This volume examines the concept of human dignity from uniquely Asian perspectives. As the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) celebrates its 75th anniversary, human dignity is more consequential than ever, yet it is not understood in the same way in every nation or by every culture. Here, human dignity is approached from a number of distinctive viewpoints: its relation to religious freedom in maturing pluralist democracies, its foundation in ancient Eastern philosophy, its pursuit by liberation movements, and its alignment with Buddhism, Islam, and less familiar Indigenous religions. The authors, from various Asian countries, bring extensive scholarship and experience to bear on the project of expanding the idea of human dignity. They present a range of perspectives, having roots as they do in states with distinct religious and cultural traditions that, following the Second World War, have evolved toward constitutional democracies, as well as states where social and legislative developments related to human dignity have been influenced by more collectivist ideologies. The collection will be of interest to philosophers of law, constitutional and human rights theorists and lawyers, political historians, international law specialists and ethicists, and those interested in interfaith dialogue and multifaith engagement.
This volume examines the concept of human dignity from uniquely Asian perspectives.The authors, from various Asian countries, bring extensive scholarship and experience to bear on the project of expanding the idea of human dignity.
Introduction, Brett G. Scharffs, Hannah Clayson Smith, and Emily H.
Butler;
1. Human Dignity and Asian Values: Ideological Foundations, Ethical
Principles, and Legal Practices, Do Lan Hien;
2. Perspectives on Human
Dignity in Bangladesh, Ismat Jahan;
3. Buddhism and Human Dignity, Hoang Thi
Lan;
4. Chinese Conceptions of Dignity and Rights, Paul Marshall;
5. Chinese
Perspectives on Human Dignity: Insights from Chinese Scholars' Studies,
Pinghua Sun;
6. Human Dignity in the Chinese Constitution, Songfeng Li;
7.
Human Dignity and Political Natural Law, Qianfan Zhang;
8. The Universality
of Human Dignity and Human Rights: An Indonesian Experience, Maruarar
Siahaan;
9. Are There Notions of Human Dignity in Japanese Religions? An
Inquiry into Folk Religion, Buddhism, and Christianity, Martin Repp;
10.
Japanese Dignity from the Perspective of Spirituality, Naoki Kashio;
11. Choe
Je-u's Religious Experience and the Rise of Human Dignity: Consciousness in
the Eastern Learning of Korea, Chae Young Kim;
12. The One Mind of Seon
Master Daehaeng in the Era of Post Humans, Hyeyou Sunim;
13. The Human
Dignity of Women Pastors in the Korean Church, Youngsu Kim;
14. Upholding
Human Dignity for Peaceful Coexistence and Social Harmony: A Conversation
between Muslims and Non-Muslims on Principles and Prerequisites in Malaysian
Society, Eugene Yapp;
15. Human Dignity: An Islamic and Malaysian
Perspective, Mohamed Azam Mohamed Adil;
16. The Basis of Women's Dignity: A
Vietnamese Perspective, Chi Tran-Phuong and Anh Nguyen-The;
17. A History of
Human Dignity in Vietnam, Do Quang Hung;
18. Human Dignity: Some Fundamental
Issues from the Vietnamese Legal Perspective, Pham Quoc Thanh;
19. Human
Dignity Within Bali Hinduism: Local, National, and Global Perspectives, I
Ketut Ardhana, Ni Wayan Radita Novi Puspitasari, and Ni Made Putri Ariyanti.
Brett G. Scharffs is the Director of the International Center for Law and Religion Studies at the Brigham Young University J. Reuben Clark Law School, USA.
Hannah Clayson Smith is the Associate Director of the International Center for Law and Religion Studies at Brigham Young University J. Reuben Clark Law School, USA.
Emily H. Butler is an editor at the Brigham Young University J. Reuben Clark Law School, USA.