There might b e no great harm in this i f, fi nding one gateway to Japanese culture especially i nviti ng and congenial, through this he gained access to others in turn. Perhaps the greatest danger which b esets the Western reader's attempt to understand Japanese civilization is the temptation to ta k e one or another o f its more stri k ing aspects as representing the whole. There fore we have not hesitated to ma k e excursions into the fi elds o f literature and dramatic art, j ust as readily as i nto politics or economics, even though we could not hope to take f ull stoc k o f the riches in eac h o f these domains. Also, since the arts o f Japan have such a unique importance in the modern world-indeed, are the embodi ment o f Japanese civilization to many-there must be a place for the dis cussion o f Japanese aesthetics. On the other hand, equal atten tion is given to political and social questions which the ordinary history o f philosophy or religion would not treat. Thus, much attention is given to religious an d philosophical developments in early times that are still part o f the national heritage and a ffect people's thin k ing today. It is meant to provide the general reader with an understanding o f the b ac k ground o f contemporary Japanese civilization, especially as this is re fl ected in intellectual traditions which remain alive today.
KEKA SHIN GUARDS PRO
This b oo k, representing part o f a series dealing wit h the civilizations o f Japan, Chi na, India, and Pa k istan, contai ns source readi ngs that tell us what the Japanese have thought about themselves, the world they lived in, and the pro b lems they faced living together. Text edition in two volumes published 1964 This work has been accepted in the Japanese Translation Series of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organ ization UNESCO Collection of Representative Works, J APANESE That Corporation is not, however, the author, owner, publisher, or proprietor of this publication, and is not to be understood as approving by virtue of its grant any of the statements made or views expressed therein. The addition to the "Records of Civilization: Sources and Studies" of a group of translations of Oriental historical materials in a clothbound edition, from which this volume is taken, was made possible by funds granted by Carnegie Corporation of New York. Sources of Japanese 'Tradition VOLUME I COMPILE D BY INTRODUCTION TO ORIENTAL CIVILIZATIONS WM.