正心 – Chinese philosophy and culture

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zhènɡxīn 正心

Rectify One’s Heart / Mind

使心归之于正以践行日用伦常之道。“正心”出自《大学》,与格物、致知、诚意、修身、齐家、治国、平天下并称“八条目”,是儒家所倡导的道德修养的一个重要环节。“正心”以“诚意”为前提。在真诚践行日用伦常之道的过程中,人心不可避免地会因愤怒、恐惧、欢乐、忧患等情感而有所偏邪。因此需要时常修正自己的心意,使之不受干扰,始终保持对实现日用伦常之道的追求。

This term means to rectify our mind so as to follow moral principles in daily life. Rectifying one’s heart or mind is one of the eight notions from the philosophical text The Great Learning, the other seven being “studying things,” “acquiring knowledge,” “being sincere in thought,” “cultivating oneself,” “regulating one’s family well,” “governing the state properly,” and “bringing peace to all under heaven.” These constitute important stages in the moral cultivation advocated by the Confucian school. “Rectifying one’s mind” has as its preceding stage”being sincere in thought.” In the course of following the moral principles earnestly in daily life, people are inevitably influenced by sentiments such as anger, fear, joy, and worries, which will, to some degree, lead a person astray. Therefore, one must always try to rectify one’s mind and avoid being swayed by any interference, so as to keep to the observance of moral principles in daily life.

引例 Citations:

◎意既诚了,而其心或有所偏倚,则不得其正,故方可做那正心底工夫。(《朱子语类》卷十六)

(“诚意”已经做到了,而心意或许有所偏颇,就不能做到端正,因此正可做“正心”方面的锻炼。)

When thought has been made sincere but the mind is perhaps still somewhat biased, then it is not possible for a person to stay pure and unbiased. Therefore one should make efforts to rectify one’s mind. (Classified Conversations of Master Zhu Xi)

◎著实致其良知而无一毫意必固我,便是正心。(《传习录》卷中)

(切实地发挥良知而没有一丝妄测、武断、固执、自我之心,这便是“正心”。)

To rectify one’s mind means to cultivate one’s good conscience without the least conjecture, arbitrariness, stubbornness, or egoism. (Records of Great Learning)

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