Background
Tang Yongtong was born in 1893 in Huangmei, Hubei Province, China.
湯用彤
Tang Yongtong was born in 1893 in Huangmei, Hubei Province, China.
Studied with Ouyang Jianwn. At Qinghua University, Beijing. At Hamline and Harvard Universities in the USA. tnfts: Ouyang Jianwu.
Professor at Southeast University, Nankai University, University of Beijing and the Southwest Associated University. 1947. lectured at the University of California, elected an Academician and Fellow of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Since 1949, Chairman of the Board, then Vice President of University of Beijing. Held positions in the People’s Consultative Conference and the National People’s Congress.
Tang Yongtong was an outstanding student of ancient philosophy, specializing in the history of Chinese Buddhism, Indian philosophy and gnosticism. Early work on Aristotle contributed to his lifelong interest in comparative methodology and provided the basis for his well-regarded history of Western philosophy, in which he also focused on rationalism and empiricism. His historical insights and philological skills provided the basis for a critical approach to ancient materials. Tang’s detailed textual mastery complemented a capacity to ask original questions about the history and doctrines of Buddhism. The aspect of his history most directly significant for philosophy is his examination of the metaphysics of daoism and Buddhism, although his ability to clarify and
place many central concepts has also been widely appreciated.