王陽明以鏡喻心之特色及其異說

儒學傳統經籍中無「以鏡喻心」之記載，反而出現在《莊子》與佛教文獻中。宋儒曾用此喻表達心體之定靜，王陽明也多次使用。在陽明心學中，以鏡喻心大致具有兩個意義：一爲表示體用一源，一爲表示本體工夫合一。王陽明借鏡比喻心之體用關係，其內容與程頤、朱子有異；在磨鏡之工夫論上，亦有不同。再則，禪宗文獻里之心如明鏡，著重心之無偏執的觀照作用，而王陽明雖亦主張心不能有主觀之分別，但更強調心之本體即天理，具有創造規範的能力，此則非心如明鏡所能充分表達。陽明後學聶雙江、季本、羅近溪，反省陽明學在流傳中之弊病，對心鏡之喻有不同之說明，而分別提出新的主張，在陽明學之發展上是一值得注意的現象。心如明鏡與磨鏡使明，雖然只是一個譬喻，但與陽明心學之主題有密切之聯繫。比較觀察與此喻有關之問題，對陽明學之特色與發展可有另一番了解。

關鍵字

王陽明；心；鏡；朱子；禪宗

並列摘要

The mirror-as-mind metaphor was first found not in Confucian texts, but in Lao Tzu, Chuang Tzu and certain Buddhist texts. During the Sung and Ming dynasties, Confucian scholars, most notably Wang Yang-ming, began to adopt the metaphor and used it to express the peace of mind. In Wang's usage, the metaphor has two connotations: that substance (ti) and function (yong) are of the same origin, and that substance and practice are united in harmony. When Wang used the metaphor to illuminate the relationship between substance and function as well as the practice of mirror-cleansing, he brought forth views that were quite different from those of Chu Tzu. On the other hand, his views also marked apparent departure from Zen Buddhism. In Zen Buddhism, the mind-as-mirror metaphor was primarily used to highlight the critical, self-reflective function of an unbiased mind. In Wang's writings, by contrast, the meaning of the metaphor was extended to accommodate new emphasis: that the mind is in unity with the heavenly principle, and that it has norm-creating function. Later on, as Wang's followers pondered over the negative consequences of the popularization of their master's thought, they also developed new elucidations on the mind-as-mirror metaphor. This development also constituted an important moment in the history of the Yang-ming school of thought. As much as ”mind-as-mirror” and ”mirror-cleansing” are metaphorical expressions, they however have crucial bearings on the essential problematic of Wang Yang-ming's philosophy of the mind. Accordingly, a comparative study on issues related to the metaphor will give us a more comprehensive understanding of the features and development of Wang Yang-ming's philosophy.