關鍵字: 莊子；薪火之喻；形神論；生死觀；氣化

Abstract: The “firewood and fire metaphor” in the chapter “The Secret of Nourishing Life” (yangshengzhu 養生主) has long been subject to widely divergent interpretations.Among the six major interpretative approaches in the history of Zhuangzi scholarship, the one construing “firewood”and “fire” in terms of “body” and “spirit” has been the most profoundly influential. Simultaneously,Buddhist “theories on the relationship between body and spirit” have exerted a deep influence on the interpretation of this passage.The Ming dynasty scholar Lu Xixing likened “firewood” and “fire” to the Buddhist concepts of the “Four Elements” and the “Primordial Spirit”. Although this interpretative tradition facilitated the dissemination of Buddhism in China, it deviated from Zhuangzi’s original ideas.The true meaning of the metaphor resides in the ontology of the “flow and transformation of qi”.Through this metaphor,the Zhuangzi expresses a threefold meaning:it affirms the inevitability and finality of individual death;it thoroughly negates the existence of a substantialized soul;and it advocates a return to the natural transformation itself and acceptance of the Dao of nature (tiandao 天道).The phrase “the fire passes on” refers to the spontaneous operation of the power of qi-transformations pervading Heaven,earth and the myriad things,rather than an imperishable spiritual substance.The Zhuangzi situates individual life and death within the great transformation of the cosmos,thereby achieving,on spiritual level,a transcendence of the fear of death.This transcendence is cognitive rather than substantive,giving rise naturally to the practical philosophy of “being at peace with the times and following the flow”.

Key words: Zhuangzi;Firewood and fire metaphor;Body-spirit theory;Conception of life and death;Qi-transformation