Environmental Philosophy and East Asia Nature, Time, Responsibility Edited by Hiroshi Abe, Matthias Fritsch and Mario Wenning First published 2023 by Routledge 4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge 605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2023 selection and editorial matter, Hiroshi Abe, Matthias Fritsch, and Mario Wenning; individual chapters, the contributors The right of Hiroshi Abe, Matthias Fritsch, and Mario Wenning to be identified as the authors of the editorial material, and of the authors for their individual chapters, has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. 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British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A catalog record for this book has been requested ISBN: 978-1-032-10780-6 (hbk) ISBN: 978-1-032-10835-3 (pbk) ISBN: 978-1-003-21730-5 (ebk) DOI: 10.4324/9781003217305 Typeset in Bembo by Apex CoVantage, LLC 1 The role of Nature in the Huang-Lao silk texts David Chai Introduction In an earlier work of mine,1 I argued that classical Daoism (i.e., Daodejing 道德 經, Zhuangzi 莊子, Liezi 列子) does not view Nature as a remote or distinct aspect of reality but one that is connected to the mystery of the Dao, the cosmogonic one, and the fourfold of the Dao, heaven, earth, and humanity. The Huang-Lao silk texts (Huang-Lao Boshu 黃老帛書) that were discovered in a cache of works unearthed in tomb 3 at Mawangdui 馬王堆 (Changsha, China) from 1972 to 19742 differ from those of classical Daoism in many regards, but perhaps the most notable aspect is that the notion of mystery common to the Daodejing and Zhuangzi is replaced by the constancy of the Dao and heaven. Additionally, Nature is now spoken of in explicit terms, unlike the generalities seen in the works by Laozi and Zhuangzi, such that its cycles, processes, patterns, and standards become the guiding principle for the conduct and governance of human society. This last aspect has led a number of scholars to classify the Huang-Lao silk texts as Legalist in bearing.3 However, as Tu Weiming points out, “characterizing the Huangdi texts as Legalist documents is as misleading as referring to the Laozi as a military book” (Tu 1979, 107). We can also agree with Tu when he writes: Huang-Lao contains several apparently unrelated but actually fully integrated philosophical concepts: a cosmological vision of the Dao as the primordial source of inspiration; an administrative technique, based on the principle and model of the naturalness of Dao; a concern for the cultivation of penetrating insight, so that a king could reign without imposing his limited, selfcentred view on the order of things originally manifested in nature; and the necessity of attaining a kind of dynamic balancing in order to ensure a steady flow, as it were, of the political system as a mirror image of the cosmos. (Tu 1979, 108) What is lacking in Tu Weiming’s assessment, and in subsequent studies by Anglophone scholars, is a sustained examination of the character and operation of Nature itself. It is true that the silk texts not only advise the ruler DOI: 10.4324/9781003217305-3 20 David Chai how to govern according to the principles of Nature, but they also reveal a veneration and knowledge of Nature that is used to quell human ambition in order to return the world to a state of unity. By showing what Nature meant for the author(s) of the silk texts, this chapter will argue that their injecting it with more realist terminology does not violate the spirit of Daoism; rather, it was a necessary evolution from the more fantastical writings of earlier figures to ensure Daoism’s continued existence into the Han dynasty and beyond. Nature in pre-Qin Daoism Before we begin our examination of Huang-Lao’s portrayal of Nature, a brief recap of the classical understanding is in order. I will not recount all of the scholarly discussions that have occurred over the past two decades;4 rather, I will merely outline the arguments I made in my earlier work. First and foremost, scholars writing about Nature in the Daodejing and Zhuangzi tend to utilise a handful of descriptions: ziran 自然 (naturalness), wuwei 無爲 (nonaction), and tiandi 天地 (heaven and earth). The problem with these terms is that they are motivated by our human perspective and are thus unidirectional. This is why scholars writing about the classical Daoist vision of Nature extract from it an ethical bearing, a socio-political model of governance, and a beauty of sublime magnitude, but little else. The reason, I argued in my earlier work, is that these scholars were unable to transcend the heaven-earth dyad and explore the vast universe that the Dao takes as its abode. In other words, Nature has been consistently regarded as a realm bound to humanity’s awareness of it, regardless of whether we envision ourselves to be within or beyond it: The truth of Nature, as both an abstract concept and as the objective material of heaven and earth, is that it is so much more than a descriptive state of reality: it is an emotionally aesthetic plenum in which the great variety of life buzzes and whizzes past in a never-ending stream of vitality, struggle, and decline. Nature is the anthropocentric materialization of Dao’s nonanthropocentric potentiality, a totality that is in constant flux and yet, it never loses its balance or harmony. The truth of Nature is that it does not need the likes of humanity to persist and indeed, it has become ever more distant from Dao because of us, but this does not mean that Nature is sick and in need of curing. (Chai 2016, 266) We can lend credence to this interpretation by citing a passage from chapter 31 of the Zhuangzi: The Truth is that which is received from heaven. By nature it is the way it is and cannot be changed. Therefore the sage patterns himself on Heaven, prizes the Truth, and does not allow himself to be cramped by the vulgar. Role of Nature in the Huang-Lao silk texts 21 The stupid man does the opposite of this. He is unable to pattern himself on Heaven and instead frets over human concerns. He does not know enough to prize the Truth, but instead, plodding along with the crowd, he allows himself to be changed by vulgar ways and so is never content. 真者，所以受於天也，自然不可易也。故聖人法天貴真，不拘於 俗。愚者反此，不能法天而恤於人，不知貴真，祿祿而受變於俗， 故不足. (Watson 2013, 276; Guo 1997, 1032) In order to harmonise with Nature, Zhuangzi says, we must first harmonise with the Dao, and in order to do that, we must optimise our knowledge of both its mystery and its oneness with the cosmos. The mutual dependency between the things of the world and the world itself, and between the world and that which extends beyond it, was laid out by Laozi in chapter 25 of the Daodejing. When applied to the concept of Nature, we can say that man dwells in Nature but depends on the earth for sustenance, while heaven nourishes the earth and together, they are borne of Dao. This is the [Daoist] fourfold; a mystery of conjoining, becoming, and flourishing whose propensity for quiescent tranquillity guarantees that one element will never usurp the others. (Chai 2016, 271) Dao’s embeddedness in the world thus acts as the source of its own naturalness and is why it is taken as the epitome of what we refer to as Nature. Nature in the silk texts Mirroring the Daoism of Laozi and Zhuangzi, the Huang-Lao silk texts view Dao to be the proper way (zheng dao 正道) of the universe: “The way, therefore, in which he who grasps the Dao observes the world . . . sees the correct Dao and accords with the principles 故執道者之觀於天下也，見正道循理” (Yates 1997, 101; Chen 1995, 245). From this simple statement, we can see that following the ordering principle of the Dao provides us with a comprehensive vision of the world. According to Randall Peerenboom, the author(s) of the silk texts advocated a naturalism that was heavily imitative (Peerenboom 1993, 30) and correspondence based (Peerenboom 1993, 32), and thus can be depicted as a form of foundational naturalism (Peerenboom 1993, 38). These descriptions might be true of the texts as a whole, but they are too restrictive when applied to the silk texts’ understanding of Nature. One must remember that Daoism is not about imitating Nature because of what it is, does, or represents; rather, as was argued in my earlier work, Nature is but one of several realms in which the Dao is imbued in things and so the more closely we observe Nature, the more we will be able to harmonise with the Dao. 22 David Chai Unlike classical Daoism, Huang-Lao employs a fair number of technical terms and phrases to explain the Dao’s ordering principle (li 理). What is interesting is that a fair number of them use the concept of heaven (tian 天) and time (shi 時). In the case of the former, we see: “participate in heaven’s ordering of things” (can yi tiandang 參以天當), “strive for heaven’s natural ordering” (zhong tianli 中天理), “abide by heaven’s constancy” (xun tianchang 循天常), “accord with heaven” (yin tian 因天), and “exhaust heaven’s limit” ( jin tianji 盡天極). In the case of temporality, we find: “adhere to the four seasons” (shun sishi 順四時), “follow heavenly time” (yin tianshi 因天時), and “accord with time” (yin shi 因時). When it comes to abiding by the Dao or the ways of Nature, the silk texts say: “adhere to the Dao” (shun dao 順道), “grasp the Dao” (zhi dao 執道), “adhere to natural ordering” (shun li 順理), and “examine names and natural ordering” (cha mingli 察名理). However, individuals who do not do so are said to: “turn their backs on heavenly Dao” (bei tian zhi dao 倍天之道), “lose the Dao” (shi dao 失道), “lose natural ordering” (shi li 失理), “disobey natural ordering” (ni li 逆理), and “disobey forms” (ni xing 逆形). We can classify the above using five broad terms: models (fa 法), measures (du 度), patterns (ze 則), natural orderings (li 理), and forms and names (xingming 形名). The aforementioned terms are not unique to Huang-Lao but are derived from the Daodejing and Zhuangzi. Here are a few examples: Man takes his models from earth; earth takes its models from heaven; heaven takes its models from the Dao; and the Dao takes its models from the Natural. 人法地，地法天，天法道，道法自然. (Lynn 1999, 96; Lou 2009, 64) Heaven and earth have their great beauties but do not speak of them; the four seasons have their clear-marked regularity but do not discuss it; the ten thousand things have their principles of growth but do not expound them. 天地有大美而不言，四時有明法而不議，萬物有成理而不說. (Watson 2013, 178; Guo 1997, 735) Above, it takes its model from the roundness of heaven, following along with the three luminous bodies of the sky. Below, it takes its model from the squareness of earth, following along with the four seasons. In the middle realm, it brings harmony to the wills of the people and peace to the four directions. 上法圓天以順三光，下法方地以順四時，中和民意以安四鄉. (Watson 2013, 269; Guo 1997, 1022) Rites and laws, weights and measures, the careful comparison of forms and names—the men of old had all these. They are the means by which those Role of Nature in the Huang-Lao silk texts 23 below serve those above, not the means by which those above shepherd those below. 禮法度數，形名比詳，古人有之，此下之所以事上，非上之所以畜 下也. (Watson 2013, 103; Guo 1997, 473) Perfect music must first respond to the needs of man, accord with the reason of heaven, proceed by the five virtues, and blend with spontaneity; only then can it bring order to the four seasons and bestow a final harmony on the ten thousand things. 夫至樂者，先應之以人事，順之以天理，行之以五德，應之以 自然，然後調理四時，太和萬物. (Watson 2013, 110; Guo 1997, 502) When put into the language of Huang-Lao, we are told: “Heaven holds the One, brightens [the Three and determines] the Two, establishes the Eight Regulators, puts into practice the Seven Models 天執一，明三，定二，建 八正，行七法” (Yates 1997, 81; Chen 1995, 180). If we unpack this numerological cosmology, the number one refers to the Dao, the number two refers to the Dao’s darkness and brightness (i.e., Yin and Yang), the number three indicates the heavenly bodies (i.e., sun, moon, and stars), the number seven stands for the properties of the three heavenly bodies, while the number eight signifies the regulators of the temporal and spatial nature of the seven models. The seven models are explained thusly: Heaven holds the One and uses it to brighten the Three. That the sun faithfully emerges and faithfully reenters and that North and South have poles [are the epitomes of measures. That the moon faithfully grows and faithfully] dies, that advance and retreat have constancy, are the epitomes of enumeration. That the serried stars have number, but do not lose their ranks, is the epitome of faithfulness. 天執一以明三，日信出信入，南北有極，度之稽也。月信生信死， 進退有常，數之稽也。列星有數，而不失其行，信之稽也. (Yates 1997, 81; Chen 1995, 180–81) Regarding the eight regulators, we are told that: If heaven brightens the Three in order to determine the Two, then one will be dark and the other bright . . . If [heaven] determines the Two in order to establish the Eight Regulators, then the four seasons have regularities, movement and quiescence have their positions, and outside and inside have their locations. 天明三以定二，則壹晦壹明，壹陰壹陽，壹短壹長。天定二以建八 正，則四時有度， 動靜有立，而外內有處. (Yates 1997, 81–82; Chen 1995, 181) 24 David Chai Knowing that the four seasons obtain their measure (du 度) as a result of the eight regulators and seven models, the only numbers missing from the cosmological development of Nature are five and six. Within the silk texts, the Canons ( Jing 經) contains a chapter entitled “five regulators” (wu zheng 五正) which states: “When the Five Regulators have been published, use them to supervise the Five Brightnesses 五正既布，以司五明” (Yates 1997, 113; Chen 1995, 292). What these regulators are is not specified. However, if we consult chapter 8 (du wan 度萬) of the Heguanzi 鶡冠子, they are listed as: transformation of spirit (shen hua 神化), governance by ministries ( guan zhi 管治), governance by instruction ( jiao zhi 敎治), governing by accordance (yin zhi 因治), and governance by affairs (shi zhi 事治). Regarding the number six, the “discourse” (lun 論) section of the Canonical Models ( Jingfa 經法) text speaks of “six handles” (liu bing 六柄): observation ( guan 觀), discourse (lun 論), movement (dong 動), revolution (zhuan 轉), change (bian 變), and transformation (hua 化). The first pair belongs to the sage ruler, the second pair is the domain of heaven, while the final pair is ascribed to earth and the myriad things that inhabit it. To grasp the ordering principle of the Dao thus requires mastering the six handles. In light of the Dao’s undifferentiated wholeness, its harmony with the cosmos cannot be disrupted. The same cannot be said, however, for humanity’s relationship with heaven. Rather than merely imitating heaven and emptily repeating its cyclical patterns, one should mirror the virtue of heaven, making it one’s own. In the eyes of the silk texts’ author(s), there is no one whose need to do this is greater than the ruler. By governing their domain as heaven governs the earth, the Daoist ruler assimilates the human and natural realms into an indistinguishable unity of cooperation and mutual benefit. Taking heaven qua Nature as its guide, the silk texts argue: That the four seasons have regularities is the principle of heaven and earth. That the sun, moon, stars, and constellations have number is the main thread of heaven and earth. That three seasons are for coming to completion and achievement and one season is for punishment and killing is the Dao of heaven and earth. The four seasons are timely and fixed, they do not fail and do not err. They constantly have their laws and models. 四時有度，天地之理也。日月星晨有數，天地之紀也。三時成功， －時刑殺，天地之道也。四時而定，不爽不忒，常有法式. (Yates 1997, 95; Chen 1995, 222) It should be apparent by now that Nature operates independently of human society. This is not to say that human beings are excluded from natural processes and chains of influence; rather, we live in blindness to their presence, resulting in our confusion and suffering. Perhaps Huang-Lao’s view is too critical of human failings, an attitude first pronounced by Laozi’s famous declaration in Chapter 5 that “heaven and earth are not benevolent and treat the myriad things as straw dogs 天地不仁，以萬物為芻狗” (Lynn 1999, 60; Lou 2009, 13). The author(s) of the silk texts also note that “heaven possesses brightness and does not grieve that the people are in darkness . . . earth has its [resources] Role of Nature in the Huang-Lao silk texts 25 and does not grieve that the people are poor 天有明而不憂民之晦也 . . . 地 有財而不憂民之貧也” (Yates 1997, 165; Chen 1995, 452). Such being the case, the norms of heaven preclude human consent and yet humans are very much subject to them. Whether it be the four seasons, the alternation of day and night, the beginning and ending of life, or the hardship and success things experience on a daily basis, the operation of heaven qua Nature is unfailing in its presence and measured in its action. The difference between the classical Daoist portrayal of Nature and what we have seen thus far in the Huang-Lao silk texts appears to be predominately rooted in the latter giving an expanded role to heaven while diminishing the input of the Dao found in the former. Take, for example, the following: Now earth possesses mountains and possesses marshes; it has black and white; it has beauty and ugliness. Earth makes abundant its potency and thereby is quiescent, and heaven corrects names and thereby is active. Quiescence and activity nourish each other; virtue and tyranny complete each other. If they both possess a name and share each other, then they are complete. When Yin and Yang are ready, things transform, change, and then are born. 夫地有山有澤，有黑有白，有美有惡。地俗德以靜，而天正名以 作。靜作相養，德虐相成。兩若有名，相與則成。陰陽備物，化變 乃生. (Yates 1997, 117; Chen 1995, 300) There is no mention of the Dao here, despite the presence of Yin and Yang. Indeed, in pre-Qin works such as the Zhuangzi, Yin and Yang never appear in the same sentence with Dao, only heaven and earth. In the Daodejing, Yin and Yang appear together only once in chapter 42, and their appearance is after the world had already been created. While Yin and Yang are connected to the cosmological milieu of the Dao, their creative power is felt in the realm of heaven and earth alone. When the silk texts thus speak of mountains and marshes, these are not merely examples of two different micro-worlds; they symbolise some of the various ways in which Yin and Yang are manifested: rock and water, high and low, dry and wet, thick and thin qi 氣, and so forth. What is more, black and white, beautiful and ugly, and so on, are also pairings derived from the Yin-Yang dyad. Taken together, they comprise the virtue of the earth, and because the earth passively receives the virtue of heaven, it remains silent. Heaven, on the other hand, models itself after the Dao; since the Dao’s disposition is to act spontaneously, the implication for all things on earth can be devastating. Thus, the Yang power of heaven is not isolated from that of Dao but is a necessary counter-balance to the Yin power of the earth. This system of mutual completion and self-transformation gives rise to life’s creation and demise. In this way, the movement and brightness of the sun and moon are reflected in the movement and brightness of the four seasons, and these are echoed in the unending changes things go through in their daily existence. This patterning of heaven and earth, and the changes occurring therein, is 26 David Chai neither arbitrary nor random but an embodiment of the oneness pervading the world before it was disrupted by humanity’s invention of names and moral standards: For the explanation of the One, examine into heaven and earth; for the principle of the One, apply it to all within the four seas. 一之解，察於天地。一之理，施於四海. (Yates 1997, 135; Chen 1995, 352) Additionally: Heaven is Yang and earth Yin . . . All that is Yang is modelled on heaven. Heaven values the correct . . . All that is Yin is modelled on earth. The potency [of ] earth is to be peaceful, gentle, correct, and quiescent. It settles the tally of softness first and is good at giving and not contending. This is the rule of earth and the tally of the female. 天陽地陰 . . . . . . 諸陽者法天，天貴正 . . . . . . 諸陰者法地，地之德 安徐正靜，柔節先定，善予不爭，此地之度而雌之節也. (Yates 1997, 167–69; Chen 1995, 464–65) What ties humanity to the natural world is not our ability to lord over it; on the contrary, Huang-Lao warns us of Nature’s indifference to our darkness and poverty. These are not literal attributes but, in accordance with pre-Qin Daoism, indicators of spiritual wantonness and separation from the way of the Dao. So long as we adhere to the ways of the Dao and follow its natural tendencies, our rootedness in the world will not be forsaken. Emulating the quiet simplicity of earth, we have only to be receptive to heaven’s activity. Knowing the constancy of the Dao, therefore, the temporal and spatial changes occurring around us on a daily basis will not be enough to block our access to its life-giving power: When each of the Seven Models matches its name, it is called a “thing.” When each thing [is fitted with the Dao], it is called “Principle.” Where Principle is situated, it is called [Compliance]. When some things do not fit with the Dao, it is called “Losing Principle.” Where Losing Principle is situated, it is called “Opposition.” If Opposition and Compliance each mandate themselves, then preservation and destruction, rise and decline can be known. 七法各當其名，謂之物。物個合於道者，謂之理。理之所在，謂之 順。物有不合於道者，謂之失理。失理之所在，謂之逆。逆順各有 命也，則存亡興壞可知也. (Yates 1997, 83; Chen 1995, 185) The term “disobey” (ni 逆) is used in two senses in the Huang-Lao silk texts: cosmologically, as in the aforementioned passage, and as an admonishment of Role of Nature in the Huang-Lao silk texts 27 the ethically-deprived ruler. The latter case is famously known via the HuangLao political doctrine of wenwu 文武 (civil-military). What is interesting to note, and which marks one of the more important advancements over pre-Qin Daoism, is that wenwu is also used to describe the behaviour of heaven and earth. Disobeying the ordering principle of heaven is thus no different from disobeying the social norms of one’s kingdom in that both work to weaken and fragment the harmonising power of the Dao. Just as Yin and Yang, heaven and earth, the sun and moon, and so on operate in tandem, the same is also true for ni and shun 順 (accordance): If movement and quiescence are not timely, and sowing and planting miss the appropriate factors of earth, [then] the Dao of [heaven] and earth is opposed. If ministers do not treat their lord affectionately, and inferiors do not treat their superiors affectionately, and if the hundred clans do not treat their affairs affectionately, then the principles internal to the state are opposed. The locus of opposition is called a “Dead State”: attack it. The reverse of this is called “compliance”; where [compliance] is situated is called a “Living State”: nourish a living state. If opposition and compliance have principles, then facts and falsehoods are meticulously. 動靜不時，種樹失地之宜，則天地之道逆矣。臣不親其主，下不親 其上，百族不親其事，則內理逆矣。逆之所在，謂之死國，伐之。 反此之謂順，順之所在，謂之生國，生國養之。逆順有理，則情偽 密矣. (Yates 1997, 85; Chen 1995, 196) The analogy being drawn here is that Nature is not solely to blame for the downfall of human society; if anything, Nature forewarns us of the impending violence, not in the moralistic way spoken of by Confucius or Mencius but via visible signs of imbalance between Yin and Yang. Without proper precaution, humanity tips the scales into the realm of excess. What is also apparent in the aforementioned passage is an almost proto-scientific approach to verifying natural phenomena, making it rather different from the onto-cosmology pervading pre-Qin Daoism. If there is one thing we need to bear in mind, it is that Nature is to be taken as the model for human life-praxis, governance, and cohabitation with all other sentient and non-sentient things. This explains why the sage plays such a critical role in safeguarding the balance between what humanity does to the world and what we do to each other in response to the unending challenges Nature puts before us: Heaven and earth have no private bias, the four seasons do not cease. Heaven and earth are positioned, and so the sage performs his tasks. Should he exceed the limit and fail to make [the correspondence between his actions and heaven and earth], heaven will send down calamity. Should man conquer heaven by force, take care to avoid and not face him. Should heaven in turn conquer man, follow and march with it. If you are bent in 28 David Chai front and stretched behind, you will inevitably reach the heavenly limit and not monopolize the heavenly success. 天地無私，四時不息。天地立，聖人故載。過極失當，天將降殃。 人強勝天，慎避勿當。天反勝人，因與俱行。先屈後信，必盡天 極，而毋擅天功. (Yates 1997, 57; Chen 1995, 84–85) While the aforementioned challenges are directed at keeping humanity in balance with heaven and earth on a moral level, they do nothing for humanity’s onto-cosmological bond. In other words, the Huang-Lao silk texts rightly call attention to the interconnectedness of heaven, earth, and humanity; however, as a work inspired by Daoism, it cannot overlook the centrality of the Dao. By embracing the Dao, the sage ruler makes the spirit of Nature his own and does not depart from it; by embodying the spirit of Nature, the sage ruler roots himself in the Dao and does not injure it. This is the natural holism of Daoism, as illustrated in the following passage: If he does not treat heaven as heaven, then he loses his spirituality; if he does not value earth, then he loses his roots. When he does not follow [the measures of the four seasons], the people suffer. If he does not fix the positions of inside and outside, and does not respond to the transformations of movement and quiescence, then affairs will be in disarray on the inside and his initiatives will be in disarray [on the outside. When the Eight] Corrections are all lost. . . [If he treats heaven as heaven, then he acquires his spirituality; if he values earth], then he gains his roots. When he follows the [regularities of the] four [seasons] . . . the people do not . . . suffer. If he [fixes the positions of the] outside [and inside, and responds to the transformations of movement and quiescence, then affairs] are achieved on the inside and initiatives are successful on the outside. 不天天則失其神。不重地則失根。不順四時之度而民疾。不處外內 之位，不應動靜之化，則事窘於內而舉窘於外。八正皆失，與天地 離。天天則得其神。重地則得其根。順四時之度而民不有疾。處外 內之位，應動靜之化，則事得於內而舉得於外. (Yates 1997, 81; Chen 1995, 177–78) Treating heaven and earth appropriately (or not) is not an attempt by the author(s) of the silk texts to coerce people into behaving unnaturally; on the contrary, the message is a consistent call to uphold the inherent oneness of the world by stripping away those normative values and systems of human society that weaken and ultimately destroy our ability to partake in the Dao’s unity. No matter if we are discussing the silk texts’ doctrine of statecraft, self-cultivation, or in the case of this chapter, Nature, the thread binding them together is the mystery of Dao. This mystery, as I argued in my earlier work, is but one of the three levels of reality within which Nature is realised (the others being the One-and-Many, and the fourfold). The Dao is hence the life conduit of the Role of Nature in the Huang-Lao silk texts 29 world, the root of all heavenly orderings and earthly measures, and is why the silk texts arrive at this penetrating conclusion regarding humanity’s dependency on the Dao: Now a hundred words have a basis, a thousand words have their essentials, and ten thousand [words] have their generalities. The multitude of the myriad phenomena all pass through a single hole. Now if he were not a Corrected Person, who could control them? He must be a Corrected Person! For then he is able to grasp hold of correction to correct the incorrect, to lay hold of the One and use it to know the many; to expel what is harmful to the people and support what is appropriate for them. In the total collectivity, he preserves the One and possesses the same ends as heaven and earth: then he can know the calamities and good fortune of heaven and earth. 夫百言有本，千言有要，萬言有總。萬物之多，皆閲－空。夫非正 人也，孰能治此？罷彼必正人也，乃能操正以正奇，握一以知多， 除民之所害，而持民之所宜。抱總凡守一，與天地同極，乃可以知 天地之禍福. (Yates 1997, 136; Chen 1995, 352) Huang-Lao’s contribution to the concept of Nature At the start of this chapter, I briefly recounted the primary arguments I offered in an earlier study for the need to revise current approaches to the Daoist concept of Nature. The result of overlooking the element of Dao’s mystery and the fact that Nature extends from the One to the many, and of ignoring the participation of nothingness, is that the fourfold of Dao, heaven, earth, and humanity ceases to be a unity, and this in turn gives rise to a stunted vision of Nature’s breadth and depth. Although classical Daoists such as Laozi and Zhuangzi offered a remarkable picture of the natural world, their vision lacks the descriptive detail of the silk texts. Furthermore, whereas the classical account of Nature seems fantastical at times, that of the silk texts is staid and uninspiring. The Huang-Lao author(s) merely provide information of the pragmatic sort, resulting in a text—perhaps a symptom of its time—that lacks the spiritual enrichment found in earlier works. Be that as it may, and even though the silk texts were never designed to be doctrinal works on Nature, they nevertheless contribute to our understanding in five ways. First and foremost, the silk texts restructure the classical cosmology of Dao, non-being, and being into Dao, Yin and Yang, and the heavenly bodies of sun, moon, and stars. As mentioned earlier, Yin and Yang are absent in the Daodejing and they do not appear alongside Dao in the Zhuangzi, although their connection is intimated. That the silk texts establish a direct correlation between them is a notable feature: 30 David Chai Heaven and earth, Yin and Yang, the [four] seasons, the sun and moon, the planets and constellations and cloudy vapors, the wrigglers that walk and the crawlers that move, and the plants that grow roots, all take their life from the Dao but they do not decrease it. They all return to the Dao but they do not increase it. 天地陰陽，四時日月，星辰雲氣，蚑行蟯動，戴根之徒，皆取生， 道弗爲益少；皆反焉，道弗為益. (Yates 1997, 175; Chen 1995, 474) What the aforementioned passage and those cited earlier also indicate is a more intimate familiarity with the heavenly bodies than what is seen in earlier works. Once again, the Daodejing cannot be a source as it lacks the words “stars” (xingchen 星辰) and “moon” (yue 月); while it uses the word “sun” (ri 日), it is taken in the temporal sense of “day.” Turning to the Zhuangzi, the situation is reversed: not only do all three terms appear together, but they are also used in the same cosmological sense as those appearing in the silk texts, as the following passages illustrate: Heaven and earth hold fast to their constant ways, the sun and moon to their brightness, the stars and planets to their ranks. 則天地固有常矣，日月固有明矣，星辰固有列矣. (Watson 2013, 104; Guo 1997, 479) Therefore the ghosts and spirits kept to their darkness, and the sun, moon, stars, and constellations marched in their orbits. 是故鬼神守其幽，日月星辰行其紀. (Watson 2013, 110; Guo 1997, 504) I will have heaven and earth for my coffin and coffin shell, the sun and moon for my pair of jade disks, the stars and constellations for my pearls and beads, and the ten thousand things for my parting gifts. 吾以天地為棺槨，以日月為連璧，星辰為珠璣，萬物為齎送. (Watson 2013, 286; Guo 1997, 1063) The author(s) of the silk texts, having surely read these quotations, took the Zhuangzi’s allegorical adoption of the heavenly bodies and repackaged them into a literal model of natural patterning for the purposes of statecraft. In other words, the Zhuangzi used the sun, moon, and stars as metaphors for the Dao’s ubiquity and embeddedness in the myriad things of the universe; however, the silk texts avoid language that might be misconstrued and so they concretise these other-worldly objects, linking their divine power directly to the moral virtue of the sage king. Seen from this cosmological perspective, Nature’s oneness comprises the two primal elements (Yin and Yang) and extends to the realm of the three heavenly bodies (sun, moon, and stars). These three levels of Nature are quite abstract and hard for ordinary people to comprehend; hence, Role of Nature in the Huang-Lao silk texts 31 the silk texts introduce the seven models and eight regulators for clarification. This is the second notable contribution of the Huang-Lao definition of Nature. The third aspect of the silk texts’ theory of Nature is its coinage of the “six handles.” The term bing 柄 appears only twice in the Zhuangzi and not at all in the Daodejing. The author(s) of the silk texts seem to have been inspired by the Heguanzi, particularly Chapter 5 (huanliu 環流) and its discussion of the upper three stars comprising the handle of the Big Dipper (doubing 斗柄) constellation. We might explain the logic of three stars becoming six handles in this way: humanity observes the stars in heaven from our abode on earth whereupon we discuss their nature and significance. The first two handles are thus the domain of the sage ruler, for he is the only person capable of expounding the profundity of the cosmos. The second pair of handles moves from discourses on the mysterious to their translation into maps of knowledge. With said maps in hand, the sage ruler studies the movements of these stars to predict their cycles and patterns of activity. With this knowledge, he can familiarise himself with the grand-scale details of the heavens in order to better appreciate the minute-scale events occurring on earth. With the third and final pair of handles, we can unite the macro and micro views of heaven and earth into a holistic system of change and transformation: holistic in that the adjustments things go through from their inception to their passing are continuous and concurrent manifestations of the Dao, which is why the silk texts ascribe them to the myriad things on earth. It must be noted that said ascribing does not exclude heaven, for as we just saw, the cycles and patterns of heavenly activity bear directly upon that of earth. In this way, heaven and earth qua Nature exist in a symbiotic relationship whereby the Yin of one affects the Yang of the other, and vice-versa. Without the ability to utilise all six handles simultaneously, the ordering principle of the Dao will forever be beyond one’s grasp. Thus, when the sage ruler gets hold of the first two handles, he cannot but also get hold of the other four; six handles come together as One, and such oneness is none other than the mystery of the Dao. To see the fourth advancement of the silk texts’ notion of Nature over that of classical Daoism, we can turn to the correlation between ordering principle and accordance. While classical Daoism frequently speaks of the models of heaven, earth, and Dao, the term “accordance” was used to describe a person’s behaviour, not in relation to these models, but in terms of whether it was in accordance with, or a violation of, social norms, one’s inborn nature, and so forth. The silk texts, however, do the opposite: the mark of a morally good person depends on whether or not they accord with the ordering principle of Nature. On this point, the silk texts might be understood as espousing a Confucian view of heaven, particularly as voiced in chapter 17 of the Xunzi 荀子, where people’s fortunes, both good and bad, are directly or indirectly subject to heaven’s will. Certainly, the silk texts’ language of accordance and disobedience contributes to this reading. However, to follow and resist the Dao is not to enact a moral claim but, rather, to be aligned with the notion of naturalness (ziran 自然). When things disobey the Dao, they are obeying artificial lines of knowledge and behaviour designed to manipulate and suppress natural models of living. To accord with Nature is to harmonise with it, 32 David Chai to partake in its oneness such that humanity no longer views itself as being beyond its processes. Huang-Lao recognised the operation of natural laws in the universe and argued that human laws must emulate them if we are to maintain a relationship of equanimity with our surroundings. To persist selfishly, however, is to lose the ordering principle of Nature in that either we no longer accommodate ourselves to the changes occurring in the world and the reciprocity of said changes, or we are unknowing participants in nearly all of them. And so, to embrace the ideas that to accord with Nature is to receive its nourishment, and that to work to undermine its inherent network of self-sustainability will result in its ruin, is to embrace the doctrines that are worked on by the sage and disseminated to the people of the world. The fifth development of the silk texts concerns the sage. In a notable recasting of the sage’s role in the world, the silk texts hold him personally responsible for the well-being of state and people alike. Classical Daoism vehemently argues that the sage should abstain from politics and hide himself from those who would take advantage of his extraordinary knowledge of the world and its inhabitants. It would seem—again due to the influence of Confucianism, and perhaps Legalism—that the passivity of the classical Daoist sage is no longer sufficient for the author(s) of the silk texts, hence he was given a more active role in the world. Indeed, the Daoist sage has a vested interest in seeing the widespread adoption of his values. However, these values are not ethically or politically motivated but are rooted in a cosmological holism that abrogates human-centric approaches to living in the world. Owing to this, the sage of the silk texts follows that of the earlier classical works in adhering to the thread of the Dao that weaves itself through the temporal, spatial, and physical constitution of heaven, earth, and the myriad things therein. Taking the aforementioned five points into consideration, what conclusions are we to draw about the Huang-Lao conceptualisation of Nature compared to that put forward by Laozi and Zhuangzi? Is the Huang-Lao call for humanity to be more actively invested in the natural world a step in the right or the wrong direction? By stripping Nature of its own mysteriousness, does Huang-Lao not run the risk of removing the only element beyond human manipulation? These are all legitimate questions, but we must bear in mind that Chinese philosophy does not grow in isolated bubbles; it builds upon and modifies the ideas and arguments of previous generations of thinkers. Thus, for Huang-Lao to establish its relevancy, it could not appropriate the words of classical figures unaltered; similarly, appropriating classical Daoist terminology would not excuse the author(s) of the silk texts for misrepresenting the original intention of these foundation texts. What our study reveals is a body of work striving to satisfy two needs: the social-political and the spiritual-philosophical. The Legalist component of the texts, which we did not discuss, covers the former, while the Daoist component addresses the latter. One must ask, however, in what way does this two-pronged approach benefit Nature? We see numerology at play with the six handles, seven models, and eight regulators, but does this help us to better appreciate the natural phenomena of the world? In a way, yes. Knowing the regularities of the heavenly bodies, the interplay between Yin and Yang, and heaven and earth, and knowing that disrupting the balance and harmony between them Role of Nature in the Huang-Lao silk texts 33 will inevitably result in disaster—how can such knowledge fail to educate the people and reform their ill-gotten ways? To lose the ordering principle of the Dao is the worst thing that can happen to humanity. For Huang-Lao, recognition of this entails several smaller ordering principles, as opposed to the classical period’s singular, and some might say, ungraspable doctrine of Dao. Doing so not only offers us a more palatable solution, it situates the operation of Nature on a level that does not make ordinary people feel insignificant and hopeless. Holding the ruler personally responsible for the well-being of his state and its citizens, the Huang-Lao texts give Daoism an air of personalism it was previously reluctant to reveal. Whereas the classical texts found the idea that the fate of the world lies in the hands of the ruler abhorrent, the author(s) of the silk texts dress this ruler qua sage in Confucian garb, making him the world’s teacher. This might prove beneficial to human society, but, surely, it would be of no real service to Nature. True, the sage has conjoined in oneness with the natural world and fully embodies the principles grounding its cycles and patterns; however, living in harmony with our surroundings is a collective activity and should not fall to the sage alone to guide the rest of us on how to rid our lives of material wantonness and intellectual blindness. On this point, the silk texts come up short compared to the classical argument that the sage never openly leads others but remains in the shadows, never purposely advises others but allows them to reach decisions on their terms. Conclusion Overall, the Huang-Lao silk texts succeed in continuing the classical Daoist vision of a natural world in which humanity is utterly at the mercy of heaven and earth. By laying bare the variegated components that comprise what we call Nature, the Huang-Lao author(s) were not purposively trying to de-naturalise it by associating its regulatory movements, and the repercussions of disrupting them, with human laws; rather, it appears to be a conscious effort to demonstrate the fact that human and animal societies are no different when seen from the collective perspective of the Dao. To repeat the line quoted at the beginning of this chapter, “in grasping the Dao one observes the world, sees the proper Dao, and abides by its ordering principle.” The proper Dao spoken of here is not the Dao of humanity but that of a universe in which humanity occupies only a tiny part. Although the silk texts paint a highly detailed picture of the universe, its depth can be completely contained in a simple circle, one that is both literal and metaphorical. We have the wholeness of the One, the primal elements of Yin and Yang (two), the sun, moon, and stars (three), the four seasons, five regulators, six handles, seven models, and eight regulators. From the One, we proceed to eight, but eight takes us back to the One. Amongst these stages of transformation and growth, wherein lies humanity? The case could be made that we exist at the level of the five regulators and six handles; however, we are powerless to affect them in that the remaining levels belong to the domain of the Dao. In other words, our position in the cosmic hierarchy of things is smack-dab in the middle. There are events and processes preceding our 34 David Chai existence that we can do nothing about, and there are events and processes that occur after our existence that we are likewise unable to alter. The lesson to be learned, Huang-Lao would say, is no different from that of classical Daoism: embrace the ordering principle of the world and follow along with its changes. How can anyone argue with this? Notes 1 See Chai 2016. 2 The silk texts, whose authorship is unknown, are estimated to have been written in the middle to late Warring States period (the owner of the tomb in which they were found, Li Cang 利蒼, died in 168 BCE). Their titles are as follows: Jingfa 經法 (Canonical Models), Jing 經 (The Canon), Cheng 稱 (Designators), and Daoyuan 道原 (Original Dao). 3 Given that this chapter is devoted to the silk texts’ concept of Nature, their historicity and connection to Legalism will not be discussed. The reader is encouraged to consult the following works: Chang and Yu 1998; Chen and Sung 2015; Chen 2008; Feng 2017; Peerenboom 1993; Tu 1979. 4 See Chai 2016, 259n2 for a list. 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