Self-realization through Confucian learning : a contemporary reconstruction of Xunzi's ethics / Siufu Tang.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Tang, Siu-Fu, 1974- author.

Series:

SUNY series in Chinese philosophy and culture

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Xunzi, 340 B.C.-245 B.C.

Xunzi.

Confucian ethics.

Philosophy, Chinese--To 221 B.C.

Philosophy, Chinese.

Philosophy, Confucian--China.

Philosophy, Confucian.

China.

Physical Description:

viii, 183 pages ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Albany : State University of New York Press, [2016]

Summary:

Self-Realization through Confucian Learning reconstructs Confucian thinker Xunzi's moral philosophy in response to the modern focus on self-realization. Xunzi (bora around 310 BCE) claims that human xing ("nature" or "native conditions") is without an ethical framework and has a tendency to dominate, leading to bad judgments and bad behavior. Confucian ritual propriety (li) is needed to transform these human native conditions. Through li, people become self-directing: in control of feelings and desires and in command of their own lives. Siufu Tang explicates Xunzi's understanding of the hierarchical structure of human agency to articulate why and how li is essential to self-realization. Ritual propriety also structures relationships to make a harmonious communal life possible. Tang's focus on self-realization highlights how Confucianism can address the individual as well as the communal and serve as a philosophy for contemporary times. Book jacket.

Contents:

Chapter 1 Xing and Native Conditions 11

Xunzi's definitions of xing 13

"People's xing is bad" 17

Natural desires and moral neutrality 26

Goodness and human agency 33

Chapter 2 Wei and Human Agency 37

Definitions of wei 38

From xing to wei 48

Human agency: Actions and happenings 52

Xunzi's worldview 56

Chapter 3 Xing, Wei, and the Origin of Ritual Propriety 65

Creation of ritual propriety from wei 68

People's xing at the two stages of wei 76

Ritual propriety and the satisfaction of desires 79

The heart-minds approval and second-order evaluation 85

Desires and their form of expression 91

Chapter 4 Ritual Propriety and the Good Life 99

The self and the good 100

The petty man and the noble man 111

Understanding the Way 114

Community and the self 121

Ritual propriety as self-interpretation 128.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781438461496

1438461496

OCLC:

947816193