曹雪芹撰寫《紅樓夢》實有創作新神話將其人生領悟傳諸後世之意圖。本文視大觀 園為上演啟蒙成長神話的場所，綜論《紅樓夢》開顯人生應有的成長課題。第一節論大 觀園之緣起、人物對應及作用；第二節就其作為啟蒙場所，談如何表現人生應學習的成 長內涵；第三節探討大觀園破滅的因素與意義；第四節處理成長內涵中矛盾的消融，並 化解真實與虛幻、入世與出世的對立。
大觀園作為太虛幻境在人世間的映照，為寶玉潛意識想望的投射，然想望未必能落 實，園中經歷均是成長中感情的課題。色慾僅生物本能，情才是人生所鍾；情不與禮教 對立，應為倫常基礎，以之貫串禮教。園中揭露人生的至悲至難，是深情與無情之變遷 的對立，即生命價值與生命真相匯於個體造成的衝突，出路則以佛法色空不二的觀點消 融二者。啟蒙成長的關鍵在於能夠「以情悟道」。當人生不再因摯愛真情與世事無常而 矛盾，生活就在此處、此時、此身中隨緣安住，此正是曹雪芹在所創作的新神話中想要 傳達的教誨。
大觀園在故事中當然是破滅了，但對讀者來說，書寫不滅，大觀園亦不滅。因此《紅 樓夢》即便以說部立言，看似虛幻不實，「假作真時真亦假，無為有處有還無」卻後設 地點出故事向來真實不朽，彰顯普世共時的神話意義。

Joseph Campbell believes that the pedagogical function of myth is to serve as a guide for individuals during an introspective journey on which they derive insight into life. Cao Xueqin, with a somewhat similar intent, writes “The Story of the Stone” to create a new awakening myth for his posterity. In this paper, the Grand View Garden is treated as the dramatic venue where the myth of life is performed. Section 1, the symbols and function of the Grand View Garden are discussed. Section 2 discusses what the main character learns when growing up in the garden. The factors leading up to and the meaning of the ruin of the garden are explored in section 3. Section 4 explains how to overcome conflicts between inflexible affection in one’s mind and impermanence in life and how to resolve the contradictions between the real and the unreal, the eremitic impulse and attachment to society.
This book clarifies that affection, rather than the opposite of social decencies, should be the basis of ethics. Besides, the saddest thing in life lies in the confrontation between long-lasting love and the ephemerality of life; that results in the biggest contradiction when the value of life goes against the truth of it. Buddhist prajna appears as the solution -- the key to growing is to have “full awareness of Dao through affection.” When there is no longer conflict between affection and ephemerality, to live means being in here and now and to be who one is, going along with the nature of synchronicity. That’s the teaching Cao
conveys in “The Story of the Stone””.
The Grand View Garden is destroyed eventually, but for readers, the novel, though being a work of fiction in which ”Truth becomes fiction when the fiction’s true/ The real becomes not-real where the unreal’s real,” is itself immortal and holds mythological significance.