Chinese Philosophy

1
Chinese Philosophy
2
Early Chinese Thought

• Early Chinese religion shares much in common
  with the other early tribal religions of the
  world. There was a belief in spirits and in
  reverencing their ancestors. There was the
  universal belief in animism, which is the
  belief that everything is alive.

3
Shang Dynasty

• During the Shang dynasty (1500? - 1100 B.C.E.)
  the omnipotent power that was believed to rule
  the world was called Shang Di and was thought of
  as a personal god, capable of being contacted by
  diviners.

4
Zhou Dynasty

• During the Zhou dynasty (1100-256 B.C.E.) the
  conception of an impersonal power called Tian
  (usually translated as Heaven) came into common
  parlance. Tian was seen as an impersonal divine
  force that controls events on earth and as a
  cosmic moral principle that determines right and
  wrong.

5
Patterns in Nature

• To survive, the Chinese people had to learn that
  while they could not often control nature they
  could learn to work with it when they understood
  its underlying patterns. Taoism may be traced
  back to this concern for finding-and working
  with-natural patterns.

6
Yin and Yang

• After about 1000 B.C.E. the Chinese commonly
  thought that the universe expressed itself in
  opposite but complementary principles light and
  dark, day and night, hot and cold, sky and earth,
  summer and winter. The names for the two
  complimentary principles are yang and yin.

7
Yin and Yang

• The yin and yang principles are not the same as
  good and evil. Yang is not expected to win over
  the force of yin, or vice versa rather the ideal
  is a dynamic balance between the forces.

8
Yin and Yang

• The emblem of balance is the yin-yang circle,
  divided into what looks like two intertwined
  commas. One half is light, representing yang the
  other is dark representing yin.

9
Yin and Yang

• Inside each division is a small dot of the
  contrasting color that represents the seed of the
  opposite. The dot suggests that everything
  contains its opposite and will eventually become
  its opposite.

10
Yin and Yang

• Both forces are dynamic and in perfect balance
  as they change, just as day and night are in
  balance as they progress. We can think of yang
  and yin as pulsations or waves of energy, like a
  heartbeat or like breathing in and out.

11
Ancestor Reverence

• Chinese have felt that the people we love who die
  can influence our lives for the better or worse
  and therefore it is important to respect them and
  do rituals to keep the peace.

12
A Mysterious Force

• The Chinese did not have a personal monotheist
  God, but they did have a sense of a great and
  mysterious force, perhaps something like the
  Hindu Brahman.

13
Tian

• All things ultimately derived from Tian, but it
  was more a personification of natural law than a
  real personality and was not directly worshipped.
  Heaven was understood as being remote.

14
A Hierarchy of Being

• There was a perceived hierarchy of being from the
  human and natural world to the ancestors and then
  the forces of nature until eventually you reached
  Tian.

15
Unity

• One basic principle that has run through Chinese
  thought from the beginning is that the universe
  is a unity in which all things fit together. If
  humanity aligns itself with it, all will be in
  harmony.

16
The Goal

• The ultimate goal will always be to find a way to
  bring ones life into harmony with this greater
  unity. That is the place of contentment and
  serenity.

17
The Tao

• The unity in which all things fit together
  harmoniously is called the Tao.

18
The Experience of Tao

• The Chinese believed there were three realms
  where Tao could be experienced nature, human
  society, and ones own inner being.

19
Temperaments

• Those seeking solitude would find themselves
  leaning in the direction of Taoism and those
  needing to interact and serve others would lean
  toward Confucianism.

20
Taoism
21
Tao (Dao)

• The mysterious origin of the universe, which is
  present and visible in everything. This is the
  name for whatever mysterious reality makes nature
  to be what it is and to act the way it does.

22
Tao (Dao)

• The Chinese character for Tao is commonly
  translated as way, but it has also been
  translated as existence, pattern. and
  process. Primarily, the Tao is the way that
  nature expresses itself-the natural way. Human
  beings can unite themselves with the Tao in the
  way they live.

23
Laozi (Lao Tzu) 600 B.C.E.

• The legendary founder of Taoism. His name means
  old master or old child. In the most famous
  picture of Laozi, he rides an ox as he leaves
  China.

24
Tao Te Ching

• The classic scripture of Taoism. Its teachings
  fostered the most liberal thinkers in ancient
  China.

25
Yang

• The active aspect of reality that expresses
  itself in speech, light, and heat.

26
Yin

• The receptive aspect of the universe that
  expresses itself in silence, darkness, coolness,
  and rest.

27
Zhuangzi (Chuang-Tzu) 300 B.C.E.

• Author of the Zhuangzi, a book of whimsical
  stories that express themes of early Taoist
  thought. In his famous dream, he was not certain
  that he was not a butterfly.

28
Wu Wei

• No action, no strain doing only what comes
  spontaneously and naturally the ideal of
  effortlessness. It is the way of nature.

29
Wu Wei

• If we look at nature, we notice that many things
  happen quietly, effortlessly plants grow, birds
  and animals are born, and nature repairs itself
  after a storm. Nature works to accomplish only
  what is necessary, but no more.

30
Qi (chi)

• The life force. Working with qi is very important
  in Chinese medicine like acupuncture, which tries
  to free up blocked qi so that it can circulate
  freely throughout the body.

31
Philosophical Taoism

• Taoism today contains elements of both
  philosophical and religious Taoism. But for our
  purposes we will be focusing on the philosophy of
  Taoism. Early Taoism, while possibly influenced
  by shamanism, created literature that was
  philosophically oriented. Later, an organized
  religion emerged.

32
Tao Te Ching

• The Tao Te Ching is the great classic of Taoism,
  accepted by most Taoists as a central scripture,
  and one of the worlds greatest books. Its title
  can be translated as the classical book about
  the Way and its power.

33
Tao Te Ching

• The eighty-one short chapters of the Tao Te
  Ching are probably the compilation of the work of
  many people, rather than a single author. The
  book shows some repetition, has no clear order,
  and exhibits a clear lack of clarity. In form,
  each chapter is more poetry than prose.

34
Tao Te Ching

• It is possible that the Tao Te Ching was a
  political handbook, religious guidebook, or
  practical guide for living in harmony with the
  universe. Part of the genius of the book is its
  brevity and use of paradox its meaning depends
  on who is interpreting it.

35
The Tao

• The first chapter of the Tao Te Ching begins by
  saying, The Tao that can be told is not the
  eternal Tao. In other words, we cannot really
  put into words exactly what the Tao is-a fact
  that is ironic since the book itself uses words.

36
The Tao

• Yet the book goes on to tell us that the Tao is
  nameless that is, it is not any individual
  thing that has a name-such as a door, a tree, a
  bird, a person. The Tao cannot be named because
  it has no form.

37
The Tao

• But the Tao can be experienced and followed by
  every individual thing that has a name. The Tao
  Te Ching says that the Tao is the origin of
  everything and that all individual things are
  manifestations of the Tao.

38
The Tao

• Although the Tao is the origin of nature, it is
  not god, because it does not have personality.
  It neither cares about human beings nor dislikes
  them-it only produces them, along with the rest
  of nature. Because the Tao makes nature move the
  way it does, it can be called the way or the
  rhythm of nature.

39
Experiencing the Tao

• To experience the Tao, we must leave behind our
  desires for individual things, a concept that
  runs counter to everyday concerns. The Tao cannot
  be known in the same way that we see a car or
  hear a sound.

40
Experiencing the Tao

• It cannot be perceived directly but rather by
  intuition, like the difference between hearing
  only musical sounds and recognizing a song.

41
Images of the Tao

• The Tao Te Ching presents several powerful
  images wherein the Tao seems most active and
  visible. Contemplating them can help us
  experience the Tao, and by taking on some of the
  qualities of these images, we begin to live in
  harmony with the Tao that inhabits them.

42
Images of the Tao Water

• Water is gentle, ordinary, and lowly, but strong
  and necessary. It flows around every obstacle.
  Chapter eight praises it The highest good is
  like water. It assists all things and does not
  compete with them.

43
Images of the Tao Woman

• The female is sensitive, receptive, yet
  effective and powerful.

44
Images of the Tao Child

• The child is full of energy, wonder, and
  naturalness.

45
Images of the Tao Valley

• The valley is yin, and it is mystery.

46
Images of the Tao Darkness

• Darkness can be safe, full of silence and
  possibility.

47
Images of the Tao Simplicity

• Taoism urges its followers to eliminate whatever
  is unnecessary and artificial and to appreciate
  the simple and apparently ordinary.

48
Images of the Tao Gentleness

• Because Taoists pursue the gentle way, they hate
  weapons and war. The wise person loves peace and
  restraint and avoids all unnecessary violence.

49
Images of the Tao Relativity

• People see things from a limited point of view
  that is based on their own concerns. They see
  things in terms of divisions I-you, good-bad,
  expensive-cheap, valuable-worthless,
  beautiful-ugly. The Taoist wants to be aware of
  this duality and try to keep things in
  perspective.

50
Taoist View On Education

• Give up learning, and put an end to your
  troubles. Formal education is not a Taoist
  value, whereas in Confucianism it is a very
  strong value.

51
Taoist View On Death

• Death is a predictable transformation of
  nature. Therefore acceptance, rather than fear,
  is the most helpful attitude.

52
Taoist Practice

• Taoist meditation puts an emphasis on the values
  of wu wei (effortlessness), simplicity,
  gentleness, and relativity. Taoists believe that
  it is necessary to attain a vision of things that
  goes beyond apparent opposites.

53
Taoist Practice

• The canon of Taoist literature includes
  recommendations for many types of arm and body
  movements, breathing regulation, diet, massage,
  and a practice called internal alchemy.

54
Taoist Practice

• Internal alchemy aims at transforming and
  spiritualizing the life force (chi) of the
  practitioner. Some later forms of internal
  alchemy teach exercises that move the life force
  from its origin at the base of the spine upward
  to the head. From there it circles back, via the
  heart, to its origin.

55
Taoist Practice

• Taoist meditation methods have many points in
  common with Hindu and Buddhist systems. The
  primary hallmark of Taoist meditation is the
  generation, transformation, and circulation of
  internal energy.

56
Taoist Practice

• The two primary guidelines in Taoist meditation
  are jing (quiet, stillness, calm) and ding
  (concentration, focus). The purpose of stillness,
  both mental and physical, is to turn attention
  inwards and cut off external sensory input,
  thereby muzzling the Five Thieves.

57
Taoist Practice

• Within that silent stillness, one concentrates
  the mind and focuses attention, usually on the
  breath, in order to develop what is called
  one-pointed awareness, a totally undistracted,
  undisturbed, undifferentiated state of mind which
  permits intuitive insights to arise
  spontaneously.

58
Taoist Practice

• Taoists teach that as one leaves behind the
  desires for individual things, one will see
  things differently.

59
Confucius (551-479 B.C.E.)

• The Confucian tradition is named after the
  philosopher Confucius.

60
The Confucian Classics

• Confucius was not revered just for himself but
  because he was associated with the classical
  literature and that was the real bedrock of the
  traditional culture.

61
Reflecting Tradition

• Confucius is not a peerless sage because he
  created this tradition. He is unequaled because
  the tradition created him, and he reflected it
  faithfully.

62
Confucianism

• Is Confucianism a philosophy or a religion? The
  answer depends on what you mean by religion. If a
  religion has to have a belief in a god then
  Confucianism is not a religion. But if it meets
  religious needs, then perhaps it is a religion.

63
Religion or Philosophy

• Confucianism can be considered as a religion
  because it is a moral system that functions as a
  religion in providing meaning and order in
  peoples lives.

64
Confucianism as Religion

• Confucianism can also be said to have its
  scriptures as well as a mystical dimension that
  enables people to experience their unity with the
  universe through inner equilibrium and harmony
  with society.

65
Confucianism and the Tao

• Confucianism is also concerned with the Tao
  because it is concerned with living in harmony
  with the right way. This way is the cosmic Tao
  that permeates the entire universe.

66
The Tao

• Whereas for Taoists the primary focus of Tao is
  in nature, with Confucianists the primary focus
  is on human relationships. Nature acts in harmony
  with the Tao naturally, but people dont.

67
The Tao in the Human

• The Confucian would say that training in virtue
  is necessary in order to enable the Tao to
  manifest itself clearly in the human being.

68
Analects

• The book of sayings of Confucius, the founder of
  Confucianism

69
Five Classics

• The classical literature of the time preceding
  Confucius, including poetry, history and
  divination. Confucius is thought to have brought
  them back into daily life, perhaps editing them
  himself.

70
Yi Jing (I Ching)

• An ancient Confucian book of divination, one of
  the Five Classics, still in use today.

71
Four Books

• The major Confucian books, which include the
  sayings of Confucius and Mencius. As close as we
  come to a Confucian Bible.

72
Proper Relationships

• Society would be chaotic if people did not find
  their right and proper position and then do their
  best to fulfill their responsibilities.

73
Junzi (chun-tzu)

• Noble person, the refined human ideal of
  Confucianism. By his teachings, Confucius hoped
  to produce virtuous people and create a
  harmonious society.

74
Ren (jen)

• Empathy, consideration for others, humanness a
  Confucian virtue. Pride is not a human virtue.
  Underlying all worthy social conventions is
  considerateness. If you want to be kind, be
  polite.

75
Li

• Appropriate action, ritual, propriety, etiquette.
  Li has to do with self-control. Li means good
  manners. It is putting ren into practice.

76
Shu

• Reciprocity a Confucian virtue. Shu addresses
  the question, How will my action affect the other
  person? It is putting ren into practice.

77
Xiao (hsiao)

• Family devotion, filial piety a Confucian
  virtue. Confucius thought the most important
  relationship was the father-son relationship.
  Ideally, it means valuing the entire extended
  family--of past, present, and future.

78
Wen

• Cultural refinement a Confucian virtue. The
  ideal is to have a highly developed aesthetic
  sense and be able to know and appreciate beauty
  in its many forms.

79
Confucius and Education

• The Taoists feel that formal education has a
  potential for distorting ones originally pure
  state. Confucians, however, hold that the best
  training does not contaminate character, but, by
  cultivating virtues, gives it definition and
  clarity.

80
Confucius on Relationships

• Human beings cannot reach their potential in
  isolation. A human being becomes a full person
  only through the contributions of other people
  and through fulfilling ones obligations to them.

81
Humans are Basically Good

• Confucianism has generally believed that the
  basic nature of humanity is good. It is only
  perverted by a bad social environment.

82
The Purpose of Society

• We become more human by learning the necessary
  skills of living in harmony with others.

83
Father-Son

• Father-son becomes the primal model of a
  relationship and in Confucianism it is in
  interpersonal relationships that one is humanized
  and Tao is manifested.

84
The Importance of Family

• The home was the church the family was the
  sacred community. You found what you were looking
  for in the family, not outside of it.

85
The Five Great Relationships

• Human beings are not individuals but interwoven
  threads of relationships with many people. To a
  great extent, in Confucian thinking human beings
  are their relationships.

86
The Five Great Relationships

• These relationships (father-son, elder
  brother-younger brother, husband-wife,
  elder-younger, ruler-subject), signify that each
  person must live up to his or her social role and
  social status. This has been called the
  rectification of names.

87
Confucian Virtues

• Confucianism stresses loyalty, consensus, hard
  work, thrift, emotional control and sincerity,
  which means choosing to do what is correct for
  society. He who attains to sincerity is he who
  chooses what is good, and firmly holds it fast.

88
The Doctrine of the Mean

• For Confucius, a person who follows the way of
  heaven avoids extremes and remains in harmony
  with others. This balance unites the individual
  with the balance of the universe.

89
The Doctrine of the Mean

• Confucius taught Let the states of equilibrium
  and harmony exist in perfection, and a happy
  order will prevail throughout heaven and earth,
  and all things will be nourished and flourish.

90
Confucian Mysticism

• Confucianism was given a transcendence that made
  the practice of Confucian virtues more deeply
  religious, a sort of mysticism in the midst of a
  life of service.

91
A Single Spiritual World

• But in popular religion, the major traditions
  unite to form a single spiritual world.

92
A Changing World

• People were confused and shaken up. The world was
  changing and the old ideas were not keeping up.

93
Religion and Politics

• It seems that as long as religious people stay
  out of politics that they are O.K. But this is a
  hard thing to do because religion touches
  peoples core values and these values demand
  expression.

94
Womens Role

• Because womens role was understood to be in the
  nature of the dance itself there was no room
  left to argue about the justice of this situation.

95
Wives

• A wife was to exemplify Yin (passive, plaint) in
  order to provide the harmonious complement to the
  husbands Yang (active, firm).

96
Subservience

• Wives were often virtual slaves of their
  mothers-in-law. There was almost nothing they
  could do except obey them.

97
Women and Taoism

• It is not surprising then that women would turn
  to Taoism to meet their spiritual needs. It
  offered them a deeper validity then the
  masculine emphasis found in Confucianism.

98
The Great Mother

• Some scholars, such as Ellen Marie Chen, have
  concluded that Taoism has ties to an ancient
  Mother Goddess and the Tao itself is the Great
  Mother.

99
Women and Inspiration

• Religious Taoism drew from shamanism the belief
  that women especially are receptive to Divine
  inspiration.

100
Communism

• Communism took a heavy toll on the fortunes of
  religion, but at the same time it opened doors to
  women that had always been closed.

101
The Cultural Revolution

• The main thrust of the Cultural Revolution
  (1966-1976) was to break with the past and all
  that was antiquated.

102
Laws and Attitudes

• Change below the surface takes much longer. You
  can change the laws, but it is more difficult to
  change peoples hearts and attitudes.

103
Change is Slow

• Major societal changes like in recent Chinese
  life are always difficult and sometimes people
  take two steps back for every three steps forward.

104
The Blockage

• We have to ask ourselves why the great ideas of
  the world seem to not touch our core where they
  can work their magic? What prevents us from
  putting them into practice?

105
Confucian Problems

• The roles people are allowed to fulfill become so
  restricted that there is not a lot of room for
  growth or individuality.

106
Taoist Problems

• Often the Taoism practiced by the unlettered
  peasants was simply a retreat into superstition
  and magic, rather than a march forward into
  greater spiritual consciousness and compassion.

107
Integral Medicine

• Integral medicine will be practiced by those who
  want to combine Western and Eastern
  understandings of health so that the best of both
  is made available.

108
Zen Buddhism

• Zen Buddhism is really a marriage of Buddhism and
  Taoism. They have much in common and it is
  another way that Taoism is influencing us without
  our being aware of it.

109
Popular Chinese Religion

• In the popular religion of China, Confucianism,
  Taoism, Buddhism combined with ancestrism,
  seasonal festivals, and local deities to make a
  colorful complex.

110
Integral Wisdom

• The answer to many problems such as medical and
  ecological issues will only be found as we
  combine the wisdom of the East and the West into
  a new integral wisdom.