Xunzi's 'Jie Bi' (Unveiling Concealment): On the Wholeness of the Dao, Cognitive Limitation, and the Fortune of Being Unobstructed

Section 2: What is "Unaware of Culture" (Bu Zhi Wen)$33—The Multiple Meanings of "Wen" (文)

Master Xunzi criticized Master Mozi for being "unaware of Culture" (bu zhi wen). What does "Wen" mean here$34

The character "Wen" (文) has extremely rich meanings in the pre-Qin context, encompassing at least the following layers:

First, "Wen" as Pattern or Ornamentation. The earliest oracle bone script for "Wen" resembles a person with tattoos on the chest. Early ancestors valued tattoos, and the patterns and colors were "Wen." By extension, anything with texture, pattern, or adornment could be called "Wen." This contrasts with "Substance" (Zhi, 质)—the plain, unadorned essence. The Analects, "Yong Ye" (雍也), quotes Confucius: "If substance prevails over culture, one becomes rustic; if culture prevails over substance, one becomes a scribe. Only when culture and substance are blended harmoniously does one become a gentleman." (Zhi sheng wen ze ye, wen sheng zhi ze shi. Wen zhi bin bin, ran hou junzi.) Here, "Wen" refers to external refinement and cultivation.

Second, "Wen" as Culture or Education/Transformation. The Zhou dynasty highly valued rites and music for moral cultivation (Li Yue Jiao Hua, 礼乐教化), and the concrete manifestations of this system—rituals, music, clothing, vessels, hierarchical order—were all expressions of "Wen." The I Ching, Bi Gua (贲卦, Adornment), Commentary on the Judgment (Tuan Zhuan), distinguishes: "When hard and soft intermingle, that is the pattern of Heaven (Tian Wen); when culture shines forth to restrain, that is the pattern of Man (Ren Wen). By observing the pattern of Heaven, one discerns the changes of the times; by observing the pattern of Man, one transforms the world." (Gang rou jiao chao, tian wen ye; wen ming yi zhi, ren wen ye. Guan yu tian wen, yi cha shi bian; guan yu ren wen, yi hua cheng tianxia.) This clearly distinguishes "Heavenly Patterns" (natural order) from "Human Patterns" (social and cultural order), stating that the function of "Human Patterns" is "to transform the world" (hua cheng tianxia)—to educate the world through culture and achieve social harmony.

Third, "Wen" as Elegance or Grace. The Zuo Zhuan, in the 25th year of Duke Xiang, records Zichan’s words: "If speech lacks elegance, it will not travel far." (言之无文，行而不远。) Here, "Wen" refers to the aesthetic appeal and persuasive force of language.

Fourth, "Wen" as Ritual Protocol or Documents. "Wen" also specifically refers to concrete ritual institutions and written records. The Duke of Zhou established rites and music, creating a complete social order whose specific form was "Wen." Master Confucius exclaimed: "The Zhou inspected the deeds of the two preceding dynasties; how abundantly cultured they were! I follow the Zhou." (Analects, Ba Yi) This "Wen" refers to the beauty of the Zhou system of rites and music.

Synthesizing these meanings, Master Xunzi’s critique that Master Mozi was "unaware of Culture" includes several criticisms:

First, Master Mozi did not understand the value of external adornment. In his view, any adornment not directly serving practical function was waste. However, "Wen" as ornamentation derives its value not from utility but from aesthetics and symbolism—it expresses humanity's pursuit of beauty, identification of status, and construction of order. These values cannot be measured by "useful or useless."

Second, Master Mozi failed to grasp the profound significance of the moral cultivation through rites and music. While the direct function of rites and music may not be as obvious as food, clothing, shelter, and travel, their indirect functions—cohering society, cultivating character, maintaining order, transmitting civilization—are indispensable to any society. Master Mozi only saw the direct cost of rites and music (expenditure of resources) but ignored their indirect benefits (social cohesion).

Third, Master Mozi failed to understand that humans are not merely functional beings but also cultural beings. People live not only to satisfy basic needs but also to pursue beauty (aesthetic needs), goodness (moral needs), truth (cognitive needs), and transcendence (spiritual needs). A society that satisfies material needs but lacks cultural life is desolate and impoverished, regardless of material wealth.

Confucius offered a profound reflection on this point: The Analects, "Yang Huo" (阳货), records: "When the Master went to Wu Cheng, he heard the sound of stringed instruments and singing. The Master smiled and said, 'Why use an ox-slaughtering knife to kill a chicken$35' Ziyou replied, 'Formerly, I heard you, Master, say: When a gentleman studies the Dao, he loves others; when a petty man studies the Dao, he is easy to command.' The Master said, 'You three gentlemen, what Yàn said is correct. What I said before was only in jest.'" (子之武城，闻弦歌之声，夫子莞尔而笑曰：‘割鸡焉用牛刀？’子游对曰：‘昔者偃也闻诸夫子曰：君子学道则爱人，小人学道则易使也。’子曰：‘二三子，偃之言是也。前言戏之耳。’") This dialogue demonstrates that even in governing a small county, musical cultivation is important—a gentleman who studies the Dao loves others, while a petty man who studies the Dao is easily commanded. Music is not useless entertainment but a vital tool for cultivating the mind. Master Ziyou deeply understood Confucius’s teaching and governed Wu Cheng with strings and songs.

Furthermore, in the Analects, "Tai Bo" (泰伯), Confucius stated: "It begins with the Odes, is established by the Rites, and completed by Music." (Xing yu shi, li yu li, cheng yu yue.) These three sentences outline a complete path of character formation: emotional arousal from poetry, behavioral norms established by ritual, and personal completion through music. If music were abolished according to Master Mozi's doctrine of "Against Music," the final stage of character formation would be missing, and human spiritual development would be incomplete.