Mencius

Erscheinungsjahr 2009
ISBN: 978-0-231-12204-7
Verlag: Columbia University Press

Buch, Englisch, 208 Seiten, Format (B × H): 149 mm x 218 mm, Gewicht: 408 g

Reihe: Translations from the Asian Classics

Known throughout East Asia as Mengzi, or "Master Meng," Mencius (391-308 B.C.E.) was a Chinese philosopher of the late Zhou dynasty, an instrumental figure in the spread of the Confucian tradition, and a brilliant illuminator of its ideas. Mencius was active during the Warring States Period (403-221 B.C.E.), in which competing powers sought to control the declining Zhou empire. Like Confucius, Mencius journeyed to one feudal court after another, searching for a proper lord who could put his teachings into practice. Only a leader who possessed the moral qualities of a true king could unify China, Mencius believed, and in his defense of Zhou rule and Confucian philosophy, he developed an innovative and highly nuanced approach to understanding politics, self-cultivation, and human nature, profoundly influencing the course of Confucian thought and East Asian culture.

Mencius is a record of the philosopher's conversations with warring lords, disciples, and adversaries of the Way, as well as a collection of pronouncements on government, human nature, and a variety of other philosophical and political subjects. Mencius is largely concerned with the motivations of human actors and their capacity for mutual respect. He builds on the Confucian idea of ren, or humaneness, and places it alongside the complementary principle of yi, or rightness, advancing a complex notion of what is right for certain individuals as they perform distinct roles in specific situations. Consequently, Mencius's impact was felt not only in the thought of the intellectual and social elite but also in the value and belief systems of all Chinese people.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Mencius, Mencius

Ivanhoe, Philip

Weitere Mitwirkende

Bloom, Irene

Ivanhoe, Philip

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Religionswissenschaft Religionswissenschaft Allgemein
• Geisteswissenschaften Philosophie Nicht-Westliche Philosophie Indische & Asiatische Philosophie

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Editor's PrefaceIntroductionBook 1ABook 1BBook 2ABook 2BBook 3ABook 3BBook 4ABook 4BBook 5ABook 5BBook 6ABook 6BBook 7ABook 7BGlossary of Persons and Places

Leseproben

Read the >Introduction.

Über Autor(innen)

Irene Bloom (1939-2010) was professor emerita of Asian and Middle Eastern cultures at Columbia University and Barnard College. She edited and translated Knowledge Painfully Acquired: The K'un-chih chi of Lo Ch'in-shun and coedited, with Joshua A. Fogel, Meeting of Minds: Intellectual and Religious Interaction in East Asian Traditions of Thought.

Philip J. Ivanhoe specializes in the history of East Asian philosophy and religion and its potential for contemporary ethics. He has written, edited, and coedited more than a dozen books, including Readings from the Lu-Wang School of Neo-Confucianism and Confucian Moral Self-Cultivation.