莊子「無用之用」思想探究

The Great Use of Uselessness-Study on the Thought of Chuang Tzu

《莊子》一書，博大深奧，其思想內涵大多圍繞人之生存境遇而展開。現實人生，充滿憂苦，人倒懸其中，精神不得自由。因此，對於莊子而言，欲真正超越生命困境，惟有化除我執成心，揚棄世俗價值定用的標準與二元相對之主觀認知，方得以開放的心靈，悠遊於無窮的天地之間。莊子「無用之用」思想提出的背景有二：一是在老子「無之以為用」的理論基礎上，加以繼承與發展；二是基於當時「昏上亂相」之社會環境下，深刻的觀察與體悟。莊子身處「昏上亂相」之人間世，認為惟有「無用」於世，才能免於世患、保全生命。然而，「無用之用」之思想蘊涵，絕非僅限於追求全生或終其天年，它更為特殊深刻的哲理在於提點世人，要追尋與道契合之逍遙自在的生命境界，此乃莊子思想之終極關懷所在。

The book of Chuang Tzu mainly explored the truth of existence and life situations. Therefore, ＂the great use of uselessness＂, in the philosophy of Chung Tzu, was a guidance of existence, teaching people to keep away from adversities, to maintain life, and to attain the enjoyment of freedom and ease. This concept came from two backgrounds. 1. Tao Te Ching had mentioned that ＂Nothingness gives the utility of a thing.＂ Chuang Tzu acquired its essence and developed his own theory accordingly. 2. Chung Tzu lived in a world under a benighted ruler and seditious ministers that provided him a profound observation and realization of the social circumstances. In troubled times, Chuang Tzu believed, being useless was the only way to avoid misfortune and survive. However, the use of uselessness was not only to maintain life and to complete one's natural life span in safety, it also had profound meaning to remind people that freedom and ease were the true value of living. And this was what Chuang Tzu really concerned in his philosophy.