Yan Xuetong is professor of political science and director of the Institute of International Studies at Tsinghua University in Beijing. His many books include The Rise of China and Its Strategy, International Politics and China, and American Hegemony and China's Security. From China's most influential foreign policy thinker, a vision for a "Beijing Consensus" for international relations The rise of China could be the most important political development...

Confucius was a Chinese teacher, statesman, and philosopher who lived in the 5th and 6th century BC. One of the most influential philosophers of all time, and still deeply regarded amongst the Chinese people, his ideology is one which emphasizes the importance of the family, as well as justice, sincerity, and morality in both personal and political matters. Confucius did not regard himself as an innovator, but as the conservator of ancient truth and...

Agues that Confucianism and other East Asian philosophical traditions can be resources for understanding and addressing current global challenges such as climate change and hunger. Great transformations are reshaping human life, social institutions, and the world around us, raising profound questions about our fundamental values. We now have the knowledge and the technical expertise, for instance, to realize a world in which no child needs to go...

The superior man bends his attention to what is radical. That being, established, all practical courses naturally grow up. Filial piety and fraternal submission,-are they not the root of all benevolent actions? To rule a country of a thousand chariots, there must be reverent attention to business, and sincerity; economy in expenditure, and love for men; and the employment of the people at the proper seasons. If a man withdraws his mind from the love...

In “Building Bridges between Chan Buddhism and Confucianism”, Diana Arghirescu explores the close connections between Buddhism and Confucianism during China's Song period (960—1279). Drawing on In Essays on Assisting the Teaching written by Chan monk-scholar Qisong (1007—1072), Arghirescu examines the influences between the two traditions. In his writings, Qisong made the first substantial efforts to compare the major dimensions of Confucian...

Confucius: The Great Learning delves into the essence of Confucianism, presenting foundational ideas and principles. Originally part of the Classic of Rites, this text was singled out by Zhu Xi in the Song Dynasty as an essential introduction to Confucian thought. The book comprises a concise main text attributed to Confucius, complemented by nine commentary chapters penned by his disciple, Zeng Zi. These chapters underscore the significance...

The first English-language translation of an important figure in modern Confucian thought. Xu Fuguan (1903–1982) was one of the most important Confucian scholars of the twentieth century. A key figure in the Nationalist Party, Xu was involved in the Chinese civil war after World War II and in the early years of the Nationalist government in Taiwan. He never ceased to believe that democracy was the way forward for the Chinese nation. Making his...

Alors que la Chine est devenue un acteur économique majeur et prend place au premier rang des grandes puissances mondiales, ce Dictionnaire de la Pensée chinoise traditionnelle publié par Encyclopaedia Universalis explore les fondations de la civilisation millénaire sur laquelle s'est construite cette réussite. Quelques dizaines d'articles consacrés aux œuvres et à leurs auteurs ou commentateurs (Confucius, Laozi), aux concepts (Mandat céleste,...

Offers three neo-Confucian understandings of broadening the Way as broadening oneself, through an ongoing process of removing self-boundaries. Persons Emerging explores the renewed idea of the Confucian person in the eleventh-century philosophies of Zhou Dunyi, Shao Yong, and Zhang Zai. Galia Patt-Shamir discusses their responses to the Confucian challenge that the Way, as perfection, can be broadened by the person who travels it. Suggesting that...

In The Whirlpool That Produced China, Tingyang Zhao offers a philosophical interpretation of China's historicity, explaining how the expansion of China was not due to the lures of expansionist behavior but to the offerings of the surrounding contenders as they were constantly being pulled into a whirlpool of growth and amalgamation. The peoples surrounding China on all four sides sought to win the greatest material benefits and greatest spiritual...