Overview

This book examines the paradoxical structure of Yijing known as the Book of Changes—a structure that promotes in a non-hierarchical way the harmony and transformation of opposites. Because the non-hierarchical model is not limited to the East Asian tradition, it will be considered in relation to ideas developed in the West, including Carl Jung's archetypal psychology, Georg Cantor's Diagonal Theorem, Rene Girard's mimetic desire, and Alfred North Whitehead's process thought. By critically reviewing the numerical and symbolic structures of Yijing, the author introduces Kim Ilbu's Jeongyeok (The Book of Right Changes) and demonstrates that he intensifies the correlation between opposites to overcome any hierarchical system implied by the Yijing. Both the Yijing and the Jeongyeok are textual sources for kindling a discussion about the Divine conceived in Eastern and Western philosophical-theological traditions quite differently. While the non-theistic aspects of the Ultimate feature prominently in Yijing, Jeongyeok extends them to a theistic issue by bringing the notion of Sangjae, the Supreme Lord, which can lead to a fruitful dialogue for understanding the dipolar characteristics of the divine reality—personal and impersonal. The author considers their contrast that has divided Eastern and Western religious belief systems, to be transformational and open to a wider perspective of the divine conception in the process of change.

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9781498573924

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Reviews

This book is an important contribution to the study of Yijing by bringing a new Korean perspective from Kim Ilbu's Jeongyeok, a significant book to 'correct' or 'revise' the traditional Yijing to make the Yijing's structure 'non-hierarchical.' I highly recommend this book for both non specialists and specialists who want study Yijing or East Asian thought in general.--Young-Chan Ro, George Mason University

Author Information

Young Woon Ko is professor of religious studies at Lorain County Community College in Elyria, Ohio.

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