The Transcendental and the Mundane: Chinese Cultural Values in Everyday Life

309 Pages·2021·4.912 MB·English

by  Cho-yun Hsu, David Ownby

“Cho-yun Hsu is one of the best-known Chinese thinkers residing in the West, giving
him a unique perspective from which to compare both civilizations. In this ambi-
tious work, Professor Hsu synthesizes the essence of Chinese culture in order to offer
solutions to the global crisis of faith and values. A work of passionate humanism, The
Transcendental and the Mundane is a heartfelt call to the world to take seriously the
best aspects of traditional Chinese culture in order to avoid a looming catastrophe.
Now rendered into fluent and highly readable English by Professor David Ownby,
one of the leading translators and analysts of contemporary Chinese thought,
Professor Hsu’s work will now find a new audience among westerners.”
—Ian Johnson
Pulitzer Prize-winning author
“Professor Hsu is deservedly a legend in Chinese Studies, and this book only adds to a
long and distinguished publication record by an innovative scholar who has contrib-
uted to an enormous range of disciplines, including the early history of the shi 士 (men
in service), cultural geography, Han agriculture, and China in several global settings.
Like all of Hsu’s works, this can be read with pleasure and profit, as it is studded with
insights drawn from antiquity to contemporary history. Hsu in addition brings to the
feast his vast experience in promoting democratic transitions in Taiwan and elsewhere
in the Sinosphere, and once again, we who have strong professional and personal
commitments to a flourishing China find ourselves in his debt. Highly recommended.”
—Michael Nylan
Sather Professor of History, University of California at Berkeley
“In The Transcendental and the Mundane, Professor Hsu undertakes a sweeping review
of the beliefs, values, and visions that constitute Chinese civilizations from the ancient
times to the present. Historically engaged and critically provocative, it is a must-read
for anyone interested in Chinese Studies.”
—David Der-wei Wang
Edward C. Henderson Professor of Chinese Literature, Harvard University
“This account of traditional Chinese ways of thinking and being by one of the
world’s most eminent Sinologists is an invaluable witness to lived Chinese cultural
history and its overriding ideal of harmony. Drawing at once on his deep knowledge
of Chinese history and literature and his personal experience of life in mainland
China, Taiwan, and the USA, Professor Hsu describes Chinese values as rooted in
a predominantly agricultural society composed of villages and suggests that, with
the West in crisis, these values, ‘centered on the person and on the idea of close,
interdependent relations between humans and nature, might offer a solution.’ His
hope, expressed with great modesty and sincerity, is ‘that humans might together
build a world civilization without prejudice and conflict.’ Not since Lin Yutang’s My
Country and My People has there been such an accessibly erudite tribute to one of
the world’s great civilizations.”
—John Lagerwey
Research Professor of Chinese Studies, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
“Why do we study history?—A question frequently posed by general readers, but
even the most professional historian may not easily offer a persuasive answer. If
human behavior is determined by the culture in which they live, then it is just so
inevitable that history is the most quintessential way to understand that culture.
Professor Hsu’s book shows exactly how this principle worked. It is a masterpiece
that digs deeply into the roots of problems and their underlying values in modern
Chinese society in a tradition that goes as far back as to the formative stage of
Chinese civilization. While people who are striving to understand puzzles in their
everyday lives can find lessons in times long past, people who are interested in the
lasting impact of the Chinese tradition can be satisfied in seeing its outcome. Reading
through the lines of the book, there is a deep sense of passion and concern for the
future of the humankind.”
—Li Feng
Professor of Early Chinese History and Archaeology, Columbia University
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The Transcendental and the Mundane: Chinese Cultural Values in Everyday Life
By Cho-yun Hsu
Translated by David Ownby
English edition © The Chinese University of Hong Kong 2021
中國人的精神生活© Cho-yun Hsu 2017
Originally published in Complex Chinese by Linking Publishing Co., Ltd. in Taiwan.
This English edition is published by arrangement with Linking Publishing Co., Ltd.,
through Ailbert Cultural Company Limited.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including
photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system,
without permission in writing from The Chinese University of Hong Kong.
The publication of this book was generously supported by
Chiang Ching-kuo Foundation for International Scholarly Exchange.
ISBN: 978-988-237-212-2
The Chinese University of Hong Kong Press
The Chinese University of Hong Kong
Sha Tin, N.T., Hong Kong
Fax: [phone]
Email: [email protected]
Website: cup.cuhk.edu.hk
Printed in Hong Kong
Contents
Chronology of Chinese Dynasties / ix
Translator’s Foreword / xi
Foreword by Ying-shih Yu / xv
Preface / xix
Acknowledgements / xxv
Introduction Searching for the Spirit of Chinese Culture / 3
I. Life Aesthetics in Time and Space / 15
II. The World of Heaven and Earth, Humans and Gods / 35
III. Legends and Ghost Stories / 49
IV. A Plural, Interactive Order: The Five Elements, Chinese Medicine,
and Chinese Cooking / 73
V. The Ever-Changing Universe / 93
VI. The Meaning of Life / 123
viii | Contents
VII. The Many Gods Who Protect the People / 143
VIII. Secular Religion / 171
IX. The Human Networks that Bind Us / 201
X. The World Revealed in Novels / 219
Conclusion A New Life for Chinese Culture / 263
Chronology of Chinese Dynasties
Dynasties Years
Xia 夏 ca. 21st century BCE –17th century BCE
Shang 商 ca. 17th century BCE –11th century BCE
Western Zhou 西周 ca. 11th century BCE–771 BCE
Eastern Zhou 東周 771 BCE–256 BCE
Spring and Autumn Period 春秋 771 BCE–476 BCE
Warring States Period 戰國 476 BCE–221 BCE
Qin秦 221 BCE–206 BCE
Western Han西漢 202 BCE–8 CE
Xin新 8–23
Eastern Han東漢 25–220
Three Kingdoms 三國 220–280
Western Jin 西晉 265–316
Eastern Jin 東晉 317–420
Southern and Northern Dynasties 南北朝 420–589
Sui 隋 581–618
Tang 唐 618–907
Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms 五代十國 907–960
Northern Song 北宋 960–1127
Southern Song 南宋 1127–1276
Liao 遼 916–1125
Jin 金 1125–1234
Yuan 元 1271–1368
Ming 明 1368–1644
Qing 清 1644–1912