La figure divine de Wei Huacun 魏華存 dans le taoïsme Shangqing au VIIIe siècle : la place du culte et la question du genre dans la pratique spirituelle

Résumé Selon la tradition, Wei Huacun (251-334), ou plutôt sa figure déifiée, la Dame Wei du pic du Sud, est la matriarche fondatrice du courant taoïste de la Pureté supérieure, ou Shangqing, apparu au cours de la seconde moitié du IVe siècle de notre ère. Si l’ historicité de ce mouvement à la fin des Six Dynasties (220-589) a été abondamment étudiée, son évolution postérieure, en particulier sous les Tang (618-907), laisse encore apparaître des zones d’ ombre. L’ étude de la figure divine de la Dame Wei, à la fois sur le plan de son culte et sur celui des exercices spirituels auxquels elle était associée, contribue à mieux cerner les contours de cette tradition vivante. Elle permet également d’ affiner notre vision de sa praxis telle que les taoïstes, hommes et femmes, pouvaient se l’ approprier dans leur propre religiosité vis-à-vis de la religion instituée.

Fó (佛), Pwuche (仏体), and Hotoke (保止氣)

The aim of this article is to discuss how the Chinese loanword fó (佛) was incorporated into pre-Old Korean (pre-OK), Old Korean (OK), and Western Old Japanese (WOJ) on the basis of textual research using various primary sources from China, Korea, and Japan. The author proposes that two routes exist to explain the borrowing of the Chinese word fó (佛) into pre-OK, OK, and WOJ: one route from the Six Dynasties to the Korean Three Kingdoms period to Japan's pre-Nara period, and one from the Sui and Tang dynasties to the Unified Silla and Koryŏ periods.

Daoist Cosmogony in the Kojiki 古事記 Preface

A close reading of the cosmogony found in the preface to Ō no Yasumaro 太安萬侶’s Kojiki 古事記 (Record of Ancient Matters, 712 CE) reveals the ways in which Japan’s early Nara period elites appropriated aspects of China’s Daoist traditions for their own literary, mythological, and political purposes. This debt to Daoism on the part of the oldest Shintō 神道 scripture, in turn, reveals the extent to which Daoist traditions were eclectically mined for content that early Japanese elites found useful, rather than transmitted as intact lineages. This also raises questions about whether and how “Daoism” has functioned as a systematic body of doctrines and practices, whether in China or overseas. The essay argues that Ō no Yasumaro’s appropriation of the Daoist cosmogonic repertoire is consistent with Daoist traditions as they developed during China’s Six Dynasties and Tang periods—that is, with Daoism as it existed contemporaneously with the early Nara period, when the Kojiki was compiled.

Finding Elusive Resonances Across Cultures and Time

This chapter is about meaningful connection in media entertainment in relation to the concept of resonance during an era of social and technological acceleration. A hierarchical model is proposed with a desire for pleasure at the concrete foundation and an aesthetic appreciation of meaning at the more abstract and universal level. This range of experience is examined in the context of Greek and Chinese thinking about resonance. For Ancient Greeks, resonance describes interpretative and expressive events where concrete bodily and immersive practices shape experiences that may have ethical and sociopolitical effects. In Plato, it branched into (1) passive reception that mirrors a copy and offers no direct access to truth but might merely condition a person or (2) a communion that reveals the ideal. Aristotle stressed the dynamics of resonance in theater to build a relatively autonomous agent who appreciates and reflects on ways that causes affect human action in the social world. In the Chinese part of this chapter, we examine scholarship related to the concept of resonance during the Six Dynasties period (220–589 CE) as well as its intellectual roots from Confucianism and Daoism. Major issues explored include: the function of resonance in artistic creation and appreciation as well as its social function from a Confucian perspective; the method that helps people experience resonance with nature or cosmos from a Daoist perspective; and finally, the concept of vital energy across the cosmos which facilitates the more profound experience of resonance.

Beyond Respecting Mencius and Criticizing Xunzi: A Return to Equal Status for the Two Sages

Mencius 孟子 took Confucius’ idea of benevolence and, based on it, developed his theory that human nature is good. Xunzi 荀子 emphasized Confucius’ idea of ritual propriety and developed his theory that human nature is bad. This juxtaposition largely came to define their philosophies and their place in the history of Confucianism. Reconciling the two has been a point of contention ever since the Han dynasty. By the end of the Han dynasty, the scales had tipped in favor of Mencius, and this favoritism continued through the Six Dynasties era, the Tang and Song dynasties and beyond. As the Mencius became canonized, the Xunzi fell further out of favor with academics. Through all this, there have still been attempts to directly reconcile and even combine the two branches of Confucianism. This is an important cultural enterprise, which has gained new force in recent years. This article threads out some of the more important arguments in this continuing discussion and advocates for viewing the two branches with equal import and authority in the Confucian tradition.

Self-Canonization in Zuo Si’s “Poems on History”

Zuo Si’s 左思 [ca. 250-305] “Poems on History” [yongshi 詠史] have often been regarded as a milestone in the development of the poetic subgenre “poems on history.” Scholars have noted Zuo’s use of historical allusion and description to articulate his personal emotions and ambitions and to criticize the political hierarchy of the Western Jin [265-316]. In addition, they have recognized Zuo’s “Poems on History” as representing an alternative to the ornamental style of poetry popular in his time. This article addresses the way in which Zuo’s poems contributed to the “poems on history” subgenre, as well as how they reflected the broader context of Six Dynasties [220-589] society. At the same time, it investigates another purpose for his use of historical figures in his poetry: self-canonization. This paper argues that Zuo used historical figures not only to express his emotions but also to skillfully place himself into the larger context and lineage of exemplary historical figures. Zuo is thus telling later generations that they should remember him with the same reverence—he is invoking history as a force of self-canonization. This self-canonization perspective reveals the complexity of Zuo’s appropriation of earlier historical sources. It also deepens our understanding of the purpose of Zuo’s “Poems on History” and of the ways in which history is disseminated through poetry in the Six Dynasties period.