NEO-CONFUCIANISM IN MEDIEVAL EAST ASIA: A STUDY OF ITS PRESENCE IN JAPAN

Nguyễn Việt Phương, Dương Xuân Ngọc Hà, Đặng Bùi Anh Đào

Tóm tắt

Abstract: Neo-Confucianism, as an important developmental form of Confucianism, emerged in the late Tang dynasty and reached its peak during the Song-Ming period, marking a profound transformation in the thinking of the Confucian scholar class. Shifting from a primary focus on purely moral issues, Neo-Confucianism evolved into a coherent philosophical system that integrated metaphysical elements. In the context of expanded diplomatic and cultural exchanges among East Asian countries during the medieval period, Neo-Confucianism not only maintained its role as a distinctive intellectual tradition of China but was also disseminated, adopted, localized, and diversely developed in other countries in the region. From an East Asian perspective, this article focuses on the presence of Neo-Confucianism in Japan to shed light on the unity within the diversity of this intellectual movement. This study demonstrates that the process of reception and localization of Neo-Confucianism in Japan not only provides concrete evidence of its enduring vitality as a shared embodiment of East Asian civilization, but also contributes an essential piece to the cultural mosaic of the region from a philosophical standpoint.

Keywords: Neo-Confucianism, Metaphysics, Confucianism-Shinto, East Asian Civilization.