天道．人道．禮法－王安石之鬼神及祈祭觀

本文通過考析王安石父子及其追隨者的鬼神論及禮文著述，指出王安石主張天人一氣，並轉化《黃帝內經》、《難經》「精神魂魄意」觀念，認為人若「養其氣體」達精明之至，可通神明。王安石以為禮可溝通天人之道：「外作器，以通神明之德；內作德，以正性命之情」；天道「任理而無情」是因為這符合天地之大德，其筆下的皇天與上帝顯具道德意志，能賞善罰惡。當刻意比較「天道」和「神」之別時，他更強調天道相對於地道而言之，非如「神」能大能小，妙於萬物；此外他認為以祈禱之禮事神，能因俗成教。王安石謂「人死為鬼，物死為物，物出為鬽」，並非常可能和其子王雱一樣，認為聖人能廓其志氣，不累於形，其精氣與天地相通，故聖人死曰神。

關鍵字

王安石；鬼神；天人之際；禮法；祈祭觀

並列摘要

By analysing Wang Anshi's works and those of his son and disciples on ghosts, gods and rites, this article points out that Wang believes that Heaven and the human world are constituted by qi. By re-shaping the concepts of "Essence, Spirit, Spiritual Faculties, Animate Spirits, and Ideas and Opinions" from The Yellow Emperor's Classic of Medicine and the Classic on Medical Problems, Wang argues that if qi is well preserved in the body and the spirit is maintained at a most elevated state, the worlds of humans and of the gods can be bridged. Wang considers li (propriety and rituals) to be the medium of communication between Heaven and humans. "Extrinsic forms aid in connecting humans to gods' virtues, while intrinsic moral qualities perfect humans' nature." The Heaven's Way, in alignment with the greatest merits and virtues, is entirely reason-based and devoid of human emotions. Wang's works give Heaven and the Supreme God a moral will, who rewards the good and punishes the evil. By comparing the Heaven's Way and gods, Wang emphasizes the relative relationship between the Heaven's Way and the Earthly Way, while the gods' nature is unlimited and therefore more amazing than everything else. Nevertheless, Wang maintains that as a cultural custom, rituals for gods can be used to realise moralization; Wang states, "After death, humans transform into ghosts; objects remain as they were, but they also give birth to supernatural beings." It is also quite possible that he holds the same belief as his son Wang Pang that the spirits of the sages can grow beyond their physical limitations to connect with Heaven and Earth, and therefore become gods after death.