On the Sino-Western Interpretations of “Hearing the Dao in the Morning and Dying in the Evening” in Late Ming and Early Qing

XIAO Qinghe

doi:10.19857/j.cnki.ICL.20258204

Volume 8 Issue 2

Aug. 2025

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XIAO Qinghe. On the Sino-Western Interpretations of “Hearing the Dao in the Morning and Dying in the Evening” in Late Ming and Early Qing[J]. International Comparative Literature, 2025, 8(2): 78-98. doi: 10.19857/j.cnki.ICL.20258204

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XIAO Qinghe. On the Sino-Western Interpretations of “Hearing the Dao in the Morning and Dying in the Evening” in Late Ming and Early Qing[J]. International Comparative Literature, 2025, 8(2): 78-98. doi: 10.19857/j.cnki.ICL.20258204

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On the Sino-Western Interpretations of “Hearing the Dao in the Morning and Dying in the Evening” in Late Ming and Early Qing

doi: 10.19857/j.cnki.ICL.20258204

XIAO Qinghe

Peking University

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Author Bio:
XIAO Qinghe is a tenured associate professor in the Department of Philosophy at Peking University. He holds a joint Ph.D. from Peking University and the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Previously， he served as a professor in the Department of History at Shanghai University and as the director of the Center for the Study of Religion and Chinese Society at Shanghai University. He has published two monographs with Zhonghua Book Company and over ten edited volumes. His main research focuses on Sino-Western cultural exchanges during the Ming and Qing dynasties and Chinese Christian texts.
Received Date: 2024-02-01
Accepted Date: 2025-01-01

Abstract

Abstract

The phrase “hearing the Dao in the morning and dying in the evening”(朝闻夕死)originates from the Analects of Confucius: “If one hears the Dao in the morning,it is not regretful to die in the evening.” Commentators from different periods have provided various interpretations of this phrase.General historical and literary works also offer understandings of it that differ from classical commentaries.After the introduction of Catholicism into China in the late Ming dynasty,Western Christian resources are employed to reinterpret ancient Confucian classics and key terms,thus imparting new meanings.With “hearing the Dao in the morning and dying in the evening” as a case study,this paper reviews the interpretations of different commentators,the understandings in general historical and literary works,and the reinterpretations by Catholics in the Ming and Qing dynasties.This approach allows for an exploration of how Chinese and Western cultures understand,interpret,and reinterpret core concepts and ideas from the perspective of mutual civilizational learning.
- “hearing the Dao in the morning and dying in the evening”(朝闻夕死),
- interpretation,
- reinterpretation,
- Catholics

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References(45)

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