlier, the imperially authored and authorized commentaries were part of his and the court’s attempt to gain absolute moral control over state ideology. To do this, Huizong styled himself as both a Daoist deity whose purpose was to guide its subjects to universal salvation, and simultaneously as erudite sage–ruler who governs in accordance with the guidelines provided by the ancient Daoist classic — Laozi. The exegetical literature on the Daoist classics produced by Huizong and his subordinates was intended to substantiate this picture and to spread among the literati elite the emperor’s vision of a state ideology unified under Daoist guidance.

One of the common traits ancient speculative Daoist texts share is their aversion to a society based on Confucian morals. The Liezi’s anecdote about Huazi has often been cited as prime example for this attitude and its inherent yearning for a return to the Dao. Remarkably, one of the most radical interpretations of this passage was authored by a high-ranking member of the Northern Song imperial court. Combining references to other classics with Buddhist concepts and terminology to expound a mysticism rooted in the Daoist tradition, Fan Zhixu’s 范致虛 (?–1129) commentary is not only a masterpiece of exegetical literature, but also provides valuable insights into the unique intellectual atmosphere at and around Emperor Huizong’s court. This case study serves as introduction to Fan’s forgotten work and simultaneously to a widely neglected set of sources regarding the religio-political developments during Huizong’s controversial reign.

The early Chinese text Liezi 列子 claims that you have to modify your perceptive faculties in order to unify your full shen 神 (" spirit ") and become a zhi ren 至人– an " utmost human " , able to get in touch with the primordial cosmic forces, and endowed with special skills and properties. The idea that the proper adjustment of your perception leads to this state is deeply rooted within the Liezi's view on the evolution of the cosmic and social order. In fact, the work describes the gradual modification of the perceptive process in a way that it is possible to juxtapose it with the cosmogony expounded in its first chapter. The aim of this paper is thus to analyse these processes, clarify how they are related to each other and explore what it ultimately means to become an " utmost human ". In the end it becomes clear that only the complete obliteration of perception, including the xin 心 (" heart ") as its main actor, makes the " utmost human " able to become one with the primordial forces and gain their powers.