先秦變化神話的結構性意義——一個「常與非常」觀點的考察

The Structural Significance of the Metamorphosis Mythology in Pre-Ch’in--A Study of “the Ordinary and the Extraordinary”

在中國古代神話中，凡有生物變化和變化神話都相信物類之間可以互相變化，如腐草化為螢或女娃化為精衛鳥之類，本篇論文針對這些變化，分別從語言學討論種、類兩個關鍵字的造字本義，進一步從同類相生即為生、產；非類相生即為變、化，前者是「常」態的生命蕃衍的方式，而後者則是非常的生命狀態。從先秦到兩漢，名實論從認識論、從邏輯思惟的觀點，討論「化」為生命變化形體的形式，主要的討論材料就是以生物變化作為例證，論證它為生命的型態，如墨辯學派、荀子正名篇；而氣化論者則從神話思惟、從氣的變化說明物類可以突破種類的限制，改變形體，成為另一種形式而延續生命。不過這是特別針對非常態的情況，也就是非自然的生命終結，如鯀之被殛死、瑤姬之未行（未婚）而死等，它是一種與自然、正常的死亡不同的終結方式。在這種神話思惟中隱喻著中國人對於非常死亡者的集體意識，對於凶死者的畏懼與彌補、對於死後無可憑依的冤魂也讓它有形體可依。本論文從靈魂觀、憑依說解說變化的意義，證實它是非常觀的生命型態。

In the Ancient Chinese mythology, both the human and the non-human metamorphosis mythologies believe that different kinds or species of beings are interchangeable, such as the decayed grass’ transforming into a firefly or Nu-wa's transforming into the Ching-wei bird. Aiming at these metamorphoses, this paper attempts to explore the original meaning of the two key words, chung (species) and lei (kind), from the linguistic point of view, and analyse further that the “bearing” or “producing” from the same kind of beings is sheng (bear) or ch'an (produce), and that the “interchange” between different species of beings are bien (change) or hua (transform). While the former refers to the way of multiplying for the “ordinary” state of life, the latter designates the extraordinary living state. From Pre-Ch'in to Han, taking the nonhuman metamorphosis as their evidences, the School of Logicians, such as the Schools of Mo-tzu and Hsun-tzu (for example, in the “Cheng-ming” chapter), interpreted hua as the form of metamorphosis from the epistemological and the logical standpoints, arguing that hua is a life form. On the other hand, basing on the mythological thinking and the transformation of ch'i (vitality), those who advocated the ch'i-hua (the cosmic process basing on an air-like matter) theory explicated that things may break the limit of species and kinds to transform their bodies into other kinds of forms to continue their lives, However, as an extraordinary condition, that is, an unnatural ending of life like Kun's execution, Yao-chi's remaining unmarried till death, etc., the hua is an ending way different from natural, ordinary death. Within this type of mythological thinking, there exist metaphors for the Chinese collective consciousness, men's fear and compensation for the dead, and the belief in reliable body for the wandering wronged soul after death. By the concept of soul and soul's attaching to different life forms for continuation, this paper explicates the significance of metamorphosis to prove that it is an extraordinary state of life.