Timing and Rulership in Master Lü's Spring and Autumn Annals (Lüshi chunqiu)

Download or read book Timing and Rulership in Master Lü's Spring and Autumn Annals (Lüshi chunqiu) written by James D. Sellmann and published by State University of New York Press. This book was released on 2012-02-01 with total page 278 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Master Lü's Spring and Autumn Annals (Lüshi chunqiu) inspired the king who united the warring states to become China's first emperor. In this work on the Lüshi chunqiu, author James D. Sellmann finds that the concept of "proper timing" makes the work's diverse philosophies coherent. He discusses the life and times of its author, Lü Buwei, and the structure of the work. Sellmann also analyzes the role of human nature, the justification of the state, and the significance of cosmic, historical, and personal timing in the Lüshi chunqiu. An organic instrumentalist position begins to emerge from the diverse theories of the Lüshi chunqiu. In conclusion, Sellmann looks at the implications of the syncretic philosophies of the Lüshi chunqiu for contemporary conceptions of time, human nature, political order, and social and environmental ethics.