Vincent Shen

East, west, communication, and theory: Searching for the meaning of searching for Asian communication theories

This paper begins with a discussion of the concept of ‘Asia’, the cultural differences and similarities between Asia and the West, and what constructing an ‘Asian communication theory’ means. It then examines the background against which the current stage is set for Asian commication research, and the intricate changes in approaching theory building in the community.

Introduction: Classical Confucianism in Historical and Comparative Context

We use the term “classical Confucianism,” or “early Confucianism,” or “pre-Qin Confucianism,” to cover the thoughts, doctrines and practical wisdoms developed in the first stage of Confucianism. Confucianism began with the founder Confucius (551–479BCE), and developed through Confucius’ disciples and his grandson Zisi子思 (483–402BCE) to Mencius (372–289BCE), and finally Xunzi荀子 (325–238BCE). Not long after the death of Xunzi, the warring states were all conquered and unified by the Qin Empire (221–206 BCE), in the process of which Confucian books were infamously burned and scholars were buried, most of them Confucian, by the first emperor of the Qin-Empire, and so ended this first period of Confucianism. It is thus distinguished from the later Confucianism of the Han Dynasty (202BCE–220CE), which became a state ideology with the canonization of the early Confucian founding texts, and the Neo-Confucianism that developed from the eleventh to eighteenth Century in Song, Ming and Qing Dynasties, as the revival of Confucianism after its silence for almost eight centuries under the challenges of Neo-Daoism and Buddhism.

From Interpretation to Construction: Guo Xiang's Ontological Individualism

Guo Xiangs ontological individualism represents a case of philosophical construction based on his interpretation of the Zhuangzi. His concept of the self-transformation of the individual who is self-born, with self-nature and without dependence on others supports the idea of individual autonomy. Nevertheless, each individuals act for self-interest still benefits other individuals in a non-teleological mutual accommodation. The path from duhua (self-transformation) of each individual on the level of existence, to the xiangyin (mutual accommodation) among individuals on the level of action consequence, to the ideal of xuanming (ultimate concordance), is the path on which the world is to proceed.

The Fading of Political Theology and the Rise of Creative Humanism

To understand the origin of classical Confucianism in the historical context of ancient China, we need to know first how ancient Chinese thought moved from the religious experience with High God’s or Heaven’s revealing to the humanist construction of the meaningfulness of human existence. This concerns the way early Chinese people conceived the Ultimate Reality in terms of shangdi上帝 (High God) or tian 天 (Heaven) and His/Its revelation. In particular, this was shown through the evolution of their religious experience and the rise of a creative humanism in the process of ancient Chinese history. It is evidenced by such major texts as the Shangshu 尚書 (Book of Documents) and the Yijing易經 (Classics of Changes), and the development of this legacy till the time of Confucius. In order to examine this development, we will also need to touch upon, albeit very briefly, the Lunyu論語 (Analects) and the Chunqiu春秋 (Spring and Autumn Annals). Thus this chapter will serve the purpose of introducing the basic philosophical ideas in these Confucian Classics and their historical changes.

Wisdom and Hermeneutics of Poetry in Classical Confucianism

Poetry occupied a crucial position in the classical Confucian educational program. Not only did the Shijing 詩經 (Classic of Poetry) constitute one of the fundamental teaching materials in the Six Classics, but poetry also played an important role in the political, diplomatic, and cultural arenas in ancient China. In the cultural and educational context of ancient China, shi詩 (poetry) was closely connected with yue樂 (music) and li 禮 (propriety, rites), as confirmed by what Confucius said, “One gets inspired with poetry, established with propriety, and filled with a sense of completeness by music” (Analects 8.8, my translation and same below). Also, the learning of poetry was necessary for elegant language and public speech, as Confucius was said to have taught Bo Yu伯魚, his son, “One will not know what to say if one does not learn poetry” (Analects 16.13).

Wisdom and Learning to Be Wise in Chinese Mahayana Buddhism

Wisdom is an essential concern of Buddhism, and “education” in the Buddhist sense should be understood as a process of attaining wisdom or becoming wise—in getting oneself enlightened and ridding oneself of the original ignorance. The teaching of and about wisdom should be considered as part of this process. Since the attainment of wisdom is for Buddhism not a remote possibility but rather a spiritual reality, as evidenced by Buddha himself and so many other bodhisattvas, the answer to questions such as whether or not wisdom is possible is indubitably “yes”. Also, as the final end of Buddhist teaching is to attain enlightenment and to get rid of the original ignorance, the question as to whether wisdom could be taught is also definitively “yes”. Therefore, instead of questioning whether it is possible to teach wisdom, what we should ask here is rather the nature of the Buddhist wisdom and the Buddhist pedagogical process of attaining it. In this chapter I’ll deal with the concept of “wisdom” in three schools of Chinese Mahayana Buddhism: the Sanlun Zong (Three Treatises School), the Weishi Zong (Conscious-Only School) and the Chan Zong (Chan School), which have appeared successively in the history of Chinese Buddhism. We know that Mahayana Buddhism has two major schools in its Indian tradition: Mādhyamika and Yogācāra. They must have contained in themselves such an original generosity to go outside of themselves and the capacity to recontextualize themselves in Chinese culture and become Chinese Mahayana Buddhism. After their spreading and recontextualization in China, the Sanlun School could be seen as the Chinese development of Mādhyamika, whereas the Weishi School should be seen as Yogācāra in its Chinese version. As to the Chan School, which later in its Japanese version was called “Zen”, it should be seen as a properly Chinese Mahayana Buddhism. For reasons of space, we will leave other Chinese Mahayana Buddhist Schools undiscussed, such as Tiantai Zong , which was thus named