An Inquiry into the Core of Xunzi's 'On Rites': The Origin of Rites, Textual-Structural Logic, and the Way of Elevation and Reduction

Section 5 "The Former Kings detested this chaos, so they established Rites and Righteousness to differentiate among them": The Former Kings and the Creation of Rites

"The Former Kings detested this chaos, so they established Rites and Righteousness to differentiate among them." (Xian wang e qi luan ye, gu zhi li yi yi fen zhi.)

This sentence marks the turning point of the entire passage. The descent from "humans are born with desires" to "chaos leads to destitution" describes a downward trajectory from human nature to chaos; "The Former Kings detested this chaos" signals a reversal—the beginning of an upward trajectory from chaos toward order.

First, who are the "Former Kings" (Xian Wang)$1

In the discourse of pre-Qin Confucians, "Former Kings" usually refers to the Sage Kings of antiquity—Yao, Shun, Yu, Tang, Wen, and Wu. These Sage Kings are regarded as the creators of Rites and the founders of civilization. Master Xunzi says in the Fei Xiang (Against Physiognomy) chapter:

"The Sage measures others by himself. Thus, by measuring man by man, emotion by emotion, category by category, efficacy by utility, and the Dao by its ultimate extent, antiquity and the present are one. If categories do not contradict, the principle remains the same even over long periods."

The Sages understood human nature deeply—human desires, contention, and destitution—and thus could design rational institutions to respond to these problems.

However, in Xunzi’s usage, "Former Kings" may refer not only to specific historical figures but also to a theoretical concept: the "wisdom capable of creating Rites and Righteousness." Master Xunzi states in Xing’e:

"The Sages accumulated reflection and practiced artificial cultivation (wei), thereby generating Rites and Righteousness and establishing laws and standards. Therefore, Rites, Righteousness, laws, and standards are born from the artificiality (wei) of the Sages, not from human nature originally."

Rites, Righteousness, laws, and standards are created through "accumulated reflection and practiced artificial cultivation" (ji si lü, xi wei gu)—long-term thought and practice. They are not products of human natural disposition but achievements of human rational creation. Therefore, "Former Kings" here represents the "rational creators"—those capable of deeply observing the defects of human nature and designing appropriate solutions.

"Detested this chaos" (e qi luan ye)—The character e (恶) can mean "to detest" (wù), but it can also be understood more broadly as "to be concerned about"—the Former Kings not only disliked chaos but were deeply worried about its consequences. It was this concern that drove them to establish Rites and Righteousness.

"So they established Rites and Righteousness to differentiate among them" (gu zhi li yi yi fen zhi)—Here appear two key terms: "establish" (zhi) and "differentiate" (fen).

"Establish" (Zhi)—To create, to manufacture. This character is vital as it implies the artificial nature (ren wei xing) of Rites. Rites do not exist inherently but are artificially established. This aligns perfectly with the concept of wei (artificial effort) in Xunzi’s Xing’e theory—the natural state of humanity is chaos, and order is established through artificial effort—wei. Rites are the highest achievement of wei.

However, does "establish" (zhi) mean Rites were created entirely from scratch$2 Probably not. Although Xunzi emphasizes the artificial nature of Rites, he does not believe they are arbitrary. The establishment of Rites must conform to certain principles—ensuring that "desires do not exhaust material things, and material things are not subjugated by desires"—meaning the design of Rites must align with the balance between human desires and material resources. This balance is objective, not subjectively imagined by the Former Kings. Therefore, the "establishment" (zhi) by the Former Kings was less about "creation" and more about "discovery"—discovering the laws of balance between desire and resources and institutionalizing them.

"Differentiate among them" (Fen zhi)—The character fen here has a dual meaning. First, "to distinguish"—to classify people according to different standards, granting them different statuses, rights, and obligations. Second, "to distribute"—to allocate social resources according to certain standards, ensuring everyone receives their due share.

The Wang Zhi chapter provides a more detailed exposition of fen:

"When divisions are equal, there is no partiality; when status is equal, there is no obedience; when the masses are equal, there is no command. ... Two noble ones cannot serve each other, and two lowly ones cannot command each other—this is the decree of Heaven. When status and position are equal and desires/aversions are the same, if things cannot be moderated, contention will inevitably arise, leading to chaos, and chaos leads to destitution. The Former Kings detested this chaos, so they established Rites and Righteousness to differentiate among them, establishing degrees of rich and poor, noble and base, sufficient for mutual oversight—this is the foundation for nurturing the world."

"Division" (fen) is not the end goal but a means. Through "division," "harmony" (he) is achieved; through harmony, "unity" (yi) is achieved; through unity, "great strength" (duo li) is achieved. Everyone has their position, their function, their share—farmers have their fields, merchants their goods, artisans their tasks, officials their duties, lords their lands. Each stays in their place and performs their duty, and society becomes orderly.

This idea resonates with the Analects. In the Yan Yuan chapter, Master Kong’s response to Duke Jing of Qi’s inquiry about governance is:

"If the ruler is a ruler, the minister a minister, the father a father, and the son a son." (Jun jun, chen chen, fu fu, zi zi.)

"Ruler as ruler, minister as minister, etc."—everyone acts according to their station. This is the most concise expression of "division" (fen).

The Analects, Zi Lu chapter further emphasizes this:

Zi Lu asked, "If the ruler of Wei awaits your service to govern, what will you take as the first thing$3" The Master said, "It must be to rectify names (zheng ming)!" Zi Lu said, "Is that so$4 You are too idealistic! How should they be rectified$5" The Master said, "How uncultivated you are, You! A gentleman, concerning what he does not know, should take a reserved attitude. If names are not rectified, speech will not accord with the truth. If speech does not accord with the truth, affairs cannot be carried to completion. If affairs cannot be carried to completion, rites and music will not flourish. If rites and music do not flourish, punishments and penalties will not be appropriate. If punishments and penalties are not appropriate, the people will not know where to put their hands and feet. Therefore, a gentleman’s names must be such that they can be spoken, and what is spoken must be practicable."

Master Kong believed the primary task of governance is "rectifying names" (zheng ming)—ensuring names match realities. If names are confused (ming fen luan le), speech does not flow smoothly; if speech does not flow smoothly, affairs cannot be completed; if affairs are not completed, Rites and Music will not flourish. This chain clearly illustrates the fundamental importance of "names and divisions" (ming fen), or "division" (fen), for social order.

From the ancient perspective, the narrative of "Former Kings establish Rites and Righteousness to differentiate among them" is widely paralleled in pre-Qin literature. The Shang Shu, Yao Dian records the governance of Emperor Yao:

"He was able to illuminate excellent virtue, thus bringing harmony to the Nine Relatives. When the Nine Relatives were harmonious, he brought order to the Hundred Clans. When the Hundred Clans were enlightened and clear, he harmonized the Myriad States." (Ke ming jun de, yi qin jiu zu. Jiu zu ji mu, ping zhang bai xing. Bai xing zhao ming, xie he wan bang.)

Emperor Yao first "illuminated virtue," then "harmonized the Nine Relatives," then "brought order to the Hundred Clans," and finally "harmonized the Myriad States"—this is a process of constructing order from the inside out, from the near to the far. "Bringing order to the Hundred Clans" (ping zhang bai xing)—ensuring all officials have their proper sequence and know their duties—is the concrete practice of "establishing Rites and Righteousness to differentiate among them."

The Shang Shu, Hong Fan records that Ji Zi presented the "Nine Categories" (the nine great laws for governing the state) to King Wu of Zhou, which include:

"The Five Matters: First, appearance (mao); second, speech (yan); third, sight (shi); fourth, hearing (ting); fifth, thought (si). Appearance should be reverent (gong), speech obedient (cong), sight clear (ming), hearing acute (cong), and thought wise (rui). Reverence achieves solemnity; obedience achieves order; clarity achieves sagacity; acuity achieves planning; wisdom achieves sainthood."

The "Five Matters"—demeanor, speech, observation, hearing, thought—each has its standard: reverence, obedience, clarity, acuity, wisdom. This is the concrete manifestation of "measure and boundary" at the level of personal cultivation. Through regulating individual conduct, the construction of social order is achieved.