Monday, July 6, 2015

Daoism Excavated: Cosmos and Humanity in Early Manuscripts

Author: 
WANG Zhongjiang

Translator:
Livia Kohn

Publication Year:
2015

Publisher:
Three Pines Press




Abstract:
Daoism Excavated is a first detailed exploration of Daoist cosmology, philosophy, and political vision as found in recently unearthed bamboo slips and silk manuscripts. Presenting a detailed, and often carefully philological, examination of the Taiyi shengshui, Hengxian, Fanwu liuxing, and Huangdi sijing, as well as of various versions of the Laozi, the book provides new insights into ancient Daoist thought and its various schools and lineages. It focuses particularly on different visions of the creation and unfolding of the universe and on the application of these alternative cosmologies in political thought and practice. Revising and expanding our understanding of traditional Chinese thinking, the book makes an essential contribution to Chinese studies, philosophy, and religion.

Table of Contents:
Preface
Introduction
Daoist Cosmology in the Light of Excavated Manuscripts 1
1. Hengxian 恆先: Stages of Cosmic Unfolding 30
2. Taiyi shengshui 太一生水: Textual Structure and Conceptual Layers 63
3. Fanwu liuxing 凡物流形: From Oneness to Multiplicity 84
4. Huangdi sijing 黃帝四經: Governing through Oneness 112
5. Laozi 老子: “Dao Models Itself” 130
6. Laozi: “A Great Vessel” 157
7. Han Laozi: Variants and New Readings 173
Laozi Chapters Cited 194
Bibliography 195
Index 207


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