There is so much lost on Kung Fu in Confucianism from the middle Ming dynasty. Facing such situation, Liu Tsung-chou, who was one of the most famous Confucianist in the late Ming dynasty, brought out his own moral philosophy to give a new impetus to the progress of Confucianism....[ Read more ]

There is so much lost on Kung Fu in Confucianism from the middle Ming dynasty. Facing such situation, Liu Tsung-chou, who was one of the most famous Confucianist in the late Ming dynasty, brought out his own moral philosophy to give a new impetus to the progress of Confucianism.

This thesis attempts to introduce and analyze Human Schematic (Jen-p'u), an important work of Liu and to review his philosophical ideas and practice on Kung Fu through the study of Human Schematic. Chapter one gives a brief account of Liu's life and reviews some of his most famous philosophical thoughts. This serves as a theoretical background for the study of Human Schematic. Chapter two analyzes the main points and the structural characteristics of Human Schematic. Chapter three and chapter four focus on Liu's creative two-side (from positive and negative) theories on Kung Fu. One reviews his six-step moral cultivation; the other reviews his study on the fault and evil. Chapter five concentrates on Liu's ideas and methods of reforming faults to the practical extent. The last chapter discusses the achievements of Liu's Human Schematic in terms of broadening the ideas of Confucianism and bringing out a new progress of Confucianism. This chapter also discusses the exiting problems of Human Schematic and brings out the questions.