|
|
The idea of doing an existential reading of the Analects occurred to me from a conversation I had with Professor Vincent Shen while I was a graduate student at the University of Toronto. Professor Shen’s constant encouragement has enabled me to continue my academic pursuits in spite of ordeals; I take this opportunity to thank him. I also wish to thank professors emeriti Dr. Richard Lynn and Dr. Leonard Priestley. Their influence on me as a scholar and a person is more than they could have realized.
I have benefited a great deal from other friends and colleagues. They are too many to mention here, and so I have limited myself to only a few. Professor Kwong-loi Shun read the whole manuscript in its dissertation form. and offered valuable comments. Dr. Yong Huang has read part of the manuscript and offered critical comments; Dr. Kurt Richardson has done the same. My former colleagues at Hope College Dr. Andrew Dellolio and Dr. Boyd Wilson have always been ardent supporters of my pursuit. I must thank Professor Qiping Yin, too, for the opportunity to teach in my native land. Last but not least, I am grateful to the anonymous reviewer who helped greatly improve this work. He or she has my thanks from the bottom of my heart. The staff members of Cambria Press have done the same, all of whom deserve my highest respect and thanks. I will also take this opportunity to thank Dr. Xiaofei Kang. Her initial recommendation turned this book into a reality.
Significant parts of chapter 4 were published previously in the article “Ultimate Reality in Confucianism” in the Religion Compass (3/6 (2009): 951–960). I thank the journal for permission to republish portions of the essay here.
Finally, it is my family to whom I owe the greatest debt. Grace shoulders most of the financial burden and family responsibility so that I can continue my life as a scholar. Cindy and Ivy have to bear absence of their dad when they need him most. And it would be too un-Confucian not to mention my parents and my parents-in-laws. Their love and support have sustained me throughout the years. My father, Shouri Yan, has not lived to see this book published; his untimely death has been a pain to my heart. This book is dedicated to him.