「退避三舍」考──兼說古代中國北方與內亞間的文化聯繫

'Retreat by three stages'' and Cultural Affinities between Northern China and Inner Asia during the Pre-Qin Era

「退避三舍」是源自於春秋時代晉文公的一個著名典故，此典故其實蘊含了中國古代一種特殊的軍事文化，即在戰場上需對敵人展現某種程度的寬容，而此種習俗也反映了先秦貴族階級強調「君子之爭」的優雅情操。但這個看似純粹中國式的歷史典故，卻在中亞有著極為相似的軍事文化。中亞古代的游牧民族瑪撒該塔伊人（Massgetaes）在與波斯人作戰的過程中，也曾對居魯士二世（Cyrus Ⅱ）提出類似的要求，此點相當令人玩味。從這種古老的軍事文化分別在中國北方與中亞流行一事來看，「退避三舍」這類軍事習俗可能是一種流傳於古代內陸歐亞東部的古老文化，透露出早自先秦時期開始，中國北方與內陸歐亞之間即存在著密切的族群與文化互動，而中國北方地區很可能也是所謂「內亞性」（Inner-Asia-ness）起源的一個重要區域。

The expression ''retreat by three stages (30 miles)'' (退避三舍) has its origins in the Spring and Autumn Period of Chinese history. When Chong'er (697-628 BCE), the exiled Duke of Jin, was asked by the King of Chu how he intended to repay the king's personal kindness to him, Chong'er reportedly replied that if he ever met the king in battle, he would withdraw his troops by three stages. This story is indicative of the military culture of ancient China, which emphasized the need to show generosity to the enemy on the battlefield. In addition, it reflects how the aristocratic ruling class during the pre-Qin period was governed by a sense of fair play. Intriguingly, something akin to ''retreat by three stages'' is also found among the ancient nomadic Massagetae of Central Asia: when they were fighting against Cyrus II of Persia, they made similar demands on him. Based on the evidence provided in this paper, it seems likely that close ethnic and cultural contacts existed between the inhabitants of northern China and those of Inner Asia during the pre-Qin period. It also seems likely that northern China was the source of many practices found in the Inner Asian region.