This article deals with the nature and development of western philosophical thought. The popular writer sankara saranam, author of the book god without religion, is one. There is no division between eastern or western philosophy. The distinction between western and eastern is of course somewhat arbitrary and artificial, and in some respects even misleading. Aminuddin hassan and nur syuhada jamaludin faculty of. Comparison of religions eastern indianhinduism, buddhism, and jainism and western judaism, christianity, islam religions pravin k. The differences between eastern and western thought can be clearly seen in modern society, despite globalization and unifying influences. Jun 03, 2016 eastern philosophy vs western philosophy when it comes to eastern philosophy vs western philosophy its all about the clash of civilization. As individuals, one must do what is supposed to be done without causing ill to others. It has many aspects and different manifestations according to the problems involved and the method of approach and emphasis used by the individual philosopher. Popkin also emphasizes schools and developments that have traditionally been overlooked.
Jan 17, 2016 the similarities between eastern and western philosophy are greater than any differences cited by modernday writers and lecturers on the topic. This would be explained with the selfless approach to life. Throughout the course of western civilization, familism marriage, the family, and reproduction has been a key element of civil societyand a principal interface with human naturewith the furtherance of character and moral values as important purposes, according to former harvard sociologist carle e. It can be argued that persian, arabic and jewish philosophies are much closer in nature to western philosophy than eastern, and the geographical and historical links are much closer. Fundamental differences with western views article pdf available in journal of happiness studies 152 april 2014 with 6,046 reads how we measure reads. Professor oconnor and his collaborators have, in their critical history of western philosophy, produced a novel and, to my mind, unusually good textbook. Promoting academic literacy on non western traditions of philosophy, philosophy east and west has for over half a century published the highestquality scholarship that locates these cultures in their relationship to angloamerican philosophy. Eastern philosophies are also some of the most intricate and popular on the planet, with many adherents to religious philosophies thousands of years old.
First of all, eastern and western people have different attitudes toward their life. Eastern influences on western philosophy edinburgh. Articles the key ideas of western philosophy john greenbank searches history for answers to persistent questions. Buddhist western comparative philosophy is a relatively new field. Eastern question, diplomatic problem posed in the 19th and early 20th centuries by the disintegration of the ottoman empire, centring on the contest for control of former ottoman territories. The revered madhyamika buddhist philosopher nagarjuna is a central figure in the history of eastern thought. These are the best eastern philosophy books, spanning alan. Any assessment of buddhism in terms of psychology is necessarily a modern western invention. The term sometimes also includes middle eastern traditions of philosophical thought, including. Differences between eastern and western philosophy. Most work in this area has been done since the 1980s, even though initial efforts began during the 1940s. Eastern philosophy, while founded in religion, contains rigorously developed systems.
The convergence divergence dichotomy eastern and western. Most of us know the life and basic teachings of siddhartha or gautama buddha since our childhood days. There is still a widespread inclination to think that there is an unbridgeable chasm between eastern and western philosophy. Among the diverse buddhist schools, madhyamika buddhism especially nagarjuna and zen buddhism are those most studied in comparison with western philosophies. Not all chinese or westerners think this way, but these are observed tendencies aspect 1.
Teachers of the western education do play a role in guiding students to discover and develop their abilities and potentials. Eastern people usually encounter the socalled culture shock when traveling to the western countries. Thus, we aim at exploring the most contemporary modes of eastern philosophical, religious, spiritual thoughts and practices with particular emphasis on their significant application to current psychological research. Jan 01, 2017 nondualism in western philosophy free pdf ebook. Since the discovery of eastern philosophy by western explorers and scholars in the 18th and 19th centuries ce, there has been an arbitrary division maintained, especially in colleges and universities, between western philosophy and eastern philosophy as though these two systems present radically different views of the world. List of books and articles about western philosophy online. It facilitates exchange between academic cultures and develops joint fields of research while also consolidating and coordinating socialscientific ties and research projects. Later on, greek culture and ideas were spread by the conquests of alexander the great and adopted by the roman empire.
We are not placed in a static world of things with which we are not concerned, but we are placed in an atmosphere with which we are very. There are probably exceptions to any statements about this, but the major difference is that western philosophies wp are dualistic and thus materialistic while eastern ep are not. Firstly, its orientation is much more holistic, by which i mean going beyond logical analysis and the interests of empiricism including sc. Eastern question european diplomatic history britannica.
In western universities, these traditions often get lumped together as eastern philosophy, but this is a catchall term for a group of different philosophical traditions that often have little in. But western philosophy and mysticism have given rise to varieties of nondual expression since before plato. African philosophy in comparison with western philosophy fidelis u. Guidelines for preparation of accepted manuscripts. The most often cited difference is that western philosophy is fragmentary while eastern philosophy is holistic. Western philosophy general the basics of philosophy. Philosophy of karma continuity of life reincarnation mystical human experience self realization direct contact with godself individual freedom to choose godsnogod human suffering souls ignorance. Western philosophy, history of western philosophy from its development among the ancient greeks to the present. Western philosophy refers to philosophical thinking in the western or occidental world, beginning with ancient greece and rome, extending through central and western europe and, since columbus, the americas as opposed to eastern or oriental philosophies comprising indian, chinese, persian, japanese and korean philosophies and the varieties of indigenous philosophies. Paul shaker supervisor dean and professor, simon fraser university dr. Moreover, western philosophy takes its roots from rome and christianity, specifically judeochristianity. How east and west think in profoundly different ways bbc.
This is not the place to debate the differences, if any, between. Michael ling lecturer, professor, simon fraser university dr. List of books and articles about western philosophy. Nevertheless, many differences still remain between eastern and western nutritional concepts. Travel and trade along the silk road brought ancient texts and mind practices deep into the west. The sights of disease, old age and death impressed the young prince with the idea that the world was full of suffering and he renounced the world early in life. Eastern influences on western philosophy explores the extent of oriential influence on european thought, primarily during the enlightenment and the 19thcentury period of doubt and scepticism that followed it. Ancient babylonian philosophy can be considered eastern in some ways, but it almost certainly had a strong influence on greek, particularly. There, on the eastern edge of the mediterranean in the sixth century b. The volume, which is designed primarily as a text for undergraduate philosophy students, is made up of twentynine essays, each one devoted to a major philosopher in the western traditionor. Differences between eastern and western cultures youtube. In contrary, the eastern philosophy is based mainly in asia, more specifically the chinese philosophy.
Just as important a contribution to human thought is the eastern intellectual traditionthe product of thousands of years of thought by brilliant minds who demonstrated different ways of approaching fundamental questions about the existence of god, the meaning of life, the nature of truth and reality, etc. Is the easternwestern distinction in philosophy useful. Okafor 1 the journal of value inquiry volume 31, pages 251 267 1997 cite this article. Similarities in eastern and western philosophy 635 of western and eastern philosophy as though they fall into two opposed groups, such that eastern philosophy proceeds by intuition, the abstract and the alogical, while western phi losophy proceeds by concepts, the concrete and the logical. In antiquity elements of eastern philosophy appear to have directly influenced western philosophy. Eastern and western philosophy published 1212014 here i start a series on differences and similarities between eastern and western philosophy, and my position in that. The eastern view tries to capture the spirit of the artist or the work of art. Vedic psychology dates back 5000 years and forms the core of mental health counselling in the ayurvedic. All western philosophers prior to socrates are known as the presocratics. Eastern philosophy refers very broadly to the various philosophies of asia.
Each side of the globe has had its own influences and. There is no division between eastern or western philosophy when it comes to the most basic questions of what it means to be a human being. Several main issues about the commensurability of philosophical traditions make up the subject matter of. He was born in a royal family at kapilavastu, on the foothills of himalaya, in the 6 th century bc. Pyrrho subsequently returned to greece and founded pyrrhonism. The great thinkers plato and aristotle created an entire system to explain all that existed in the world.
Rather than detail, emptiness and space are used to reflect the eastern view of holism. Eastern philosophy vs western philosophy when it comes to eastern philosophy vs western philosophy its all about the clash of civilization. Rhys davids in her book buddhist manual of psychological ethics wrote, buddhist philosophy is ethical first and last. Pdf history of western philosophy download full pdf book. Success is based on how much one walks his path without hurting. The key ideas of western philosophy issue 105 philosophy now. Western and buddhist scholars have found in buddhist teachings a detailed introspective phenomenological psychology. This reflects the western value of logic, linear perspective, detail, external perception, individuality. Western philosophy refers to the philosophical thought and work of the western world.
The difference between western and eastern philosophy by. Eastern philosophy general the basics of philosophy. Both western and eastern philosophy has lots of simliarities too. Comparative philosophy brings together philosophical traditions that have developed in relative isolation from one another and that are defined quite broadly along cultural and regional lines chinese versus western, for example. The differences listed below are heavily stereotyped, generalized, and polarized. Western philosophy began in 585 bc with the first philosopher. Man mackinnon senior supervisor professor, simon fraser university dr. African philosophy in comparison with western philosophy. Truly, barring scientific philosophy, the major lines. The ancient greek philosopher pyrrho accompanied alexander the great in his eastern campaigns, spending about 18 months in india.
The new issue of philosophy east and west features a special section, politics, nature, and society the actuality of north african philosopher ibn khaldun, guest edited by tamara albertini, as well as a book discussion on vrinda dalmiyas caring to know. The yearbook for eastern and western philosophy is a forum for philosophers and academics from china, germany, and europe. Ancient eastern philosophy unravels the tao, zen and other holistic ways of thinking about the self and the universe. Towards this end, accounts of happiness and optimal functioning provided in western philosophy and scientific psychology are compared with those in some eastern schools of thought namely, hinduism, buddhism, taoism, confucianism, and sufism. The difference between eastern and western philosophy. The pimlico history significantly broadens the scope of western philosophy to reveal the influence of middle eastern and asian thought, the vital contributions of jewish and islamic philosophers, and the role of women within the tradition. Eastern philosophy in clinical psychology refers to the influence of eastern philosophies on the practice of clinical psychology based on the idea that east and west are false dichotomies.
From there it continued to spread throughout greece. Ancient babylonian philosophy can be considered eastern in some ways, but it almost certainly had a strong influence on greek, particularly hellenistic, philosophy. Philosophy defined in its relationship to cultural traditions broadly integrates the professional discipline with literature, science, and social practices. In the western world, philosophy traces its beginnings to the ancient ionian city of miletus, the richest city in the ancient greek world. There is an emergent movement of scientists and scholars working on the dialogue and interaction between eastern philosophies and psychology. As such it brings together a series of specific historical and textual studies of oriental influence upon european thinkers. Historically, the term refers to the philosophical thinking of western culture, beginning with greek philosophy of the presocratics such as thales c. Eastern indian religions hinduism, buddhism, and jainism common features. Key concepts in eastern philosophy vedic illuminations. Most studies on eastern cultures over the past decades have come from china.
Nondualism is often thought to be an exclusively eastern teaching. In his seventy stanzas, nagarjuna shares his views on many eternal questions including inquiries into what it means to have a proper understanding. The influence of east on west of eastern ideas on western thought has become an increasingly vexed issue in recent times. Apparently the first to do so was thales the father of western philosophy, who initiated a. For example, indian and chinese philosophies are at least as distinct from each other as they are from western philosophy. History of western philosophy essential humanities. Western philosophy is much more of a monolithic structure than is eastern philosophy, in fact, eastern philosophy is only eastern from the perspective of the monolithic culture of western philosophy. Philosophy defined in its relationship to cultural traditions broadly integrates the professional discipline with literature, science, and. Compared to the western education, eastern education philosophy holds on to the concept of teaching.
Important for grasping the origins of western philosophy and science. Getty images crucially, our social orientation appears to spill over into more fundamental aspects of reasoning. By brian yan 10c conclusion personally i like eastern philosophy more because of its different approach on viewing certain ideas and how you need both sides of an idea in the answer. That being said, there are several rubrics available to broadly compare eastern and western thought, but, we must remember that when we do so we are doing this from a western perspective. Doctor of philosophy in search of intuitive knowledge. Eastern people live in time, which means that they follow the natural order of time to do what they ought to do and work step by step. May 25, 2016 the aim of this written work is to explore as to whether the twain connecting the east to the west from the perspective of philosophy and ideological thinking c. By and large, eastern philosophy differs from the western type in more than one respect. The history of philosophy must be understood as a series of serious intellectual and moral claims about fundamental issues.
According to the eastern worldview, god or the absolute, is an impersonal force that functions as the ground for all being. Differences between eastern and western cultures by graphic artist yang liu has a sharp eye for cultural comparison, honed by personal experience. Haldane university of nebraska press, 1995 ps primary source a primary source is a work that is being studied, or that provides firsthand or direct evidence on a topic. Shah jain study center of north carolina 401 farmstead drive, cary nc 275115631 email.
Eastern philosophy, on the other hand, is from confucianism, mahayana buddhism. Western philosophy was born during the archaic age of greece ca. Eastern philosophy in clinical psychology wikipedia. What are the major differences between eastern and western. A comparison of eastern and western epistemology dr. The western view to nutrition is already adopting certain attributes of the eastern medicine philosophy as exemplified by the progression towards individualized nutrition through methods such as nutrigenetics. While each eastern religion has its own distinct beliefs that separate it from others, there are enough common elements among these religions that allow us to speak of an eastern worldview. To understand western philosophy is to only get half the story.
Any internal change in the turkish domains caused tension among the european powers, each of which feared. Chinese and western thought knowing the differences helps. Students receive fully knowledge from the teachers inside the. Eastern philos ophy is sometimes taken to be more holistic, and has sought as its end some form of enlightenment, while western philosophy is more concerned with truth, logic, reason and individualism. Holistic thinking permeates eastern philosophy and culture credit. Western philosophy refers to philosophical thinking in the western or occidental world, beginning with ancient greece and rome, extending through central and western europe and, since columbus, the americas as opposed to eastern or oriental philosophies comprising indian, chinese, persian, japanese and korean philosophies and the varieties of indigenous.
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