Space, Time, Myth, and Morals: A Selection of Jao Tsung-i’s Studies on Cosmological Thought in Early China and Beyond

Joern Peter Grundmann is an assistant professor of Chinese Literature at National Sun Yat-sen University, Taiwan. He holds a PhD in Chinese Studies from the University of Edinburgh. His research focuses on early Chinese conceptual history.

• Collected Works of Jao Tsung-i: Series IntroductionTranslator’s ForewordAcknowledgementsAbbreviationsList of IllustrationsTimelinePart 1Part 2: The Gods of Time and Space: Cosmogony and Myths of Origin in Ancient China and BeyondIntroduction1 A Preliminary Comparison of Creation Myths and the Origins of Man in Epics from China and BeyondA Preamble to the Near Eastern Epic of Creation (Enuma Elish)2 The Dualist Paradigm of Ancient Chinese History1  2  3 3 On the Daoist “Genesis”4 An Investigation into the Chart of Pangu 盤古An account of Eastern Han murals from the Shu Region Depicting the Image of “Pangu” as Seen by Renowned Personalities from the Tang and Song PeriodsSupplementary NotePart 3: Attuning to Time and Space: Hemerology, Astrology and Correlative Thought in Early ChinaIntroduction5 On the Meaning of the Chu Silk Manuscript6 An Explanation of the Phenomena Called ‘Xiang Wei ’ 象緯 and ‘De Ni’ 德匿 in the Chu Silk Manuscript1 Chen Wei 晨禕 Reads Chen Wei 辰緯 (Weft of Constellations)2 Becoming Confused and Diverting from the [Proper] Movements3 “Gaining and Regressing” and the Planet Saturn4 Years with Fuzzy Stars5 Ni 匿 (Concealment) and De Ni 德匿 (the Concealment of Virtue)Resolving Doubts: From Divine Providence to Moral Standards and Human AgencyIntroduction7 The Philosophy of “Zhen” 貞1 “Zhen” 貞 as a Means of Communication between Humans and Spirits during the Yin 殷 Period (ca. 1600–1050 BC)2 Testing Through Divination and Moral Determination3 The “zhen” 貞 of the Wenyan zhuan 文言傳 (Commentary on the Words) on the Hexagram Qian 乾 and the Four Virtues (si de 四德)4 Discussing the Concepts “yong zhen” 永貞, “li yong zhen” 利永貞 and “linian de zheng ming” 歷年得正命5 Receiving Heaven’s Perpetual Mandate, Fixing Fate, and Employing Virtue6 The Meaning of “de yuan” (德元)7 Concluding Remarks: A Philological Philosophy8 Moral Speculation and the Conception of a Sky God1 The Beginnings of the Worship of Di 帝 and the Deity of Heaven2 The Graph de 德 in Writings from the Yin and Zhou Periods3 Standing in Awe of Heaven’s Daunting Authority and the Establishment of the Idea of jing de 經德 (Honoring de)4 The Interrelation of Politics and Morals within the Conception of the Heavenly Mandate5 The Mental Worries and Anxieties That Led to the Composition of the Changes (Yi 易) and the Establishment of Cultivated de9 Rationalism and the Idea of Divine Law (Selection)1 The Changing Positions of the Gods and of Man2 De 德 (Rewards) and xing 刑 (Punishments)3 Five Elements Thought and the Cosmological Meaning of de-Propriety (德禮)4 Heaven’s Laws and the Laws of de5 ConclusionBibliographyIndex