Religious and Philosophical Traditions of Korea by Kevin N. Cawley (review)

Abstract

This volume is a comprehensive intellectual guide to the religio-philosophical landscape of Korean history in the context of East Asian cultural transmission. The six chapters of this text for courses on the history of Korean religion, philosophy, or culture demonstrate the transformation and glocalization of both transnational and local religions, such as Buddhism, Confucianism, Daoism, Catholicism, Protestantism, Shamanism, and native new religious movements. What are the religious traditions of East Asia? How did they interact with Korean intellectual traditions? What geopolitical affect did these regional philosophical movements have on Korean kingdoms and dynasties? How were Korean religions unique? What were the identities of Korea’s ‘‘new religions’’ and how did they emerge in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries? The Irish scholar Kevin Cawley explores the cultural and political roles of various religions as the key ideology of given eras of Korean history, from the Three Kingdoms to contemporary times. The author argues not only that Korea’s religious and philosophical traditions will continue to shape its future, but also that perceiving the combination of those traditions is a way of understanding ‘‘how Koreans think, live, and practice religions, which in the Korean context is inseparable from a long philosophical tradition’’ (xvi). First, in terms of definition, the author regards religion and philosophy as ‘‘pathways’’ towards self-transformation in a Korean/East Asian context. He warns that insofar as its etymological meaning, the Western word ‘‘religion’’ should not to be applied to East Asia. Rather, it is argued, the ideological traditions of Korea should be understood as cultural ideas (the ‘‘three teachings’’ in the form of Buddhism, Confucianism, and Daoism) from ancient China,