Xiang'er

TheXiang'er(simplified Chinese:Tưởng ngươi;traditional Chinese:Tưởng ngươi;pinyin:Xiǎng'ěr;Wade–Giles:Hsiang³-erh³) is a commentary to theDaodejingthat is best known for being one of the earliest surviving texts from theWay of the Celestial Mastervariant ofDaoism.The meaning of the title is debated, but can be translated as 'thinking of you'.

History

TheXiang'erwas likely written between 190 and 220 CE, a time when the Celestial Masters controlled a theocratic state inSichuan.Early sources indicate that the text was written byZhang Lu,the third Celestial Master and grandson toZhang Daoling.

The text available to us today was discovered in the Buddhist caves atDunhuangin the early 20th century and was part of the trove that traveled to London along withAurel Stein.However, theXiang'erthat survives only comments upon 3d through 37th chapters of theDaodejing.Presumably there was also a second part of theXiang'er,but it has now been lost. TheXiang'ertext found at Dunhuang likely dates from the 5th or 6th centuries.

Precepts

TheXiang'erreveals a great deal about early Celestial Master thought and practice. In particular, the text offers advice to individuals and to society as a whole.

In terms of individual advice, theXiang'er,like the rest of Daoism, discusses ways in which a person could gain immortality. According to theXiang'er,the body was inhabited by spirits that survive in the presence ofqi.In order to attain immortality, a person had to preserve and nourish these internal spirits. Presumably these spirits could be nurtured through meditation, but theXiang'eroffers very little guidance on what type of meditation one should do. TheXiang'eralso looks down uponDaoist sexual practices,and urges its readers not to practice them.

While aimed at a wide audience, theXiang'eralso contains advice that could be used for rulers. These rulers were encouraged to remake society on the model of the Dao. Such a society would not be based on desire for wealth and fame, but on the fear and the respect of heaven. Hopefully when people learn to be respectful and fearful towards heaven, they will act morally.

References

• Bokenkamp, Stephen.Early Daoist Scriptures.Berkeley: University of California, 1999.
• Michael Puett, “Becoming Laozi: Cultivating and Visualizing Spirits in Early Medieval China”. Asia Major, Third series. 2010;23(1):223-252.[1]
• Rao Zongyi tha tông di, Laozi Xiang'er zhu jiao gian lão tử tưởng ngươi chú giáo tiên (Shanghai: Guji chubanshe, 1991);
• Boltz, William G. (1982). "The religious and philosophical significance of the 'Hsiang erh'Lao tzuTương ngươi lão tử in the light of theMa-wang-tuisilk manuscripts ".Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies.45(1): 95–117.doi:10.1017/S0041977X00054380.
• The text ofXiang'er(Traditional Chinese),(Simplified Chinese).
• Zandbergen, Robbert. (2022)The Ludibrium of Living Well: A Re-Evaluation of the Religious Worldview of the Xiang'er Commentary to the Laozi.Monumenta Serica 70:2, pp. 367–388