In Search of the Way

The book is eminently readable, packed with useful and interesting information vis-à-vis the ever-shifting religious scenery of the intellectually vibrant times of Tokugawa Japan; recommended reading to all. * Lehel Balogh, Hokkaido University, Religious Studies Review *
recommended reading to all. * Lehel Balogh, Religious Studies Review *
Richard Bowring's summa will surely help many of us, scholars and students alike, to navigate through all these different "Ways" without losing our heads. * Journal of Japanese Studies *
[The book] provides an excellent introduction for students who want to orientate themselves in this field. For the specialist, too, it contains a number of ideas, comments, and hints that could serve as points of departure for future research. The book also contains a great many quotations from the original sources. * W. J. Boot, Japonica Humboldtiana *
The erudition and precision of Bowring's scholarship in this volume is exemplary. There are few volumes (if any) in English which give such a broad, yet detailed, overview of the ideas of major thinkers of early modern Japan. As a reference work in English for those wanting to understand or study early modern Japanese intellectual history, this volume is therefore invaluable. * Kiri Paramore, English Historical Review *
Richard Bowring's summa will surely help many of us, scholars and students alike, to navigate through all these different "Ways" without losing our heads * Matthias Hayek, The Journal of Japanese Studies *
One of the most impressive contributions of this work is its treatment of the intersections of Shinto-based and Sung Confucian-based idea structures. Bowring brings new insights into the roles of Hayashi Razan and Fujiwara Seika, at the outset of this period, and Aizawa Seishisai towards its conclusion (and numerous others throughout the work), as he demonstrates with great acumen and perspicacity the "intellectual gymnastics" (p. 306) needed to draw these clearly distinct thought structures together. * James E. Ketelaar, Japan Review *
While there have been works published since then that would qualify as such, Bowring's volume is the latest, and perhaps the best, among them so far... His narrative style is lucid, and he provides sometimes rather detailed historical backgrounds for the ideas and figures he examines. * Mark T. McNally (University of Hawaii at Manoa), Monumenta Nipponica 72:2 *
Bowring delivers on what he promises to do in his book and showcases the vitality of Tokugawa intellectual and religious history. The conceptual lens of the "Way" works effectively and allows a variety of voices to be introduced with a certain sense of coherence. Most importantly, Bowring's book is an invaluable testament to the importance of taking Tokugawa religion and intellectual history seriously and on their own terms. * Takashi Miura, Journal of Religion in Japan *
Professor Bowring's book is packed with information and insight, and will be revisited again and again by those who want to understand Japanese intellectual tradition. * Joseph S. O'Leary, H-Buddhism *