Podcasts about classical chinese philosophy

It is common to refer to philosophy as "a series of footnotes to Plato." But in the original quote, Alfred North Whitehead was more careful: he limited his characterization to "the European philosophical tradition." There are other traditions, both ancient and ongoing: Chinese philosophy, Indian philosophy, Africana philosophy, and various indigenous philosophies. For the most part, these do not get nearly as much attention in European and American schools as the European tradition does. Bryan Van Norden argues for expanding philosophy's geographical scope, to the benefit of philosophy in general.Blog post with transcript: https://www.preposterousuniverse.com/podcast/2025/06/23/319-bryan-van-norden-on-philosophy-from-the-rest-of-the-world/Support Mindscape on Patreon.Bryan Van Norden received his Ph.D. in philosophy from Stanford University. He is currently James Monroe Taylor Chair in Philosophy at Vassar College and Chair Professor in the School of Philosophy at Wuhan University. Among his books are Introduction to Classical Chinese Philosophy and Taking Back Philosophy: A Multicultural Manifesto. He is a recipient of Fulbright, National Endowment for the Humanities, and Mellon fellowships.Web siteVassar web pagePhilPeople profileWikipediaAmazon author pageSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Co-host Karyn introduces herself to the listeners and talks about the challenges of tackling classical Chinese philosophical texts.

¿Qué es la filosofía china? En este capítulo revisamos el libro "Readings in Classical Chinese Philosophy" de Philip J. Ivanhoe y Bryan W. Van Norden sobre el confucianismo y neoconfucianismo.

When most Westerners think of "philosophy," they are inclined to think of Greco-Roman arguments or Anglo-American academics. "Philosophy" as approached this way is really nothing more than one culture's philosophical tradition, rather than a global, multicultural collection of thinkers, ideas, and methods. If we expand our definition of philosophy, we have the chance not only to challenge our own Western ways of thinking, but also to understand other cultures, from those of China to India to Ancient Israel. In this episode, Dr. Dru Johnson talks to Dr. Bryan Van Norden about multicultural philosophy. Dr. Van Norden is a chair in philosophy departments at both Vassar College and Wuhan University, where he specializes in Chinese philosophy. They begin with one very difficult question: "What counts as philosophy?" From there, they discuss different definitions of philosophy, the diverse literary techniques wielded by both Eastern and Western authors, and often-overlooked philosophical texts. If people can start examining Confucius and the Hebrew Scriptures like they do Plato, Aristotle, Descartes, and Kant, their eyes will be opened to cultural traditions that are not only novel and diverse, but also equally intellectually rich and thought-provoking. Shownotes: 0:00 Philosophy beyond the Greeks 2:12 Why people don't think of Asian philosophy as philosophy 7:23 Defining philosophy and Taking Back Philosophy 13:40 Different literary techniques in Chinese philosophy 17:50 A multicultural approach to philosophical thinking 22:20 Approaching texts like the Bible and the Bhagavad Gita 27:14 The Milindapanha and the chariot argument against the self For more information about Dr. Van Norden and his work, visit his website, where you can find his world philosophy bibliography. Dr. Van Norden's New York Times op-ed on multicultural philosophy: "If Philosophy Won't Diversify, Let's Call it What it Is" The ensuing book: Taking Back Philosophy: A Multicultural Manifesto Dr. Van Norden is James Monroe Taylor Chair in Philosophy at Vassar College (USA), and Chair Professor in Philosophy in the School of Philosophy at Wuhan University (China). Van Norden has published ten books on Chinese and comparative philosophy, including Introduction to Classical Chinese Philosophy (2011) and Taking Back Philosophy: A Multicultural Manifesto (2017). A recipient of Fulbright, National Endowment for the Humanities, and Mellon fellowships, Van Norden has been honored as one of The Best 300 Professors in the U.S. by The Princeton Review. Show notes by Micah Long.

In this 72nd episode of the Philosophy Bakes Bread radio show and podcast, Eric Thomas Weber and Anthony Cashio interview Bryan Van Norden on "A Multicultural Manifesto," the subtitle of his recent book Taking Back Philosophy.  Bryan is currently Kwan Im Thong Hood Cho Temple Professor at Yale-NUS College. A recipient of Fulbright, National Endowment for the Humanities, and Mellon fellowships, he has been honored as one of The Best 300 Professors in the US by The Princeton Review. He is also Chair Professor in Philosophy in the School of Philosophy at Wuhan University, China, and Professor of Philosophy at Vassar College (USA). He has authored, edited, or translated a number of books on Chinese and comparative philosophy, including Introduction to Classical Chinese Philosophy (2011), Readings in Later Chinese Philosophy (2014, with Justin Tiwald), and Readings in Classical Chinese Philosophy (2nd ed., 2005, with P.J. Ivanhoe). Listen for our “You Tell Me!” questions and for some jokes in one of our concluding segments, called “Philosophunnies.” Reach out to us on Facebook @PhilosophyBakesBread and on Twitter @PhilosophyBB; email us at philosophybakesbread@gmail.com; or call and record a voicemail that we play on the show, at 859.257.1849. Philosophy Bakes Bread is a production of the Society of Philosophers in America (SOPHIA). Check us out online at PhilosophyBakesBread.com and check out SOPHIA at PhilosophersInAmerica.com.  

In this episode of Enlightenment Today you will learn what it means to be an accomplished Taoist. We often hear people say they follow the Tao, the Way. But what does it mean and are they truly a Taoist or are they just intuiting their experience according to their own biases and confusing it with flow? When we think of Taoism we have to revert back to the two great sages of Taoist philosophy: Lao-tzu and Chuang-tzu. The core of Taoism is a way of life focused on having healthy and sane people who are then capable of understanding and aligning with the spiritual core and order of the universe, the Tao. This in turn creates a healthy and sane world. By becoming an accomplished Taoist you will be immune to the inevitable perils you encounter in life.   Recommended Reading Readings in Classical Chinese Philosophy http://amzn.to/2EgVpTN Tao Te Ching (Gia-Fu Feng & Jane English translation) http://amzn.to/2z6w7V3 Tao Te Ching (Philip J. Ivanhoe translation) http://amzn.to/2iCs0tU Tao Te Ching (Stephen Mitchell translation) http://amzn.to/2hPV6IX The Complete Works of Chuang Tzu http://amzn.to/2hFc1Kt The Way of Chuang Tzu http://amzn.to/2z3VyGJ I Ching http://amzn.to/2zWMSW7 Trying Not to Try http://amzn.to/2z6l0eU Tao: The Watercourse Way http://amzn.to/2zZGn2N Genuine Pretending http://amzn.to/2iDhF04 Awakening to the Tao https://amzn.to/2KdsSBc

In this episode Enlightenment Today we will explore the desires of the eye and the desires of the belly that Lao-tzu mentions in the Tao Te Ching. The desires of the eye are the artificial needs created by society, which keep up chasing and hunting a life that is not ours and this in turn maddens our hearts, to use Lao-tzu's words. These desires are insatiable and practically infinite. The desires of the belly are our basic needs, which are very simple. These desires of the belly are what nature gave you and they are quite modest needs. If our natural needs are quite modest than our starting off point to be a sane and healthy individual is oriented in the wrong direction. But if we reorient our lives towards the desires of the belly we will realize that human beings have a simple nature and are easily satisfied. We only mess with this simple nature when society creates artificial desires and as a result we want more than we naturally need.   Recommended Reading Readings in Classical Chinese Philosophy http://amzn.to/2EgVpTN Tao Te Ching (Gia-Fu Feng & Jane English translation) http://amzn.to/2z6w7V3 Tao Te Ching (Philip J. Ivanhoe translation) http://amzn.to/2iCs0tU Tao Te Ching (Stephen Mitchell translation) http://amzn.to/2hPV6IX I Ching http://amzn.to/2zWMSW7 Trying Not to Try http://amzn.to/2z6l0eU Tao: The Watercourse Way http://amzn.to/2zZGn2N

More at http://philosophytalk.org/shows/taoism-following-way. Taoism (sometimes Daoism) is one of the great philosophical traditions of China. Lao-Tzu, commonly regarded as its founder, said that “Those who know, do not speak; those who speak, do not know.” The arguments that Taoist texts offer for skepticism may seem surprisingly modern. Yet these same texts also offer recommendations for certain ways of life over others. So what exactly is Taoism, and what are its main tenets? Is it a religion, a philosophy, or a way of life? How do Taoists reconcile endorsing a specific way of life with skepticism about human thinking? John and Ken go east with Bryan Van Norden from Vassar College, author of numerous translations and books on Chinese thought, including "Introduction to Classical Chinese Philosophy."

If you experience any technical difficulties with this video or would like to make an accessibility-related request, please send a message to digicomm@uchicago.edu. Part three of "The Problem of Evil and the Relation between Heaven and Human in Classical Chinese Philosophy." Franklin Perkins is Professor of Philosophy at DePaul University and former director of DePaul’s Chinese Studies Program. His main teaching and research interests are in classical Chinese philosophy, early modern European philosophy, and the challenges of doing philosophy in a comparative or intercultural context. Franklin is the author of “Leibniz and China: A Commerce of Light” (2004), “Leibniz: A Guide for the Perplexed” (2007), and “Heaven and Earth are not Humane: The Problem of Evil in Classical Chinese Philosophy” (2014), and was co-editor with Chung-ying Cheng of “Chinese Philosophy in Early Excavated Bamboo Texts” (Journal of Chinese Philosophy Supplement 2010). His books have been translated into Portuguese and Chinese, and he has been a visiting scholar at Peking University, Chinese University of Hong Kong, and the Leibniz Archives in Hannover (Germany). He is currently Visiting Professor in Philosophy at Nanyang Technological University (Singapore). Professor Perkins lectured on November 11, 12, and 14, 2014. See more at: http://divinity.uchicago.edu/franklin-perkins-lecture-divinity-school

If you experience any technical difficulties with this video or would like to make an accessibility-related request, please send a message to digicomm@uchicago.edu. Part two of "The Problem of Evil and the Relation between Heaven and Human in Classical Chinese Philosophy." Franklin Perkins is Professor of Philosophy at DePaul University and former director of DePaul’s Chinese Studies Program. His main teaching and research interests are in classical Chinese philosophy, early modern European philosophy, and the challenges of doing philosophy in a comparative or intercultural context. Franklin is the author of “Leibniz and China: A Commerce of Light” (2004), “Leibniz: A Guide for the Perplexed” (2007), and “Heaven and Earth are not Humane: The Problem of Evil in Classical Chinese Philosophy” (2014), and was co-editor with Chung-ying Cheng of “Chinese Philosophy in Early Excavated Bamboo Texts” (Journal of Chinese Philosophy Supplement 2010). His books have been translated into Portuguese and Chinese, and he has been a visiting scholar at Peking University, Chinese University of Hong Kong, and the Leibniz Archives in Hannover (Germany). He is currently Visiting Professor in Philosophy at Nanyang Technological University (Singapore). Professor Perkins lectured on November 11, 12, and 14, 2014. See more at: http://divinity.uchicago.edu/franklin-perkins-lecture-divinity-school

If you experience any technical difficulties with this video or would like to make an accessibility-related request, please send a message to digicomm@uchicago.edu. Part three of "The Problem of Evil and the Relation between Heaven and Human in Classical Chinese Philosophy." Franklin Perkins is Professor of Philosophy at DePaul University and former director of DePaul’s Chinese Studies Program. His main teaching and research interests are in classical Chinese philosophy, early modern European philosophy, and the challenges of doing philosophy in a comparative or intercultural context. Franklin is the author of “Leibniz and China: A Commerce of Light” (2004), “Leibniz: A Guide for the Perplexed” (2007), and “Heaven and Earth are not Humane: The Problem of Evil in Classical Chinese Philosophy” (2014), and was co-editor with Chung-ying Cheng of “Chinese Philosophy in Early Excavated Bamboo Texts” (Journal of Chinese Philosophy Supplement 2010). His books have been translated into Portuguese and Chinese, and he has been a visiting scholar at Peking University, Chinese University of Hong Kong, and the Leibniz Archives in Hannover (Germany). He is currently Visiting Professor in Philosophy at Nanyang Technological University (Singapore). Professor Perkins lectured on November 11, 12, and 14, 2014. See more at: http://divinity.uchicago.edu/franklin-perkins-lecture-divinity-school

If you experience any technical difficulties with this video or would like to make an accessibility-related request, please send a message to digicomm@uchicago.edu. Part two of "The Problem of Evil and the Relation between Heaven and Human in Classical Chinese Philosophy." Franklin Perkins is Professor of Philosophy at DePaul University and former director of DePaul’s Chinese Studies Program. His main teaching and research interests are in classical Chinese philosophy, early modern European philosophy, and the challenges of doing philosophy in a comparative or intercultural context. Franklin is the author of “Leibniz and China: A Commerce of Light” (2004), “Leibniz: A Guide for the Perplexed” (2007), and “Heaven and Earth are not Humane: The Problem of Evil in Classical Chinese Philosophy” (2014), and was co-editor with Chung-ying Cheng of “Chinese Philosophy in Early Excavated Bamboo Texts” (Journal of Chinese Philosophy Supplement 2010). His books have been translated into Portuguese and Chinese, and he has been a visiting scholar at Peking University, Chinese University of Hong Kong, and the Leibniz Archives in Hannover (Germany). He is currently Visiting Professor in Philosophy at Nanyang Technological University (Singapore). Professor Perkins lectured on November 11, 12, and 14, 2014. See more at: http://divinity.uchicago.edu/franklin-perkins-lecture-divinity-school

If you experience any technical difficulties with this video or would like to make an accessibility-related request, please send a message to digicomm@uchicago.edu. Part one of "The Problem of Evil and the Relation between Heaven and Human in Classical Chinese Philosophy." Franklin Perkins is Professor of Philosophy at DePaul University and former director of DePaul’s Chinese Studies Program. His main teaching and research interests are in classical Chinese philosophy, early modern European philosophy, and the challenges of doing philosophy in a comparative or intercultural context. Franklin is the author of “Leibniz and China: A Commerce of Light” (2004), “Leibniz: A Guide for the Perplexed” (2007), and “Heaven and Earth are not Humane: The Problem of Evil in Classical Chinese Philosophy” (2014), and was co-editor with Chung-ying Cheng of “Chinese Philosophy in Early Excavated Bamboo Texts” (Journal of Chinese Philosophy Supplement 2010). His books have been translated into Portuguese and Chinese, and he has been a visiting scholar at Peking University, Chinese University of Hong Kong, and the Leibniz Archives in Hannover (Germany). He is currently Visiting Professor in Philosophy at Nanyang Technological University (Singapore). Professor Perkins lectured on November 11, 12, and 14, 2014. See more at: http://divinity.uchicago.edu/franklin-perkins-lecture-divinity-school

If you experience any technical difficulties with this video or would like to make an accessibility-related request, please send a message to digicomm@uchicago.edu. Part one of "The Problem of Evil and the Relation between Heaven and Human in Classical Chinese Philosophy." Franklin Perkins is Professor of Philosophy at DePaul University and former director of DePaul’s Chinese Studies Program. His main teaching and research interests are in classical Chinese philosophy, early modern European philosophy, and the challenges of doing philosophy in a comparative or intercultural context. Franklin is the author of “Leibniz and China: A Commerce of Light” (2004), “Leibniz: A Guide for the Perplexed” (2007), and “Heaven and Earth are not Humane: The Problem of Evil in Classical Chinese Philosophy” (2014), and was co-editor with Chung-ying Cheng of “Chinese Philosophy in Early Excavated Bamboo Texts” (Journal of Chinese Philosophy Supplement 2010). His books have been translated into Portuguese and Chinese, and he has been a visiting scholar at Peking University, Chinese University of Hong Kong, and the Leibniz Archives in Hannover (Germany). He is currently Visiting Professor in Philosophy at Nanyang Technological University (Singapore). Professor Perkins lectured on November 11, 12, and 14, 2014. See more at: http://divinity.uchicago.edu/franklin-perkins-lecture-divinity-school