The Body, Self-Cultivation, and Ki-Energy (SUNY series, The Body in Culture, History, and Religion)

This book is an inquiry into ki-energy, its role within Eastern mind-body theory, and its implications for our contemporary Western understanding of the body. Yuasa examines the concept of ki-energy as it has been used in such areas as acupuncture, Buddhist and Taoist meditation, and the martial arts. To explain the achievement of mind-body oneness in these traditions he offers an innovative schematization of the lived body. His approach is interdisciplinary and cross-cultural, offering insights into Western philosophy, religion, medical science, depth psychology, parapsychology, theater, and physical education. To substantiate the relationship that ki-energy forms between the human body and its environment, Yuasa introduces contemporary scientific research on ki-energy in China and Japan, as well as evidence from acupuncture medicine and from the experience of meditators and martial arts practitioners. This evidence requires not only a rethinking of the living human body and of the mind-body and mind-matter relation, but also calls into question the adequacy of the existing scientific paradigm. Yuasa calls for an epistemological critique of modern science and explores the issue of the relation of teleology to science. "Among Japan's contemporary philosophers, Yuasa is one of the most provocative and far-reaching. His work critiques in a fruitful way the foundational ideas in Asian and Western philosophy, science, medicine, and the study of religion. He not only shows how ideas are culturally embedded, but also suggests how we can work across those cultural lines to make our theories more universal and more efficacious. Of his works available in English, this is not only his latest, but perhaps his most accessible." —Thomas P. Kasulis, The Ohio State University YUASA Yasuo is Professor of Japanology and Director of International Studies at Obirin University in Japan. He is the author of many books in Japanese, and the translation of his The Body: Toward an Eastern Mind-Body Theory is also published by SUNY Press. The Body, Self-Cultivation, and Ki-Energy CONTENTS Translator’s Introduction Author’s Preface to the English Version PART I: EASTERN MIND-BODY THEORY AND THE CONTEMPORARY PERIOD Chapter 1 Eastern Mind-Body Theory I. Introduction II. The Eastern Tradition of Self-Cultivation and Western Mind-Body Dualism III. Meditation in Stillness and in Motion IV. Meditation and Psychotherapy V. Meditation and Mind-Body Oneness VI. Self-Cultivation and Artistry VII. Characteristics of the Japanese Martial Arts Chapter 2 Beyond the Contemporary Period I. From Disjunctive Mind-Body Dualism to Correlative Mind-Body Dualism II. Three Information Systems in the Body III. Conditioned Reflex and Control of the Autonomic Nerves IV. A Methodological Reflection PART II: KI AND THE BODY: MARTIAL ARTS, MEDITATION METHODS, AND EASTERN MEDICINE Chapter 3 Ki and the Body in the Martial Arts and Meditation Methods I. Introduction II. Unifying Mind and Ki-Energy III. Meditation Training Transforms Ki IV. The Transformation of Ki V. Aspects of Inner Image Experiences Accompanying the Transformation of Ki VI. The Meaning of Knowledge in Eastern Thought: An Intermediary Methodological Investigation Chapter 4 Ki and the Body in Eastern Medicine I. Introduction II. Fundamental Characteristics of Eastern Medicine’s Theory of the Body III. The Relationship Between Ki and Emotion in the Meridians IV. The Unconscious Quasi-Body’s Function Directed Toward the External World V. Memory and the Lived Body PART III: THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF THE SCIENCE OF KI Chapter 5 The Science of Ki and Its View of Human Being I. Introduction II. Ki-Energy and Its Relation to the External World III. Transpersonal Synchronization of Ki and the Problem of Teleology Chapter 6 Ki and the Problem of Paranormal Phenomena I. Introduction IT. Problematics of the Dispute II. An Assessment of Parapsychology IV. The Need for an Epistemological Critique of Modern Science V. Beyond Causality Chapter 7 Toward an East-West Dialogue I. Teleology and Science IT. Objectivistic Science and Subjectivistic Science III. Concluding Remarks: Mind, Life, and Matter Postscript Notes Glossary Index An inquiry into ki-energy, its role within Eastern mind-body theory, and its implications for our contemporary Western understanding of the body.This book is an inquiry into ki-energy, its role within Eastern mind-body theory, and its implications for our contemporary Western understanding of the body. Yuasa examines the concept of ki-energy as it has been used in such areas as acupuncture, Buddhist and Taoist meditation, and the martial arts. To explain the achievement of mind-body oneness in these traditions he offers an innovative schematization of the lived body. His approach is interdisciplinary and cross-cultural, offering insights into Western philosophy, religion, medical science, depth psychology, parapsychology, theater, and physical education.To substantiate the relationship that ki-energy forms between the human body and its environment, Yuasa introduces contemporary scientific research on ki-energy in China and Japan, as well as evidence from acupuncture medicine and from the experience of meditators and martial arts practitioners. This evidence requires not only a rethinking of the living human body and of the mind-body and mind-matter relation, but also calls into question the adequacy of the existing scientific paradigm. Yuasa calls for an epistemological critique of modern science and explores the issue of the relation of teleology to science.Yuasa Yasuo is Professor of Japanology and Director of International Studies at Obirin University in Japan. He is the author of many books in Japanese, and the translation of his The Body: Toward an Eastern Mind-Body Theory is also published by SUNY Press. Eastern Mind Body Theory -- Beyond The Contemporary Period -- Ki And The Body In The Martial Arts And Meditation Methods -- Ki And The Body In Eastern Medicine -- The Science Of Ki And Its View Of Human Being -- Ki And The Problem Of Paranormal Phenomena -- Toward An East-west Dialogue. Yuasa Yasuo ; Translated By Shigenori Nagatomo And Monte S. Hull. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 193-213) And Index.