Description
Book SynopsisThis book explores the Confucian-Christian dialogue in Korea through a comparative study of the cosmologies of Alfred North Whitehead (1861-1947), the founder of process philosophy, and Yi Yulgok (1536-1584), the great scholar of Korean Neo-Confucianism. Although their philosophical traditions are different, Yulgok and Whitehead''s perspectives on the universe were very similar. This study argues that Whitehead''s theory of eternal object-actual entity has affinities with Yulgok''s theory of principle-material force. Their two theories, both based on reciprocal dialectical interrelationships, view the world as a cosmos characterized by the process of becoming. Accordingly, Whitehead''s panentheistic interpretation of the God-world relationship correlates with Yulgok''s Neo-Confucian notion of how the Great Ultimate relates to material force. These two concepts suggest a balanced structure of God and the world and offer insights into encouraging interreligious spirituality in Korea.
Trade ReviewDivided into five chapters, this splendid study pairs Whitehead's cosmology...with the theory of principle-material force credited to Y. Yulgok, the leading proponent of Korean Neo-Confucianism....Nicely structured, well-written, and timely, this is a book that should help explain the appeal and application of Whiteheadian process philosophy in non-Western contexts. * Religious Studies Review, September 2008 *
Table of Contents1 Acknowledgments 2 Introduction 3 The Process Cosmology of Alfred North Whitehead 4 The Neo-Confucian Cosmology of Yi Yulgok 5 A Comparison of Whitehead and Yulgok on Cosmology 6 A Process Cosmological Application to Interreligious Spirituality in the Context of Korea 7 Conclusion 8 Notes 9 Glossary of Korean, Chinese, and Terms 10 Bibliography 11 Index
