This book documents the richness and diversity of Japanese philosophy as it has developed throughout history. Writings of more than a hundred philosophical thinkers from all eras and schools of thought have been translated, many of them available in English for the first time. The book has been set out to represent the entire Japanese philosophical tradition—not only the broad spectrum of academic philosophy dating from the introduction of Western philosophy in the latter part of the nineteenth century, but also the philosophical ideas of major Japanese traditions of Buddhism, Confucianism, an ... More

This book documents the richness and diversity of Japanese philosophy as it has developed throughout history. Writings of more than a hundred philosophical thinkers from all eras and schools of thought have been translated, many of them available in English for the first time. The book has been set out to represent the entire Japanese philosophical tradition—not only the broad spectrum of academic philosophy dating from the introduction of Western philosophy in the latter part of the nineteenth century, but also the philosophical ideas of major Japanese traditions of Buddhism, Confucianism, and Shinto. The philosophical significance of each tradition is laid out in an extensive overview, and each selection is accompanied by helpful information on placing the work in its proper context. The bulk of the supporting material is given to original interpretive essays on topics not explicitly covered in other chapters: cultural identity, samurai thought, women philosophers, aesthetics, bioethics. An introductory chapter provides a historical overview of Japanese philosophy and a discussion of the Japanese debate over defining the idea of philosophy.