This century has seen a great number of sinologists, philosophers, anthropologists and sociologists taking part in Confucian Studies, and Confucian Studies has become a distinctive discipline and an important area of religious studies. In China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Korea and Japan, which used to be under the influence of Confucianism, it has lost its dominant position. The role Confucianism now plays in these countries varies, but it continues as an important aspect of philosophy, religion, politics, ethics and cultural studies. This volume is the first of its kind, and introduces Confucianism as a whole, with full information on its history, doctrines, schools, rituals, sacred places and terminology, and on the adaptation, transformation and new thinking taking place in China and other Eastern Asian countries. It also summarises and critically examines what has been achieved both in the west and in the east, and is an indispensable source for further study and research for students and scholars. Gary Arbuckle; James A. Anderson, University of North Carolina, USA; Mark Asselin, University of Colorado, USA; Nguyen The Anh, Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, France; Roger T. Ames, University of H