Two Courses of "Inwardly a Sage and Outwardly a King" in the Zhuangzi's "In The Human World": From Moral Politics to Co-becoming Politics

Lai Shisan

Thought & Culture ›› 2026, Vol. 25 ›› Issue (37) : 41-68.

PDF(1071 KB)
PDF(1071 KB)
Thought & Culture ›› 2026, Vol. 25 ›› Issue (37) : 41-68.

Two Courses of "Inwardly a Sage and Outwardly a King" in the Zhuangzi's "In The Human World": From Moral Politics to Co-becoming Politics

  • Lai Shisan
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Abstract

Zhuangzi shall not be simplified as "Escape Politics" toward "Cancel Politics". It shall criticize the political "Patterns of Counterforce" of Confucian engagement in power and struggle, diverting to the "Co-becoming Patterns" of "Transformative Politics". Compare to the Confucian " Moral Politics" can be called "Co-becoming Politics". Confucian "Moral Politics" is confined to the struggling patterns of political opposition of "False Dichotomy", even consistently intensifying the drama of "Good and Evil." The "Internally Introspected" cultivation of the fasting of the mind are more likely to divert the extremes of "Dualism" to the "Two-Way" state that "a ‘this' is not a 'that,' and every 'that' is also a this" so as to break the boundary of opponent and life and death of "Position Politics" to generate "Co-becoming politics "Who knows how white attracts, Yet always keeps himself within black's shade" and "We should attempt to that our brightness, and bring ourselves into agreement with the obscurity of others". This co-becoming neither cancels the intensity of difference nor approach the pure harmony of identicalness; however, it would make the opposite stances locate the remaining space to coemerge within the two-exist and facilitate the third possible proposal within the two-way exchange in attempt to produce the timing for transformation beyond political struggles. Therefore, we might be able totemporarily call it as the art proposals of "Co-becoming politics" or "Transformative Politics" the Zhuangzi brings up, far from Confucian "Moral Politics." becoming Politics.

Key words

Zhuangzi / fasting mind / Co-becoming / transformation / paradox

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Lai Shisan. Two Courses of "Inwardly a Sage and Outwardly a King" in the Zhuangzi's "In The Human World": From Moral Politics to Co-becoming Politics[J]. Thought & Culture. 2026, 25(37): 41-68
PDF(1071 KB)

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