Daoism: A Short Introduction [Paperback]

James Miller (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 30, 2003 | ISBN-10: 1851683151 | ISBN-13: 978-1851683154

Emphasizing the role of Daoism as a living tradition not only in China but also in the West, this is a definitive introduction to an increasingly popular spiritual path.

Editorial Reviews

Review

In this short volume, the author gives his readers not the last word on Daoism but invaluable handles "to develop your own understanding" of this rich and complex tradition -- China Review International

About the Author

James Miller is Assisant Professor of East Asian Traditions at Queen's University, Kingston, Canada. He is the co-editor of Daosim and Ecology (Harvard Univeristy Press), and has studied and worked extensively in the Far East.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Oneworld (April 30, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1851683151
• ISBN-13: 978-1851683154
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.7 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,211,076 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I was born in England in 1968, and completed a B.A. (Hons.) in Chinese Studies at Durham University, with a distinction in oral Chinese. As part of my language studies, I spent a year at the People's University of China, in Bejing, and a summer on a scholarship at the Mandarin Training Center at Taiwan Normal University in Taipei. After my BA, I spent three years at Cambridge University studying theology and religious studies at the Faculty of Divinity. After graduating with an MA, I came to Boston, where I embarked upon a Ph.D. in the Division of Religious and Theological Studies at Boston University. I studied with Livia Kohn, one of the West's leading experts on Daoism (aka Taoism), the organized indigenous religion of China, and also John Berthrong, Robert Neville and Tu Weiming (at Harvard), who are three of the great scholars of Confucian philosophy working in North America today.

Since graduating with my Ph.D. in 2000 I have been living in Toronto. Currently I'm an associate professor of religious studies at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Queen's is one of the top-ranked research universities in Canada, and consistently attracts the very brightest undergraduate and graduate students. While I was an assistant professor, I spent four years directing our MA program in religion and modernity, where students research the impact of modernity on religions across the world. As part of their coursework they have the option of taking a graduate seminar that I teach on religion, nature and technology. In 2007-2008 I spent a sabbatical year as a visiting research professor in the School of Social Development and Public Policy at Fudan University in Shanghai, China. I also maintain the largest academic website on Daoist Studies, with over 1,000 subscribers and over 10,000 pages of information. You can find this at www.daoiststudies.org

My research has focussed mainly on traditional Chinese views of nature and environment, and I've published four books on this topic. For now, my research is focussed on the contemporary period. In particular I'm interested in two related questions: How have the process of modernization and the ideology of modernity transformed Chinese cultural views of both nature and religion? How are Chinese religions changing as a result of climate change and the widespread sense of a global ecological crisis?

As my research and thinking develops, I'm writing about these issues on my blog and commenting in the mainstream media, as well as publishing in traditional academic venues. You can find a complete list of my publications at my personal website http://www.jamesmiller.ca.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Miller Points the "Way", June 9, 2003

By 

Anna "avid reader" (Cambridge, MA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Daoism: A Short Introduction (Paperback)

In the last 20 years, there has been a huge awakening in the west of what is perceived to be Taoism. Bits of tai chi, acupuncture, ying and yang and lives in the balance are part of popular parlance, but few Westerners actually know from whence these concepts arise. They arise from China's only native religion, Taoism (or Daoism). The mystical aspects of the religion are interesting and worth delving into, but due to cultural differences, many people fail to understand the nature of the religion. James Miller has now written an excellent introductory guide to Daoism, pointing out the cultural aspects as opposed to the historical one (although with a five page historical summary to help with context) and synthesizing complex concepts into thought provoking chapters. As LaoTze said "the Dao can be spoken of but it is not the constant Dao", but Miller speaks as well as can be spoken. This book will set you on the Way.