Confucianism has been a foundational component of East Asian culture, religion, society, and government for millennia, and its visibility and significance have continued to expand in recent decades. Confucianism is often elusive, challenging categories and theoretical stances of the academy and yet simultaneously seeming to merge with a broader culture. Confucianism has spread with Chinese emigration; it has also spread through the interest of American and European academics who have identified with its scholarly and ethical commitments. While it was once declared a dying tradition, today knowledge of Confucianism is vital to understanding and engaging modern East and Southeast Asia. Comprised of thirty-eight original essays by experts from a wide range of disciplines, The Oxford Handbook of Confucianism covers the Confucian tradition chronologically, geographically, and topically through textured and innovative examinations of foundational subjects and emerging topics in Confucian studies. Confucianism in China is critically examined, from ancient legends through medieval and early modern China to contemporary manifestations. Essays also consider the tradition in the wider East Asian culture and beyond, notably in Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia, and the recently emerged "Boston Confucianism." A series of topical essays study Confucianism's always complicated integration with cultural, social, religious, and political forms, using a range of vantage points including gender, family, ethics, visual and literary arts, government, education, ritual, and modern culture.

The Oxford Handbook of Confucianism (OXFORD HANDBOOKS SERIES)

Politics & Social Sciences

Oldstone-Moore, Jennifer

Philosophy

Oxford University Press

Six centuries before the birth of Jesus, a Chinese sage named Master Kong or Kong Fuzi (later latinized to Confucius) drafted the principles of a society founded upon virtue. For more than two thousand years, Kong Fuzi's work has remained the foundation of Chinese civilization. In this lavishly illustrated volume, Jennifer Oldstone-Moore takes readers on an insightful tour of this enduring belief system. Not quite a religion, more than a philosophy, Confucianism coexists with Daoism and Buddhism in Chinese spiritual life, guiding personal relations and social structure. Oldstone-Moore explains the essence of Confucian belief--the primary importance of filial relations, and the need for governments to be founded upon virtue--and she underscores the overarching importance of the Confucian canon. Though Confucius's own sayings are preserved in the Analects, he saw himself as an editor and mediator of the wisdom of antiquity, which he gathered in the Six Classics and Four Books, which stress harmony in the social order. The author sheds much light on these texts--The Book of Changes, the Classic of History, the Classic of Poetry, the Spring and Autumn Annals, the Book of Rites, and the now-lost Classic of Music--and also discusses the role of heroes (such as the Sage Kings), rituals and the Chinese calendar, sacred places, and Confucianism's place as a state religion through much of Chinese history. No society on earth has had the continuous history--as a single people, culture, and state--that China enjoys. One of the keys to that unity, to China's very identity, is Confucianism, deftly elucidated in this attractive, informative volume.

Confucianism

History

World

Existing in China alongside Confucianism and Buddhism throughout the centuries, Taoism has had a major impact on Chinese intellectual and spiritual life. This concise guide offers an engaging introduction to the precepts, history and practices of Taoism, in a well-designed and attractively illustrated volume that includes dozens of color photographs. The book illuminates Taoism--its main beliefs and rituals, the key sacred texts, the status of the religion today. We learn that the term Tao ("Way") signifies the natural pattern underlying all cosmic change and transformation, the way in which qi (life force) is endlessly created and dissolved to form the myriad phenomena of the universe. Focusing on one's development as an individual and on establishing harmony with nature, Taoism teaches that to achieve order and harmony in one's own life and in the cosmos, one must learn to perceive the Tao in nature and to act--or refrain from acting--in accordance with it. The idea of strengthening oneself through attunement with natural forces is also applied to the preservation of the body through the quest for longevity. Oldstone-Moore also illuminates the history of Taoism, ranging from its founding by Laozi, who is believed to have written the Tao Te Jing, the main text of Taoist thought, to the religion's decline in the early twentieth century, due to the impact of anti-religious movements, the most radical of which was Chinese Communism, to its recent resurgence. Elegantly designed and beautifully illustrated, this volume would make a wonderful gift for someone interested in Eastern religion or Chinese culture.

Taoism

Asia

This concise, illustrated introduction to Tao provides a unique distillation of this highly distinctive tradition, from its origins in ancient China to its place in society today. It covers nine key themes, including the life of Tao's founding sage Laozi and his teachings; the influential sacred writings of the Tao Te Ching and Zhuangzi; and the concept of wu wei (non interference).

Understanding Taoism: Origins*Beliefs*Practices*Holy Texts*Sacred Places

Watkins

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Oldstone-Moore, Jennifer. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Oldstone-Moore, Jennifer

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Oldstone-Moore, Jennifer. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

The Oxford Handbook of Confucianism (OXFORD HANDBOOKS SERIES)

Confucianism

Taoism

Understanding Taoism: OriginsBeliefsPracticesHoly TextsSacred Places