A Deep Study of Xunzi's 'Jie Pi' Chapter: On the Cognitive Foundations of the Mind—Emptiness, Unity, and Tranquility
This paper provides an in-depth analysis of the core proposition in Xunzi's 'Jie Pi' concerning the nature of cognition: 'How does man know$41 By the mind. How does the mind know$42 By being empty, unified, and tranquil.' It systematically interprets the dialectical relationship and philosophical implications of 'emptiness' (xu), 'unity' (yi), and 'tranquility' (jing) in cognition, tracing their ancient intellectual origins to reveal the systematicity and sophistication of Pre-Qin cognitive theory.
Section 6: "Weaving Heaven and Earth and assigning offices to the myriad things"
"Weaving Heaven and Earth and assigning offices to the myriad things, dividing and cutting the Great Principles, the universe is brought within."
This passage describes the highest state of governance: organizing all things between Heaven and Earth with warp and weft, and encompassing the entire cosmos by dividing and cutting the Principles of the Great Dao.
"Warp and weft" (jing wei 经纬)—warp is the vertical line, weft is the horizontal line. When woven together, they form a complete fabric. Organizing Heaven and Earth with warp and weft means establishing a comprehensive system of governance that covers everything vertically and horizontally.
"Assigning offices to the myriad things" (cai guan wan wu 材官万物)—letting everything attain its material potential (cai) and occupy its proper office (guan). This is the goal of governance—people utilizing their talents, things being used to their fullest, and everything in its proper place.
"Dividing and cutting the Great Principles" (zhi ge da li 制割大理)—selecting applicable principles from the Great Dao. The Dao is infinite, but specific governance requires selecting the principles most suitable for the current situation.
"The universe is brought within" (yu zhou li yi 宇宙里矣)—the entire cosmos is brought into orderly governance. Li here means principle. The universe is permeated by Li; everything is orderly.
What a magnificent vision of governance! It implies that a ruler who has attained the state of "Great Clarity and Brightness" can not only govern a state but also understand and manage the order of the entire cosmos.
Of course, the "cosmos" here should not be understood in the modern astronomical sense, but as the pre-Qin concept encompassing "up and down, four directions" (yu 宇) and "past and present" (zhou 宙)—everything in the entire spatio-temporal continuum. If the ruler can grasp the fundamental principles governing all these things, it can be said that he has "divided and cut the Great Principles, and the universe is brought within."