《莊子．養生主》中「薪火之喻」的意義再探 = Reexamination of the Metaphor of ＂Faggots＂ and ＂Fire＂ in Yang Sheng Zhu

This paper offers a new interpretation of the following Zhuangzi fragment: ＂What we can point to are the faggots that have been consumed; but the fire is transmitted (elsewhere), and we know not that it is over and ended＂ (Yang Sheng Zhu, chapter 3). There are two commonly accepted interpretations. One points out the opposition of form (xing 形) and spirit (shen 神) and suggests taking care of and preserving spirit as a regimen. The other interpretation focuses on the change of everything and the endlessness of fire and suggests that one's mind should not be affected by the living or dying of things. Both interpretations have a long pedigree and enjoy their own internal support. However, in both interpretations, there are remaining issues related to the use of phonetic loan characters, the connection between source and target domains in the metaphors used, and the interpretation of some word meanings. On the basis of the commentaries of Gao Heng and Liu Wu, I attempt to develop an alternative interpretation. While both of the interpretations introduced above regard faggot and fire as positive metaphors, I instead argue that these metaphors portray negative situations that should be avoided. This novel interpretation has its own unique value because it finds support in Zhuangzi and because it meets the problems of the former two interpretations.