On October 14, 2022, Professor Lai Hsi-Shan, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts at National Sun Yat-sen University, visited the College of Buddhist Studies to deliver a lecture titled: "The Paradoxical Subjectivity of 'Great Awakening is also a Dream' in the Qiwulun(齊物論) and the Method of Yingning: With a Critique of Mou Zongsan's 'Interpretation of Paradox' in his Lectures on Qiwulun." Approximately 70 faculty members and students attended the event.
This lecture is part of the Center for Buddhist Studies' #BuddhismAndPsychotherapy Interdisciplinary Project, titled "Text, Action, and Healing: Reading and Interpretation of Buddhist Scriptures and Practice Education." Now in its third year, the project focuses on classic texts that have deeply influenced Chinese Buddhism. In his opening remarks, Project Director and Dean of the College of Buddhist Studies, Prof. Guo Chao-Shun, encouraged students not to limit their study of Chinese Buddhism to Buddhist scriptures alone, but to also immerse themselves in traditional Chinese thought. Noting that the Chinese "Learning of Mind and Nature" falls within the scope of psychology, he specifically invited Prof. Lai to share his perspectives on the issue of "Mind-Observation" (觀心) in Zhuangzi's philosophy.
In the lecture, Prof. Lai drew from the discussion on "Dream" and "Awakening" in the Qiwulun (Discussion on Making All Things Equal) chapter to introduce Zhuangzi's theory of cultivation—the method of Yingning (攖寧). "Ying" refers to chaos or entanglement, while "Ning" refers to tranquility and clarity. Prof. Lai likened this to the Buddhist concepts of Affliction (Klesha) and Bodhi (Enlightenment), explaining that the two share an inseparable, "paradoxical" relationship of co-existence, which constitutes "Reality."
Zhuangzi uses the metaphor of a dream to illustrate that there is no fixed, unchanging subject. Furthermore, the "I" is plural: besides the "Waking I," there is the "Dreaming I," and even the "I in a dream within a dream." The "Dreaming I" acts like an "internal other," a deep force that drives and influences the "Waking I."
Reality and the dream world cannot simply be distinguished as "True" and "False." The boundary between dream and awakening is only realized at the "interface" of waking up. Furthermore, if one recognizes that life is like a dream and views reality as a "dream-like" state, this is considered "Awakening within Awakening." This leads to two interpretations of Zhuangzi's theory of cultivation:
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1. The Transcendental View: This implies a observer who transcends all transformations—a true, unchanging subject (True Lord/True Ruler). Mou Zongsan believed that Zhuangzi used "dialectical paradoxes" to argue for a transcendent reality, similar to the assertions of the Huayan School of Buddhism.
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2. The Immanent View ("Great Awakening is also a Great Dream"): The person of Great Awakening does not leave the dream and does not need to seek a separate True Lord. Zhuangzi uses "paradoxical" language to express the mutual identity of awakening and dreaming ("I say you are dreaming is also a dream; these words are paradoxical"). This is akin to the Tiantai School's assertion that truth and delusion are not dialectically connected, but that the "entirety is immediately it"—delusion is truth. Prof. Lai leans towards this interpretation of Zhuangzi's method of mind-observation: "Ying results in Ning." It is the ability to manifest "tranquility within entanglement/chaos" (Ji Ying Ji Ning), rather than achieving tranquility by departing from entanglement (Li Ying Cheng Ning).
During the exchange session, Prof. Guo Chao-Shun shared that there are many possibilities for dialogue between the Avatamsaka Sutra (Huayan Sutra) and Zhuangzi's philosophy. The principle of Emptiness, which is dream-like and illusion-like, is often stated in Prajna philosophy using paradoxical language. However, it can also be expressed through concrete imagery, such as the scene where Sudhana enters Maitreya's tower in the Avatamsaka Sutra, using illusion to point to the truth. Additionally, the image of "The Tathagata pervading everything without moving from his seat" has also yielded two interpretations: first, the traditional "Metaphysical True Mind" theory, which began with Huayan patriarchs Chengguan and Zongmi; and second, an "anti-ontological" model based on the Buddhist doctrine of Dependent Origination and Emptiness, which is also worth noting within the Avatamsaka Sutra.
Furthermore, Prof. Guo pointed out that scholars in the Six Dynasties used Zhuangzi's philosophy to explain Buddhism, a practice known as Geyi (Matching Meanings). This lecture, however, demonstrated using Buddhism to explain Neo-Daoism (Xuanxue), showing that Geyi is an unavoidable and reasonable hermeneutic tool when understanding different fields of knowledge. Finally, he suggested that Zhuangzi's discussion on "Great Awakening is also a Dream" can stimulate further reflection on the Buddhist concept of "Liberation."
Prof. Lai stated that his years of research on Zhuangzi lead him to affirm the interpretation of Zhuangzi's mind-observation method as "Tranquility within Entanglement" (Ji Ying Ji Ning) based on the concept that "Great Awakening is also a Great Dream."
The lecture was moderated by General Project Director and Dean of the College of Buddhist Studies, Prof. Guo Chao-Shun. He encouraged students to not only focus on Buddhist scriptures but also immerse themselves in traditional Chinese thought when studying Chinese Buddhism.
The lecture attracted approximately 70 faculty members and students.
At the conclusion of the lecture, Prof. Guo Chao-Shun presented a gift of appreciation to Prof. Lai Hsi-Shan.