Tang Dynasty's View on Life and Death -- A Collection of Translated English Works by Yu Yingshi

Author: Yu Ying-shih (Author), He Jun (Editor), Hou Xu-dong et al. (Translator)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-09-01
Features: Professor Yu Ying-shih's breadth of knowledge in the field of traditional Chinese literature and history is unparalleled. Previously, our understanding of his research on the historical and cultural aspects of the Han Dynasty was limited, as his early relevant works were all written in English. Now, with the publication of the Chinese translations of Trade and Expansion in the Han Dynasty and Views on Life and Death in the Eastern Han Dynasty, we finally have the opportunity to see Professor Yu Ying-shih's achievements in this area. Compared to Trade and Expansion in the Han Dynasty, Views on Life and Death in the Eastern Han Dynasty is more fluent and skillful in writing, and it is clear that the author has maintained a consistent focus on this topic over the past two decades, with his interest undiminished. In the book, Yu Ying-shih primarily examines the folk beliefs about life and death in the Eastern Han Dynasty, particularly the soul concept represented by the idea of "the soul ascending to heaven and the body descending to earth," and emphasizes that the Chinese did not develop the concept of hell only after the introduction of Buddhism. The issue of life and death is a universal one that troubles everyone, regardless of their status, wisdom, social standing, or wealth. People, directly or indirectly, explicitly or implicitly, consciously or unconsciously, will inevitably offer their own answers to this question. By meticulously and carefully analyzing these answers, one can see what was termed the "spirit of the age" in that era.