Chapter Eight: Synthesis and Differentiation of Past Sages' Interpretations

I. Interpretations of the Han Dynasty Image and Number School

The mainstream of Han Dynasty Yi studies focused on Image and Number (Xiàng Shù). Han scholars, represented by Yu Fan, Xun Shuang, and Jing Fang, emphasized the specific correspondence between the Yao's image-number relations and reality when interpreting "The Yao are those that emulate this."

In his commentary, Yu Fan focused on techniques such as hexagram transformation, inner trigrams (hūtǐ), and the Nà Ji system (attributing lines to the five elements and celestial stems/earthly branches). He argued that "emulating this" referred to the correspondence between the Yin/Yang attribute of a line in a specific position and the concrete things in Heaven and Earth. For example, the first line emulates the beginning of Earth; the second, the completion of Earth; the third, the beginning of Man; the fourth, the completion of Man; the fifth, the beginning of Heaven; and the top line, the completion of Heaven. The Yin/Yang nature and position of each line emulate the specific state of movement within the Three Powers.

The contribution of Han numerical studies was to ground the meaning of xiào in concrete, operational correspondences. However, its limitation was an overemphasis on the technical details of image and number, sometimes obscuring the deeper philosophical implications carried by the word xiào.

II. Interpretations of Wang Bi's Principle and Meaning School

Wang Bi (226–249 CE) was an innovator in Wei-Jin Yi scholarship who reinterpreted this passage from a perspective of Principle and Meaning (Yili).

For Wang Bi, xiào and xiàng should not be understood as one-to-one correspondence with specific material images, but as abstract presentations of structural principles. His concept of "forgetting the Xiang once the meaning is grasped" in Zhou Yi Lüe Li, Ming Xiang (Clarifying Images), while controversial later on, contained a core insight: The Xiang is established to convey meaning; if one clings too tightly to the specific details of the Xiang while forgetting the meaning it intends to convey, one is abandoning the root for the branches.

Wang Bi's interpretation is particularly illuminating for "the sage's sentiment is manifested in the words." He argued that the sage's qíng is not an exhaustive description of all phenomena in Heaven and Earth, but a principled judgment regarding the appropriate ethical position (shí wèi) associated with each hexagram line. The sage focuses on the "time" (shí)—what must be done at what time—rather than the "image" (Xiang)—what thing this hexagram resembles.

III. Interpretations of the Cheng-Zhu School of Neo-Confucianism

Cheng Yi, in his Yichuan Yi Zhuan, integrated both "emulation" (xiào) and "resemblance" (xiàng) into the framework of the Theory of Heaven (Tian Lun). He argued that the reason the Yao can emulate the movement of Heaven and Earth is that the principle of Heaven (the "Principle" (Li) in the concept of "One Principle manifested in myriad forms") permeates both the natural world and the symbolic system. The correspondence between the hexagram/line symbols and the myriad things in Heaven and Earth is not due to some mysterious causal link, but because they both share the same "Heavenly Principle" (Tian Li).

Zhu Xi’s annotation in the Zhou Yi Ben Yi on this passage is concise:

"Emulate (Xiào), means to follow by analogy. Resemble (Xiàng), means to imitate. These both refer to the natural principles of Heaven, Earth, and the myriad things."

Zhu Xi emphasized the "natural principles of Heaven, Earth, and the myriad things"—this expands the reference of "this" (cǐ) from specific celestial and terrestrial images to universal principles. For Zhu Xi, the Yao do not emulate one specific thing, but the universal Principle that runs through all things.

IV. Interpretations of Wang Fuzhi's School of Practical Learning

Wang Fuzhi (1619–1692) offered a distinctive interpretation in his Zhou Yi Nei Zhuan and Wai Zhuan. Wang Fuzhi opposed Wang Bi’s theory of "forgetting the Xiang," arguing that the Xiang is not a tool to be transcended, but where the Principle resides. Without the Xiang, the Principle has no place to rest.

Wang Fuzhi particularly stressed the practical meaning of xiào:

"Emulation (Xiào) does not mean empty hypothetical discussion; rather, it means that there is an actual event, and we use it to clarify the concept."

That is to say, the xiào of the Yao is not an empty analogy, but a faithful presentation of actually existing things and relationships. This interpretation carries a strong materialist flavor—the effectiveness of the symbolic system derives from its faithful reflection of the material world.

Wang Fuzhi also provided a historically philosophical reading of "meritorious achievements are seen in change." He argued that "meritorious achievements" are not fixed standards invariant over time, but are constantly renewed as the era changes. The standard for achievement in the Shang dynasty differed from that of the Zhou; the Zhou’s differed from that of the Spring and Autumn period—every era has its specific "change," and the meaning of meritorious achievement changes accordingly. This historical understanding elevates "meritorious achievements are seen in change" beyond mere divinatory technique to an important proposition in the philosophy of history.