Ng on Li 理

NG Kai-chiu has published a new article in the Soochow Journal of Philosophical Studies 東吳哲學學報 (in Chinese) titled “Rethinking Zhu Xi’s Li: ‘Principle of Existence’ or ‘Pattern’?” that considers the interpretation of li 理 as “Pattern” offered my Justin Tiwald and me in Neo-Confucianism: A Philosophical Interpretation. The abstract follows, and the whole paper (and others from the same issue) can be accessed here.

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MARCH 12, 2021: A Passage from Wang Yangming’s “Questions on the Great Learning

THE COLUMBIA SOCIETY FOR COMPARATIVE PHILOSOPHY

PresentsA Passage from Wang Yangming’s “Questions on the Great Learning”

Presenter: Harvey Lederman (Princeton University)
Discussants: Stephen Angle (Wesleyan University), Warren Frisina (Hofstra University), Xiaomei Yang (Southern Connecticut State University)

ABSTRACT: This session will follow the organization of those we had on Zhuangzi and Śāntideva from Fall 2020. A lead presenter will give some background on the text from which the passage below is derived–namely, Wang Yangming’s “Questions on the Great Learning” (大學問)–and introduce Wang’s notion of liangzhi (良知). The presentation will then discuss Wang’s understanding of “the extension of knowledge” (致知) and “making inclinations wholehearted” (誠意) from the Great Learning (大學) before giving a focused reading of the passage itself. According to this reading, a person has extended their knowledge if and only if they have made their inclinations wholehearted. Each of the discussants will then follow with some brief comments and questions before we open things up for Q&A.

DATE: March 12, 2021
TIME: 7:00-8:30 pm

Here is the passage:

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New Book: Chung on Wang Yangming in Korea

Rowman & Littlefield has published Edward Chung, The Great Synthesis of Wang Yangming Neo-Confucianism in Korea. The author adds that for those colleagues who would like to purchase it at the author’s discount (30%), its special promotion code is LEX30AUTH20. The table of contents follows.

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Wu Reviews Makeham, ed., Buddhist Roots of Zhu Xi

Jiang WU has reviewed John Makeham, ed., The Buddhist Roots of Zhu Xi’s Philosophical Thought (Oxford, 2018) in the latest Journal of Chinese Religions; see here. One excerpt:

The current volume under review is thus a welcome step towards reevaluating the Buddhist influence on the formation of Zhu Xi’s Neo-Confucian philosophy. Not only will it rekindle interest in philosophical issues among China specialists, it also helps to correct the previous tendency, or even bias, to overemphasize the social, intellectual, and historical aspects. This dominant approach tends to reduce philosophical arguments to a set of ideological dogmas conditioned by their social and cultural contexts, such as the competition for literati patronage. (p. 304)

Translation of Zhen Dexiu’s Xin Jing

Ryan Chiang McCarthy has published a translation of the 13th c. CE text Xinjing 心经. As he explains the text was:

…compiled by the Southern Song Dynasty politician and scholar Zhen Dexiu (1178-1235, art name Xishan). The Xinjing is an anthology of selected texts, from ancient classics such as the Yijing, the Liji, and the Mengzi, accompanied by comments by the Cheng brothers, Zhu Xi, and other eminent scholars, mostly of the Song period. Its theme, as the title suggests, is the matter of cultivating the heart, or mind.

Please see here. Congratulations, Ryan!

New Book: Dao Companion to Zhu Xi’s Philosophy

Yong Huang writes to share this news:
Dao Companion to Zhu Xi’s Philosophy, edited by Kai-chiu Ng and Yong Huang, vol. 13 of Dao Companions to Chinese Philosophy series, edited by Yong Huang, had just been published by Springer. The volume consists of 40 chapters, contributed by the best Zhu Xi scholars today. In addition to the Introduction chapter, it includes 4 chapters on Zhu Xi as a commentator of Confucian classics, 6 chapters on the relationships between Zhu Xi and his predecessors, his contemporaries, and philosophers after him in the Confucian tradition of China, 16 chapters on the various aspects of Zhu Xi’s philosophy, 6 chapter on the relationships between Zhu Xi and non-Confucian philosophical traditions, and 7 chapters on the contemporary relevance of Zhu Xi’s philosophy. It is the most comprehensive and most updated studies of Zhu Xi in English. The whole volume is over 1000 pages, reasonably priced at $149.

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Ivanhoe at Columbia Neo-Confucianism Seminar

The first Spring session of the Columbia Seminar on Neo-Confucian Studies (University Seminar #567) will convene on February 7th, from 3:30 to 5:30pm in the main board room of the Heyman Center for the Humanities at Columbia University.
The speaker will be Philip J. Ivanhoe, who will be sharing his “Dasan on ‘Sympathetic Consideration’ (恕, Seo)“. This presentation will fill out and in some cases correct his earlier views on Dasan’s conception of 恕.

Vedal at Columbia Neo-Confucianism Seminar

The next session of the Columbia Seminar on Neo-Confucian Studies (University Seminar #567) will convene on November 1st, from 3:30 to 5:30pm in the main board room of the Heyman Center for the Humanities at Columbia University.
The speaker will be Nathan Vedal, who will be sharing his book chapter titled “Script, Antiquity, and Mental Training: Metaphysical Inquiry into the History of Writing.” This will be part of his new book The Culture of Language in Ming China. If you plan on attending and would like a copy of the paper, please contact Chuyu Tian, Rapporteur for the Seminar on Neo-Confucian Studies, at ct2823@columbia.edu.

Columbia Neo-Confucianism Seminar: Ng, Qing Philosophy

The next session of the Columbia University Seminar on Neo-Confucian Studies will convene on Friday, Oct 4th, from 3:30 to 5:30pm, in the Heyman Center for the Humanities at Columbia University.

Our speaker will be On-Cho Ng, who will be presenting his paper “Qing Philosophy”. Please contact Chuyu Tian, Rapporteur for the Seminar on Neo-Confucian Studies, if you would like a copy of the paper in advance.

New Book: Zhu Xi

Zhu Xi: Selected Writings has been published. This is the first volume in the new translation series, Oxford Chinese Thought.

This is the first book-length translation to give a comprehensive look at Zhu Xi’s thought and his place in history, literature, philosophy, and religion. It includes Zhu’s writings or lessons on a wide variety of topics, including his ethics, metaphysics, political thought, views on ghosts and spirits, objections to Daoism and Buddhism, selected commentaries, and his thoughts on literature, poetry, and current social conditions. The volume is edited by Philip J. Ivanhoe with contributions from experts in various areas and aspects of Zhu Xi’s writings.

The book has been released directly into paperback and there is a companion website that includes the Chinese text for all translated materials, both of which we hope will appeal to instructors looking to adopt the volume for their courses. The paperback edition is quite affordable, and the easy reference to the Chinese text gives language instructors a way to teach Song dynasty Chinese as applied to a variety of topics and genres.

The table of contents is below the fold.

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