歷來《論語》詮釋中最受忽略的莫過於〈鄉黨〉一篇，而以往的研究也幾乎完全限於禮制的角度。本文以〈鄉黨〉為例，從功夫論的角度探討〈鄉黨〉中的義理蘊涵。依本文之見，〈鄉黨〉一篇記錄的是孔子的「身教」。這種「身教」強調兩點：一是將禮儀實踐與日常生活融為一體。將日常生活禮儀化，同時也將禮儀日常生活化；二是將禮儀實踐作為一種身心兼顧的修煉方式。正是通過〈鄉黨〉這篇對於孔子在日常生活各種不同境遇中禮儀實踐的詳細記錄，作為身心修煉的禮儀實踐不再只是一種抽象的理念，而是在作為人格典範的孔子身上得到了活生生的聚焦和突顯。其中，我們不僅可以看到禮儀實踐遍在於日常生活的點點滴滴，還可以看到作為「聖之時者」的孔子是如何在禮儀實踐中具體貫徹「時」的境遇性原則，更可以看到禮儀實踐如何展現為一種「體態」、「心態」表裡共建、交關同構的身心修煉。這種作為身心修煉的禮儀實踐，正是鑄造君子與聖賢人格的必由之路。所謂君子與聖賢，正是那種通過身心修煉而在日常生活的任何情況下都能夠使自己行為「得體」的人格典範。孔子所謂「從心所欲不逾矩」，描述的也正是這種作為身心修煉的禮儀實踐的圓滿成就。

Chapter ”xiangdang” 鄉黨 in Lunyu 論語 (the Analects) has always been overlooked. Previous studies of this chapter have almost totally concentrated on ritual as a social institution from a perspective of philology and evidential studies. This article, however, probes the spiritual and philosophical implications of this chapter from a practical perspective. In my view, this chapter is a record of Kongzi 孔子's ”body teaching”. This ”body teaching” is featured by two points: one is integrating ritual practice and daily life into a continue process; the other is taking ritual practice as a bodily and spiritual exercise. It is through ”xiangdang”, a detailed record of Kongzi's ritual practice in various situations in his daily life, that ritual practice as a bodily and spiritual exercise is vividly focused by Kongzi himself as a paradigmatic personality, not an abstract idea any more. In this chapter, we can find that every situation of daily life is actually permeated with ritual practice, how Kongzi as a ”timing sage” carries out the situated principle of ”timing” in his everyday ritual practice, and, particularly, how ritual practice is performed as a bodily and spiritual exercise that entails a psychosomatic way of thinking. It is through this ritual practice as a bodily and spiritual exercise that an exemplary person or a sage can be shaped. And an exemplary person or even a sage is exactly a paradigmatic personality who can make a suitable response to any complicated situation of our daily life. ”Following my heart-mind without overstepping the line”, is just the description of this consummate achievement of the ritual practice as a bodily and spiritual exercise.