The Kyoto School: An Introduction

A Note to the Reader

xix A Note to the Reader The many endnotes in this book can be bypassed without significant loss of meaning. They are there for those who wish to check a source in more detail, or who require references for research purposes. Those who simply read the text straight through might wish to consult the Glossary from time to time to be reminded of the meaning of a word or phrase, or to check on the details of a school of thought. Readers who simply wish to read straight through will, hopefully , find a narrative that is accessible from beginning to end. I have attempted to simplify difficult concepts and ideas, and to leave out technical scholarly details. It is my hope that this Introduction to the Kyoto School will make available to the general reader four rich and exciting cross-cultural explorations which continue to challenge and inform readers both in Japan and abroad. I regret that an important fifth figure is not included. Ueda Shizuteru clearly ranks among the most important Kyoto School figures, and he is still very active. Unfortunately, most of his writings are in Japanese or German. Some of his essays available in English are listed in the “general background” section of the bibliography. A major reason for including the four philosophers included here is that each of them has at least one major book-length text available in English: Nishida’s An Inquiry into the Good, Tanabe’s Philosophy as Metanoetics, Nishitani’s Religion and Nothingness, and Watsuji’s Rinrigaku (Japanese Ethics). I have adopted the Japanese custom of placing the surname first: Nishida Kitarō, not Kitarō Nishida. To adopt the traditional xx / A Note to the Reader Western habit of first name before last, might appear as though you were on a first‑name basis with the authors. Finally, as mentioned in the text, the Nanzan Institute for [the Study of] Religion and Culture, in Nagoya, Japan, has recently published seven volumes of essays on the Kyoto School and Japanese Philosophy. They are listed together at the very end of the bibliography. Noted as well is the recently published Sourcebook in Japanese Philosophy. ...