Introduction: A Passage Recited Countless Times Yet Perhaps Never Truly Understood

This article was translated from the original Chinese by AI. Nuances may differ from the source.

The eighth chapter of the Xi Ci Shang Zhuan (Great Commentary, Upper Section) of the Zhouyi states:

"The sage has the means to perceive the profundity of all under heaven, and fashions likenesses of their forms and appearances, imaging what is fitting for each thing — therefore these are called xiang (images). The sage has the means to perceive the movements of all under heaven, and observes where they converge and connect, so as to carry out the canonical rites, appending statements to determine what is auspicious or inauspicious — therefore these are called yao (lines)."

This passage has been cited and interpreted by virtually every commentator across the ages. Since the Han dynasty, scholars such as Zheng Xuan, Yu Fan, Han Kangbo, Kong Yingda, Cheng Yi, Zhu Xi, Wang Fuzhi, Hui Dong, and Jiao Xun — all who have studied the Yijing — have paused at this chapter in deep reflection. Yet precisely because its language is concise yet its meaning is rich, and because it occupies a pivotal position in the theoretical architecture of the Xi Ci Zhuan, interpretations throughout the ages have tended to seize upon one aspect to the exclusion of others: some lean toward image-and-number exegesis, others toward moral-philosophical reasoning, some confine themselves to philological glossing, while others soar into abstruse speculation. None has truly taken as its starting point the primordial thinking of the pre-Qin era — or even earlier antiquity — to ask why this passage says what it says, and what question it is ultimately answering.

This article attempts an inquiry of a different kind. We do not rush into glossing every character — though philological grounding is a necessary foundation — but instead press several fundamental questions:

First, what is "the profundity of all under heaven" (tianxia zhi ze)$1 Why must the sage "perceive" it$2Second, from ze (profundity) to xiang (image), what cognitive leap occurs$3Third, what is the relationship between "the movements of all under heaven" and "the profundity of all under heaven"$4 Why must they be spoken of separately$5Fourth, why is yao (the line) linked to "canonical rites" (dianli)$6 What ancient institutional background does this imply$7Fifth, what does the distinction between xiang and yao reveal about the inner structure of the Zhouyi$8

With these questions in hand, we begin from the roots of the characters themselves and proceed layer by layer, seeking to touch the primordial meaning of this passage.