ABSTRACT
The Confucian tradition of the Tang (or T’ang) period (618-907) demonstrates historically important continuities but also profound changes. As an ideology the main concerns of which were social, and as a system of thought without a tradition of rigorous inductive procedures, Confucianism both kept its commitment to its ancient canonical texts and responded throughout this period to changing political and social conditions. It also remained a rationalistic ideology, the property of an educated elite dedicated to the ideal of official service. This elite ensured that Confucianism retained its paternalistic ethic, its belief in political hierarchy, and its prejudice against women, non-Chinese, and merchants. Although philosophically one of its main concerns was with man’s relation to the cosmic process (tianren zhi ji), Confucian scholars remained indifferent to the systematic empirical investigation of phenomena.
