published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Pennsylvania, 2006. / Adviser: Paul R. Goldin. Includes bibliographical references (p. 167-182) and index.

Filial piety is regarded the most fundamental values of the Chinese culture, and the root of all good virtues. When Buddhism first came to China, it faced the criticisms from Chinese scholars, especially from the Confucianism, the dominant ideology of Chinese society, on ethical grounds. Confucian scholars criticized the life of Buddhist monks, who were required to leave their homes and families, shave their heads, and live in celibacy, was incompatible with the Confucian practice of filial piety. In order to survive in Chinese society, Buddhism had to search for the converging point with the Confucianism. This thesis attempts to explore the importance and practice of filial piety in early Buddhism. It also discusses how Chinese Buddhists responded to the criticisms both in theoretical argumentation and in practice. Finally, it concludes the main content and features of filial piety in Chinese Buddhism. This thesis divides into four chapters. The first chapter discusses the origins of filial piety in Chinese society, from particularly due to the agriculture economy, worship of ancestors, patriarchal clan system, and the development of ideology of filial piety from Confucius. The second chapter mainly illustrates the importance and practice of filial piety in early Buddhism. The third part concentrates on Chinese Buddhists’ respondents on the “unfilial practice” accusations by (i) translations of and references to Buddhist sutras that taught filial behavior; (ii) writing scholarly refutations to defend the “unfilial practices” charges, and (iii) interpreting Buddhist precepts are equivalent of the concept of Confucian filial piety. In practice, they responded by (i) composing apocryphal scriptures, (ii) annual celebration of the Yulanpen (ghost) festival, popularizing stories and parables as by way of painted illustrations, public lectures. The third chapter discuss the main content and features of filial piety in Chinese Buddhism, which are(i)to requite parents and all sentient beings with gratitude and equality; (ii) to differentiate “this worldly filial piety” and “supramundane filial piety”; (iii) to infuse Buddhist precepts and Confucian filial piety together;(iv)to chant the name of Amitābhaḥ Buddha as a way of religious discipline and the practice of filial piety. / published_or_final_version / Chinese Language and Literature / Master / Master of Arts

Thesis (Ph.D.)--California Institute of Integral Studies, 2006. / Adviser: Yi Wu. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.Ed.)--University of Hong Kong, 2000. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 86-87). Also available in print.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Jilin da xue, 1991. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 249-255).

Mass rural-urban migration and population aging are occurring simultaneously at a rapid speed in contemporary China. Tens of millions of rural young laborers have been migrating to urban areas to meet the demand for cheap labor, whereas large numbers of elderly parents (the Chinese baby boomers) are left behind in the impoverished villages. Consequently, adult children are becoming more and more unavailable to fulfill their elder care responsibilities. This study took a systematic look at how the increasing rural-urban migration shaped the elder care practices in rural Chinese families and how rural elders respond and adapt to this social transformation. Using data from a rural household survey conducted by Renming University in 2004 in three in-land migrant-exporting provinces, this study explored three aspects of elder-care dynamics in China: 1. The patterns of financial care for rural elders whose adult children had migrated to urban areas. 2. Rural elders’ perceptions of filial piety at this time of social change. 3. Rural elders’ self-evaluation of life satisfaction at this historical period of time. The theoretical model of Political Economy of Aging (PEA) and criticism of classic modernization theory were used to guide the generation of hypotheses and analyses of statistical data. Findings from this study revealed that financial care by migrated children was mainly based on an exchange-based model; rural elders who took care of grandchildren received more financial support. With the continued provision of financial care and emotional care, rural elders continued to hold relatively positive evaluation of their migrated children’s filial piety, even though physical care was absent. Thus, the author argued that within the context of rural-urban migration, filial piety was not undergoing decline or erosion; rather, its meanings and significance have been broadened by their elderly parents to adapt to dramatic social changes currently underway in China. Finally this study found that the exchange-based pattern of financial care and the continuation of filial piety had a positive impact on rural elders’ life satisfaction. This study contributes to the knowledge body of elder care in China and provides insightful policy suggestions for the Chinese government.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Windsor, 1995. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://www.nlc-bnc.ca/obj/s4/f2/dsk2/ftp04/MQ30912.pdf.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 183-205). Also available in print.

Thesis (M.A.)--Guo li Taiwan da xue. / Reproduced from ms. copy. Bibliography: p. 205-214.