Title

Northern Song Intellectual Discourse on Yang Xiong’s Taixuan jing

Author

Douglas Skonicki

Genre

Article  

Pages

541~587

Download

PDF

Language

English  

Key words

Yang Xiong, Taixuan jing, the Northern Song dynasty, literati thought, cosmology

Abstract

      In the eleventh century, the life and thought of the Han dynasty thinker Yang Xiong became an important topic of debate. Confucian literati of the Northern Song dynasty produced more writings devoted to Yang and his thought than during any other period in Chinese history. These facts raise two important questions. First, what role did Yang Xiong’s thought play during the Northern Song? And second, why did literati become interested in Yang Xiong at this time? This study analyzes how Northern Song thinkers viewed one of Yang’s major works, the Taixuan jing, in an
effort to determine both why Yang’s ideas assumed renewed importance and what literati had to say about him. I argue that Northern Song writings on Yang’s Taixuan jing can be categorized into two distinct strains. The first strain focused on several issues related to Yang’s character and conduct, which influenced how Northern Song thinkers conceived of worthy status. The second strain centered on the theoretical doctrines found within the Taixuan jing, which served to inform Northern Song conceptions of the Yijing and the relationship between humanity and the cosmos.