Selected Writings of Han Yongun

Selected Writings of Han Yongun
Author:
Publisher: Global Oriental
Total Pages: 272
Release: 2008-02-14
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9004213279

One of Korea’s most eminent Buddhists and political activists in the independence movement during the long years of Japan’s colonization of Korea, Han Yongun was a prolific writer and outstanding poet, known especially for his poetry collection The Silence of the Lover. This book concentrates on translations of his principal non-literary works.

Social Darwinism and Nationalism in Korea: the Beginnings (1880s-1910s)

Social Darwinism and Nationalism in Korea: the Beginnings (1880s-1910s)
Author: Vladimir Tikhonov
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 267
Release: 2010-07-14
Genre: History
ISBN: 9004190139

The book deals with the influences exerted by Social Darwinism upon Korea’s modern ideologies and discourses in the 1880s-1900s. It argues that Social Darwinism constituted the main keystone for many pivotal discourses in early modern Korea, especially nationalism.

A Buddha Land in This World

A Buddha Land in This World
Author: Lajos Brons
Publisher: punctum books
Total Pages: 491
Release: 2022-04-13
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1685710344

In the early twentieth century, Uchiyama Gudō, Seno'o Girō, Lin Qiuwu, and others advocated a Buddhism that was radical in two respects. Firstly, they adopted a more or less naturalist stance with respect to Buddhist doctrine and related matters, rejecting karma or other supernatural beliefs. And secondly, they held political and economic views that were radically anti-hegemonic, anti-capitalist, and revolutionary. Taking the idea of such a "radical Buddhism" seriously, A Buddha Land in This World: Philosophy, Utopia, and Radical Buddhism asks whether it is possible to develop a philosophy that is simultaneously naturalist, anti-capitalist, Buddhist, and consistent. Rather than a study of radical Buddhism, then, this book is an attempt to radicalize it. The foundations of this "radicalized radical Buddhism" are provided by a realist interpretation of Yogācāra, elucidated and elaborated with some help from thinkers in the broader Tiantai/Tendai tradition and American philosophers Donald Davidson and W.V.O. Quine. A key implication of this foundation is that only this world and only this life are real, from which it follows that if Buddhism aims to alleviate suffering, it has to do so in this world and in this life. Twentieth-century radical Buddhists (as well as some engaged Buddhists) came to a similar conclusion, often expressed in their aim to realize "a Buddha land in this world." Building on this foundation, but also on Mahāyāna moral philosophy, this book argues for an ethics and social philosophy based on a definition of evil as that what is or should be expected to cause death or suffering. On that ground, capitalism should be rejected indeed, but utopianism must be treated with caution as well, which raises questions about what it means - from a radicalized radical Buddhist perspective - to aim for a Buddha land in this world. Lajos Brons is a Dutch philosopher and social scientist living in Japan. After receiving a PhD from the University of Groningen in the Netherlands for a dissertation on an aspect of the history and philosophy of the social sciences, he gradually moved further and further into philosophical territory. Currently, Lajos is teaching logic, ethics, and philosophy at a university in Tokyo. His research interests are divided over two broad areas in philosophy: one is in the overlap of (meta-)ethics and social/political philosophy; the other is in the intersection of philosophy of language, metaphysics, and epistemology. Research in the former focuses on the relations between death, suffering, and compassion. Research in the latter concerns the relations between language, thought, and reality, and is heavily influenced by the philosophies of Donald Davidson and W.V.O. Quine, and by Buddhist philosophy. More information about publications and research interests, as well as Lajos's blog can be found at www.lajosbrons.net

New Perspectives in Modern Korean Buddhism

New Perspectives in Modern Korean Buddhism
Author: Hwansoo Ilmee Kim
Publisher: State University of New York Press
Total Pages: 289
Release: 2022-12-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1438491336

New Perspectives in Modern Korean Buddhism moves beyond nationalistic, modernist, and ethnocentric historiographies of modern Korean Buddhism by carefully examining individuals' lived experiences, the institutional dimensions of Korean Buddhism, and its place in transnational conversations. Drawing upon rich archives as well as historical, anthropological, and literary approaches, the book examines four themes that have gained attention in recent years: perennial existential concerns and the persistent relevance of religious practice; the role of female Buddhists; clerical marriage and scandals; and engagement with secular society. The book reveals the limits of metanarratives, such as those of colonialism, nationalism, and modernity, in understanding the complex and contested identities of both monastics and laity, thus demanding that we diversify the methods by which we articulate the history of modern Korean Buddhism.

Tracts on the Modern Reformation of Korean Buddhism

Tracts on the Modern Reformation of Korean Buddhism
Author: Gwon Sangro
Publisher: Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism
Total Pages: 389
Release:
Genre: Religion
ISBN:

Tracts on the Modern Reformation of Korean Buddhism consists of four selected works by three writers: Han Yongun’s 韓龍雲 (1879–1944) Treatise on the Restoration of Korean Buddhism (1913) and “Reform Proposals for Korean Buddhism” (1931); Gwon Sangro’s 權相老(1879–1965) “Treatise on the Reformation of Korean Buddhism” (1912-1913); and Yi Yeongjae’s 李英宰(1900–1927) “Treatise on the Renovation of Korean Buddhism” (1922). These works represent modern Buddhist intellectuals’ awareness of social reality and their new visions at the contemporary turning point of modernization. The Treatise on the Restoration of Korean Buddhism emphasizes on superiority of Buddhism, which encompasses both philosophy and religion, and its modern features on the one hand, and argues for the elimination of past evils and a social renovation on the other. This work stresses the urgent necessity of the modern education, studying abroad, and the secured freedom of thought. In “Reform Proposals for Korean Buddhism,” Han advocates for the establishment of a unified institute, the necessity of translation into the Korean language using the Korean script (Han-geul), and the popularization of Buddhism. In “Treatise on the Reformation of Korean Buddhism,” Gwon insists that Korean Buddhism should overcome the old traditions of dependency or obedience as well as its exclusiveness and be radically reformed in the age of religious competition that is based on social evolution theory. The “Treatise on the Renovation of Korean Buddhism” suggests an institutional direction of Buddhist reformation with a critical awareness of the system under the Temple Ordinances issued by the Japanese Colonial Government. This work also proposes the establishment of a religious constitution and an innovative organization following a democratic model that pursues the separation of power. These works emphasize the necessity of socialization, education, institutional, and economical independence of Buddhism.

The Red Decades

The Red Decades
Author: Vladimir Tikhonov
Publisher: University of Hawaii Press
Total Pages: 425
Release: 2023-10-31
Genre: History
ISBN: 0824896084

Focusing on previously neglected cultural expressions of colonial-period Korean socialism such as Marxist philosophy, Marxist historiography, and travelogues by socialist writers, The Red Decades reveals Marxian socialism as a cultural phenomenon of colonial-age Korea. Providing an account of the social composition of the Communist milieu in 1920s and 1930s Korea and outlining the aims of the colonial-period Communist movement as formulated in programmic documents, this text offers a rich, nuanced description of the microcosm of Korean Communism—a setting of factional alignments, pilgrimages to Moscow, extended stays of the Korean revolutionaries as exiles in China and the Soviet Union, and a polylingual environment with Chinese, Japanese, English, and Russian being equally important as the idioms of socialist propagation and international networking. Placing the endeavors of colonial-age Communists within a global historical context allows for dissections of how Korean socialists' ideals interacted with the realities of the conservative turn taking place in the Soviet Union since the late 1920s, as well as considering the implication of Stalinism for Korean revolutionary culture. Yet this analysis also focuses on the individuals involved, especially on their persistent issue of factionalism in the Korean Communist movement and on the role of underground radicalism in shaping the subaltern subjectivities of the participants. The Red Decades discusses the world-historical place of “alternative modernity” that colonial-age socialists of Korea were pursuing. Based on a wealth of Japanese, Korean, Russian, and Chinese primary sources, including the Korea-related parts of the archives of Comintern, an under-utilized resource in Anglophone scholarship. The research also accommodates the achievements of the last decades, from South Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Anglophone and Russophone academic worlds. The breadth of this study situates the philosophical, historiographical, and political practices of Marxism of colonial Korea in the global historical perspective and simultaneously explores the long-lasting influences of the Communist movement in post-1945 North and South Korea.

Heidegger and Dao

Heidegger and Dao
Author: Eric S. Nelson
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 463
Release: 2023-11-02
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 1350411922

In this innovative contribution, Eric S. Nelson offers a contextualized and systematic exploration of the Chinese sources and German language interpretations that shaped Heidegger's engagement with Daoism and his thinking of the thing, nothingness, and the freedom of releasement (Gelassenheit). Encompassing forgotten and recently published historical sources, including Heidegger's Daoist and Buddhist-related reflections in his lectures and notebooks, Nelson presents a critical intercultural reinterpretation of Heidegger's philosophical journey. Nelson analyzes the intersections and differences between the Daodejing, the Zhuangzi, and Heidegger's philosophy and the linguistic and conceptual shifts in Heidegger's thinking that correlate with his encounters and interactions with Daoist, Buddhist, and East Asian texts and interlocutors. He thereby traces hints for encountering things and environments anew, models for intercultural hermeneutics, and ways of reimagining the thing, nothingness, and freedom with and beyond Heidegger's thought. This work elucidates the thing, the mystery, and freedom in Heidegger and Daoism in Part I and Heidegger's thinking of nothingness, emptiness, and the clearing in relation to Daoist and Buddhist philosophy in Part II. In each part, Nelson unfolds a fresh perspective for thinking further with Heidegger and East Asian philosophies in relation to the contemporary existential and environmental situation for the sake of nourishing life amidst damaged life.

Annual Review of the Sociology of Religion. Volume 5 (2014)

Annual Review of the Sociology of Religion. Volume 5 (2014)
Author:
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 340
Release: 2014-11-13
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9004283501

In contrast with the growing belief in society that traditional religious institutions are losing credibility, there has been renewed interest in monasteries going beyond what is strictly defined as religious. There are, for example, increasingly numerous requests for cooking and gardening courses as well as guided tours in monasteries, the appeal of monastic products and media interest in the subject. In parallel with a strong crisis in its recruitment, monasticism in the Western world is experiencing a period of innovation and experiments accompanied by unexpected popularity, as is evidenced by numerous films and publications. We hope that this book will deepen the understanding of the specificity of monastic life in the in the contemporary world, in a religious area, and from a sociological point of view.

Everything Yearned For

Everything Yearned For
Author:
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 194
Release: 2013-02-08
Genre: Poetry
ISBN: 0861718488

Manhae (1879-1944), or Han Yongun, was a Korean Buddhist (Son) monk during the era of Japanese colonial occupation (1910-1945). Manhae is a political and cultural hero in Korea, and his works are studied by college students and school children alike. Everything Yearned For is a collection of 88 love poems, evocative of the mystical love poetry of Rumi, and even reminiscent of the work of Pablo Neruda.Though Manahe's poetry can be read allegorically on many levels - political and religious - it is completely unlike any other poetry in Buddhist or secular realm. The first poem, "My Lover's Silence," narrates the lover's departure and establishes the enduring themes of the work: the happiness of meeting, the sadness of separation, the agony of longing and waiting, and, most of all, the perfection of love in absence that demands the cost of one's ongoing life, as opposed to the relief of death. The Korean word translated in these poems as "love" and "lover" is nim, though nim has many and broad interpretations. Understandably, the identity of Manhae's lover, or "nim" has been the subject of much speculation. Manhae writes in his own preface: "Nim" is not only a human lover but everything yearned for. All beings are nim for the Buddha, and philosophy is the nim of Kant. The spring rain is nim for the rose, and Italy is the nim of Mazzini. Nim is what I love, but it also loves me. If romantic love is freedom, then so is my nim. But aren't you attached to the lofty name of freedom? Don't you also have a nim? If so, it's only your shadow. I write these poems for the young lambs wandering lost on the road home from the darkening plains.

The Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Buddhism

The Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Buddhism
Author: Michael K. Jerryson
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 761
Release: 2017
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 0199362386

The Oxford Handbook of Contemporary Buddhism offers a comprehensive collection of work by leading scholars in the field. They examine the historical development of Buddhist traditions throughout the world, from traditional settings like India, Japan, and Tibet, to the less well known regions of Latin America, Africa, and Oceania.