This book examines the origins and basic concepts of sociology in China and traces the discipline's evolutionary trajectory. Building on the premise that qunxue, which goes back to Xunzi, is essentially the Chinese antecedent of modern/Western sociology, contributors try to show the distinctive ways qunxue addresses a wide range of both foundational and practical issues related to society using its own set of conceptual, analytical and methodological apparatus. The book argues that the rise of Chinese sociology will depend crucially on whether the rich heritage of traditional Chinese sociology can be fully appreciated and integrated with the Western tradition of learning. Following two preliminary chapters laying out qunxue's basic paramters, the four remaining chapters focus on its four primary concerns: cultivation of the self (xiushen), regulation of the family (qijia), governance of the state (zhiguo), and realization of universal peace (pingtianxia).

Based on rare first-hand historical data, the author presents the analysis of the East Turkestan from the perspective of Islamic social structure, the origin and evolution of thoughts on national revolution, the internal structure of the independence movement and the power structure of the Republic, international relations, and international politics. Since it was first published in 1995, the original Japanese edition of this book has been recognized as the most authoritative research work on the independence movement of East Turkestan so far. The English edition of this book has been greatly revised and enriched to provide valuable references for the prominent issues of Xinjiang today.