The Hanfeizi 韓非子 "Master Han Fei", originally called Hanzi 韓子 "Master Han" (the title was later changed to avoid confusion with the Tang period 唐 (618-907) writer and politician Han Yu 韓愈), is the largest and most important of the treatises of the legalist school (fajia 法家) of ancient China. It was written by Han Fei 韓非, philosopher and politician of the Warring States period 戰國 (5th cent.-221 BCE).

The book Hanfeizi

The Hanfeizi is a collection of different chapters attributed to Han Fei. In fact a lot of chapters are older and were only revised and collected by Han Fei. The chapters he had definitely compiled by himself are Gufen 孤憤 (11), Wudu 五蠹 (49), the Neichu 內儲 and Waichu 外儲 chapters (30-35), the Shuolin 說林 chapters (22-23), and Shuonan 說難 (12). The Former Han period 前漢 (206 BC-8 CE) scholar Liu Xiang 劉向, who rearranged a lot of Warring States period writings, included some additional writings, like Chu jian Qin 初見秦 (1), Youdu 有度 (6), and Cun Han 存韓 (2), and created the transmitted version of the Hanfeizi in 55 chapters.
According to the imperial bibliography Yiwenzhi 藝文志 in the official dynastic historyHanshu 漢書, the Hanfeizi was 55 chapters long. This is identical to the received version. Traditional editions have a length of 20 juan "scrolls". It includes writings by later scholars and other authors. The chapter Cun Han 存韓, for example, begins with the famous memorial to King Zheng of Qin 秦王政 (Shang Qin wang shu 上秦王書), a part which is followed by a critique by Li Si 李斯 and, finally, Han Fei's older memorial to the king of Han (Shang Han wang shu 上韓王書). The chapter Chu jian Qin 初見秦 narrates Han Fei's first audience with King Zheng, in which he suggests annihilating the state of Han 韓, a suggestion which is just the opposite of his idea to conserve the state of Han in the chapter Cun Han mentioned above. It might therefore be that the suggestion to annihilate Han was an idea of the earlier counsellor of Qin, Lü Buwei 呂不韋. The chapter Youdu 有度 is largely identical to the chapter Mingfa 明法 in the book Guanzi 管子, the chapter Shiling 飾令 to the chapter Qinling 靳令 in the book Shangjunshu 商君書. The rest of the book Hanfeizi seems to have been written by Han Fei himself.
In his book, Han Fei exihibits a kind of "summa legista" (Ralf Moritz, Die Philosophie im alten China), in which he assembles the main arguments of his legalist precursors: Written law and regulations (fa 法), the art of ruling by use of competent advisors (shu 術), and the undisputed authority of the ruler (shi 勢) are the three instruments of a strong state. To make his ministers obedient and loyal, reward and punishment are the most important tools of the ruler. Kindheartedness (ren 仁) and righteousness (yi 義), the highly emphasized moral virtues by the Confucians, are of no value for Han Fei. The ruler has to look for it that all his ministers and the state officials act according to the rules prescribed for the office they are acting in. The congruence of designation (ming 名) and reality (shi 實) is the paramount basis on which an empire can exist on. Only if the real shape and the law are consistent (xing ming can tong 形名參同), rewards and punishment can be properly applied. For this reasons, order and fulfilment have permanently to be checked (can yan 參驗).
The style of the book Hanfeizi is very enthralling by the extensive use of parables and stories from the past to demonstrate what the author wants to say. This is expecially true for the chapters Shuolin 說林, Nei chushuo 内儲說 and Wai chushuo 外儲說. A very famous story is the origin of the Chinese word for "contradiction" (maodun 矛盾 "spear and shield"), telling of a man selling weapons and at the same time praising his shield as impenetrabe by any spear, and his spears as able to penetrate the strongest shield. Han Fei wants to demonstrate that a lot of things have two strengths or characteristics contradicting each other. It is therefore important to analyze carefully which of the two is the most beneficial. This is all the more important because all things are subject to change over time. Yet all changes can be predicted if the whole structure is permanently and carefully observed, so that eventual dangers can be fended off.
The greatest part of these semi-historiographical stories is not recorded in any other books or has not been preserved. Han Fei quotes lost sources from the Shangshu 尚書, Lu Chunqiu 魯春秋, Jicheng 晉乘, Chu taowu 楚檮杌 and Qinji 秦紀. In his argumentation, Han Fei first exhibits his predication, then demonstrates the matter with examples, and then draws the logical conclusion. His argumentation is very clear and easy to follow.
The oldest surviving print dates from the Qiandao reign 乾道 (1165-1173) of the Song period 宋 (960-1279). It is unfortunately only preserved as a faksimile. There a lot of prints from the Ming period 明 (1368-1644), among which the version in the Daoist Canon 道藏 is one of the best. Others Ming period publications are the Hanfeizi yuping 韓非子遇評 by a Master Menwuzi 門無子, and Zhao Yongxian's 趙用賢 print from 1582 (together with the Guanzi). The most widespread versions are the Qing period 清 (1644-1911) prints by Zhang Dunren 張敦仁, Wu Cai 吳鼒 from 1818 and that of the Shugu Studio 述古堂. Lu Wenchao 盧文弨 published the Hanfeizi jiaozheng 韓非子校正, Gu Guangqin 顧廣圻 the Hanfeizi shiwu 韓非子識誤, Yu Yue 俞樾 the Hanfei pingyi 韓非評議, and Sun Yirang 孫貽讓 the book Hanfeizi zhachi 韓非子札迻. Another old print is preserved as a faksimile in the collectaneaSibu congkan 四部叢刊. The Hanfeizi is included in the collectanea Shuofu 説郛, Siku quanshu 四庫全書, Qinzaotang siku quanshu huiyao 摛藻堂四庫全書薈要, Shizi quanshu 十子全書, Zishu baijia 子書百家 (Baizi quanshu 百子全書) and Sibu beiyao 四部備要. The late Qing period scholar Wang Xianshen 王先慎 collected all commentaries of his time and published them in 1896 as Hanfeizi jijie 韓非子集解. Modern editions are Chen Qiyou's 陳奇猷 Hanfeizi jishi 韓非子集釋 from 1974, Liang Qixiong's 梁启雄 Hanfeizi qianjie 韓非子淺解 from 1960 and Zhou Xunchu's 周勛初 Hanfeizi jiaozhu 韓非子校注. Liu Shipei 劉師培 published the Hanfeizi jiaobu 韓非子校補, Wu Rulun 吳汝綸 the Hanfeizi duben 韓非子讀本, Gao Heng 高亨 the Hanfeizi bujian 韓非子補箋, Liu Wendian 劉文典 the Du Hanfeizi jianduan ji 讀韓非子簡端記, Yin Tongyang 尹桐陽 the Hanzi xinshi 韓子新釋, and Yu Shengwu 于省吾 the Hanfeizi xinzheng 韓非子新證. In 1982 the Jiangshu renmin press 江蘇人民出版社 published the Hanfeizi jizhu 韓非子校注, in 1989 the Shanghai guji press 上海古籍出版社 published a Hanfeizi, in 1990 there was a joint publication of the Shangjunshu and the Hanfeizi by the Yuelu shushe press 岳麓書社. The most common versions are that of the collectanea Zhuzi jicheng 諸子集成 and Wanyou wenku 萬有文庫.
There is a compete translation by W. K. Liao (transl. 1939), The Complete Works of Han Fei Tzu: A Classic of Chinese Legalism, 2 vols., London: Probsthain; a partial translation by Burton Watson (1964), Han Fei Tzu: Basic Writings, New York: Columbia University Press; and a complete translation in German by Wilmar Mögling (1994), Die Kunst der Staatsführung: Die Schriften des Meisters Han Fei, Leipzig: Kiepenheuer.

Life and philosophy of Han Fei

Han Fei was a member of the royal house of Han 韓 and was a disciple of the Confucian philosopher Xun Kuang 荀況 (Xunzi 荀子), together with Li Si 李斯, the later Counsellor-in-chief of King Zheng of Qin, the eventual First Emperor of Qin 秦始皇 (r. 246-210 BCE). According to Han Fei's biography, he several times tried convincing the king of his native state of Han to adopt reforms for the strengthening of the central government and the state, but the king refused. Han Fei thereupon started writing down his thoughts on the strengths of the written administrative law. These are especially the chapters Gufen 孤憤, Wudu 五蠹 and Shuonan 説難. In 233 Han Fei left for Qin, managed to get an audience with the king of Qin and convinced him to undergo government reforms. Yet he became victim of a slandering campaign by Li Si and Yao Jia 姚賈 and was forced to commit suicide. His writings are included in the book Hanfeizi. Han Fei was the first commentator to the Daoist book Laozi Daodejing 老子道德經. In the chapters Jie Lao and Yu Lao he explains the meaning of the dao 道, the universal way, for the ruler in a legalist state. The dao is a principle inherent to all things on earth and the reason for their being. All naturally occurring phenomena, like the four seasons or the human relationships in society, are based upon the dao. The dao is an objective natural law. It is, nevertheless, not possible that a society can work with the help of natural laws. For this reasons, it is necessary to establish objective laws that regulate the mechanisms within society. In this point Han Fei follows the teachings of Xun Kuang who supposed that man is by nature not good and therefore has to be civilized by means of ritual (li 禮) and etiquette. Similiarly, man can only be controlled by law (fa 法) and regulations according to the thought of Han Fei. Law is one of the three instruments of the ruler to control the state, the two others are the power (shi 勢) that is concentrated in his hands, and his skill (shu 術) to manage the state and to control his ministers. While the last two are of no use in the hands of an incompetent person, laws and regulations offer at least a chance that the dynasty survives in case that a ruler is incompetent. Yet a really strong state can only be built up if all three instruments are successfully made use of. The ruler himself resembles the polestar around which the whole world is running its course, while the polestar itself is immoveable. State officials and the society can be controlled by the implementation of law, especially administrative law (lüling 律令) and penal law (xingfa 刑法). Laws are objective and have to be applied to everyone, even to the crown prince, should he commit a crime. Unlike in Confucianism, personal feelings and moral example do not play any role. Within the officialdom, and in society, everyone has his predefined position and tasks, to offend against which will result in punishment. This is the legalist interpretation of the Confucian theorem of "rectifying the names" (zhengming 正名), i. e. defining what is the concrete meaning of a position, and how should the related task be fulfilled. Once established, the laws and regulations will keep the state administration running like a perpetuum mobile, in other words, like the natural dao. Laws should therefore, as far as possible, not be changed frivolously. The ruler's most dangerous enemies are his ministers and their intrigues (jian 奸). He thus has to keep a certain impersonal distance from them to prevent them from controlling him. Punishment (fa 罰) is one of the two handles (er bin 二柄) of the ruler. The other is reward (shang 賞), by which he will be able to entice his officials to serve him loyally. The "enlightened ruler" (mingzhu 明主) thus creates an atmosphere of mutual benefit and attracts the most able servants. In a state based upon such a philosophical system, there is no place for contending approaches about the right way to govern a society. Other philosophical schools, like Confucianism that stresses the personal moral example of the ruler, Mohism that emphasizes the meaning of universal love, or Daoism that allows man to withdraw from his social obligations, have no place in a legalist state. Useless books can be destroyed. This gave the king of Qin and his advisors the argument for the alleged burning of the Confucian books and his burying alive the Confucian scholars (fenshu kengru 焚書坑儒).
Han Fei's view of history is that of a change. While Confucius tried to re-establish the alleged social order of a glorious past, the legalists stress that all ages have their different social, political and economical conditions, and therefore, modern state and society can not be managed by the same means as those of the past.
As a legalist writer, Han Fei was for a long time discredited by the Confucian-dominated literati class. Yet the complete survival of the book shows that it was always seen as a substantial writing of statecraft. In fact, the imperial Chinese state lived of a combination of Confucianism and legalism.