Lunheng 論衡

Lunheng 論衡 "Discussive weighing" is a philosophical treatise written during the Later Han period 後漢 (25-220) by Wang Chong 王充 (27-97 CE).

It took himself thirty years to complete his book. Of the originally 85 chapters one is lost (Zhaozhi 招致). Wang Chong screened a vast amount of ancient literature to obtain a pool of statements of the supernatural, which he wanted to engage in a scientific dispute. Wang Chong is highly esteemed both in China and in the West as one of the first philosophers who critically analysed history books and stories to eliminate superstitious elements. Especially two beliefs were attacked by Wang Chong, firstly the belief that human deeds were somehow redeemed by Heaven as a moral instance (ganying 感應), and secondly, the belief in magic and omens. There was a very popular tradition of explaining the Confucian Classics in terms of portents sent down by Heaven, as expressed in the vast treasury of apocryphal (chenwei 讖緯) literature.

Wang Chong did not believe in a thorough and mutual connectivity of all objects existing in the universe (see correlative thinking) which would make the existence of all objects, physical qualities and human emotions dependent on a set of other conditions in the universe, and which would postulate that—like in the biblical sense—the universe was complete in its actual state. Wang, quite contrary, believed that, for instance, the existence of certain plants was not the result of Heaven's will to nourish humans, or that thunder, inundations, the appearance of phoenixes or strange sprites, were caused by good or evil behaviour of a ruler. The existence of all objects and their qualities was accidental (ziran 自然), as Wang Chong believed, and not the result of a higher metaphysical plan. Heaven was also not the force enthroning a ruler by assigning to him the Heavenly Mandate, but men became sovereigns by way of their own powers and favoured by historical circumstances. Ghosts could simply not exist, because there was no spirit (jing 精) without body (ti 體), just as there is no fire without fuel. Wang also doubted the existence of innate knowledge because everyone had to gather experience acquire knowledge.

There is a commentary written by Huang Hui 黃暉, the Lunheng jiaoshi 論衡校釋, Liu Pan's 劉盼 Lunheng jijie 論衡集解, and the commentary Lunheng zhushi 論衡注釋 written by the modern scholar by Gao Suheng 高蘇垣.

The Lunheng was quite widespread from the Southern and Northern Dynasties period 南北朝 (300~600) on and was categorized as a writing of miscellaneous masters (zajia 雜家). One reason for its popularity might be that it was the oldest book in which systematically stories of bizarre events were assembled, and this genre (zhiguai 志怪) was one of the most favoured types through the history of Chinese literature.

During the Qing period 清 (1644-1911), some scholars doubted the authenticity of many chapters of the Lunheng, like Xiong Bolong 熊伯龍 (1617-1669), who believed the chapters Wen Kong 問孔 and Ci Meng 刺孟 to be later insertions.

There is a moveable-type printing from the Song period 宋 (960-1279) preserved in the Beijing Library 北京圖書館, as well as a fragmentary print of 30 juan from the Yuan 元 (1279-1368) or early Ming period 明 (1368-1644). A fragment of 25 juan of a Song-period print is preserved in the Library of the Imperial Household Agency (Kunai-chō shoryō-bu zushoryō 宮内庁書陵部図書寮) in Japan. There is also a print from Su Xianke's 蘇獻可 Tongjincao Studio 通津草堂 from 1535, and Cheng Rong's 程榮 print in the series Han-Wei congshu 漢魏叢書 from 1573. The Lunheng is also to be found in the series Siku quanshu 四庫全書, Zengding Han-Wei congshu 增訂漢魏叢書, Longxi jingshe congshu 龍溪精舍叢書, Sibu congkan 四部叢刊 and Congshu jicheng 叢書集成初編.

There is a complete English translation by Alfred Forke (1962), Lun-Heng: Philosophical Essays of Wang Ch‘ung (New York: Paragon).