Between Emulation and Resemblance: A Fundamental Inquiry into the Microcosm of the Dao of Change

III. Echoes in the Thought of Various Pre-Qin Schools

The philosophical framework revealed in this passage not only had a profound influence within Confucianism but also found echoes in other pre-Qin schools of thought.

Echoes in Confucianism: When Confucius discussed the Yi, his focus ultimately rested on the adaptability of human affairs and the cultivation of morality. The Analects, Book 17, records: "The Master said: 'If I were given several more years, say fifty, to study the Yi, I could avoid great error.'" (Jiā wǒ shù nián, wǔ shí yǐ xué Yì, kě yǐ wú dà guò yǐ.) "Avoiding great error" is not striving for great wealth or status, but avoiding major mistakes. This is the practical interpretation of "fortune and misfortune are revealed without"—the purpose of studying the Yi is to make the best possible judgments amidst the complex changes of human affairs, thus avoiding error.

Echoes in Daoism: Laozi, Chapter 40, states: "Reversal is the movement of the Dao. Weakness is the function of the Dao." (Fǎn zhě Dào zhī dòng. Ruò zhě Dào zhī yòng.) "Reversal" is the fundamental mode of the Dao's movement—all things move toward their opposite. This is entirely consistent with the logic of Yin and Yang shifting in the Zhou Yi. The reason the Yao must "emulate" the movement of Heaven and Earth is that the core law of that movement is the mutual transformation of Yin and Yang. Laozi’s "Reversal is the movement of the Dao" and the Xi Ci's "Hardness and Softness push against each other, generating transformation" can be said to share the same origin, though expressed differently.

Echoes in Military Thought: In Sunzi’s Art of War, Chapter on Weaknesses and Strengths (Xu Shi): "War has no constant formation; water has no constant shape. The ability to adapt to the enemy's changes and secure victory is called spiritual power (shén)." "Adapting to the enemy's changes" (yīn dí biàn huà)—this is the military interpretation of "meritorious achievements are seen in change." The essence of military strategy lies in changing according to the time and situation, without clinging to fixed formations or tactics. Sunzi’s shén (spiritual power/marvel) shares a spiritual kinship with the Xi Ci's "Inscrutability of Yin and Yang is called spirit (shén)."

Echoes in the Logicians and Mohists: Although the School of Names (Logicians) and Mohism are not primarily known for Yi studies, their focus on the "relationship between names and actualities" (míng shí) has a deep connection to the proposition "The Xiang are those that resemble this." Whether a name corresponds faithfully to the actual state of things—whether the name truly "resembles" the thing's reality—was a universal concern in pre-Qin thought. Hui Shi's "Ten Propositions," including seemingly paradoxical claims (like "Heaven and Earth are low; mountains and swamps are level"), were actually challenging the reliability of everyday "images" (Xiang)—does the Xiang we see truly "resemble" the thing as it is$38