《荀子．禮論》謂作為萬物生命根源的天地、家族生命根源的先祖、歷史文化生命根源的君師為先秦禮樂文明的「三本」。本文先由「禮」、「樂」、「人文」、「文明」、「文化」諸關鍵性語詞，在先秦文獻中尋典據、探理源，再溯求禮樂文明之源起，其人文精神內涵：親親、尊尊、賢賢、男女有別之發展和形成的孔、孟及《禮記》之思想脈絡，文中並特別關注孟子所奠基的心性論基礎。

In “Doctrine on Rites,” Xunzi, Heaven and Earth as the origin of all creatures, ancestors as the origin of families, and rulers as the origin of history and culture are the three roots of the Confucian civilization of rites and music in the Pre-Qin Period. This article will first seeks the sources of rites, music, humanism, civilization and culture in the Pre-Qin documents, traces the civilization of rites and music to its origins and explores its humanistic immanence— respecting those who have high status, caring for those who are related to us, recognizing the worth of those who are good and capable, along with the philosophical contexts of Confucius, Mengzi and The Book of Rites which are based on the distinction between women and men—with particular emphasis on the doctrine of mind-nature informed by Mengzi’s theories.