Metaphysics and Agency in Guo Xiang’s Commentary on the Zhuangzi

Abstract

Focusing specifically on the philosophy of Guo Xiang’s Zhuangzi Commentary, this chapter will explore and critically evaluate how Guo’s metaphysics of Dao motivates and supports his ethical and political views. Guo Xiang depicts Dao as immanent in the patterns of “self-transformation” of the myriad things that constitute the cosmos, each of which enjoys a “role” or “allotment” corresponding to its “nature” and “fate.” This metaphysical stance underwrites his ethics of non-intervention, his understanding of the responsive, non-self-initiated structure of appropriate action, his ideal of being at peace with one’s allotment, and his paradigm of sagely rule. The chapter will consider the strengths and weaknesses of Guo’s metaphysics, the extent to which it legitimately supports his practical views, and potential tensions between his notion of the interrelated self-transformation of things and his emphasis on eliminating the agent’s “heart-intent” as a spring of action.