To Become a God: Cosmology, Sacrifice, and Self-Divinization in Early China (Harvard-Yenching Institute Monograph Series)

Evidence from Shang oracle bones to memorials submitted to Western Han emperors attests to a long-lasting debate in early China over the proper relationship between humans and gods. One pole of the debate saw the human and divine realms as separate and agonistic and encouraged divination to determine the will of the gods and sacrifices to appease and influence them. The opposite pole saw the two realms as related and claimed that humans could achieve divinity and thus control the cosmos. This wide-ranging book reconstructs this debate and places within their contemporary contexts the rival claims concerning the nature of the cosmos and the spirits, the proper demarcation between the human and the divine realms, and the types of power that humans and spirits can exercise. It is often claimed that the worldview of early China was unproblematically monistic and that hence China had avoided the tensions between gods and humans found in the West. By treating the issues of cosmology, sacrifice, and self-divinization in a historical and comparative framework that attends to the contemporary significance of specific arguments, Michael J. Puett shows that the basic cosmological assumptions of ancient China were the subject of far more debate than is generally thought. (20040901) _c00......Page 1 _c01......Page 2 _c02......Page 3 _c03......Page 4 _c04......Page 5 _c05......Page 6 000-001......Page 7 002-003......Page 8 004-005......Page 9 006-007......Page 10 008-009......Page 11 010-011......Page 12 012-013......Page 13 014-015......Page 14 016-017......Page 15 018-019......Page 16 020-021......Page 17 022-023......Page 18 024-025......Page 19 026-027......Page 20 028-029......Page 21 030-031......Page 22 032-033......Page 23 034-035......Page 24 036-037......Page 25 038-039......Page 26 040-041......Page 27 042-043......Page 28 044-045......Page 29 046-047......Page 30 048-049......Page 31 050-051......Page 32 052-053......Page 33 054-055......Page 34 056-057......Page 35 058-059......Page 36 060-061......Page 37 062-063......Page 38 064-065......Page 39 066-067......Page 40 068-069......Page 41 070-071......Page 42 072-073......Page 43 074-075......Page 44 076-077......Page 45 078-079......Page 46 080-081......Page 47 082-083......Page 48 084-085......Page 49 086-087......Page 50 088-089......Page 51 090-091......Page 52 092-093......Page 53 094-095......Page 54 096-097......Page 55 098-099......Page 56 100-101......Page 57 102-103......Page 58 104-105......Page 59 106-107......Page 60 108-109......Page 61 110-111......Page 62 112-113......Page 63 114-115......Page 64 116-117......Page 65 118-119......Page 66 120-121......Page 67 122-123......Page 68 124-125......Page 69 126-127......Page 70 128-129......Page 71 130-131......Page 72 132-133......Page 73 134-135......Page 74 136-137......Page 75 138-139......Page 76 140-141......Page 77 142-143......Page 78 144-145......Page 79 146-147......Page 80 148-149......Page 81 150-151......Page 82 152-153......Page 83 154-155......Page 84 156-157......Page 85 158-159......Page 86 160-161......Page 87 162-163......Page 88 164-165......Page 89 166-167......Page 90 168-169......Page 91 170-171......Page 92 172-173......Page 93 174-175......Page 94 176-177......Page 95 178-179......Page 96 180-181......Page 97 182-183......Page 98 184-185......Page 99 186-187......Page 100 188-189......Page 101 190-191......Page 102 192-193......Page 103 194-195......Page 104 196-197......Page 105 198-199......Page 106 200-201......Page 107 202-203......Page 108 204-205......Page 109 206-207......Page 110 208-209......Page 111 210-211......Page 112 212-213......Page 113 214-215......Page 114 216-217......Page 115 218-219......Page 116 220-221......Page 117 222-223......Page 118 224-225......Page 119 226-227......Page 120 228-229......Page 121 230-231......Page 122 232-233......Page 123 234-235......Page 124 236-237......Page 125 238-239......Page 126 240-241......Page 127 242-243......Page 128 244-245......Page 129 246-247......Page 130 248-249......Page 131 250-251......Page 132 252-253......Page 133 254-255......Page 134 256-257......Page 135 258-259......Page 136 260-261......Page 137 262-263......Page 138 264-265......Page 139 266-267......Page 140 268-269......Page 141 270-271......Page 142 272-273......Page 143 274-275......Page 144 276-277......Page 145 278-279......Page 146 280-281......Page 147 282-283......Page 148 284-285......Page 149 286-287......Page 150 288-289......Page 151 290-291......Page 152 292-293......Page 153 294-295......Page 154 296-297......Page 155 298-299......Page 156 300-301......Page 157 302-303......Page 158 304-305......Page 159 306-307......Page 160 308-309......Page 161 310-311......Page 162 312-313......Page 163 314-315......Page 164 316-317......Page 165 318-319......Page 166 320-321......Page 167 322-323......Page 168 326-327......Page 169 328-329......Page 170 330-331......Page 171 332-333......Page 172 334-335......Page 173 336-337......Page 174 338-339......Page 175 340-341......Page 176 342-343......Page 177 344-345......Page 178 346-347......Page 179 348-349......Page 180 350-351......Page 181 352-353......Page 182 354-355......Page 183 356-357......Page 184 358-359......Page 185 360-361......Page 186

evidence From Shang Oracle Bones To Memorials Submitted To Western Han Emperors Attests To A Long-lasting Debate In Early China Over The Proper Relationship Between Humans And Gods. One Pole Of The Debate Saw The Human And Divine Realms As Separate And Agonistic And Encouraged Divination To Determine The Will Of The Gods And Sacrifices To Appease And Influence Them. The Opposite Pole Saw The Two Realms As Related And Claimed That Humans Could Achieve Divinity And Thus Control The Cosmos. This Wide-ranging Book Reconstructs This Debate And Places Within Their Contemporary Contexts The Rival Claims Concerning The Nature Of The Cosmos And The Spirits, The Proper Demarcation Between The Human And The Divine Realms, And The Types Of Power That Humans And Spirits Can Exercise. It Is Often Claimed That The Worldview Of Early China Was Unproblematically Monistic And That Hence China Had Avoided The Tensions Between Gods And Humans Found In The West. By Treating The Issues Of Cosmology, Sacrifice, And Self-divinization In A Historical And Comparative Framework That Attends To The Contemporary Significance Of Specific Arguments, Michael J. Puett Shows That The Basic Cosmological Assumptions Of Ancient China Were The Subject Of Far More Debate Than Is Generally Thought.

chinese Historical Review

in Explicating The Unfolding Notions Of Spirit And Cosmos In Ancient China, Puett Engages Extensively With The Greatest Authorities In The Field...to This Ambitious tour De Force Through The World Of Thought In Ancient China, Puett Adds The Comparative Perspective Of Anthropologists Such As Claude Levi-strauss And Marshall Sahlins, And Such Diverse Others As Mircea Eliade And Max Weber. Puett Thus Puts China Solidly In A Global Comparative Context.