Guanzi: Political, Economic, and Philosophical Essays from Early China

by W. Allyn Rickett

Named for the famous Chinese minister of state, Guan Zhong (d. 645 B.C.), the Guanzi is one of the largest collections of ancient Chinese writings still in existence. With this volume, W. Allyn Rickett completes the first full translation of the Guanzi into English. This represents a truly monumental effort, as the Guanzi is a long and notoriously difficult work. It was compiled in its present form about 26 B.C. by the Han dynasty scholar Liu Xiang and the surviving text consists of some seventy-six anonymous essays dating from the fifth century B.C. to the first century B.C.



The forty-two chapters contained in this volume include several which present Daoist theories concerning self-cultivation and the relationship between the body and mind as well as the development of Huang-Lao political and economic thought. The Dizi zhi chapter provides one of the oldest discussions of education in China. The Shui di chapter refers to the circulation of blood some two thousand years before the discoveries of William Harvey in the West. Other chapters deal with various aspects of statecraft, Yin-Yang and Five Phases thought, folk beliefs, seasonal calendars, and farming. Perhaps the best-known chapters are those that deal with various methods of controlling and stimulating the economy. They constitute one of the world's earliest presentations of a quantity theory of money. Throughout the text, Rickett provides extensive notes. He also supplies an introduction to the volume and a comprehensive index.

Genres: China, Philosophy, Politics

592 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 1985

Reviews

[Neil · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a two volume English translation of the massive collection of philosophical essays said to be written by Guan Zhong, the 7th century priminister of Duke Huan of Qi.
After reading Harold D Roth's Inward Training, I became fascinated by his theories about the four Daoist meditation texts embedded in the Guanzi. I decided to find myself a copy of this book but couldn't find a copy for sale anywhere, so I ended up getting a copy of the four volume Chinese press edition. Years later, while browsing the shelves of a secondhand bookshop in York, I found a copy of this edition. After emptying the entire contents of my wallet, I took it home and started reading. I found a much better translation and more informative introductions to the texts than was contained in the four volume edition. For anyone interested in the Guanzi, I would take time to find a copy of this edition and leave the four volume set alone.

[Yongjun Dai · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book, good translation, deserves a carefull reading!