Research on the I Ching's Canon and Commentaries

Author: Yang Qingzhong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-11-01
Features: This book consists of two parts, totaling fifteen chapters. The first part, comprising seven chapters, focuses on the ancient text of the Book of Changes (hereafter referred to as the I Ching). The second part, with eight chapters, focuses on the Commentaries on the I Ching. In the seven chapters of the first part, the main topics discussed include hexagram and line images, hexagram and line texts, the relationship between images and texts, the names and order of hexagrams, the composition date of the I Ching, the nature of the I Ching, and the humanistic teachings in the I Ching. The eight chapters of the second part primarily address the following eight topics: Confucius and the Commentaries, the era of the composition of the Commentaries, the intellectual cultural resources of the Commentaries, the rationality of the Commentaries in interpreting the I Ching, the approach of the Commentaries in interpreting the I Ching, the issue of the "all-under-heaven" in the Commentaries, the concept of "the Way" in the Commentaries, and the Commentaries and Chinese philosophy. This book attempts to explore the main issues in the field of I Ching studies through these fifteen topics related to the I Ching and its Commentaries, examining which issues traditional I Ching studies have addressed correctly, which issues modern scholars (or contemporary scholars) have addressed correctly, and which issues still require further research. On this basis, it strives to reflect on the deeper issues in traditional Chinese philosophy and Chinese culture as much as possible. At the level of knowledge, it seeks to provide a relatively accurate interpretation of the I Ching and its Commentaries, and at the academic level, it explores new approaches for modern I Ching studies.