《莊子．秋水》何以見外？

Why the Chapter “Autume Floods” Be Arranged in the Outer Part of Zhuang Zi ?

《莊子．秋水》，列於外篇，不論是筆觸文采與思想理路，評價可謂絕高，堪稱上乘之作，何以竟流落於「外」？〈秋水〉由河伯與海若的七則對話，與六則的寓言故事，組合而成。主軸在七則對話的析論說理，六則寓言扮演的是敘事印證的角色與功能。〈秋水〉全篇主軸，在直接破解心知的執著與分別。依吾人之見，〈秋水〉主要針對內篇〈養生主〉「知也無涯」之「知」，進行了更伸進一層的剖析，〈秋水〉在此有一越過內篇的精到立論，由「量無窮，時無止，分無常，終始無故」的多角度觀物，說〈齊物論〉所說的「分」，是定不住的，所說的「成」，也是成不了的，從「知」的本身，既定不住，也就成不了，直接破解「知」做為價值標準的可能性。〈秋水〉篇之所以見「外」的論定：(一) 譏諷五帝三王，伯夷、孔子，一如河伯自多；(二)依量化思考，說人微不足道，論至小不足以窮至大；(三) 以名理破名理，未如內篇之以體現玄理來解消名理；(四) 將爭讓之禮，堯桀之行，歸於貴賤有時之不可常，不是在解消中成全價值，而是根本否定了價值的存在。本文之作，重在掘發其語文脈絡間，體道不切，甚或悖離道的「見」解論調，一一加以檢驗，以證成〈秋水〉篇終究是外篇的理由所在。

The Chapter “Autume Floods” of Zhuang Zi is arranged in the Outer Part. Although in literary style or logical arguments is this essay evaluated as the best one of the works, but why it is remained in the “Outer Part” (外篇) of the book ? The Chapter “Autume Floods” contains seven dialogues between He Bo and Hai Ruo and six fables. These seven dialogues constitute the part of analysis and argumentations, but the six fables undertakes the role and function for confirming the narration. The major concerning of the Chapter “Autume Floods” intented to destruct the stubbornness and differentiation of the human mind. According to our understanding, the Chapter “Autume Floods” is an advanced analysis about the the term “knowing” (知) of the phrase “no ending of knowing” (知也無涯) which comes from the Inner Chapter “Nourishing Life” of Zhuang Zi. There is a fine argumentation in this chapter which prevail over those in the Inner Chapters, i.e. this chapter through multiperspective of seeing, i.e. “there is infinite in quantity, no ending in the time, no constancy for differentiation, and no reason for the beginning and the ending”, disprove the arguments of differentiation and completing in the Chapter “Unifying Allthings.” (〈齊物論〉) That is to say, the Chapter “Autume Floods” disprove the importance of “knowing” through disregarding the functions of differentiation and completing which knowing can be decided and completed. For what reason the Chapter “Autume Floods” was compiled in the “Outer Chapters” ? There reasons could be set as: (1) the author of this chapter ridicules the old sages such as the legend Five Emperors and Three Kings, the Gentalman Bo I and Confucius same as He Bo (the Deity of Yellow River) who all exaggrated themself to much; (2) the author in regarding to the concept of quantification asserts that the human beings are so trivial to emphasize himself or so tiny to exhaust the infinitum; (3) for purpose to justify the metaphysical principle it is better to do that with dissolving the nominal principles as refuting it through disproving the nominal principles; and (4) that it is not to justify , but to negate the value with assertion that the civility in striving for or to give way, the conducts of Yao and Jie will be not necessary in natural endowments. The aim of this paper focus on examing the assertions which are not in tune with, or even contrary to the tao in the text of Zhuang Zi and explaining why the Chapter “Autume Floods” must remains in the Outer Part.