Aesthetic and Moral Appreciation of Nature in Philosophical Traditions of China - Earth Stewardship: Linking Ecology and Ethics in Theory and Practice - page 39

biomes and peoples of the planet (Rozzi et al. 2012 ). To better incorporate the
diversity of ecological worldviews and cultures into a partnership-based Earth
Stewardship initiative, in this chapter I present an aesthetic and a morally embedded
appreciation of nature, based on the Chinese philosophical traditions of Confucianism
and Daoism.

4.1 The Concept of ch'i in Chinese Philosophy

and Aesthetic Appreciation

Chinese philosophers often use the word ch'i to form other words such as zhi ch'i
(ambition), sheng ch'i (animation), and kong ch'i (air). From such usages, we can
see that the concept of ch'i contains both material and spiritual meanings. Ch'i has
been translated into English as “vital force,” “material force,” “material energy,” and
“spirit.” However, like many fundamental Chinese philosophical terms, these trans-
lations are still not adequate to capture the rich meanings of ch'i . To explore its
features will be very helpful for us in trying to understand the meaning of ch'i .. Ch'i
in Chinese philosophy is characterized by emptiness and creativity. The two features
are interconnected.
First, Ch'i has no physical form and it is invisible. Chinese philosophers often
use xu to express the concept of ch'i. Xu is often translated as “void,” “emptiness,”
and “vacuity.” For the sake of simplicity, I use the word emptiness to express the idea
of xu in this chapter. All these translations are misleading because they are easily
misunderstood as non-existence. However, xu often contrasts with shi (fullness).
Shi has the meaning of being solid, manifest, visible, tangible, and fully realized
while xu suggests subtle, hollow, invisible, intangible, and unmanifested. Therefore,
xu doesn't refer to non-being or nothingness. Chang Tsai (1020-1077) writes,
“If we realize that the Great Vacuity is identical with material force, we know that
there is no such thing as non-being” (Chan 1963 , p. 503). The empty feature of ch'i
makes the interconnection, interpenetration, and resonance among things and space
possible. As T'ang Chun-I points out, “Whenever a thing is in intercourse with
another, it is always that the thing by means of its void contains the other and appre-
hends it” (T'ang and Chang 1956 , pp. 113-136). For T'ang Chun-I, only through
emptiness within the things and space can one thing absorb the other so that the
interpenetration can become possible. Since ch'i is empty, all concrete things which
are made up of ch'i have emptiness within them. Therefore, all concrete things are
interconnected with the space that surrounds the object. Chang Tsai addressed this
interconnection among things and spaces in the following passage:
If it is argued that all phenomena are but things perceived in the Great Vacuity, then since
things and the Vacuity would not be mutually conditioned, since the physical form and the
nature of things would be self-contained, and since these, as well as Heaven and man,
would not be interdependent, such an argument would fall into the doctrine of the Buddha
who taught that mountains, rivers, and the total stretch of land are all subjective illusions.
(Chan 1963 , p. 502)