魏源的佛學思想

Buddhist Thought of Yuan Wei

魏源是清代中後葉名聞遐邇的儒者，他既是嘉道咸時期公羊學派、常州學派的重要成員，又是晚清佛學先驅之一，在中國近代化過程中有其地位。本文主要採取文本分析法，輔以歷史研究法，針對「魏源與佛教」，進行梳理、剖析。本文發現，魏源佛學，師承錢林居士、曦潤法師及慈峯法師，並向前服膺太老師徹悟禪師思想，走禪淨雙修路徑。此外，他與當時許多傑出方外，如借庵上人、道宜上人、瑞安法師等，密切交游，呈現儒者與僧人親切、友善結納的歷史圖景。魏氏學術生涯前期與中期洋溢的「經世致用」思想，既得力於公羊學的啟發，也受到湖湘文化中實學成份的薰陶，但又與他師承禪淨雙修法脈、研習《法華經》等大乘佛教經典不無關係。至於他生命晚期，則向心於「淨土」彼岸，晨夕靜坐念佛，這與他過了「知天命」之年才中進士，又僅作數任地方州縣小官就被朝廷革職的失意宦途，以及人老而病之尋求恒安的精神寄託應有所關聯。

Yuan Wei was the well-known Confucian scholar in the middle and late Qing Dynasty, and the important member of Gongyang and Changzhou School in Jiaqing-Daoguang period, as well as one of the pioneers of late Qing Dynasty Buddhism, who had his place in the process of modernization in China. The paper mainly takes the text analysis combined with historical research to make a sort and analysis on “Yuan Wei and Buddhism”. And the paper finds that Yuan Wei developed his Buddhism by learning form Qian Lin lay Buddhist, Xi Run and Ci Feng Master, and getting a thorough understanding of Zen from ex-Fuying teacher. Thus his Buddhism features both the Chan sect and Pure Land Sect. Also, he kept a close company with many excellent Buddhists like Jie’an monk, Daoyi monk and Rui’an Master at that time, showing a historical picture of Confucians’ kind and friend relationships with Buddhist. Wei’s early and mid academic career brimmed with the idea of “innovative applications on reality” was inspired by Gongyang School and edified by practical learning in Huxiang Culture, which is also related with his learning from the Chan and Pure Land Sect and his studying “Saddharmapundarika-sutra” as well as other Mahayana Buddhist classic. In his late in life, Yuan Wei was absorbed in paradise of “Sukhavatia” so as to sit quietly and pray to Buddha in morning and evening; which associates with his getting Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examinations) after 50 years old, his frustrated official career-- dismissed by imperial government after being small officer in several local provinces and counties, and his pursuit of long and stable spiritual sustenance when he was old and got ill.