Zhongshuo

Name: Zhongshuo
ISBN: 9787101148534

王通 / 马天祥Zhonghua Book Company2020

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Word count: 200 words
Chapters: 18
Series: The Analects-Style Sayings of Master Wenzhong
ISBN: 9787101148534

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Summary

Zhongshuo, also known as Wenzhongzi Shuo, is a sayings-collection compiled by the disciples of Wang Tong (courtesy name Zhongyan, known as "Master Wenzhong"), a great Confucian scholar of the Sui-Tang transition, modeled on the format of the Analects. The book preserves the main content of Wang Tong's lectures in the form of teaching records, along with his dialogues and questions-and-answers with disciples, fellow scholars, and contemporaries. It is divided into ten chapters: Wangdao (The Way of the King), Tiandi (Heaven and Earth), Shijun (Serving the Ruler), Zhougong (The Duke of Zhou), Wenyi (Asking About the Changes), Liyue (Rites and Music), Shushi (Narrating History), Weixiang (The Minister of Wei), Liming (Establishing Destiny), and Guanlang (Guan Lang). The book revolves around two major themes: "the affairs of Heaven and humanity" and "the way of emperors and kings." The former discusses the relationship between Heaven and humanity, views of nature, and views of development; the latter expounds on the conduct of rulers and ministers and strategies of governance, and proposes that "the Three Teachings can be unified," with Confucianism as the foundation while accommodating Buddhism and Daoism. Wang Tong lived in seclusion between the Yellow River and the Fen River for a long time, teaching students. Among his disciples, Dong Chang, Yao Yi, Du Yan, Li Jing, Xue Shou, Fang Xuanling, Wei Zheng, and others were mostly notable figures of the late Sui and early Tang and even renowned ministers of the Zhenguan era. His teaching is known as the "Hefen Confucian Orthodoxy." Zhongshuo is an important document for studying Wang Tong's thought and the intellectual evolution of the Sui-Tang transition, and it also has pioneering significance for the formation of Song-Ming Neo-Confucianism. This edition, annotated and translated by Ma Tianxiang, uses the Zhonghua Book Company edition Zhongshuo Jiaozhu (Collated and Annotated Zhongshuo) from the New Compilation of the Complete Works of the Masters, Continued Series as its base text. It belongs to the Complete Texts, Complete Annotation, Complete Translation of Chinese Classics series and provides the original text, annotations, and vernacular translation, with appendices including "Xupian" (Prefatory Chapter) and "Wenzhongzi Shijia" (The Family of Master Wenzhong), aimed at general readers.

Editor's review

王通是个容易被忽略的名字：他一生只活了三十多岁，隐居河汾教书，却教出了房玄龄、魏征、李靖这样一批贞观班底；他的孙子叫王勃，就是写《滕王阁序》的那位。这样一位“隋唐之间的桥梁式人物”，留下的核心思想材料就是这部《中说》。它学《论语》的口气说话，读来既有似曾相识的亲切，又能看到隋末士人对“王道”“三教”问题的新回答。中华书局这个“三全本”的好处在于门槛低：原文用《中说校注》作底本，疑难处有注，句下有白话译文，还能顺带把《论语》的原句对照出来，不必再为训诂和典故卡住。书前有长篇前言梳理王通生平与思想脉络，书后附录《文中子世家》等材料，一册在手，人物、文本、史料背景都能补齐。想了解“贞观之治”的思想前史，或想从《论语》之外看一种儒家语录体，这一本值得放在案头。

Who it's for

A good fit for

对中国古代哲学与儒学史感兴趣的入门读者
需要原文加注释加译文的文史专业学生
关注隋唐之际思想与贞观政治的读者
喜欢《论语》式语录体、想换个文本细读的人

Not a good fit for

只想读轻松故事或小说类读物的读者
期待现代学术专题论文式深度研究的专业研究者

Reading tips

先读前言了解王通生平与“河汾道统”，再进入正文十篇
每篇可先通读白话译文，回头对照原文与注释细读
留意书中化用《论语》的句子，与《论语》对读更能见其继承与新变
按“天人之事”和“帝王之道”两条线索做摘录，读完全书后回看一遍

About the publisher

Zhonghua Book Company China · Founded in 1912

Zhonghua Book Company is a publisher known for collating ancient texts and academic publishing, with its output centered on Eastern philosophy, culture, classic works, art, and historical reading. Its library contains 532 titles, including Chen Shou's Records of the Three Kingdoms, Guo Qingfan's Collected Commentaries on Zhuangzi, the four-volume Chinese Literature: Four Great Classical Novels, and the two-volume Table of Seal and Clerical Script Forms from Qin, Han, Wei, and Jin. These titles span historical classics, commentaries on the philosophers, classical novels, and philological reference works. Representative authors include Chen Shou, Guo Qingfan, Wu Cheng'en, Shi Nai'an, Cao Xueqin, Luo Guanzhong, Xu Wenwu, and the Hanyu Dazidian character-form group, reflecting a focus on primary sources and scholarly editors. Its publishing character lies in combining authoritative editions and annotated texts with both accessible classics and specialized research. Public information on its fuller catalog is limited; this note describes only the directions evident in the library's holdings.

Preface
Volume One: The Way of the King
Volume Two: Heaven and Earth
Volume Three: Serving the Ruler
Volume Four: The Duke of Zhou
Volume Five: Asking About the Changes
Volume Six: Rites and Music
Volume Seven: Narrating History
Volume Eight: The Minister of Wei
Volume Nine: Establishing Destiny
Volume Ten: Guan Lang
Appendix: Prefatory Chapter
Appendix: The Family of Master Wenzhong
Appendix: Record of Emperor Taizong of Tang and Fang and Wei Discussing Rites and Music
Appendix: Master Donggao's Reply to Minister Chen
Appendix: Record of Guan Ziming's Affairs
Appendix: Miscellaneous Records from the Wang Family Letters
Appendix: Preface to Master Wenzhong's Zhongshuo

FAQ

《中说》是王通本人写的吗？

旧题王通撰，实际由门人记录其讲学与问答，经其弟王凝整理、其子王福畤编为十卷，性质更接近《论语》那样由弟子编纂的语录体著作。

这个版本和《中说校注》有什么区别？

《中说校注》（张沛撰）属“新编诸子集成续编”，面向学术整理，重校勘与考证；本版是“中华经典名著全本全注全译丛书”的大众读本，以《中说校注》为底本，增加白话译文，更易入门。

书中“三教可一”是什么意思？

王通站在儒学立场，主张儒、道、佛三教可以统一，而以儒学为本兼容佛道，这一思路对后世儒学的改造与宋明理学有先导意义。

需要先读《论语》才能读吗？

不必，但读过《论语》会更好。《中说》体例与措辞大量仿效《论语》，熟悉《论语》能更快体会其用意与差异。

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About the author

王通 Author

Wang Tong's biographical information is very limited in publicly available sources; his active period, place of origin, and educational background are not clearly recorded, making a complete personal profile difficult to establish at present. Two works are known under his name, both centered on Zhixue (The Study of Stopping), namely Zhixue and Zhixue: A Complete Translation with Detailed Commentary, covering the fields of Eastern philosophy and literary appreciation. Judging from the subject matter, Wang Tong's work focuses on organizing, translating, and interpreting this traditional text, using vernacular translation and item-by-item commentary to help contemporary readers grasp the meaning of the original and lowering the barrier to reading. The format of a complete translation with detailed commentary also suggests that his writing emphasizes accuracy in annotation and clarity of expression rather than vague discussion. Because verifiable material is limited, further documentation is needed to supplement information about his academic lineage, professional positions, and social influence.

马天祥 Author

Ma Tianxiang is an author about whom limited public information is available; details such as nationality, dates of birth and death, education, and professional positions cannot be verified. Based on the works currently attributed to him, he has prepared annotated and translated editions of two classical Chinese texts for the "Complete Annotated and Fully Translated Chinese Classics" series: the Zhongshuo and the Geyan Lianbi, spanning the fields of Eastern philosophy and classical literature. The Zhongshuo is a Confucian classic by Wang Tong of the Sui dynasty, while the Geyan Lianbi is a Qing-dynasty compilation of maxims assembled by Jin Ying; both fall within the tradition of classical thought and moral aphorisms. Ma's work focuses on annotation and vernacular translation for general readers seeking to read the original texts, offering reference value for the popularization of traditional classics. Because verifiable personal information is scarce, his academic background and research direction are difficult to describe in detail, and readers may form a sense of his editorial approach through these two translated and annotated works.