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The Axial Age Karl Jaspers (1883 - 1969)

The Axial Age Karl Jaspers (1883 - 1969).

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The Axial Age Karl Jaspers (1883 - 1969)

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  1. The Axial Age Karl Jaspers (1883 - 1969) • German philosopher Karl Jaspers coined the term the axial age to describe the period from 800 BC to 200 BC, during which, according to Jaspers, similar revolutionary thinking appeared in China, India and the Occident. The period is also sometimes referred to as the axis age.

  2. was a German psychiatrist and philosopher who had a strong influence on modern theology, psychiatry and philosophy. After being trained in and practicing psychiatry, Jaspers turned to philosophical inquiry and attempted to discover an innovative philosophical system. Karl Theodor Jaspers (February 23, 1883 – February 26, 1969)

  3. A Striking Parallel • Jaspers, in his Vom Ursprung und Ziel der Geschichte (The Origin and Goal of History 1953), identified a number of key axial age thinkers as having had a profound influence on future philosophy and religion, and identified characteristics common to each area from which those thinkers emerged. Jaspers saw in these developments in religion and philosophy a striking parallel without any obvious direct transmission of ideas from one region to the other, having found no recorded proof of any extensive intercommunication between Ancient Greece, the Middle East, India, and China. Jaspers held up this age as unique, and one to which the rest of the history of human thought might be compared.

  4. Hundred Schools of Thought 諸子百家 zhūzǐ bǎijiā • The term that literally means "all philosophers, hundred schools“ refers to philosophers and schools that flourished from 770 to 221 B.C.E., an era of great cultural and intellectual expansion. It is also known as the Golden Age of Chinese philosophy because a broad range of thoughts and ideas were developed and discussed freely. This phenomenon has been called the Contention of a Hundred Schools of Thought (百家爭鳴bǎijiā zhēngmíng). Professor David R. Knechtges prefers a different term: Masters instead of philosophers. • The word “hundred” seems exaggerated. Nevertheless, it is the golden age in Chinese intellectual history. However, since the Han synthesis, Confucianism has gained its dominant position.

  5. Jixia Academy: Athens in China in the State of Qi • The Jixia Academy or Academy of the Gate of Qi/Chi--稷下学宫 was the most famous scholarly academy of early China. It was founded around 318 BC in the city of Linzi 临淄, capital of the state of Qi (modern Shandong province), and Jixia was a gate in the city wall. At the time, Linzi was one of the largest, most prosperous cities in the world. For the first time on record a state began to act as a patron of scholarship out of the apparent conviction that this was a proper function of the state or a means of increasing its prestige. Scholars came from great distances to lodge in the academy, with the most important scholar holding the rank of Great Prefect.

  6. The most democratic PeriodThe Hundred- School EraThe School of Athens • Democracy in ancient Greece did not last very long. The death of Socrates marked the end of this era; • In ancient China, the hundred schools of thought ended with the Qin Unification, and consolidated in the Han Dynasty.

  7. 1. 尚书【shàngshū】Classic of History "Classic of History", "Classic of Documents", "Book of History", "Book of Documents". 2. 春秋【chūnqiū】 the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 B.C.); The Spring and Autumn Annals; annals; history-- is the official chronicle of the State of Lu covering the period from 722 BCE to 481 BCE. 3. 战国策【Zhànguó Cè】Intrigues/Strategies of the Warring States 4. 左传 Zuo Zhuan--the Commentary of Zuo, 389 BC Zi , ancient title of respect for learned or virtuous man, masters. Confucianism: The Analects (put together by his students); Mencius by Mengzi and Xunzi; Daoism: Dao De Jing and Zhuanzi/Liezi Legalism: Shang Yang, Li Si, and Han Fei Mohism by Mozi Philosophical Military Treatise: The Art of War by Sunzi Pre-Qin (221 BC) Prose WritingHistorical Prose & Philosophical Prosehttp://ctext.org/

  8. Three-Way Thought in ChinaEbrey: Chapter 2/Worksheet 2 • Confucianism (Confucius, Mencius and Xunzi): the core virtues/five-fold relationships/rule by rites and Benevolence; • Legalism (Xunzi/Shang Yang/Li Si/Han Feizi): rule by law (two handles: rewards and punishments; its premise being that human nature is evil; • Taoism/Daoism (Laozi/Zhuangzi): rule by the natural way;

  9. The Warring States Period403 BCE to 256 BCEPartition of the Jin State (403 BC)

  10. Son of Heaven = Emperor duke, in charge of a state marquis; a nobleman or high official; Ministers http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/marquis?s=t If an emperor couldn’t go to Mt. Tai, he had to build a temple; The Temple of Heaven in Beijing serves such a function; Only a son of heaven can own nine ding, sacred cauldrons, symbolic of status; At court, only a son of heaven can order 64 dancing girls, 8 per row/per line; Who are qualified to go to Mt. Tai to perform feng and shan sacrificial ceremonies? Political Hierarchy Defined by Rites/Rituals of the Zhou Dynasty

  11. Duke of You’s (晋幽公)r. (for reign) 433 to 416 BC • Three ministers or houses, Zhao, Han and Wei started to divide some territory. • In 416, Marquis Wen of Wei魏文侯 killed Duke of You.

  12. Wei became rich by controlling salt. (capital of salt industry, 盐池). Along with its salt business, Wei established a strong army. A well-learned man Marquis Wen of Wei 魏文侯 (?～396 BC)

  13. Three Households/MinistersDivided the State of JinDuke Lie of Jin晉烈公 415 BC - 389 BC • In about 401, Zhi Boyao 智伯瑶, a senior minister who became the “Secretary of the State,” demanded more land from other ministers: Wei Zi 魏斯, Zhao Ji 赵籍 and Han Qian 韩虔. Duke of Lie could not control his state at all. Wei and Han bowed to Zhi, but Zhao refused. • “The State of Nature” vs. “The State of License”—depicted by John Locke (1632-1704) in The Second Treatise of the Civil Government, 1690. • Executor: In this pre-government state, everybody can take things into his own hands, functioning as an executor, to protect his life, liberty and property.

  14. Zhi led the mid-army; Wei led the left army; Han led the right army; Three armies surrounded Jin Yang 晋阳 for two years. Zhi used water (River Jin) as soldiers 以水代兵 and had Jin Yang flooded. 搬起石头砸自己的脚: the rock he lad lifted landed on his own feet. To plan to make somebody else miserable but end up getting hurt themselves. Jin Yang was in great danger. Zhao appealed to Wei and Han. When boasting about his strategy on the bank of River Jin, it dawned on Wei and Han that they can use the same trick. Teamed up with Zhao, they let go the water from a branch of River Jin, thus had Zhi’s territory flooded. Zhi 智伯瑶 was killed during the battle. In 403, Wei, Zhao, and Han went to see the king of Zhou, demanding the status of a state. The new status was officially granted. This incident marked the beginning of the Warring States Period. Zhi Attacking ZhaoA Dramatic Turn

  15. Zhao Xiangzi or Zhao Ji convinced Wei and Han that if they don’t stick together, the Zhi family will swallow them one by one sooner or later. 唇亡齿寒 【chúnwángchǐhán】 if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold; if one (of two interdependent things) falls, the other is in danger; share a common lot. What Shifted the Power Structure at a Critical Moment?Power of Rhetoric: Pen vs. Sword

  16. Fragmentation vs. Unification Lessons from Russia China is in chaos. What is the best for China: united or divided? If China were fragmented, what would be its impact on the world? After the First Opium War in 1842, China was divided by invaders from the outside. Partition of China How to maintain order? Contextualize the significance of Confucianism in China Impact of family structure and individual conduct on government/nation Confucius cites The Book of Document, “…Simply by being a good son and friendly to his brothers a man can exert an influence upon government” (The Analects 2.21). Returning of a shopping cart… Potential Danger in the Partition of the Jinhttp://www.globaled.org/chinaproject/confucian/quotes1.html

  17. Seven States competing for Dominance • Qi (齊/齐) • Chu (楚) • Yan (燕) • Han (韓/韩) • Zhao (趙/赵) • Wei (魏) • Qin (秦)

  18. Guiguzi & Shang YangTwo Consequential Figures

  19. End of Zhou (256 BCE)“the State of Nature” • With the royal line broken, the power of the Zhōu court gradually diminished, and the fragmentation of the kingdom accelerated. From King Píng's reign onwards, the Zhōu kings ruled in name only, with true power lying in the hands of regional nobles. Towards the end of the Zhōu Dynasty, the nobles did not even bother to symbolically acknowledge loyalty, declaring themselves to be independent kings. Note there is a shift in title: from dukes to kings. The dynasty ended in 256 BCE when the last king of Zhōu died and none of his sons proclaimed the nominal title of King of China.

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