革命 – Chinese philosophy and culture

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ɡémìnɡ 革命

Changing the Mandate / Revolution

变革王命。“革”,变革;“命”,初指天命,后来指王命,即帝王的政令或帝王的统治权。犹言江山易主、改朝换代,即推翻旧政权,建立新政权。古人认为,“王命”源于“天命”(上天的意志),故“革命”本质上是实施变革以应“天命”。而“革”是宇宙的基本规律,“革命”是这一规律的具体体现;判断“革命”合法性与成功的依据,则在于“革命”的领导者是否顺应了上天的意志和民众的意愿。近代以降,“革命”转指社会、政治、经济制度的重大变革。

The term means taking power from a ruler. Ge (革) means to change or remove. Ming (命) first referred to the mandate of Heaven and later came to mean a ruler’s decrees and his mandate to rule. Changing the mandate usually involves replacing a ruler and a change of dynasty, in other words, overthrowing an old regime and establishing a new one. People in ancient China believed that a ruler’s mandate to rule was ordained by Heaven and therefore any change of the mandate should in essence be carried out in response to the will of Heaven. However, change is a basic law of the universe, and the removal of a ruler’s mandate is a specific expression of this law. The legitimacy and success of such change depend on whether those who lead the change do so in response to the will of Heaven and the popular desire of the people. In modern times, the term is used as an expression meaning revolution, denoting major social, political or economic changes.

引例 Citation:

◎天地革而四时成,汤武革命,顺乎天而应乎人。(《周易·彖下》)

(天地有阴阳的变化而形成一年四季。商汤、周武王变革天命[推翻旧政权,建立新政权],是顺应了上天的旨意和人民的意愿。)

Heaven and earth change and four seasons take place. King Tang of Shang and King Wu of Zhou changed the mandate, obeying Heaven and complying with the wishes of the people. (The Book of Changes)

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