哲學可以超越產生它的時代,而成為其他時代的同時代者。在這一點上,中國古代哲學與西方古代哲學并無區別。如果亞里士多德或康德、黑格爾可以是我們的同時代人,那么孔孟老莊也同樣是如此。只要我們對現代性的思維偏見有足夠警惕就會發現,哲學與其時代的關系并非簡單的單線因果論所能解釋。中國雖然沒有產生"哲學"這個名稱,但中國古代哲學具有西方人公認的幾乎所有哲學的基本特征。中國傳統哲學的整體性取向和將哲學作為一種生活方式的態度,足以證明它對于我們的時代具有十分現實的意義。

Philosophy can transcend its times and become contemporary to other times.In this sense,ancient Chinese philosophy is the same as Western philosophy.If Aristotle,Kant,or Hegel can be our contemporaries,so can Confucius,Mencius,Laozi,and Zhuangzi.Only if we maintain vigilance against prejudice in favor of modernity can we find that simple linear causality cannot explain the relationship between philosophy and its times.Though the term"philosophy"does not originate from China,ancient Chinese philosophy possesses almost all of the generally recognized basic features of philosophy.Its special characteristics,such as its global orientation and view of philosophy as a basic way of life,suffice to demonstrate that Chinese philosophy has precious practical significance to the world today.