Modern Research

Entering the twenty-first century, metaphysics has gradually become a topic of multidisciplinary cross-cutting research. Psychology researchers explain the 'accuracy' of metaphysics from cognitive mechanisms such as the Barnum effect and confirmation bias; sociologists examine the functions of metaphysics in Chinese society — from risk decision-making to psychological comfort, from social capital to cultural identity; historians dedicate themselves to clarifying the origins, textual authentication, and intellectual-historical positioning of metaphysical literature. In mainland China, metaphysics has been included in academic discussions as an important component of numerological culture within Zhouyi research courses offered at some universities. The international academic community has also begun to pay attention to Chinese metaphysics, viewing it as an important window for understanding Chinese cosmology and the concept of the body.

Key Figures

Yang Qingzhong — professor at the School of Philosophy, Renmin University of China, dedicated to academic research on Yi studies and numerological culture; Lin Anwu — professor at National Taiwan Normal University, examining the deep connections between metaphysics and Confucian and Daoist thought from a philosophical perspective; overseas sinologists — such as the American scholar David Pankenier, who studies the historical origins of Chinese astrology from an astronomical perspective

Important Works

Zhongguo Minglixue — by Lu Zhiji, systematically introducing the history, theory, and methods of Bazi metaphysics in modern academic language, an important attempt at the academicization of metaphysics; Mingyun de Qiusuo — a similar scholarly work tracing the evolution of the concept of destiny from the perspective of cultural history; related papers in Psychology Today and academic journals — studying the contemporary manifestations of metaphysical belief from the perspectives of cognitive science and social psychology

Historical Significance

Modern research provides metaphysics with a third path beyond the binary opposition of 'belief or disbelief': understanding it as a cultural phenomenon, historical heritage, and cognitive practice. This research orientation neither demands unconditional acceptance of the predictive efficacy of metaphysics nor simply dismisses it as superstition, but explores the deep functions and meanings of metaphysics in Chinese civilization with an open yet cautious attitude.