This Is The Way: Chinese Philosophy Podcast

Richard Kim and Justin Tiwald
  • 5.0 (19)
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This Is The Way is a podcast on Chinese philosophy, exploring philosophical themes by reflecting on significant Chinese texts and through interviews with scholars of Chinese thought. We aim to offer discussions that are informative and accessible to a broad audience.Please email us at: ChinesePhilosophyPodcast@gmail.com and follow us on X @ChinesePhilPod

  1. 10月11日

    Episode 26: The White Horse Dialogue: Language, Logic, and Categories in Early China

    According to a speaker in a famous historical dialogue, "A white horse is not a horse." In this episode, we’re joined by Dr. Lisa Indraccolo (Associate Professor, Tallinn University) to unpack one of the most intriguing discourses in early Chinese philosophy—the White Horse Dialogue from the Gongsun Longzi. Together, we explore what this paradoxical statement reveals about language, logic, and categorization in early China, from the connection between words and reality to the ways that set theory, semantics, and metaphysics might be used to help us understand this fascinating text. Lisa Indraccolo's professional website. Many thanks to The Hong Kong Ethics Lab for sponsoring this podcast series. Want to continue the discussion? Need links to some of the sources mentioned? Go to the support page for this episode on Warp, Weft, and Way. We thank Lena Li (LI La 李拉 ) for her expert editing and sound engineering. We also thank the blog Warp, Weft & Way for hosting the discussion for this episode. Co-hosts: Richard Kim's website Justin Tiwald's website

    1 小时 35 分钟

  2. 9月18日

    Episode 25: Daoist Utopia

    In this episode, we delve into Chapter 80 of the Daodejing, one of the most vivid portraits of Daoist social ideals. We unpack its vision of a “simple agrarian utopia,” where people live in small communities, ignore labor-saving tools, and resist the endless chase for more. Along the way, we discuss political minimalism, technological restraint, contentment in daily life, and radical localism, asking what it would mean to be satisfied even while knowing other or "better" possibilities exist. We reflect on our own consumerist culture, and probe whether Daoist utopia is naive, radical, or unexpectedly wise for our time. Many thanks to The Hong Kong Ethics Lab for sponsoring this podcast series. Want to continue the discussion? Need links to some of the sources mentioned? Go to the support page for this episode on Warp, Weft, and Way. We thank Lena Li (LI La 李拉 ) for her expert editing and sound engineering. We also thank the blog Warp, Weft & Way for hosting the discussion for this episode. Want to skip to the philosophical content? 13:15  Preview of today's passage: chapter 80 of the Daodejing 18:03 Part II -- Daoist utopia Co-hosts: Richard Kim's website Justin Tiwald's website

    1 小时 17 分钟

  3. 8月28日

    Episode 24: Robber Zhi—Honor Among Thieves?

    With a big assist from our guest, Stephen C. Walker, we discuss a highly unusual philosophical dialogue in classical Chinese literature, the "Robber Zhi Dialogue" (from the Miscellaneous Chapters of the Zhuangzi). This shocking story shows Confucius attempting to convince the story's anti-hero (Robber Zhi) to give up his vicious ways. By the end of the story, Confucius emerges as the more naive and inauthentic of the two characters, and moral exemplars in general are called into question. Are purveyors of morality also robbers themselves? Stephen C. Walker's research page Many thanks to The Hong Kong Ethics Lab for sponsoring this podcast series. Want to continue the discussion? Need links to some of the sources mentioned? Go to the support page for this episode on Warp, Weft, and Way. We thank Lena Li (LI La 李拉 ) for her expert editing and sound engineering. We also thank the blog Warp, Weft & Way for hosting the discussion for this episode. Co-hosts: Richard Kim's website Justin Tiwald's website

    1 小时 17 分钟

  4. 8月7日

    Episode 23: Confucianism on the Assessment of Character

    In this episode, Justin and Richard discuss how historical Confucian philosophers have proposed to recognize people of good moral character (virtue). How, exactly, did they think that we could tell the real virtues apart from the phony ones? And what did the historical Confucians think about the use of written examination essays to "test" for virtue?  Many thanks to The Hong Kong Ethics Lab for sponsoring this podcast series. Want to continue the discussion? Need links to some of the sources mentioned? Go to the support page for this episode on Warp, Weft, and Way. We thank Lena Li (LI La 李拉 ) for her expert editing and sound engineering. We also thank the blog Warp, Weft & Way for hosting the discussion for this episode. Want to skip to the episode's primary philosophical issue? Go to 8:29 Part II -- Confucianism on character assessment Co-hosts: Richard Kim's website Justin Tiwald's website

    1 小时 7 分钟

  5. 7月18日

    Episode 22: The Good Life in the Analects

    What sort of vision of the good life does Confucius recommend? In this episode, we explore one of the most intriguing passages in the Analects (11.26), where Confucius asks four disciples about their deepest aspirations. Three students offer increasingly modest political goals—from Zilu's grand vision of governing a besieged state to Zihua's humble wish to serve as a minor functionary in ritual ceremonies. But a fourth student, the musical Zengxi, describes something completely different: a spring day spent with friends and younger students, bathing in the Yi River, enjoying the breeze at the Rain Dance Altar, and returning home singing. Confucius's response—a deep sigh and "I am with Zengxi!"—reveals surprising insights about Confucian approaches to happiness and human flourishing. We examine why the Master favors this vision of ritual performed naturally and relationships lived wholeheartedly over more conventional paths to recognition and success. Does this passage suggest that political work misses the point entirely? Or does Zengxi's answer represent a different kind of political vision—one focused on community, joy in ritual, and human relationships as the foundation of social order and good governance? Drawing on historical commentary from the Confucian tradition and contemporary scholarship, we unpack why this passage has captivated readers for centuries and what it reveals about the relationship between personal fulfillment and social harmony. Many thanks to The Hong Kong Ethics Lab for sponsoring this podcast series. Want to continue the discussion? Need links to some of the sources mentioned? Go to the support page for this episode on Warp, Weft, and Way. We thank Lena Li (LI La 李拉 ) for her expert editing and sound engineering. We also thank the blog Warp, Weft & Way for hosting the discussion for this episode. Want to skip to the episode's primary philosophical issue? Go to 7:57 Preview of today's topic, or 10:48 Part II -- The good life in the Analects Co-hosts: Richard Kim's website Justin Tiwald's website

    58 分钟

  6. 6月27日

    Episode 21: Xunzi’s Way—Discovered or Invented?

    This episode is our first on the classical Confucian philosopher Xunzi 荀子 (3rd century BCE), who was famous for arguing that human nature is bad and for casting doubt on the more supernatural or superstitious justifications for traditional Confucian rituals, among many other things. Since this is the first episode on an important philosopher, we spend some time in part I discussing his "big picture" philosophical worldview. In part II, we turn to the following question: does Xunzi think of the Confucian Way as something that sages discover or invent? A little reflection on this question shows that it has major implications for how we think about ethics and its foundations, and how much ethical values depend on human convention. Many thanks to The Hong Kong Ethics Lab for sponsoring this podcast series. Want to continue the discussion? Need links to some of the sources mentioned? Go to the support page for this episode on Warp, Weft, and Way. We thank Lena Li (LI La 李拉 ) for her expert editing and sound engineering. We also thank the blog Warp, Weft & Way for hosting the discussion for this episode. Want to skip to the episode's primary philosophical issue? Go to 15:00 Overview of Xunzi, or 30:23 Part II -- Is Xunzi's Way discovered or invented? Co-hosts: Richard Kim's website Justin Tiwald's website

    1 小时 13 分钟

  7. 6月5日

    Episode 20: Confucianism vs. Buddhism (first "live show")

    One influential justification for becoming Buddhist is to end suffering, starting (it seems) with the Buddhist practitioner's own suffering. Does this indicate that Buddhist practitioners are selfish? After Buddhism became popular in China, many Confucians argued that Buddhism puts personal salvation before ethics, and is thus selfish in that respect. Some Confucians also objected to the particular sort of compassion that Buddhists were supposed to adopt ("unconditioned compassion"), insisting that it was fundamentally incompatible with the special attachments needed for important human relationships between family members and close friends.  In our first show before a live audience, Justin presents two criticisms of Buddhism, Jenny Hung 洪真如 defends Buddhism against the criticisms, and Richard moderates. The show was held at a meeting of the American Philosophical Association, and many wiser scholars in the audience weighed in as well. Join us for the lively (and quite friendly) "debate." Many thanks to The Hong Kong Ethics Lab and the Pacific Division of the American Philosophical Association for sponsoring this podcast series. Thanks also to Dana Jae Audio Collective (especially Casey Hudson and Maüxe Madden) for staging and recording the event, and to Lena Li (LI La 李拉 ) for her editing and mixing. They are consummate professionals. Want to continue the discussion? Need links to some of the sources mentioned? Go to the support page for this episode on Warp, Weft, and Way. Jenny Hung's website Want to skip to episode's primary philosophical issue? Go to - 4:19: preface to today's discussion, or - 5:39: part II Co-hosts: Richard Kim's website Justin Tiwald's website

    1 小时 30 分钟

  8. 4月6日

    Episode 19: Zhu Xi on the Unity of the Virtues

    Today's topic is really about two things. First, it's about the claim that many instantiations of one virtue necessarily come packaged with other virtues. For example, you can't have great humaneness or benevolence in your charitable giving to other people unless you also show a certain amount of ritual respect to them. Second, it's about the view that one virtue in particular -- the virtue of humaneness or good caring (ren 仁) -- is more central or fundamental than the others.  The Neo-Confucian philosopher Zhu Xi (1130-1200) proposes that we can understand both the unity of virtues and the central importance of humaneness (ren) by thinking about the unity of the seasons and the central importance of the spring for the other seasons. We attempt to unpack these ideas (and some of the relevant seasonal associations) as they are presented by one of the Confucian tradition's most subtle and complicated philosophers. Many thanks to The Hong Kong Ethics Lab for sponsoring this podcast series. Want to continue the discussion? Need links to some of the sources mentioned? Go to the support page for this episode on Warp, Weft, and Way. We thank Lena Li (LI La 李拉 ) for her expert editing and sound engineering. We also thank the blog Warp, Weft & Way for hosting the discussion for this episode. Want to skip to the episode's primary philosophical issue? Go to - 15:44: part II Co-hosts: Richard Kim's website Justin Tiwald's website

    1 小时 26 分钟
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This Is The Way is a podcast on Chinese philosophy, exploring philosophical themes by reflecting on significant Chinese texts and through interviews with scholars of Chinese thought. We aim to offer discussions that are informative and accessible to a broad audience.Please email us at: ChinesePhilosophyPodcast@gmail.com and follow us on X @ChinesePhilPod

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