|
Books > Religion & Spirituality > Non-Christian religions > Religions of Indic & Oriental origin > Oriental religions
"Finding Wisdom in East Asian Classics" is an essential,
all-access guide to the core texts of East Asian civilization and
culture. Essays address frequently read, foundational texts in
Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese, as well as early modern
fictional classics and nonfiction works of the seventeenth century.
Building strong links between these writings and the critical
traditions of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism, this volume shows
the vital role of the classics in the shaping of Asian history and
in the development of the humanities at large.
Wm. Theodore de Bary focuses on texts that have survived for
centuries, if not millennia, through avid questioning and
contestation. Recognized as perennial reflections on life and
society, these works represent diverse historical periods and
cultures and include the "Analects of Confucius," "Mencius,"
"Laozi," "Xunxi," the "Lotus Sutra," Tang poetry, the "Pillow
Book," "The Tale of Genji," and the writings of Chikamatsu and
Kaibara Ekken. Contributors explain the core and most commonly
understood aspects of these works and how they operate within their
traditions. They trace their reach and reinvention throughout
history and their ongoing relevance in modern life.
With fresh interpretations of familiar readings, these essays
inspire renewed appreciation and examination. In the case of some
classics open to multiple interpretations, de Bary chooses two
complementary essays from different contributors. Expanding on
debates concerning the challenges of teaching classics in the
twenty-first century, several pieces speak to the value of Asia in
the core curriculum. Indispensable for early scholarship on Asia
and the evolution of global civilization, "Finding Wisdom in East
Asian Classics" helps one master the major texts of human
thought.
The Daode jing ("Book of the Dao and Its Virtue") is an essential
work in both traditional Chinese culture and world philosophy. The
oldest text of philosophical Daoism, and widely venerated among
religious Daoist practitioners, it was composed around the middle
of the 4th century BCE. Ascribed to a thinker named Laozi, a
contemporary of Confucius, the work is based on a set of aphorisms
designed to help local lords improve their techniques of
government. The most translated book after the Bible, the Daode
jing appears in numerous variants and remains highly relevant in
the modern world. This guide provides an overview of the text,
presenting its historical unfolding, its major concepts, and its
contemporary use. It also gives some indication of its essence by
citing relevant passages and linking them to the religious
practices of traditional Daoism.
Shinto permeates the religious landscape of Japan and is a major
key to the understanding of Japanese culture and society. But what
is it? If ideological shortcuts are avoided there is no simple
answer. Yet this book will guide students and general readers
through many aspects of Shinto both today and in its history. It
contains much information about sacred Shinto shrines and the
divinities (the kami) which are the focus of devotion there. These
numerous divinities have been viewed in different ways in the
course of time, and contributions by specialists shed much light on
the role played by Buddhism in this regard. Moreover, several
fascinating religious movements or "sects" which share in the wider
pattern of Shinto are also introduced and discussed. Oversimplified
views may be challenged here, but the result is a volume in which
"Shinto" is explored in a wide and illuminating perspective by an
international team of scholars. It provides a refreshing and
much-needed resource for all who are interested in the subject.
|
The Tao
(Paperback)
Lao zi
|
R251
R205
Discovery Miles 2 050
Save R46 (18%)
|
Ships in 10 - 15 working days
|
|
Drawing on ancient and modern sources, Watts treats the Chinese philosophy of Tao in much the same way as he did Zen Buddhism in his classic The Way of Zen. Critics agree that this last work stands as a perfect monument to the life and literature of Alan Watts.
|
The Taoist Body
(Paperback)
Kristofer Schipper; Translated by Karen C. Duval; Foreword by Norman Girardot
|
R837
R736
Discovery Miles 7 360
Save R101 (12%)
|
Ships in 12 - 17 working days
|
|
The ancient system of thought known as Taoism remains today the
least well known of the world's great religions and one of the most
inaccessible aspects of Chinese culture. This is in large part
because Western thought clings to the notion of the separation of
matter and spirit, body and soul. Taoism refuses this dualism and
considers the body's perfection as essential as the soul's
redemption is to Christianity.
Kristofer Schipper's elegant and lucid introduction to the
traditions of Taoism and the masters who transmit them will reward
all those interested in China and in religions. The result of over
twenty-five years of research, including eight years of fieldwork
in China, Schipper's book retraces, step by step, the way that
leads from Chinese shamanism and traditional village life to the
physical Tending Life techniques, which in turn lead to the
mysticism of Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu. Schipper shows the fundamental
unity underlying all aspects of Taoism as Taoism considers itself
to be. The social body--the community, the village, the
land--corresponds in all aspects to the physical body in Taoism. In
both of them the survival of humanity is decided here and now. "My
destiny is within me, not in Heaven!"
|
You may like...
On Relationship
Jiddu Krishnamurti
Paperback
R420
R342
Discovery Miles 3 420
The Tao of Pooh
Benjamin Hoff
Paperback
(1)
R265
R212
Discovery Miles 2 120
|