Fifteen Lectures on Chinese Philosophy

Description

This book introduces fifteen representative philosophers in ancient China, including Confucius, Laozi, Mencius, Zhuangzi, influential Neo-Taoist scholars, and prominent Neo-Confucian thinkers. It reveals the fundamental problems of each philosopher, clarifies the connotation of the concept as well as the specific reference of the problem, and presents the inherent context and structure of each philosopher’s thoughts. Further, the author analyzes a selection of these ancient philosophers’ main propositions and demonstrates the argumentation and proof processes behind the basic philosophical insights. As such, this book is a valuable academic resource for scholars and the interested readers wanting to gain an in-depth understanding of ancient Chinese philosophy today. Preface Contents 1 Human Nature and the Way of Heaven: The Philosophy of Confucius 1 About The Analects 2 We Cannot Hear 3 By Nature People are Similar 4 Pleasure and Delight 5 The Path to Happiness 6 To Establish Character and Be Prominent 7 Dialogues About Benevolence 8 What Does Heaven Say? 2 Becoming Useful with the Basis of Non-being: The Philosophy of The Laozi 1 Beginning with the First Chapter of The Laozi 2 Being is Born from Non-being 3 Becoming Useful with the Basis of Non-being 4 He Who Stands on Tiptoe is not Steady 5 Acting Without Action 3 Exerting the Mind and Knowing Human Nature: The Philosophy of Mencius 1 The Function of the Mind is to Think 2 Exerting the Mind and Knowing Human Nature 3 Human Nature is Good 4 Knowing the Logic of Speech 5 Nourishing One’s Qi 6 A Benevolent Government 4 The Way to True Knowledge: The Philosophy of Zhuang Zi 1 The Keyword of Zhuang Zi’s Philosophy: Knowledge 2 Differing Levels of Knowledge 3 Right and Wrong 4 Employing the Light of Reason and Accepting All the Right Judgments 5 Knowledge and the Self 6 Beyond Knowledge 7 The Equality of Things 8 Function: Specific and General 9 True Knowledge and Independence 5 Being or Non-being: The Philosophy of Wang Bi 1 Hermeneutic Principles 2 The Distinction Between Language and Meaning 3 Ontological Breaks 3.1 The Meaning of “Non-being” 3.2 The Dao and Things 3.3 The Dao and Nature 3.4 Becoming Useful with the Basis of Non-being 4 Political Philosophy 4.1 Two Ways to Observe Things 4.2 “To Value the Root and to Keep the Branches” (Chong Ben Ju Mo, 崇本举末) and “To Value the Root and to Eliminate the Branches” (Chong Ben Xi Mo, 崇本息末) 4.3 Acting Without Action 4.4 The Character of the Sage 6 The Principle of Nature: The Philosophy of JiKang 1 The Principle of Nature 2 The Defense of Self 3 The Nourishment of Life 4 The Rebuttal to One’s Choice of Residence is not Auspicious or Inauspicious to One’s Nourishing of Life 5 The Relationship Between Music and Emotions 7 Limitation and Nature: The Philosophy of Guo Xiang 1 On The Annotations to The Zhuangzi 1.1 Guo Xiang’s Edition of The Zhuangzi 1.2 Did Guo Xiang Plagiarize? 1.3 The Characteristics of Guo’s Annotations 2 Ontology 2.1 The Non-existence of the Creator 2.2 Nature 2.3 Principle and Human Nature 2.4 The Self and Interactions 2.5 The Carefree Excursion and Human Nature 2.6 Following the Things 2.7 Life and Death 3 Political Ideas 3.1 Acting Without Action 3.2 The Nobleman and the King 3.3 Political Virtue 8 Sincerity as the Supreme Ultimate: The Philosophy of Zhou Dunyi 1 Metaphysics 1.1 The Supreme Ultimate, Yin and Yang, and the Five Agents 1.2 Humans and the Myriad Things 1.3 The Sage 2 Teaching and Self-Cultivation 2.1 The Way of Teaching 2.2 Purifying the Heart 2.3 Rituals and Music 2.4 Punishments 2.5 The Will to Learn 9 Substance and Function: The Philosophy of Shao Yong 1 The Observation of Things 2 Substance and Function 3 Four Aspects of Substance 4 Three Aspects of Function 10 Establishing Our Own Philosophy: The Philosophy of Cheng Hao 1 Criticizing Buddhism 2 The Establishment of Neo-Confucian Discourse 3 The Principle of Heaven 4 What is Inborn is Called Nature 5 Sensation and Benevolence 6 On Calming Human Nature 11 The One and Its Two Contrary Aspects: The Philosophy of Zhang Zai 1 The Great Vacuity and Qi 2 Form and Image 3 The Three and the Two 4 The Wonder and Transformation 5 Sensation 6 On Human Nature 7 Human Nature and the Human Mind 12 Metaphysical Substance: The Philosophy of Cheng Yi 1 Physics and Metaphysics 2 The Unity of Substance and Function 3 The Absolute Creation as the Principle of Heaven 4 Everything Has Its Opposite 5 Collectivity and Benevolence 6 On Human Nature 7 On Respect 8 The Investigation of Things and the Extension of Knowledge 13 The Principle of Heaven and Qi, Motion and Stillness: The Philosophy of Zhu Xi 1 Substance and Function 2 The Supreme Ultimate 3 The Principle of Heaven and Qi 3.1 Qi Comes from the Principle of Heaven 3.2 The Relationship Between the Principle of Heaven and Qi 3.3 The Motion and Stillness of the Principle of Heaven and Qi 3.4 The Unity and Particularity of the Principle of Heaven 4 Theories on Human Nature and Mind 5 Self-Cultivation 6 The Extension of Knowledge 14 Be Your Own Master: The Philosophy of Lu Jiuyuan 1 The Original Mind 2 The Mind is the Principle of Heaven 3 Gather Your Spirit and Be Your Own Master 4 The Investigation of Things and Sitting Quietly 5 The Relationship Between Righteousness and Profit 15 The Principle of Heaven is not Outside the Mind: The Philosophy of Wang Yangming 1 The Principle of Heaven is not Outside the Mind 2 There Are no Things Outside the Mind 3 The Investigation of Things 4 The Unity of Knowledge and Action 5 The Extension of Innate Knowledge