Faculty Scholarly Dissemination Grants
Gongfu Interpretation of Confucianism
Department
Philosophy Department
College
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Date Range
2012-2013
Disciplines
Social and Behavioral Sciences
Abstract
The paper explains what it means to interprete Confucianism from a gongfu perspective: 1, it means to take Confucianism as gongfu instructions about how to cultivate the person, regulate the family, govern the state, and bring peace to the world, and not as a descriptive theory about the world. 2, it means that the ultimate aim of Confucianism is mastering the art of living rather than providing moral norms for life. 3, it means that the teachings in Confucian classics should be read perlocutionarily (as speech acts), and not just according to their literal meanings. 4. it means that certain contents in Confucian classics can only be fully understood with personal cultvation practice.
Conference Name
Chinese Philosophers Conference
Conference Location
Beijing, China
ScholarWorks Citation
Ni, Peimin, "Gongfu Interpretation of Confucianism" (2013). Faculty Scholarly Dissemination Grants. 1108.
https://scholarworks.gvsu.edu/fsdg/1108
