從「三不朽」到「四不朽」──唐君毅的另類詮釋

From the “Three Immortals” to the “Four Immortals”: Professor Tang Chun-Yi’s Creative Interpretation

中國文化長期以來以儒家為主，對於「死亡」持「未知生，焉知死」或「不語怪力亂神」的態度。儒家把修養及授業集中在今世今生，重視倫理和德政，少涉終極關懷。唐君毅於二十世紀1950年代崛起於香港，集歐陸智慧，為中國哲學開創新穎詮釋，對死亡也有了空前的理解。唐氏認為吾人雖無法穿越現象，但可從生命現象揣度生命本體，從而可知人的生命不在「死亡」之刻消失殆盡，卻可以另一方式持續存在。其狀不可知，其情可測，如此，二界親人可因懷念或祭祀而有深契經驗。此經驗不在理智認知的範圍，但其真情實感遠勝於感知，而有「真情通幽明」之說。活人與死人可藉深情厚意相契，肉體之死不再是生命之結束，而只是其暫終。唐君毅認為死亡可想可談而多少可知，他顛覆了中國傳統對死亡的看法，這是唐氏之創見，他的生死反省才是超「三不朽」之人之真正不朽。

More than twenty centuries ago Chinese culture adopted Confucianism as its leading philosophy. This philosophy does not want people to think much about death, as is said: “when life is unknown, how can you search the meaning of death.” The disciples of Confucius concentrated their energy on the present life, morality and politics with very little concern for the ultimate problem. Tang Chun-Yi made himself known to people when he was living in Hong Kong in the 1950s. He used European philosophical wisdom and the Chinese classics to reinterpret Chinese philosophy. He brought new insight. One of the topics he discussed was death. Tang knows that we cannot penetrate phenomena to see what lies behind them. However, we can through phenomena to detect ultimate reality. He was sure that life does not disappear at the moment of death, but that it continues to exist in a different way. We do not know where our soul is or how it is, but we can relate to it with deep affection. People who live apart yet love each other deeply can be united in loving thought and through sacrificial rites. This experience escapes rationalists. Tang coined the phrase: “true affection and love make communication between the living and the dead.” The living and the dead come together in an affective presence to each other. Physical death is not the end of life; it is only a temporary end. Tang holds that we can think, talk and know death to some degree. He overthrows the traditional view of death in Chinese thought. This is his creative view. His reflection on death is that man has a true and personal immortality beyond the traditional “three immortals”.