An Inquiry into the Core of Xunzi's 'On Rites': The Origin of Rites, Textual-Structural Logic, and the Way of Elevation and Reduction
This article provides an in-depth exegesis of the foundational text in the opening of Xunzi's 'On Rites,' systematically analyzing the logical chain linking the origin of rites to human desire and societal conflict, elucidating the structural concept of 'Honoring the fundamental is called text (wen), utilizing it closely is called principle (li),' and investigating the hierarchical dimensions of elevation (long), reduction (sha), and the middle way within rites pertaining to the gentleman's path.
Section 3 Two Orders: Natural Order vs. Institutional Order
From a broader perspective, the divergence between Daoism and Confucianism can be summarized as a tension between two types of ordering principles:
Daoist Ordering Principle: Natural Order. Heaven, Earth, and the myriad things possess a natural order—the orbit of the sun and moon, the cycle of the four seasons, the laws of growth for all things—none of which require artificial intervention. Human society should also follow this natural order, rather than attempting to replace it with artificial systems. "The Dao follows what is natural" (Dao fa Ziran) (Laozi, Chapter 25)—The Dao takes Nature as its model.
Confucian Ordering Principle: Institutional Order. Human society is different from the natural world; it does not automatically generate order. Human desires, contention, and chaos require artificial institutions (Rites) to resolve them. "The Former Kings detested this chaos, so they established Rites and Righteousness to differentiate among them"—The Former Kings created Rites and Righteousness to establish order.
This tension between two ordering principles has permeated the entire history of pre-Qin thought and, indeed, the entire history of Chinese thought.
However, upon closer analysis, these two principles are not entirely opposite.
First, the "Natural Order" sought by Daoism is not chaos. On the contrary, it is an order of a higher level—an order more subtle and harmonious than any artificial system. Laozi states:
"Man models himself on Earth; Earth models itself on Heaven; Heaven models itself on the Dao; the Dao models itself on what is natural." (Laozi, Chapter 25)
"The Dao models itself on what is natural" (Dao fa Ziran)—the Dao takes Nature as its law. Here, "Natural" (Ziran) does not mean "random" or "chaotic" but "naturally so"—an order that presents itself without artificial intervention.
Second, the "Institutional Order" constructed by Confucianism is not detached from Nature. Master Xunzi clearly states: "This ensures that desires do not exhaust material things, and material things are not subjugated by desires." This "mutual support and growth" is in fact a "Nature-like" order—it simulates the natural law of ebb and flow, balance between Yin and Yang in Heaven and Earth.
Therefore, the "Natural Order" of Daoism and the "Institutional Order" of Confucianism may not be two entirely different orders but two different facets of the same order—the "Natural Order" is its substance, and the "Institutional Order" is its realization. The best institution (Rites) should be the one closest to the Natural Order—one that maintains social order without harming human nature or violating the Way of Heaven and Earth.
Master Xunzi’s "return to the Great Unity" perhaps implicitly contains this ultimate unification—when Rites reach the state of "Great Unity," the artificial institution merges with the natural order, and the institution ceases to be a constraint upon Nature and becomes its manifestation.