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Rulin zongpai 儒林宗派

Aug 6, 2019 © Ulrich Theobald

Rulin zongpai 儒林宗派 "An intellectual genealogy of Confucians" is a biographical source on the history of Confucianism written by the Qing-period 清 (1644-1911) philosopher Wan Sitong 萬斯同 (1638-1702).

The book of 16 juan is arranged chronologically and groups Confucian thinkers according to their relation to teachers and schools. The book looks like a list rather than a history because it only notes the names, disciples and writings of thinkers, but no concrete issues of their teachings. Individual thinkers who cannot be linked with a certain school are found in an appendix. Wang's intention when writing this book was to appease the strife between "traditional" Confucians and Neo-Confucians that had lasted for centuries. At the end of the Ming period the difference between their teachings ceased to be of intellectual importance. With his book Wan Sitong contributed to the end of their quarrels.

The book is found in the series Siku quanshu 四庫全書 and Siming congshu 四明叢書.

Source:
Li Xueqin 李學勤, Lü Wenyu 呂文鬰, eds. (1996). Siku da cidian 四庫大辭典 (Changchun: Jilin daxue chubanshe), Vol. 1, 975.