Abstract
This is a volume in the series entitled Asian Connections that goes beyond the conventional understandings of area, regional or national studies and attempts to study circulations, connections, convergences and comparisons within Asia and beyond. It is a work of historical sociology in which the author has explored different Asian social and cultural responses to global modernity regarded as unsustainable by many. Spanning the period of the last 100 years characterised by three global changes, namely, the rise of non-Western powers, the loss of authoritative sources of transcendence and the crisis of planetary sustainability, the work is an effort to ‘revisit the paradigm of historical sociology’ derived from the nineteenth century. In the Introduction, the author has discussed formulations of several eminent thinkers, such as Max Weber, Oswald Spengler, Michel Foucault, Wang Yangming and others, ‘to suggest that cultural and subjective conditions needed for the modern revolution are no longer necessary’ as they have ‘resulted in human overreach in the conquest by man of nature’ leading to a crisis of sustainability (p. 2). The author then goes on to elaborate on the concept of transcendence by making a distinction between its different meanings, and clarifies how he sees the relationship between circulatory histories and transcendence. The main argument of the author is that ‘the dynamic between circulatory history and institutionalized transcendence becomes radically transformed under the conditions of the capitalism and the nation-state that it has itself fostered’ (p. 7).
Using three major categories of investigation, the volume is organised into seven chapters that focus on one or more of the categories. The first two categories are historical; one identifies the historical forces and developments that led to unsustainability, and the other identifies alternative sources, methods, ideas and movements through history to the present times which could help restore a sustainable world. The third category pertains to methodology, by which the author has attempted ‘to replace the still dominant “national-modernization” model with the paradigm of “sustainable modernity” for the humanistic disciplines’ (p. 11).
In the first chapter on ‘Sustainability and the Crisis of Transcendence’, the nature of the global crisis has been laid out, the quest for universalist vision has been evaluated, and the efforts that emerged in Asian societies to address these issues have been analysed. The author has undertaken detailed discussions on both Chinese and Indian traditions; ideas/concepts/phenomena from the ancient historical period, such as Tianxia and Tian, have been juxtaposed with experiences of modern universalism and ecological/environmental movements of sustainability in contemporary times to rethink the framework of transcendence in post-West modernity. The primary argument of the chapter is to underscore the necessity ‘to develop a new type of transcendence framework capable of motivating persons and groups to work for themselves, their communities and the planet’ (p. 50).
In Chapter 2, titled ‘Circulatory and Competitive Histories’, the author develops the concept of circulatory histories, which is then used as a basis to critique sovereignty in the ‘national modernization’ project. He holds that since in pre-modern times societies were not bounded territorially and temporally, civilisational/religious elites did not recognise circulatory forms. An empirical analysis is undertaken by exploring exchanges of knowledge, technology and ideals in the early modern historical period. The author argues that although the enterprises of collective formations for local or national community building were important through history, there were also structures of power embedded in the narratives of a society.
Chapter 3 on ‘The Historical Logics of Global Modernity’ is an effort to develop the analytical tools to understand global modernity and ‘in particular to grasp the crisis of sustainability that it has produced’ (p. 91). As argued by the author, through in-depth exploration of global and historical modernity it would be possible to arrive at a comprehensive understanding of the present situation. He has further attempted to illustrate that the notion of transcendence, though relatively neglected as a source of historical transformation, may be crucial for achieving sustainable modernity in today’s world. Moreover, the author opines that to sustain modernity, it must be understood in terms of the logics of human evolution, that is, culture, reflexivity and ethics.
The central theme of Chapters 4, 5 and 6 is religion, spirituality and transcendence as experienced through history in China, India and other parts of Asia. It explores ‘the historical logic of “high culture” versus circulatory culture in Asian modernity, expressed especially in the relationship between transcendent authority and circulatory history’ (p. 13). In Chapter 4, ‘Dialogical and Radical Transcendence’, the author has made clear distinctions between radical transcendence, that has a strict dualism at its core, and dialogic transcendence, that has plurality interwoven in religious practices. The objective of this chapter is to elucidate the characteristics and consequences of adopting either view of transcendence, so as to underscore the notions of exchange, competition, coexistence and partial absorption inbuilt in the conception of dialogical transcendence. In Chapter 5 on ‘Dialogical Transcendence and Secular Nationalism in the Sinosphere’, the author has explored the process of institutionalisation of secularism and nationalism in East Asia. Often circulating through imperialist channels, they impacted the relationship between state and religion. Viewing the social history of Chinese religions, especially the experience of the late Qing empire, from the perspective of dialogical transcendence, the author has argued that there was a highly durable state–religion configuration which figured prominently in the national modernisation process, regarded as the most powerful circulatory historical force. In Chapter 6, ‘The Traffic between Secularism and Transcendence’, the author has examined how religious traditions in Asia responded to the new models of religion from the West. He has shown that the Asian religious traditions have responded either on the basis of a self–other distinction, or sometimes by developing a modern realm of spirituality as a source of self and collective- formation, by distinguishing the secular from the religious spheres. He further argues that ‘Transcendence today clusters around spirituality, ideals, reverence, justice and hope—human aspirations that do—dialogically—transcend history’ (p. 238).
Chapter 7, entitled ‘Regions of Circulation and Networks of Sustainability in Asia’, deals with the processes of region-formation and its importance for transnational cooperation and agency. Making a distinction between region-formation and regionalism, the author has explained that region-formation is built around the activities of trade, labour, religion and so on, following established geographical, geopolitical or geotechnological routes. Regionalism, on the other hand, is a product of modern transnational political entities. He argues that loosening of the relationship between territorial nationalism and the community can be extremely harmful for non-territorial nationalism as reflected in the Chineseness or Indianness prevalent among the diaspora communities. At the same time, he has argued, other networks of culture–politics are also being generated; such networks are both relatively distanced from nationalism and are certainly opposed to the unsustainable capitalism. In the last section on ‘The Reprise and Epilogue’, the author has summarised the main arguments of all the chapters through the following formulation: Hope as an essential ingredient of a transcendent force may allow for more dialogical and honest engagement with messy realities. Achievements, to be sure, are liable to be politically appropriated for some other sacred purpose such as the nation, but this may be a fight worth fighting. Indeed, the decentered, multiply ordered networks are already beginning to create new objects, spaces and flows of sacrality and inviolability founded on their hopes of a sustainable world. These spaces furnish them with the autonomy required to launch resistance and regeneration. (p. 287)
This is an important theoretical work of historical sociology that stands out in the expansiveness of its ideas, diversity of intellectual resources and rigour of its methodological framework. Although written in lucid language, the layered complexity of thought calls for an informed readership with focused concentration to persevere. It is a journey of enlightenment on which other eager and willing scholars across disciplines too must embark.