A Dialectical Analysis of the Tripartite Qualities of 'Dao' in the Guanzi: Intricacy, Expansion, and Solidity
This paper provides an in-depth interpretation of the opening discourse on 'Dao' in the *Guanzi: Neiye*, analyzing the connotations and dialectical unity of its tripartite qualities: 'intricacy necessitates density, expansion necessitates ease, and solidity necessitates firmness.' It further explores their significance for self-cultivation and mental governance within the context of Pre-Qin and ancient thought.
III. "Once you know its extremity, return to the Dao and De." (既知其极，反于道德)
These two phrases are crucial. "Ji" (极) means the ultimate, the extreme, the fundamental. "Fan" (反) means to return or revert. "Dao and De" (道德) here does not refer to the ethical morality of later ages but is a combined term for Dao and De—Dao is the ultimate ground of all things, and De is the specific manifestation of Dao within the individual (what is obtained from the Dao is called De).
"Once you know its extremity, return to the Dao and De" means: once you recognize the ultimate fundamental nature of things, you must return to the Dao and De.
The "extremity" and "return" here form an important mode of thinking—knowing the extremity and returning. This is a recurring theme in pre-Qin thought:
Laozi, Chapter Twenty-Five: "Greatness proceeds, proceeds afar, afar means returning." The operation of the Dao is "returning"—things reach their extreme and then reverse; they proceed far and then return.
I Ching, "Commentary on the Hexagram Fu" (復卦·彖傳): "They repeatedly turn their Way; after seven days they return. This is the movement of Heaven." "Fu" (復) means "return"; the movement of the Dao of Heaven is a continuous process of returning.
Guanzi, Xinshu Shang: "Empty your desires, and the Shen will come to dwell. Sweep away impurity, and the Shen will then remain." The practice of cultivating the Dao is also a process of "returning"—from external disturbances back to internal emptiness and stillness.
Therefore, "Once you know its extremity, return to the Dao and De" is both an epistemological proposition (recognizing the ultimate fundamental) and a practical proposition (returning to Dao and De cultivation). Knowing and acting are unified here.