VIII. Exaltation and Diminution, Amid the Center: The Dynamic Balance of "Li"

8.1 Exaltation and Diminution: Abundance and Simplicity

Li takes wealth and goods as its material, takes noble and base rank as its pattern, takes greater and lesser quantity as its differentiation, and takes exaltation and diminution as its key. Where pattern and reason are elaborate and the use of feeling is spare, this is the exaltation of li. Where pattern and reason are spare and the use of feeling is elaborate, this is the diminution of li. Where pattern, reason, and the use of feeling serve as each other's inner and outer, surface and depth, proceeding together and interwoven — this is the central current of li.

— Xunzi, "Discourse on Ritual Propriety," Passage 20

This passage reveals a crucial feature of li: it is not fixed and unchanging, but possesses a dynamic movement between "exaltation" (long — abundance, solemnity) and "diminution" (sha — simplicity, reduction).

Master Xun uses this pair of concepts — "long sha," exaltation and diminution — to describe the elasticity of li:

• Exaltation (long, abundance and solemnity): elaborate pattern and reason, while the actual demand of feeling is comparatively spare. Consider, for instance, the grand sacrificial ceremonies of the Son of Heaven, extremely elaborate and solemn in form — yet the basic feeling within the hearts of the participants (remembrance of the ancestors) is not, on that account, any more complex. The elaborateness of the form serves to manifest the importance of the occasion.
• Diminution (sha, simplicity and reduction): spare pattern and reason, while the actual demand of feeling is comparatively intense. Consider, for instance, a person who, by chance, encounters a stranger in need of help by the roadside — there is no ceremony to speak of here, yet the inner compassion and goodwill (qing) are intense and direct. The simplicity of the form does not mean that the feeling is thin.
• The central current (zhong liu, the middle form): pattern and feeling blend together, with both form and feeling present, interwoven — this is the most commonly occurring state.

8.2 The Noble Person's Altar, Dwelling, and Court

Thus the noble person, above, attains the fullest exaltation; below, exhausts the fullest diminution; and in between, dwells in the center. Whether walking, striding, galloping, or racing, he does not go beyond this. This is the altar, dwelling, and court of the noble person.

"Thus the noble person is able, above, to reach the state of greatest exaltation, and, below, to achieve the state of greatest simplicity, while dwelling in correct balance in between. Whether walking slowly or moving swiftly, he never goes beyond this range. This is the noble person's altar, dwelling, and court" (that is, the range and domain of his activity).

This passage uses the metaphor of an "altar, dwelling, and court" to describe the space of action available to the noble person. The "altar, dwelling, and court" is a bounded domain — yet within this domain, there is great freedom of movement. The noble person does not rigidly execute one single fixed set of rules; rather, he moves flexibly between the two poles of "exaltation" and "diminution" — sometimes solemn, sometimes simple, and most often somewhere in between.

This flexibility is precisely what distinguishes li from a rigid body of law. Legal statutes are rigid — either you obey them or you violate them. But li is pliant — it offers a range, and within that range, one retains room for judgment and choice.

8.3 A Connection with the Doctrine of the Mean

This idea of "dwelling in the center" is closely related to another core concept of pre-Qin Confucianism — "zhong" (中), the mean, or centrality.

Confucius says: "The virtue embodied in the mean (zhongyong) — is it not the highest of virtues!" (Analects 6.29) — "the mean" (zhongyong), as a virtue, may be called the very highest.

The "zhong" of "zhongyong" is not simply "splitting the difference" or "averaging," but rather finding, in each particular circumstance, the point that is most fitting. This "fitting point" sometimes lies closer to the pole of "exaltation," sometimes closer to the pole of "diminution," and more often lies in between — but it is always determined according to the particular circumstance, never mechanically fixed as the average of the two extremes.

Master Xun's "exaltation and diminution amid the center" and Confucius's "zhongyong" express one and the same wisdom: fitting exactly, neither more nor less. Not fixed at a single point, but flexibly adjusted as circumstances change, while always remaining proper.

This wisdom is also found in the "Great Treatise." The final passage of Section 1.1 of the "Great Treatise" expresses just such an idea: because the order of Heaven and Earth unfolds of itself ("the easy and the simple"), a person can find their own natural place among the myriad things — "taking up a position at the center of Heaven and Earth."

This "center" (zhong) — at once a spatial "centrality" and an existential "proper place" — is exactly the state that li seeks to attain.

8.4 Master Xun Cites the Book of Songs as Evidence

At the close of this passage, Master Xun quotes a line from the Book of Songs:

The Book of Songs says: "Rites and ceremony all meet the proper measure; laughter and talk all find their fitting place." This is what is meant.

"The Book of Songs says: 'The rites and observances entirely accord with proper measure; laughter and conversation entirely find their fitting place.' This is what is meant."

This line comes from "Chuci" in the "Lesser Odes" section of the Book of Songs, depicting a solemn yet joyful sacrificial scene. The participants' ceremonial conduct conforms meticulously to proper measure ("entirely accord with measure"), while their conversation and laughter are likewise perfectly fitting ("entirely find their place"). This is the ideal state of "exaltation and diminution amid the center": outward form (ceremony) and inward feeling (laughter and talk) are both exactly as they should be.