Decoding Dao

Written by a leading authority on Chinese philosophy,
Decoding Dao uniquely focuses on the core texts in Daoist
philosophy, providing readers with a user-friendly introduction
that unravels the complexities of these seminal volumes.

• Offers a detailed introduction to the core texts in Daoist
  philosophy, the Dao De Jing and the Zhuangzi, two of
  the most widely read - and most challenging - texts in
  China's long literary history

• Covers the three main ways the texts can be read: as religious,
  mystical, and philosophical works

• Explores their historical context, origins, authorship, and the
  reasons these seminal texts came into being, along with the key
  terms and approaches they take

• Examines the core philosophical arguments made in the texts, as
  well as the many ways in which they have been interpreted, both in
  China itself and in the West

• Provides readers with an unrivalled insight into the
  multifaceted philosophy of Daoism - and the principles
  underlying much of Chinese culture - informed by the very
  latest academic scholarship

Auteur
Lee Dian Rainey is Associate Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada. She has taught Chinese philosophy for more than twenty years and has published widely in this area. Her publications include Confucius and Confucianism: The Essentials (Wiley-Blackwell, 2010).

Texte du rabat
Providing a unique focus on the core texts in Daoist philosophy, this lucid introduction to the Dao De Jing and the Zhuangzi offers students a comprehensive understanding of the principles underlying much of Chinese culture. The author's mastery of the material, combined with her accessible style, enables readers to get to grips with two of the most widely read and most complex texts in China's long literary history. The volume sets the Dao De Jing and Zhuangzi in their historical context and explains the key terms and approaches these two seminal works take. It traces their origins, their authorship, and the reasons they came into being. The author moves on to examine the core philosophical arguments made in the texts, as well as the many ways in which they have been interpreted, both in China itself and in the West. Importantly, the analysis extends to the three primary modes religious, mystical, and philosophical of reading these enigmatic volumes. Decoding Dao offers readers unrivalled insight into the multifaceted philosophy of Daoism, informed by the very latest academic scholarship.

Résumé

Written by a leading authority on Chinese philosophy, Decoding Dao uniquely focuses on the core texts in Daoist philosophy, providing readers with a user-friendly introduction that unravels the complexities of these seminal volumes.

• Offers a detailed introduction to the core texts in Daoist philosophy, the Dao De Jing and the Zhuangzi, two of the most widely read and most challenging texts in China's long literary history
• Covers the three main ways the texts can be read: as religious, mystical, and philosophical works
• Explores their historical context, origins, authorship, and the reasons these seminal texts came into being, along with the key terms and approaches they take
• Examines the core philosophical arguments made in the texts, as well as the many ways in which they have been interpreted, both in China itself and in the West
• Provides readers with an unrivalled insight into the multifaceted philosophy of Daoism and the principles underlying much of Chinese culture informed by the very latest academic scholarship

Contenu

Book Notes x

Chronology xi

Section One: The Context

Chapter One The Social and Political Background ConfucianismMozi and Mohism (Moe-ds) and (Moe-ism)Yang Zhu and Shen Dao (Ya-ahng, Jew) Language and LogiciansTrends During the Warring States EraCultural Heroes and ConceptsSummary 3

Section Two: Authors and Texts

Chapter Two The Dao De JingWhy Does the Dao De Jing/Tao Te Ching/Laozi/Lao Tzu Have So Many Names? Dao De Jing, The AuthorDao De Jing, the TextThe Dao De Jing, the Style of the TextThe Dao De Jing in the West The Zhuangzi, the AuthorThe Zhuangzi, the TextThe
Zhuangzi, the Style of the TextThe Zhuangzi in the WestIssues in TranslationSummary
27

Chapter Three The Dao? A Dao? Dao? daos? dao?Images: 49
Water, Women, Baby, Root, and OthersWhat Is the Problem?Conventional Values: Pairs of Opposites Being and Non-BeingSummary

Chapter Four Illogical Statements?DecodingNot Acting, Not Knowing, Not DesiringZiran, Self-So, Natural, SpontaneousLanguageMoralitySummary 70

Chapter Five WarGovernment, Society, and the Sage- RulerThe Golden AgeAdvice for Would-Be SagesLosing daoSummary 90

Chapter Six What Is the Problem?Anti-Confucians Anti-MohistsBeing UselessPoint of ViewThis and ThatKnowing HowKnowing WhatSummary 111

Chapter Seven Language: Convention and CultureThis/ That, True/FalseLanguage Is OK, Up to a Point How to Use LanguageClarityDeath TransformationSurvival of Consciousness and an AfterlifeImmortalityDaoSummary 132

Chapter Eight Public LifeThe Golden AgeWhat Should We Do?MirrorForgettingMind/Heart FastingPerfected PeopleThe Relationship of the Dao De Jing and the ZhuangziSummary 156

Section Three: Developing Dao

Chapter Nine The School of Zhuangzi and Followers of the Dao De JingThe Han FeiziThe GuanziHuang- LaoThe HuainanziThe LieziThe Han Dynasty and BeyondSummary
179

Chapter Ten Organized DaoismThe Search for ImmortalityOrganized GroupsThe Cult of Laozi Modern Organized DaoismThe Mystical Reading The Philosophical ReadingModern DaoismDao LiteA Lao-Zhuang DaoistWhat Is Daoism and Other Problems 202

Glossary of Technical Terms 232

Glossary of Pronunciation 235

Further Reading 237

Bibliography 239

Index 252