“小大之辩”与庄子的逍遥观

“The Debate on the Small and Large” and Zhuangzi’s Conception of Carefree Wandering

摘要: 本文聚焦《庄子·逍遥游》的核心议题“小大之辩”，系统剖析庄子哲学中“小”与“大”的本质区别及其对“逍遥”观的奠基作用。在梳理历代“小大同扬”“小大同抑”“抑小扬大”三种解释取向的基础上，结合近二十年来中西方庄学研究成果，指出既有研究在“成心”“化”“待”等概念阐释上的不足。“小大之辩”的本质并非外在形制之分，而是生命通过超越“成心”、实现“化”的动态过程，从而通达“无所不待”的逍遥境界。

Abstract: This paper focuses on the core issue of the “distinction between the small and the large” in the Zhuangzi·Free and Easy Wandering, systematically analyzing the essential differences between “small” and “large” in Zhuangzi’s philosophy and their foundational role in constituting the conception of “free and easy wandering”. By surveying three interpretive approaches prevalent throughout history—namely, “elevating both small and large”, “diminishing both small and large”, and “diminishing the small while elevating the large”—and incorporating research findings from both Chinese and Western Zhuangzi studies over the past two decades, this study identifies inadequacies in existing scholarship regarding the interpretation of such concepts as “fixed mind (chengxin)”, “transformation (hua)”, and “dependence (dai)”. This paper emphasizes that the essence of the “distinction between the small and the large” does not lie in external or formal differences but in the dynamic process through which life transcends the “fixed mind” and realizes “transformation”, thereby attaining the state of free and easy wandering characterized by “absolute independence (wusuobudai)”.