This panel brings Confucian self-cultivation traditions into conversation with key features of the contemporary American culture of self-optimization and "wellness." Each paper draws on Confucian thought to illuminate modern concerns: Mengzi’s reflections on restorative sleep; empirical research on Confucian contemplative practices in college classrooms; early Confucian theories of ritualized substance use as an alternative framing for cannabis and psychedelics; and Neo-Confucian debates on education as either capability formation or moral self‑cultivation. Together, the papers demonstrate the interpretive power of Confucian self-cultivation traditions for understanding and critiquing wellness and self-optimization as products of late capitalism. By applying insights from a tradition often presumed conservative or distant from American culture, the panel showcases Confucianism’s contemporary relevance and expands theoretical engagement beyond Western critical paradigms. It highlights new avenues for scholarship across units interested in religion, wellness, pedagogy, ritual, and the cultural dynamics of late capitalism.
The early 2020s saw rapid shifts in American attitudes toward cannabis and psychedelics, moving from their twentieth‑century status as dangerous intoxicants to renewed interest as medical therapies and, increasingly, as consumer wellness products. This swift reframing has raised concerns about how best to conceptualize the responsible use of mind‑altering substances. This essay proposes ritual consumption as an alternative framework, drawing on early Confucian discussions of alcohol in ceremonial life. Early Confucian thinkers such as Kongzi and Xunzi acknowledged alcohol’s capacity to facilitate communal bonding, while simultaneously emphasizing propriety, restraint, and the primacy of human connection to prevent misuse. Although cannabis and psychedelics differ significantly from alcohol, the Confucian model illustrates how structured, relational practices can harness psychoactive effects while mitigating risks. Such an approach offers a promising lens for rethinking contemporary engagements with these substances.
This paper explores the practice of restorative sleep in the Mencius where it is described not only in terms of its holistic benefits but more importantly as something essential for the preservation of the goodness of the heart-mind (xin 心). In passages like 6A8 Mencius suggests that sleep can have the salutary effect of nourishing the vital energy (qi 氣) which, in turn, promotes the growth of one’s “sprouts of goodness.” He describes in ecstatic terms how the cultivation of the “flood-like qi” can fill the space between heaven and earth and harmonize with righteousness and the Way. Drawing on contemporary ideas in medicine and macrobiotics, Mencius contends that the nourishment of this inexhaustible vital energy is essential for moral self-cultivation and that holistic practices like sleep can help us to realize our heavenly-endowed natures. For Mencius, sleep nurtures the qi that makes moral mastery possible.
This essay reports quantitative and qualitative findings of an empirical study on the use of contemplative pedagogy as an experiential learning mode in higher education. It assesses the impact on student learning and wellness of using Confucian contemplative practices such as quiet-sitting meditation, self-examination, and self-monitoring. Using analytical and contemplative pedagogies, students studied and practiced these Confucian methods of self-cultivation and reflected on this holistic learning experience. The case studies examined and the findings reported indicate enhancements in their practice of self-care in the following ways: managing their stress, anxiety, and negative emotions more effectively; forming a healthier self-image and sense of personal identity; improved self-discipline and positive habit formation; applying their learning in meaningful ways; and help with sleep and physical, mental, and emotional restoration. The research suggests contemplative pedagogy inspired by Confucian methods of self-cultivation is an effective experiential learning tool by positively impacting student wellness.
This paper reexamines the relationship between virtue-based self‑cultivation and capability-focused education in later-imperial China, arguing that their apparent fusion in the scholar‑official tradition obscures their distinct origins and purposes. While Zhu Xi’s interpretation of the Great Learning grounded education in a transformative ethical practice radiating outward from personal cultivation, late‑Qing reformers such as Zhang Zhidong reframed education as a universal project to strengthen state and society by developing human capability. Yet the spiritual and individual dimensions of Zhang’s vision failed to take root, leaving modern educational discourse dominated by material incentives and thin appeals to abstract social goods. I argue that the eclipse of self‑cultivation created a persistent tension between utopian promises of societal transformation and narratives of perpetual educational crisis. Without a robust account of how education meaningfully shapes persons, systems risk functioning as large-scale conscription into disciplinary routines once reserved for voluntary scholarly vocations.
This paper re-evaluates Zhu Xi’s xingcha 省察 (inward gaze) by contrasting it with Augustinian voluntarism and Thomistic intellectualism. While previous scholarship often aligns xingcha with Augustinian moral censorship, I argue it is a process of verifying one’s moral potential is being fully and authentically manifested. grounded in trust in natural inclinations. By examining yi 意 (conscious activity), I demonstrate that Zhu Xi moves beyond the Augustinian distrust of nature to approach the Thomism. However, unlike Thomism, which prioritizes intellectual prudence over the inward gaze, Zhu Xi maintains xingcha until the final moment of practice. He argues that constant wakefulness is necessary not to suppress evil, but to prevent the violence of universalism caused by inattentiveness to situational variables. Ultimately, Zhu Xi’s xingcha offers a unique model of ethical and religious practice that ensures sincere moral practice through persistent sensitivity to the specificities of every moral encounter.
| Bin Song | bsong2@washcoll.edu | View |