Neo-Confucianism
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Tâi-lô | Sòng-Bîng lí-ha̍k |
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| Revised Romanization | Seongnihak |
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| Revised Hepburn | Sō Min rigaku |
| Kunrei-shiki | Sô Min rigaku |
Neo-Confucianism (Chinese: 宋明理學; pinyin: Sòng-Míng lǐxué, often shortened to lǐxué 理學, literally "School of Principle") is a moral, ethical, and metaphysical Chinese philosophy influenced by Confucianism, which originated with Han Yu (768–824) and Li Ao (772–841) in the Tang dynasty, and became prominent during the Song and Ming dynasties under the formulations of Zhu Xi (1130–1200). After the Mongol conquest of China in the thirteenth century, Chinese scholars and officials restored and preserved neo-Confucianism as a way to safeguard the cultural heritage of China.[1]
Neo-Confucianism could have been an attempt to create a more rationalist and secular form of Confucianism by rejecting superstitious and mystical elements of
Origins
Neo-Confucianism has its origins in the Tang dynasty; the Confucianist scholars Han Yu and Li Ao are seen as forebears of the neo-Confucianists of the Song dynasty.[3] The Song dynasty philosopher Zhou Dunyi (1017–1073) is seen as the first true "pioneer" of neo-Confucianism, using Taoist metaphysics as a framework for his ethical philosophy.[4] Neo-Confucianism was both a revival of classical Confucianism, updated to align with the social values of the Song dynasty, and a reaction to the challenges of Buddhism and Taoism philosophy and religion which emerged during the Zhou and Han dynasties.[5] Although the neo-Confucianists denounced Buddhist metaphysics, Neo-Confucianism did borrow Taoist and Buddhist terminology and concepts.[3]
One of the most important exponents of neo-Confucianism was Zhu Xi (1130–1200), his teachings were so influential that they were integrated into civil-service examination from approximately 1314 until 1905.[6] He was a rather prolific writer, maintaining and defending his Confucian beliefs of social harmony and proper personal conduct. One of his most remembered was the book Family Rituals, where he provided detailed advice on how to conduct weddings, funerals, family ceremonies, and the veneration of ancestors. Buddhist thought soon attracted him, and he began to argue in Confucian style for the Buddhist observance of high moral standards. He also believed that it was important to practical affairs that one should engage in both academic and philosophical pursuits, although his writings are concentrated more on issues of theoretical (as opposed to practical) significance. It is reputed that he wrote many essays attempting to explain how his ideas were not Buddhist or Taoist and included some heated denunciations of Buddhism and Taoism. After the Xining era (1068–1077), Wang Yangming (1472–1529) is commonly regarded as the most important Neo-Confucian thinker. Wang's interpretation of Confucianism denied the rationalist dualism of Zhu's orthodox philosophy.
There were many competing views within the neo-Confucian community, but overall, a system emerged that resembled both Buddhist and
While neo-Confucianism incorporated Buddhist and Taoist ideas, many neo-Confucianists strongly opposed Buddhism and Taoism. Indeed, they rejected the Buddhist and Taoist religions. One of Han Yu's most famous essays decries the worship of Buddhist relics. Nonetheless, neo-Confucian writings adapted Buddhist thoughts and beliefs to the Confucian interest. In China, neo-Confucianism was an officially recognized creed from its development during the Song dynasty until the early twentieth century, and lands in the sphere of Song China (Vietnam, Korea, and Japan) were all deeply influenced by neo-Confucianism for more than half a millennium.
Philosophy
Neo-Confucianism is a social and ethical philosophy using metaphysical ideas, some borrowed from Taoism, as its framework. The philosophy can be characterized as humanistic and rationalistic, with the belief that the universe could be understood through human reason, and that it was up to humanity to create a harmonious relationship between the universe and the individual.[7]
The rationalism of neo-Confucianism is in contrast to the mysticism of the previously dominant Chan Buddhism. Unlike the Buddhists, the neo-Confucians believed that reality existed, and could be understood by humankind, even if the interpretations of reality were slightly different depending on the school of neo-Confucianism.[7]
But the spirit of Neo-Confucian rationalism is diametrically opposed to that of Buddhist mysticism. Whereas Buddhism insisted on the unreality of things, Neo-Confucianism stressed their reality. Buddhism and Taoism asserted that existence came out of, and returned to, non-existence; Neo-Confucianism regarded reality as a gradual realization of the Great Ultimate... Buddhists, and to some degree, Taoists as well, relied on meditation and insight to achieve supreme reason; the Neo-Confucianists chose to follow Reason.[8]
The importance of li in Neo-Confucianism gave the movement its Chinese name, literally "The study of Li".
Schools
Neo-Confucianism was a heterogeneous philosophical tradition, and is generally categorized into two different schools.
Two-school model vs. three-school model
In medieval China, the mainstream of neo-Confucian thought, dubbed the "Tao school", had long categorized a thinker named
In contrast to this two-branch model, the
Cheng–Zhu school
Zhu Xi's formulation of the neo-Confucian world view is as follows. He believed that the
Different neo-Confucians had differing ideas for how to do so. Zhu Xi believed in gewu (Chinese: 格物; pinyin: géwù), the Investigation of Things, essentially an academic form of observational science, based on the idea that li lies within the world.
Lu–Wang school
In Korea
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In
Many Korean scholars visited China during the Yuan era and An was among them. In 1286, he read a book of Zhu Xi in Yanjing and was so moved by it that he transcribed the book in its entirety and came back to Korea with it. It greatly inspired Korean intellectuals at the time and many, predominantly from the middle class and disillusioned with the excesses of organized religion (namely Buddhism) and the old nobility, embraced neo-Confucianism. The newly rising neo-Confucian intellectuals were leading groups aimed at the overthrow of the old (and increasingly foreign-influenced) Goryeo dynasty.
After the fall of Goryeo and the establishment of the Joseon dynasty by
In the early 16th century, Jo attempted to transform Joseon into an ideal neo-Confucian society with a series of radical reforms until he was executed in 1520. Despite this, neo-Confucianism soon assumed an even greater role in the Joseon dynasty. Soon neo-Confucian scholars, no longer content to only read and remember the Chinese original precepts, began to develop new neo-Confucian theories. Yi Hwang and Yi I were the most prominent of these new theorists.
Yi Hwang's most prominent disciples were Kim Seong-il (金誠一, 1538–1593),
But neo-Confucianism became so dogmatic in a relatively rapid time that it prevented much needed socioeconomic development and change, and led to internal divisions and criticism of many new theories regardless of their popular appeal. For instance, Wang Yangming's theories, which were popular in the Chinese Ming dynasty, were considered heresy and severely condemned by Korean neo-Confucianists. Furthermore, any annotations on Confucian canon different from Zhu Xi were excluded. Under Joseon, the newly emerging ruling class called Sarim (사림, 士林) also split into political factions according to their diversity of neo-Confucian views on politics. There were two large factions and many subfactions.
During the Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–1598), many Korean neo-Confucian books and scholars were taken to Japan and influenced Japanese scholars such as Fujiwara Seika and affected the development of Japanese neo-Confucianism.
In Japan
In Vietnam
In 1070, emperor
Bureaucratic examinations
Neo-Confucianism became the interpretation of Confucianism whose mastery was necessary to pass the
The competing school of Confucianism was called the
Confucian canon
The Confucian canon as it exists today was essentially compiled by
New Confucianism
In the 1920s, New Confucianism, also known as modern neo-Confucianism, started developing and absorbed the Western learning to seek a way to modernize Chinese culture based on the traditional Confucianism. It centers on four topics: The modern transformation of Chinese culture; Humanistic spirit of Chinese culture; Religious connotation in Chinese culture; and Intuitive way of thinking, to go beyond the logic and to wipe out the concept of exclusion analysis. Adhering to the traditional Confucianism and the neo-confucianism, the modern neo-Confucianism contributes the nation's emerging from the predicament faced by the ancient Chinese traditional culture in the process of modernization; furthermore, it also promotes the world culture of industrial civilization rather than the traditional personal senses.[citation needed]
Prominent neo-Confucian scholars
China
- Cheng Yi (1033–1107) and Cheng Hao (1032–1085)
- Lu Xiangshan also known as Lu Jiuyuan(1139–1193)
- Ouyang Xiu (1007–1072)
- Shao Yong (1011–1077)
- Su Dongpo(1037–1101)
- Wang Yangming also known as Wang Shouren
- Wu Cheng (1249–1333)
- Ye Shi (1150–1223)
- Zhang Shi (1133–1180)
- Zhang Zai (1020-1077)
- Zhou Dunyi (1017–1073)
- Zhu Xi (1130–1200)
- Cheng Duanli (1271–1345)
Korea
- An Hyang (1243–1306)
- U Tak(1263–1342)
- Yi Saek (1328–1396)
- Jeong Mong-ju (1337–1392)
- Jeong Dojeon(1342–1398)
- Gil Jae (1353–1419)
- Ha Ryun
- Gwon Geun
- Jeong Inji(1396–1478)
- Kim Suk-ja
- Kim Jong-jik(1431–1492)
- Nam Hyo-on
- Kim Goil-pil
- Jo Gwang-jo (1482–1519)
- Seo Gyeongdeok
- Yi Eon-jeok
- Toegye) (1501–1570)
- Jo Sik (1501–1572)
- Ryu Seongryong
- Yi Hang
- Kim Inhu
- Ki Daeseung (1527–1572)
- Song Ik-pil(1534–1599)
- Seong Hon (1535–1598)
- Yulgok) (1536–1584)
- Kim Jangsaeng(1548–1631)
- Song Si-yeol(1607–1689)
- Yi Gan (1677–1727)
- Yi Ik(1681–1763)
- Han Wonjin (1682–1751)
- Hong Daeyong (1731–1783)
- Park Jiwon (1737–1805)
- Park Jega(1750–1815)
- Jeong Yak-yong (1762–1836)
Japan
- Fujiwara Seika (1561–1619)
- Hayashi Razan (1583–1657)
- Nakae Tōju(1608–1648)
- Yamazaki Ansai (1619–1682)
- Kumazawa Banzan (1619–1691)
- Yamaga Sokō (1622–1685)
- Itō Jinsai (1627–1705)
- Kaibara Ekken (also known as Ekiken) (1630–1714)
- Arai Hakuseki (1657–1725)
- Ogyū Sorai (1666–1728)
- Nakai Chikuzan (1730–1804)
- Ōshio Heihachirō (1793–1837)
Vietnam
- Lê Văn Thịnh (1050–1096)
- Bùi Quốc Khái (1141–1234)
- Trần Thái Tông (1218–1277)
- Trương Hán Siêu (1274–1354)
- Chu Văn An (1292–1370)
- Lê Quát (1319–1386)
- Nguyễn Trãi (1380–1442)
- Ngô Sĩ Liên (1400–1498)
- Lê Thánh Tông (1442–1497)
- Nguyễn Bỉnh Khiêm (1491–1585)
- Lê Quý Đôn (1726–1784)
- Nguyễn Khuyến (1835–1909)
- Phan Đình Phùng (1847–1896)
- Minh Mạng (1791–1841)
- Tự Đức (1829–1883)
Citations
- ^ Taylor, Jay (2011). The Generalissimo: Chiang Kai-shek and the Struggle for Modern China. Harvard University Press. p. 13.
- ^ Blocker, H. Gene; Starling, Christopher L. (2001). Japanese Philosophy. SUNY Press. p. 64.
- ^ a b c Huang 1999, p. 5.
- ^ a b Chan 1963, p. 460.
- ^ Levinson & Christensen 2002, pp. 302–307.
- ^ Levinson & Christensen 2002, pp. 305–307.
- ^ a b Craig 1998, p. 552.
- ^ Chan 1946, p. 268
- ISBN 978-0804724258.
- ^ de Bary 1989, pp. 94–95.
- ISBN 978-0-521-64430-3.
- ^ Paragraph 12 in Emanuel Pastreich "The Reception of Chinese Literature in Korea"
- ^ Mair 2001, chapter 53.
- ^ 【李甦平】 Lisu Ping, 论韩国儒学的特点和精神 "On the characteristics and spirit of Korean Confucianism", 《孔子研究》2008年1期 (Confucius Studies 2008.1). See also List of Korean philosophers.
General sources
- Chan, Wing-tsit (1963), A Sourcebook of Chinese Philosophy, Princeton: Princeton University Press, ISBN 978-0-691-07137-4
- Chan, Wing-tsit, trans. Instructions for Practical Living and Other Neo-Confucian Writings by Wang Yang-ming. New York: Columbia University Press, 1963.
- Chan, Wing-tsit (1946). China. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press.
- Craig, Edward (1998). Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Volume 7. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-0-415-07310-3.
- Daehwan, Noh. "The Eclectic Development of Neo-Confucianism and Statecraft from the 18th to the 19th Century". Korea Journal (Winter 2003).
- de Bary, William Theodore; Chaffee, John W., eds. (1989). Neo-confucian Education: The Formative Stage. University of California Press. pp. 455–. ISBN 978-0-520-06393-8.
- de Bary, William Theodore; et al., eds. (2008). Sources of East Asian Tradition. New York: Columbia University Press. (Vol. 1 ISBN 978-0-231-14323-3)
- de Bary, William Theodore (1989). The Message of the Mind in Neo-Confucianism. New York: Columbia University Press. ISBN 0231068085.
- Ebrey, Patricia Buckley. Chinese Civilization: A Sourcebook. New York: Free, 1993. Print.
- Henderson, John B. (1998). The Construction of Orthodoxy and Heresy: Neo-Confucian, Islamic, Jewish, and Early Christian Patterns. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press. ISBN 9780791437599.
- Huang, Siu-chi (1999). Essentials of Neo-Confucianism: Eight Major Philosophers of the Song and Ming Periods. Westport: Greenwood Press.
- Levinson, David; Christensen, Karen, eds. (2002). Encyclopedia of Modern Asia. Vol. 4. Charles Scribner's Sons. pp. 302–307.
- ISBN 0-231-10984-9. (Amazon Kindleedition).
- Tu Weiming. Neo-Confucian Thought in Action: Wang Yang-ming’s Youth (1472–1509). Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1976.
- Tu Weiming. Confucian Thought: Selfhood as Creative Transformation. New York: State University of New York Press, 1985.
External links
- "Neo-Confucian Philosophy". Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
- Writings of the Orthodox School from the Song dynasty (in English and Chinese)