I Ching's View of Ancient History

Author: Hu Pu'an, Editor-in-Chief
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-07-01
Features: Interprets the 64 hexagrams of the I Ching as a historical text comprehensively and systematically, forming a complete ancient history system of the I Ching. Hu's work is a monument. The View of Ancient History in the I Ching is a representative work of the ancient history school of the I Ching in the 20th century. Although it has issues that still require further research, it must be acknowledged as a milestone in the 20th-century study of the I Ching. Among the numerous interpretations of the 64 hexagrams in the 20th century, Hu Pu'an's The View of Ancient History in the I Ching stands out. The author regards the entire 64 hexagrams and 384 lines of the I Ching as an ancient history book. The Upper Canon, from the Zun hexagram to the Li hexagram, represents the history from the primitive era to the end of the Shang Dynasty, while the Lower Canon, from the Xian hexagram to the Xiao Guo hexagram, covers the era of King Wen and King Wu, as well as King Cheng of the Zhou Dynasty. The Kan and Qian hexagrams serve as an introduction; they do not record events but set the general principles. The Ji Ji and Wei Ji hexagrams are supplementary discussions, emphasizing that when society is established, one should anticipate and prevent potential problems, using the principles of Wei Ji to guide Ji Ji. In this way, Hu formed a complete ancient history system of the I Ching.
The Century Humanistic Series includes five interfaces: "The Century Library," "The Century Frontier," "Pocket Classics," "University Classics," and "Open Humanities," each forming a series that complements one another. "Clarifying the context of Western thought and renewing the academic tradition of China" is the editorial principle of "The Century Library." The library is divided into two major book series: the Chinese Studies series and the Western Studies series. The Chinese Studies series, starting from the late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China, comprehensively organizes academic works of modern China since the late Qing Dynasty, aiming to provide a progressive path for contemporary reflection on the social and spiritual conditions of modern China. The Western Studies series aims to systematically translate classic texts from ancient Greece and Rome to the present, based on the overall process of Western civilization, thereby showcasing the development and evolution of Western thought traditions and laying a solid textual foundation for addressing the core issues of modern China. This book is part of the Chinese Studies series and was written by Hu Pu'an.