Author Archives: Brian Bruya

I am Professor of philosophy at Eastern Michigan University. I specialize in the early Chinese tradition and aim to apply ideas from the early tradition to issues of today.

Reflective Equanimity in Confucius

The latest article in our series on the philosophy of Confucius drawing from the Dialogues of Confucius is now out!

Reflective equanimity and Tian 天 in the philosophy of Confucius: Insights from the Dialogues of Confucius

If you have trouble accessing the full article, just let me know, and I’ll be happy to send you a pdf.

Abstract: Kwong-loi Shun offers a Confucian account of reflective equanimity that stems largely from the work of Mencius and Zhu Xi. Although Shun labels it as ‘spiritual’, his account tends toward the naturalistic. In this article, we offer an account of reflective equanimity according to Confucius that takes seriously the spiritual aspect, by tying it to Confucius’ notion of tian. We describe three aspects of tian from the Dialogues of Confucius that are consistent with Shun’s view and, we believe, extend his view, while simultaneously preserving and reconciling the competing ‘personal’ and ‘cosmic’ aspects of Confucius’ view of tian.

Brian Bruya in Conversation with George Thompson

George Thompson is a popularizer of philosophical Daoism. In this conversation, we discuss the concept of ziran, the science of wisdom, and the intersection of philosophy and religion.

 

The Illustrated Yi Jing

I’m delighted to announce the publication of the English translation of C. C. Tsai’s graphic version of the Yi Jing 易經!  In this volume, we depart slightly from previous books in the series—this edition features full-color illustrations and places the original Classical Chinese at the bottom margin rather than the side. 

If you use any of the books in this series in the classroom, exam and desk copies are available, including a digital version.  

Each book in the series has a concise introduction that summarizes the key philosophical ideas for novices, as well as a pronunciation index in the back.  

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions about the series.

A sample of the Illustrated Yi Jing can be found here.

The entire series (so far) can be seen here.


 

EMU Undergraduate Conference in Philosophy CFP

Below is the advertisement for this Fall’s EMU Undergraduate Conference in Philosophy.  If you have undergrads who are interested in presenting their work in Chinese philosophy at an undergraduate conference, we enthusiastically welcome such papers.  The conference has been very successful in welcoming students from across the country, and even internationally.  Prior conference programs can be found on the website.  The organizers emphasize inclusivity and mentorship, with each accepted paper receiving thoughtful feedback.

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Sources of the Philosophy of Confucius

When you teach the philosophy of Confucius, surely you use the Analects as a source–probably your main source, maybe your only source.  What (if anything) else do you use as a primary source for the philosophy of Confucius (not of Confucianism), and why?

Two points of reference: 1) Mark Csikszentmihalyi’s entry on Confucius in the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.  With reference to the work of Zhu Weizheng and Michael Hunter, he says, “An attack on the authoritativeness of the Analects… broadens and diversifies the sources that may be used to reconstruct… the corpus of Confucius quotations and dialogues beyond the Analects.”  Which sources? Specifically mentioned are the following:

  • Records of Ritual, the Elder Dai’s Records of Ritual (DaDai Liji 大戴禮記)
  • Family Discussions of Confucius (Kongzi jiayu 孔子家語)
  • Zuo Commentary to the Spring and Autumn Annals
  • Han’s Intertextual Commentary on the Odes (Han Shi waizhuan 韓詩外傳)
  • Recently archaeologically recovered texts from the Han period and before

2) Michael Ing, in the Vulnerability of Integrity, adduces passages from the Kongzi jiayu and the Han shi waizhuan in claims about Confucius’ philosophical positions.

I’m sure there are other points of reference, but these should suffice to jump start a conversation.

Why do I ask?  In the past, I have used only the Analects and haven’t felt any reason to reach beyond it.  But Hunter’s work has made me re-think that, and like Csikszentmihalyi, I think that rather than foreclosing the Analects as a source of Confucius’ philosophy, Hunter’s work opens us to more possibilities. Plus, I find some of the sources above interesting and compelling.

Clarifications about this post:
A) Not interested here in how you expand on Confucius’ ideas via other texts, such as Mencius, Zhong yong, etc.  Might be a good topic for another thread.
B) Not interested here in whether we can reconstruct a coherent philosophy of Confucius.  This particular topic is only for those who teach the philosophy of Confucius and, at least provisionally, presuppose that we can discuss his philosophy in a coherent way.  Perspectives on “whether” are a good topic for a different thread.

New Book: Ziran: The Philosophy of Spontaneous Self-Causation


I’d like to announce the publication of my new book Ziran: The Philosophy of Spontaneous Self-Causation. Targeted specifically at students, this book takes a key concept form early Chinese metaphysics—ziran 自然—and applies it to several fields of contemporary scholarship.

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Job Opening at NTU: Pre-Qin Confucianism

Department of Philosophy, National Taiwan University, Taiwan

The Department of Philosophy at National Taiwan University invites applications for the position of Assistant Professor. Teaching appointment is effective from August 1, 2021.

Qualification: Ph.D. in Philosophy or related fields

Specialization:

  1. Pre-Qin Confucianism
  2. Logic

Other Requirements: In principle, applicants should be competent in teaching in Mandarin and prepared to offer mandatory courses (teaching experience is preferable).

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