Spiritual Foundation of Chinese Culture

Author:   Cho–yun Hsu ,  David Ownby
Publisher:   The Chinese University Press
ISBN:  

9789882372122


Pages:   330
Publication Date:   08 November 2021
Format:   Hardback
Availability:   In Print   Availability explained
This item will be ordered in for you from one of our suppliers. Upon receipt, we will promptly dispatch it out to you. For in store availability, please contact us.

Our Price $168.19 Quantity:  
Add to Cart

Share |

Spiritual Foundation of Chinese Culture


Add your own review!

Overview

"Through investigation of Chinese cultural ideals and life practices, Prof. Cho-yun Hsu constructs an original portrait of Chinese spiritual life. Apart from focusing on the exalted subtleties of the scholarly elite, Prof. Hsu pays more attention to the everyday people's cultural idea. By examining their daily practices (including eating, living, medical practices, poems, songs, art, and literature) and ""collective memory"" such as legends, he seeks to clarify Chinese ideas concerning the universe, human life and nature, from traditional times down to the present day. Different from Judeo-Christian tradition centered on ""God,"" the spiritual life of the Chinese people develops around ideas of being ""human,"" and thus cultivating an interactive relationship between man, time, and space. Cho-yun Hsu considers the mode and direction of Chinese culture will impact the future of the entire world. Based on his observation, Western civilization represented by Europe and America nowadays is on the verge of a great change. The problems they are facing, including various crises of alienation and separation from nature, are, in terms of their basic origins, problems for which Western civilization lacks the resources to arrive at a solution. Thus, Chinese culture centered on the man and on the idea of intimate, interdependent relations between man and nature, might offer another solution. It is expected that, by integrating its features into modern civilization, Chinese culture can continue to prosper and be of benefit to the future of the world."

Full Product Details

Author:   Cho–yun Hsu ,  David Ownby
Publisher:   The Chinese University Press
Imprint:   The Chinese University Press
Dimensions:   Width: 15.20cm , Height: 1.50cm , Length: 22.90cm
Weight:   0.666kg
ISBN:  

9789882372122


ISBN 10:   9882372120
Pages:   330
Publication Date:   08 November 2021
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print   Availability explained
This item will be ordered in for you from one of our suppliers. Upon receipt, we will promptly dispatch it out to you. For in store availability, please contact us.

Table of Contents

Chronology of Chinese Dynasties Translator's Foreword Foreword by Ying?shih Yu Preface Acknowledgements Introduction Searching for the Spirit of Chinese Culture I. Life Aesthetics in Time and Space II. The World of Heaven and Earth, Humans and Gods III. Legends and Ghost Stories IV. A Plural, Interactive Order: The Five Elements, Chinese Medicine, and Chinese Cooking V. The Ever?Changing Universe VI. The Meaning of Life VII. The Many Gods Who Protect the People VIII. Secular Religion IX. The Human Networks that Bind Us X. The World Revealed in Novels Conclusion A New Life for Chinese Culture

Reviews

A work of passionate humanism, this book is a heartfelt call to the world to take seriously the best aspects of traditional Chinese culture in order to avoid a looming catastrophe. -Ian Johnson, Pulitzer Prize?winning author Professor Hsu is deservedly a legend in Chinese Studies, and this book only adds to a long and distinguished publication record by an innovative scholar who has contributed to an enormous range of disciplines. Like all of Hsu's works, this can be read with pleasure and profit, as it is studded with insights drawn from antiquity to contemporary history. Highly recommended. -Michael Nylan, Sather Professor of History, University of California at Berkeley Professor Hsu undertakes a sweeping review of the beliefs, values, and visions that constitute Chinese civilizations from the ancient times to the present. Historically engaged and critically provocative, it is a must?read for anyone interested in Chinese Studies. -David Der?wei Wang, Edward C. Henderson Professor of Chinese Literature, Harvard University This account of traditional Chinese ways of thinking and being by one of the world's most eminent Sinologists is an invaluable witness to lived Chinese cultural history and its overriding ideal of harmony. Not since Lin Yutang's My Country and My People has there been such an accessibly erudite tribute to one of the world's great civilizations. -John Lagerwey, Research Professor of Chinese Studies, The Chinese University of Hong Kong It is a masterpiece that digs deeply into the roots of problems and their underlying values in modern Chinese society in a tradition that goes as far back as to the formative stage of Chinese civilization. Reading through the lines of the book, there is a deep sense of passion and concern for the future of the humankind. -Li Feng, Professor of Early Chinese History and Archaeology, Columbia University


"A work of passionate humanism, this book is a heartfelt call to the world to take seriously the best aspects of traditional Chinese culture in order to avoid a looming catastrophe."""" —Ian Johnson, Pulitzer Prize?winning author """"Professor Hsu is deservedly a legend in Chinese Studies, and this book only adds to a long and distinguished publication record by an innovative scholar who has contributed to an enormous range of disciplines. Like all of Hsu's works, this can be read with pleasure and profit, as it is studded with insights drawn from antiquity to contemporary history. Highly recommended."""" —Michael Nylan, Sather Professor of History, University of California at Berkeley """"Professor Hsu undertakes a sweeping review of the beliefs, values, and visions that constitute Chinese civilizations from the ancient times to the present. Historically engaged and critically provocative, it is a must?read for anyone interested in Chinese Studies."""" —David Der?wei Wang, Edward C. Henderson Professor of Chinese Literature, Harvard University """"This account of traditional Chinese ways of thinking and being by one of the world's most eminent Sinologists is an invaluable witness to lived Chinese cultural history and its overriding ideal of harmony. Not since Lin Yutang's My Country and My People has there been such an accessibly erudite tribute to one of the world's great civilizations."""" —John Lagerwey, Research Professor of Chinese Studies, The Chinese University of Hong Kong """"It is a masterpiece that digs deeply into the roots of problems and their underlying values in modern Chinese society in a tradition that goes as far back as to the formative stage of Chinese civilization. Reading through the lines of the book, there is a deep sense of passion and concern for the future of the humankind."""" —Li Feng, Professor of Early Chinese History and Archaeology, Columbia University"


Author Information

"Cho?yun Hsu, an internationally recognized authority on ancient Chinese history and comparative civilizations, earned his PhD from the University of Chicago. He was Professor Emeritus of History and Sociology at the University of Pittsburgh, and elected Academician of Academia Sinica in Taiwan. As one of the founding members of the Chiang Ching?kuo Foundation for International Scholarly Exchange, Hsu was instrumental in supporting and encouraging global research in Chinese Studies. In 2004, he received the Distinguished Contributions to Asian Studies Award, the highest honor of the Association for Asian Studies (AAS), which recognizes his life?long dedication to the advancement of Asian Studies in the international arena. He has authored or coauthored numerous publications, including China: A New Cultural History (2012), Western Chou Civilization (1988), Han Agriculture: The Formation of the Early Chinese Agrarian Economy (1980), and Ancient China in Transition: An Analysis of Social Mobility (1965). David Ownby is Professor of History at the Université de Montréal. His current research focus is intellectual life in contemporary China, and recent publications include Rethinking China's Rise: A Liberal Critique by Xu Jilin (as editor and translator), as well as Voices from the Chinese Century (co?edited with Timothy Cheek and Joshua A. Fogel). His online project, ""Reading the China Dream,"" is available at readingthechinadream.com."

Tab Content 6

Author Website:  

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

No review item found!

Add your own review!

Countries Available

All regions
Latest Reading Guide

ls

Shopping Cart
Your cart is empty
Shopping cart
Mailing List