内容提要
孔子相貌
Appearance of Confucius
2011年1月11日，由德国人在20世纪50年代建筑基础上设计改扩建的国家博物馆尚未开馆，但这一天在它的北门前广场，矗立起了一尊9.5米高的青铜孔子塑像。
新年刚刚开始，媒体正等米下锅。这么敏感的地点，如此有卖点的事件，那么有寓意的人物，京城的报纸、电视、网络一下抓住了话题。
互联网在中国的发展，大大区别于在美国的状况— 中国互联网首先应用于新闻集成和意见表达，网络改变了中国舆论传播的“生态”，一件局部的事会放大至世界，一个原本简单的事会因为上亿人的参与变得无解。
那尊孔子像，最终被媒体搬迁走了。
孔子像伫立在国家博物馆门前引发了三个不同层面的问题：一是孔子到底长得什么样？二是孔子像该不该立在天安门广场，还要面对着天安门？三是立孔子像的寓意何在，传统文化对正在雄心勃勃追求现代文明的中国来说到底意味着什么？
关于孔子的形象，这早已不是个新问题。2005年9月28日，为纪念孔子诞辰2555年，山东曲阜孔子研究院立过一尊孔子塑像，也由此引发了一场关于孔子形象的争论。有人评论，为孔子立标准像，美化孔子的相貌无聊至极。
从曲阜出发，上日东高速向东驶35公里，即到达孔子（前551－前479年）的出生地 — 尼山。
曲阜一带本是平原，恰好就在这里隆起了一片丘陵，沂河从这里穿山而过。尼山，原名尼丘山，最高处只有340米，但沂河恰好从它脚下穿过。今天的尼山上有尼山神庙、孔子庙，还有一座观川亭，而最早这里只有一座茅草亭。相传，少小的孔子就是站在这里，望着沂河长川感叹：逝者如斯夫，不舍昼夜（《论语•子罕》）。观川亭是后来的元代人为孔子建造的。
西汉司马迁对孔子的出生地做过考证。《史记•孔子世家》中述：“孔子生鲁昌平乡陬邑，其先宋人也曰孔防叔，防叔生伯夏，伯夏生叔梁纥，纥与颜氏女野合而生孔子，祷于尼山得孔子。鲁襄公二十二年而孔子生。生而首上顶，故因名曰丘云，字仲尼，姓孔氏。”
孔子的父亲叔梁纥共有3妻，一妻施氏生9女，妾生子孟皮，但孟脚上有疾。于是，纥便常常向尼山祈祷，祈求得到一位健全的男孩。叔梁纥64岁那年娶了一房少妻，16岁的颜征在。3年之后，颜征在为67岁的叔梁纥生下孔子。司马迁说的“纥与颜氏女野合而生孔子”，是指纥与颜氏年龄相差太大，他们的结合被称为“野合”。因这孩子生于尼丘山上，便取名孔丘，字仲尼。后人为尊重孔丘，才把尼丘山的丘字去掉了。
司马迁说：孔子生来就丑，头部高低不平。尼丘山有五峰，称五峰连峙。于是，他说孔子头部就像这五峰“盂顶”。司马迁想象这应该是纥为儿子起名孔的原因。站在今天的立场看，叔梁纥盼子心切才敢冒“野合”之不韪，况且67岁得子，这孩子再丑，恐怕也不会联想到“盂”而为爱子起名吧。
司马迁关于孔子相貌的描述，对后世影响是巨大的。今天，一到曲阜下高速路，收费站的上方，就赫然挂着孔子的画像。这幅画像是今天普遍使用的孔子像，画中孔子的形象恰恰源于司马迁的描述：方平面庞，额头不整，长眉下垂，唇不包齿，双目无神，实在看不出有多少智慧。
据传，最早为孔子造像的是他的学生子贡。子贡（前520－前456年）被孔子评价为“始可与言《诗》已矣”，“是诸往而知来者”。司马迁在《史记•仲尼弟子列传》中说：“子贡利口巧辩，孔子常黜其辩。”孔子的学生中，子贡才华卓著。他出任过鲁国、卫国的宰相，提出存鲁、乱齐、破吴、强晋、霸越的战略。司马迁称，“子贡一使，使势相破，十年之中，五国多有变。”子贡还有一项才华得到老师的赏识，《论语•先进》中说的：“赐不受命，而货殖焉，臆则屡中。”子贡是个不甘于现状的人，他会做生意，善于判断行情变化，常常是低价时进高价时出，总能挣到钱。老师也赞叹他竟能屡断屡中。孔子去世时，子贡正在卫国，没能及时赶回曲阜。所以，别的弟子为孔子守陵3年，子贡自惩，守陵6年。
按照子贡对老师的敬重，这位才艺通达的学生为孔子画像应该是准确的，并且他是亲眼见到过孔子的人。只是他的画作没有能流传到今天。
现在，我们能见到的最早的孔子像是唐朝吴道子所作的《孔子行教像》。吴道子（680－759年）20岁时便是有名的画家。他被召入西安的皇宫，成为皇上的御用画师。他也曾做过几天官吏，在山东兖州做县尉，但不久还是辞官，去游历作画了。吴道子奠定了中国山水画的基础，还运用勾描笔法绘制人物，这也把中国的人物画带入新的境界。在吴道子笔下，孔子面庞方阔，体态雍容；双手合胸，神情谦和；身体微倾，表情憨朴。《孔子行教像》原作也已遗失，但是，曲阜孔庙的圣迹殿内却有一尊石碑上刻有《孔子行教像》。
历尽气候、环境洗刷的石刻，吴道子笔下的孔子也已模糊。而现存最清楚的孔子像便是曲阜高速公路收费站的那张《孔子燕居像》。
这幅出自明代的《孔子燕居像》的作者也已不详，只是绘画保存得完好。这幅孔子像以司马迁的描述为依据，把孔子画得唇不包齿，眼睛露白，鼻孔硕大，七窍不端。
《论语•述而》：“子之燕居，申申如也，夭夭如也。杨氏曰：‘申申，其容舒也。夭夭，其色愉也。’程子曰：‘此弟子善形容圣人处也，为申申字说不尽，故更着夭夭字。今人燕居之时，不怠惰放肆，必太严厉。严厉时着此四字不得，怠惰放肆时亦着此四字不得。唯圣人便自有中和之气。”《论语》系孔子的弟子修得。弟子说：燕居，闲暇无事之时。孔子燕居也是穿着整洁，申申如是，斯文行事。
然而，从《孔子燕居像》中，我们却看不出弟子们描述的气度。流传甚广的《孔子燕居像》现藏于孔府文物档案馆，它竟没有落款。
“述而”是《论语》的第七篇，开篇第一句是：“子曰：述而不作，信而好古，窃比于我老彭。”其意是，孔子说：对古人要抱有尊重的态度，对他们的论述自己在讲学中只作引述，不自我发挥。《论语》此篇叫“述而”，题目就点明孔子主张的治学态度和方法。“述而”讲道：“默而识之，学而不厌，诲人不倦，何有于我哉”，“志于道，据于德，依于仁，游于艺”，“不愤不启，不悱不发。举一隅不以三隅也，则不复也”，“饭疏食饮水，曲肱而枕之，乐亦在其中矣”，“不义而富且贵，于我如浮云者”，“三人行，必有我师焉，择其善者而从之，其不善者而改之”，“君子坦荡荡，小人长戚戚”⋯⋯
东晋大画家顾恺之（348－409年）也画过《孔颜二圣像》。顾恺之善画人物，并因对人物神态、体态的传神描绘和对人物的精细刻画，而把中国人物画推向新的境界。然而，《孔颜二圣像》却没能像顾恺之的另一幅《洛神赋图》那样留存至今。此外，梁元帝也亲笔画过《孔子像》，元代大书法家赵孟也画有《孔子讲学图》，只是也都已散失。
孔子的具体相貌已变得不重要了。因为，他的长相已是个无解的问题，后世画师都是据文献或据想象刻画孔子的。重要的是要让孔子的形象符合儒学礼德仁义的精神内涵，道气通达的文化智慧，温而厉、恭而安、威而不猛的民族表情。
吴为山，中国国家博物馆门前孔子塑像的创作者、中国雕塑院院长。他说：“我在2010年年初开始创作孔子塑像，主要参考的还是吴道子画的孔子，我认为我要塑造的孔子要有儒家思想的感觉，体现孔子的文化气质。今天，孔子已经是中国文化的代表，我在画草稿、做小样时就把握住一条，孔子的形象要表现我们民族的精神价值、精神形态和精神符号。承载这种想法，我只有用青铜做原料。”
本书不是要去探讨孔子的相貌，而是要说明：在中华文明演进过程中，文化脉搏生生不息，人文精神一脉相承，孔子的形象是这一切的表征。当我们面对他的时候，只能抱以最大的敬畏。
正是中华文明的基因决定了我们的相貌和表情。
On January 11, 2011, a 9.5-metre-high bronze statue of Confucius was put up on the square in front of the South Gate of the National Museum of China. It was a time when the museum, renovated and expanded, following a German design scheme based on the museum originally built in the 1950s, was not yet open.
Erecting a statue of Confucius at such a well-known place was an eye-catching event because of its implications. It immediately grabbed newspaper headlines and was reported on television and via the Internet in the early days of 2011.
Internet development in China is entirely different than in its birthplace: the United States. In China, the Internet is used primarily to publish news and express views. It has changed the “ecological environment” that influences the ways people express their opinions. An event of local significance may now be “magnified” worldwide online; a relatively simple matter can become a complex, intractable matter if millions upon millions of people get involved in it online.
The statue of Confucius was removed from the museum’s square, in part, because of media-generated pressures.
Erecting a statue of Confucius in front of the gate of the National Museum of China raised questions on three levels: First, what on earth does Confucius look like? Second, should the statue have been put up on Tian’anmen Square at all? Third, what was the intention in erecting such a statue? What role does traditional culture have to play in a China that is ambitiously pursuing modern civilization?
“What does Confucius look like” is by no means a new question. A statue of Confucius was erected at the Confucius Research Institute in Qufu, Shandong Province, on September 28, 2005, to commemorate the 2,555th anniversary of the birth of Confucius (551 BC–479 BC); this prompted a dispute about the nature of Confucius’ image. There was a comment that nothing was more boring than putting up a standard statue for Confucius to beautify his image.
Setting off from Qufu, one can reach Mount Ni, the birthplace of Confucius after a 35-kilometre drive eastward along the Rizhao–Dongming Expressway.
Originally known as the Mount Niqiu, Mount Ni overlooks the plain where Qufu is situated, with the Yihe River running at its base. Its highest point is only 340 metres. Today the scenic spots here include the Nishan Temple, a Confucius Temple, and a pavilion for viewing the river, while historically there was nothing here but a thatched pavilion. Legend has it that this is where the young Confucius, standing at the sight of the Yihe River, sighed emotionally: “What passes away is, perhaps, like this. Day and night it never lets up.” His words were recorded in the Zihan, Book 9 of Lunyu (Analects of Confucius). The pavilion for viewing the river was built during the Yuan Dynasty (1271–1368) to memorialize Confucius.
Sima Qian, a great Chinese historian of the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC–AD 24), engaged in textual research of Confucius’ birthplace. It is stated in the “House of Confucius” of the Records of the Grand Historian: “Confucius was born in Zouyi, Changpingxiang, State of Lu. His ancestors came from the state of Song and one of them, Kong Fangshu, had a son named Boxia, whose son was Shuliang He. In his old age, Shuliang He, together with a daughter of the Yan Family, conjoined in the wilds, and after he had prayed at the shrine of Mount Niqiu, she gave birth to Confucius. That was in the 22nd year of Duke Xiang of Lu. Because Confucius was born with a depression at the top of his head, he was given the name of Qiu (a hillock) and a style name Zhongni, while his family name was Kong.”
Shuliang He had three wives. His first wife, with Shi as her family name, gave birth to nine daughters. His concubine had borne a boy named Mengpi who, unfortunately, had foot disease. Shuliang He often prayed to the gods at Mount Niqiu for a healthy son. At the age of 64, he married a 16-year-old girl named Yan Zhengzai, who gave birth to Confucius three years later. The line of “Shuliang He, together with a woman of the Yan Family, conjoined in the wilds and… gave birth to Confucius.” The Records of the Historian mentions the huge difference in age between He and Yan. That’s why their marriage was called “conjoined in the wilds (yehe).” As the boy was born on Mount Niqiu, he was named Kongqiu, with the style name Zhongni. Out of their respect for Confucius, people of later generations deleted the word “qiu” from “Mount Niqiu.”
According to Sima Qian, Confucius was born ugly with an odd head. There were five summits on Mount Niqiu, which were called “five towering summits.” Therefore, Sima Qian said Confucius’ head was like a “盂” (yu, a broad-mouthed receptacle for holding liquid) in the five towering summits. Sima Qian guessed that this might be why Shuliang He named his son “Qiu.” Seen from today’s perspectives, however, it was probably out of a strong desire to have a healthy son that Shuliang He would risk the public condemnation of “conjoining in the wilds.” In addition, no matter how ugly his son was, considering that Shuliang He had a healthy son at the age of 67, he probably had no reason to associate the name of his son with “盂.”
Sima Qian’s description of Confucius’ appearance had an immense influence on the thinking of people of later generations. Today, a portrait of Confucius is hung over the first toll station off the expressway in Qufu, the hometown of Confucius. This portrait of Confucius is the one prevalently used in China today, and it coincidences with the description of Sima Qian: “Confucius appears to be a man with a square face, uneven forehead, long and drooping eyebrows, lips that cannot cover his teeth and dull eyes. Little wisdom can be inferred from viewing this face.”
Zigong (520 BC– 456 BC), one of the disciples of Confucius, was said to have made the earliest portrait of Confucius. According to Confucius, Zigong was a person with whom “one can discuss the Book of Songs” and a person who “when told something, he can see its relevance to what he has not been told.” In the “Biographies of the Disciples of Zhongni” (Confucius) in the Records of the Grand Historian, Sima Qian made the following comment: “Zigong is eloquent and quick-tongued in argument, and Confucius often rejects his speech.” Among the disciples of Confucius, Zigong had outstanding talents. He was once to be the prime minister of the States of Lu and Wei, and he proposed the strategy of saving the State of Lu, throwing the State of Qi into chaos, defeating the State of Wu, strengthening the State of Jin and helping the State of Yue seeking domination. According to Sima Qian, “Zigong served as an envoy to many states. As a result, the situations in five states changed greatly ten years later.” Confucius also thought highly of Zigong for his business acumen. The “Xianjin,” “Book 11” of the Lunyu (Analects of Confucius) mentions: “Ci (Duanmu Ci, who is styled Zigong) refuses to accept his lot and indulges in moneymaking, and is frequently right in his conjectures.” Zigong was good at doing business. He was adept in judging market changes and could always make money by purchasing items when prices were low and selling them when prices were high. Confucius always praised him for his accurate judgment. When Confucius passed away in Qufu, Zigong was in the State of Wei and did not visit. As a form of self-imposed punishment, Zigong maintained a vigil at the front of Confucius’ tomb for six years, while other disciples did so for only three years.
The portrait of Confucius done by Zigong is thought to have been accurate, because Zigong was a versatile disciple of Confucius, had great respect for his teacher and saw him in person. Unfortunately, the portrait is not extant.
The earliest portrait of Confucius we can see today is the “Portrait of Confucius as a Teacher” done by Wu Daozi (680–759) during the Tang Dynasty (AD 618–907). Wu Daozi rose to fame as a painter by the age of 20. He was summoned to the imperial palace in Xi’an to serve as an imperial painter. He also served as a county magistrate in Yanzhou, Shandong, for a short time but soon resigned and travelled and painted again. Wu laid a foundation for Chinese landscape painting and opened a new vista for Chinese figure painting by employing undulating lines in portraying human figures. Under the brush pen of Wu Daozi, Confucius has a square face and dignified bearing. With both hands crossed before his chest, he looks modest and amiable. He leans forward a little, with a simple and humble expression on his face. The original “Portrait of Confucius as a Teacher” was lost. Fortunately, the portrait was inscribed on a stone tablet inside the Shengji Hall of the Confucian Temple at Qufu.
However, the appearance of Confucius on the weathered stone engraving has eroded. The clearest portrait of Confucius is the “Portrait of Confucius in Homely Dress” hanging at the toll station off the Qufu Expressway.
Little is known about the creator of this portrait, but it may have been made during the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644). Fortunately, the portrait is well preserved. Based on the description of Sima Qian, Confucius is portrayed as a man having teeth his lips could not cover, dull eyes, big nostrils and irregular facial features.
In “Shu’er,” “Book 7” of the Lunyu (Analects of Confucius) the following lines can be found: “When the Master was unoccupied with business, he was relaxed and pleased.”
However, the manner of Confucius as described by his disciples cannot be seen in the “Portrait of Confucius in the Homely Dress.” Nor did the painter sign his name on this widely circulated portrait stored in the Archive of Cultural Relics of the Residence of Confucius’ Descendants.
The “Shu’er” begins with: The Master said, “I transmit but do not innovate; I am truthful in what I say and devoted to antiquity. I venture to compare myself to our Old Peng.” The sentence effectively means that Confucius holds the ancient people in esteem by quoting, instead of elaborating on, what they said during his lectures. The word “Shu’er” in the title of “Book Seven” suggest his attitude and methods of doing scholarly research. The lines in “Book Seven” include: “Quietly to store up knowledge in my mind, to learn without flagging, to teach without growing weary. For me there is nothing to these things”; “I set my heart on the Way, base myself on virtue, lean upon benevolence for support and take my recreation in the arts”; “I never enlighten anyone who has not been driven to distraction by trying to understand a difficulty or who has not got into a frenzy trying to put his ideas into words. When I have pointed out one corner of a square to anyone and he does not come back with the other three, I will not point it out to him a second time”; “In the eating of coarse rice, in the drinking of water and in using one’s elbow for a pillow, joy is to be found. Wealth and rank attained through immoral means have as much to do with me as passing clouds”; “Even when walking in the company of two other men, I am bound to be able to learn from them. The good points of the one I copy; the bad points of the other I correct in myself”; “Junzi (upright and bighearted men) are easy of mind, while “small men” (small-minded or second-rate men) are full of anxiety.”
Gu Kaizhi (348–409), a great painter of the Eastern Jin Dynasty (AD 317–420), drew “A Portrait of Two Sages—Confucius and Yan Hui.” Gu Kaizhi was adept at painting human figures and opened a new vista for Chinese figure painting for his fine depiction of people’s expressions and bearing. However, unlike the scroll “Ode to the Nymph of the Luo River,” another painting by Gu Kaizhi, “A Portrait of Two Sages—Confucius and Yan Hui” was lost. In addition, Emperor Yuandi of the Liang Dynasty (AD 502–557) drew “A Portrait of Confucius,” and Zhao Mengfu, a distinguished calligrapher of the Yuan Dynasty drew “A Portrait of Confucius as a Teacher.” Unfortunately, these portraits were lost as well.
But, what Confucius looked like is no longer important, as it has become an insoluble question, and the painters of the later generations depicted Confucius based on the historical literature or their imaginations. What is important is to make the image of Confucius compatible with the connotations of Confucianism: manners, virtues, benevolence and righteousness, which are representative of the profound Confucian culture and wisdom and which express the Chinese people’s character, which is “cordial, yet stern; awe-inspiring, yet not fierce and respectful, yet at ease.”
As the president of China Sculpture Academy and creator of the statue of Confucius put up in front of the gate of the National Museum of China, Wu Weishan said, “When I started creating the statue of Confucius early in 2010, I mainly based my creation on the portrait of Confucius by Wu Daozi. In my opinion, my creation should be imbued with the feeling of Confucianism and reflect the cultural temperament of Confucius. Today, Confucius is the representative of the Chinese culture. When I was drawing the draft and preparing the model, I bore in mind the principle of expressing the spiritual value, form and symbol of the Chinese nation in the image of Confucius. And bronze is the only material with which I can materialise my thinking.”
This book is not intended to discuss what Confucius looked like. Instead, it tries to explain that, in the evolution of the Chinese culture, a sustained cultural development and the humanistic spirit that can be traced to the same origin, is still personified in the image of Confucius. We can but stand in the utmost awe of Confucius when meeting him face to face.
It is a gene of the Chinese civilization that determines our appearance and facial expressions.
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