This article investigates elements of empathy in the Zhuangzi 莊子. It outlines four prominent aspects of current scholarship on empathy: different types of empathy, the other-centeredness of empathy, empathy as a process and the role empathy plays in responsiveness to others, and interaction between empathy and other capacities. Based on materials from the Zhuangzi that involve elements of empathy, I delegate them respectively to these four areas. While the Zhuangzi does not invent any specific term for an exclusive designation of (...) the meaning of empathy, I attempt to show that the Zhuangzi does explore the phenomena of empathy to a great extent. It characterizes unique features of empathy, such as other-centeredness, perceptual directness, its function as listening, mirroring, qi 氣-connecting and receptivity, the issue of how to cultivate one’s empathic capacity in the everyday encounter with others, and especially how empathic capacity works closely with the Zhuangzian forgetfulness of oneself. (shrink)

According to the so-called golden rule, we ought to treat others as we want to be treated by them. This rule, in one form or another, is part of every major religion, and it has been accepted by many philosophers with various ethical views. However, if the literal golden rule is interpreted as an absolute rule, it is problematic. In this paper, I introduce a new version of this famous principle that is similar to various classical definitions. According to this (...) variant, the rule can be formulated in the following way: If you want it to be the case that if x were in your situation and you were in x’s situation then x would do H to you, and you have a good will, then you ought to do H to x. I show how this version can be derived from a small set of highly plausible premises, and I defend it against some of the most interesting and/or common objections against the golden rule in the literature. I conclude that we have good reason to believe in this rendition of the principle. (shrink)

This essay explores the correlation between shu 恕 and ren 仁 in Confucius’ teachings and its broader implications concerning the role of the golden rule. It first shows that whereas the golden rule is premised on equality between agent and recipient, Confucius’ correlation of shu with ren aims mainly at establishing a more solid foundation for the hierarchy-specific duty of the ruler to care for the ruled. It thus reveals that this conflict arises from the golden rule’s incompatibility with asymmetrical (...) relationships, a long-standing issue concerning its validity as a moral axiom. It then addresses this conflict by demonstrating that the golden rule can effectively function in conformity with humanity even in asymmetrical relationships by way of inducing an agent’s viewpoint to shift from existing sociopolitical asymmetry to one-to-one human equality. On this basis, lastly, it examines the concurrence of the ideas of shu, human nature, and ren in ancient China. (shrink)

Moral relativism familiar in the Western philosophical tradition, according to David Lyons, is either agent relativism or appraiser relativism or appraiser group). As Lyons has convincingly argued, they are both problematic. However, in the ancient Chinese Daoist classic, the Zhuangzi, we can find a different type of moral relativism, which I call patient relativism. In the essay, I aim to argue in what sense Zhuangzi is a patient relativist and how patient relativism can avoid the problem of agent relativism and (...) appraiser relativism. (shrink)

In one of his most recent articles, “Stingy King Meets Savvy Sage: Rethinking the Dialog between King Xuan of Qi and Mengzi,” Howard Curzer criticizes the traditional interpretations of 1A7 of the _Mengzi_ 孟子 for misinterpreting the passage as delineating how Mengzi guides King Xuan of Qi (Qi Xuan Wang 齊宣王) to extend his compassion from an ox to his subjects. According to Curzer, the passage will not make sense unless we accept that King Xuan only pretends to have felt (...) compassion toward the ox, and his pretension is exploited by Mengzi to establish a psychological ground for his character formation out of nothing (Curzer 2020 ). This essay reexamines 1A7 in the light of Curzer’s view and clarifies certain interpretative issues that will affect our understanding of Mengzi’s theory of moral cultivation. The essay argues that an adequate interpretation of 1A7 cannot be developed along Curzer’s line of thought. Nevertheless, Curzer’s sensitivity about Mengzi’s savviness in offering moral guidance is that which an adequate interpretation ought to reflect. (shrink)

To avoid the one-sidedness and abuse of the rule of xieju 絜矩, Zhang Taiyan 章太炎 redefines zhong-shu 忠恕, the Confucian golden rule, as two separate yet complementary principles, the idea of which is most manifestly drawn from Zhuangzi’s 莊子 “Qiwulun 齊物論”. Zhang’s association of zhong-shu and qiwu 齊物 is based upon his vision of equality premised on recognition of and respect for differences. In Zhang’s reading of the Zhuangzi in light of Yogācāra, the crucial “concept matching” is the explanation of (...) cheng xin 成心 as seeds in the ālaya consciousness. Cheng xin in this sense not only refers to the natural pattern of things and so is the basis for inference and deduction, but also serves as the means to deal with the diversity of opinions. In moral practice, Zhang proposes the liang xing 兩行 approach of his qiwu philosophy: to recognize the equal worth of all beings on one hand, and to take the particular characteristics and desires of individuals into account on the other. Thus, it requires the dual practice of zhong and shu: to acquire firsthand observation through personal experience, and to imagine oneself in the position of the other. (shrink)

RESUMEN La regla de oro es una de las máximas morales más conocidas a nivel mundial, tanto en su versión negativa -no hagas a los otros lo que no te gustaría que te hicieran a ti-, como positiva -trata a los demás como te gustaría que te trataran a ti-. Aunque pueda entenderse fundamentalmente como una regla de empatía, también tiene un claro aire de familia con otras reglas de equidad y coherencia moral que impulsan una prueba de inversión de (...) roles. El artículo repasa la rica historia transcultural de esta regla, analiza las diferentes interpretaciones posibles y profundiza en las dificultades de aplicación. ABSTRACT The golden rule is one of the best-known moral maxims worldwide, both in its negative version -Don't do to others what you wouldn't like to be done to you-, as well as positive -Treat others as you would like to be treated-. Although it can be understood primarily as a rule of empathy, it also has a clear family resemblance with other rules of fairness and moral coherence that drive a role reversal test. The article reviews its rich cross-cultural history, analyzes the different interpretations and investigates the difficulties of implementation. (shrink)

This essay suggests that a narrative genre of “kill stories” has a prominent philosophical function in the Zhuangzi 莊子. Kill stories depict the domestication and disciplining of “wild” living beings eventually resulting in their death. They typically show an incongruity between the moral attitude of the perpetrators and their destructive deeds. Thereby, they illustrate a critique of a broader sociopolitical “master narrative” associated with the Confucian tradition that had a strong impact on ideology and ethical values in early China. In (...) the diagnosis of the kill stories, ritual practice and civilizational ordering inevitably produce discontent and unease. A second narrative genre that I call “survival stories” corresponds to the kill stories and connects with the medicinal orientation of the Daoist tradition. As therapeutic allegories, the survival stories reflect strategies for maintaining sanity and ease within society. Rather than advocating escapism or a return to a primitivist state, they promote the cultivation of immunity against consumption by social demands and pressures based on an insight into the inescapability and contingency of social roles. (shrink)