Category Archives: Asian Philosophy

Call for Papers for Midwest Conference on Chinese Thought (Virtual)

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16th Annual Midwest Conference on Chinese Thought
Wright State University
30 April-1 May 2021
The Midwest Conference on Chinese Thought was created to foster dialogue and interaction between scholars and students working on Chinese thought across different disciplines and through a variety of approaches. Submissions are invited for papers on any aspect of Chinese thought as well as papers dealing with comparative issues that engage Chinese perspectives.


This year’s conference will be held virtually on Friday, April 30 and Saturday, May 1 and hosted by Wright State University. Our keynote speaker will be Robin R. Wang, Professor of Philosophy at Loyola Marymount University.

Professor Wang will present “Dao of Rou 柔 (Suppleness): Proprioceptive Knowledge and Its Epistemological Value in Early Daoism”:

Through Chinese intellectual history, early Daoism, a Dao-based and inspired teaching and practice, has been considered the philosophy of rou 柔 (suppleness, pliant, yielding, softness), which the Daodejing couples with water, the infant, and the feminine. A popular Chinese binary expression of culture, gen 根 (root/foundation) and hun 魂 (soul/spirit), takes Dao as the root of Daoist teaching and rou as a spirit of Lao-Zhuang. However, rou has often been understood only as de (德) moral virtue or shu (术) strategy, something more practical than conceptual. This talk will respond to this theoretical gap and argue for rou as a form of proprioceptive awareness or bodily knowledge that shapes a cognitive style and an epistemological stance to guide our rational effort, illumination, and well-being. More importantly, this rou style of knowing embodies the epistemic value, such as intellectual humility, openness, receptivity and resilience, for a cognitive success.
Similar to previous conferences, we anticipate selecting 12-16 papers for presentation. For consideration submit a 1-page abstract to Judson Murray at judson.murray@wright.edu by January 31, 2021 for blind review. For more information, visit the conference website here.

ToC: Asian Philosophy 30:4

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The latest issue of Asian Philosophy (30:4) has been published. The Table of Contents:

Reconciling Confucianism with rule of law: Confucianisation or self-restraint?
Elton Chan

The spaciousness of self-awareness: A phenomenological account of self-reflexivity in Patañjali´s Yoga philosophy
Ana Funes Maderey

Is dharma-nature identical to ignorance? A study of ‘ji ’ in early Tiantai Buddhism
Jenny Hung

The inversion of values and the renunciation of desire and love: an investigation through Max Scheler and Wang Yangming
Yinghua Lu

Xunzi: Moral education and transformation
Xiufen Lu

The problem of evil in the Neo-Confucian context: Wang Yangming’s view on evil
Xiaomei Yang

New Book: Chung on Wang Yangming in Korea

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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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Critical Theory From and Beyond the Margins: Public Online Workshop

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CRITICAL THEORY FROM AND BEYOND THE MARGINS

24 OCTOBER 2020, SATURDAY | 10:00 AM TO 6:00 PM (UTC +8)
ZOOM MEETING- ID: 976 4344 1616 | PASSCODE: 241
HTTPS://UMAC.ZOOM.US/J/97643441616?PWD=BTJYBLH5NMTNSDFFA2NML285WDJLUT0924

Critical theory is a Western, and distinctly European, intellectual tradition that drew its normative resources from the social and political events that transpired in Europe over the course of the 20th century. It is relevant to ask the question whether, as a critical-practical
tradition, critical theory has anything to contribute outside the Western-European context, given the emergence of globalization and the issues that arose with it. For some, the Eurocentrism of critical theory is symptomatic of its very own crisis, one which challenges the universality of its normative claims, e.g., the abolition of social injustice. Is it possible for critical theory to overcome its Eurocentrism and, therefore, its own crisis? The irony is that critical theory is only able to defend the universality of its normative claims when it is able to
renew itself. If it is at all possible to renew critical theory, what does this renewal entail? The workshop will pursue these questions by expanding the scope of traditional critical theory, especially, but not exclusively, by drawing on critical perspectives on modern societies and
emancipation movements that have originated in Asia.

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Postdocs on “new narratives” in history of philosophy

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The “Extending New Narratives in the History of Philosophy” project has announced two postdoc opportunities for scholars interested in working on neglected philosophers — including neglected Asian philosophers (male or female). The historical period of the grant is currently focused on is 1400-1940. Please see here for more information.

Job at Huaqiao University

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The School of Philosophy and Social Development at Huaqiao University, Xiamen, China, invites applications for a position in philosophy. The position is a mid-to-long term teaching and research position, which means one should work at Huaqiao University for two full semesters (each semester lasts for 20 weeks) a year. The contract will be renewed annually or open-ended. Candidates who have some Chinese language ability will be preferred. 

AOS: Asian Philosophy, esp. Chinese Philosophy, Comparative Philosophy

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New book: Mastery, Dependence, and the Ethics of Authority, by Aaron Stalnaker

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Oxford University Press has just published my new book on early Confucian social thought, and what contemporary people might learn from it: Mastery, Dependence, and the Ethics of Authority.  The publisher’s page is here.  At present the cheapest way to purchase it is directly from Oxford, with a discount code for 30% off (AAFLYG6).

This comes with hearty thanks to Steve Angle and Bryan Van Norden, who were belatedly revealed as the press’s referees.

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CFP: EAA on Asian Philosophies and Religions

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Education About Asia (EAA) is the peer-reviewed teaching journal of the Association for Asian Studies. Our print and online readers include undergraduate instructors as well as high school and middle school teachers. Our articles are intended to provide educators and academics in the humanities and social sciences who are often not specialists with basic understanding of Asia-related content. Professors and high school teachers also utilize many EAA articles and essays as student readings. Qualified referees evaluate all manuscripts submitted for consideration.

We are developing a special section for spring 2020 titled “Asian Philosophies and Religions.” This special section will include a wide variety of articles and essays on both philosophical and religious traditions commonly associated with Asia, as well as Western philosophies and religions such as liberal democracy, Marxism, or Christianity that substantially affect parts of Asia. A significant number of special section articles and essays will hopefully focus upon contemporary practices and beliefs, as well as the impact of Asian governments on the human and civil rights of religious practitioners. At least two articles on religious festivals and holidays specifically designed for middle school teachers will appear in this special section.

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