シナの倫理思想に於ける「規範」と「現実」 (第五百號記念特集號)

Abstract

Confucian ethics does not take norms as something which would give rise to the strains of our life. According to Confucianism, we should accomodate norms into our individual situations rather than follow a few number of moral principles too rigidly. Probably we can say that Confucianism is on the whole not an idealistic but rather a naturalistic ethics. It tries to minimize the tension between the person who acts in some social situations and the norms which govern the society to which he belongs. In this sense, it is a kind of rational ethics. Chinese ethical thinkers, in a way, stand to the position of western thinkers in a strong contrast; Chinese thinkers, Confucian or Taoist, have no idea of the religious devaluation of the actual world. To Chinese philosophers, the actual world, as a matter of fact, is the best of all possible worlds, and human nature, as they teach us, should be subject not only to the laws of nature but also to natural laws which imply the concept of norms in any case. In other words, all men are put under the rule of their destiny, and yet, in principle, should be able to fulfil the moral law by adapting themselves to their situations rationally. At any rate, the author will explain some basic problems of ethics vested with Chinese traditional thought.