Who are you? Who am I? | Week 26

July | Philosophy and Religion | Week 26 | 7/2/2023

Talk about the synergies between Eastern Thought and Western Thought

Theologians and philosophers alike develop silos of ego, compartmentalized into self-containing rationalization, all born of competitiveness. It is a natural inclination to prove and disprove. It is counterintuitive to subject matter expertise to find similarity rather than identify difference. I grew up Catholic and rarely did I consider the larger philosophical and religious landscape of the world, until I learned of the world. Upon reading the texts of the stoics, who predated Christ, I saw parallel conclusions about fundamental features of the human nature. In deep diving the Old Testament, I discovered archetypes which could be found in ancient Egypt and ancient China. And in Japan, visiting the Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines, I learned of the connection between observation, self-regulation, nature, and enlightenment, a central theme in both Stoicism and Christianity. Why did the yin and yang symbol strike me as the memorialization of Satan and Christ? Why did the Buddhist shrine remind me of the Tabernacle? And why were the lessons in The Power of Now both Eastern and Western, religious and philosophical simultaneously? I began thinking, perhaps there is more in common between the Buddha, Moses, Marcus Aurelius, Jesus, Lao Tzu, Abraham and Confucius, than there is different. 

First and foremost, there is a difference between a religion and a philosophy, but one which I'd argue is subtle. There is an inevitability the philosophy and religiosity, due to the fundamental subject matters of which both investigate, articulate and attempt to form unity around. I'm convinced of a synergy and common language. The principles which form the infrastructure for societies in the East and West are colloquially called Eastern Thought and Western Thought. It is my opinion that the truths embedded in both are the same truths, perhaps exchanged somewhere on the Silk Road in 200 BC, or in Tibet sometime during the Lost Years of Jesus Christ, or through the collective consciousness tapped into by the kind of meditation described to us in the Bhagavad Gita. Whatever the medium, the overlap cannot be ignored, and is worth contemplation.  

[1] The first concept which comes to mind is the idea of oneness. In Taoism, the Tao is the source, pattern and substance of all things, and followers of Taoism are tasked with living in harmony with it. In Christianity, the Holy Spirit is largely the same idea - the animating spirit in and around us which is the divine force of quality and influence of God. In Stoicism, the idea of Sympatheia is the mutual interdependence of everything in the universe. All are describing one common idea, that the fabric of our reality, and the substance of the universe is synonymous with God, and that reality and divinity are unified through a medium which we inhabit and interact with, and which inhabits us and impacts us. Carl Jung believed we could bear witness to the interaction in our lives of the Tao or the Holy Spirit in the type of coincidences we observe but cannot explain. He coined this term, Synchronicity.  

[2] The second overlapping theme is that living with oneness is "good". In Taoism, the concept of Ziran means naturalness and spontaneity and comes from the character Zi = oneself and Ran = right, which essentially bundles up to the following: the naturalness of reality is when one is right with oneself. A similar concept in Taoism is Pu, or simplicity, the natural state of humanity, implying that there is a way in which living with oneness is right for us. Together, Pu and Ziran inform us that living right with oneself is living right with the reality around us. In Christianity, God often describes his creations and actions as "good". In the first lines of Genesis, on each day of God's creation of the universe, it is described as such: "And God saw that the light was good, "God called the dry land Earth, and the waters gathered together were called Seas. And God saw that it was good." Genesis verses 12, 18, 21 and 25 continue this theme, relaying the message to us that the nature and fabric of which we live in is fundamentally good, and Adam and Eve are called upon to be arbiters of this reality and exercise dominion in a way which honors God. Living with oneness is essentially living with the reality with which we find ourselves in. In Stoicism, the concept of Amor Fati or lover of fate, is very similar to Ziran and Pu - that we should accept (and love) the conditions for which we receive life, and live in harmony with nature, both human nature and mother nature, instead of fighting it. Even in Shintoism, the religion which permeates Japan singularly, the very Gods or Kami are forces of nature, of qualities which inhabit us, which concretizes the idea of oneness. But to go further, the followers of that religion honor the Kami through the peaceful inhabitance with one another and with nature. 

[3] In relation to oneness, the third theme is that the investigation of oneness is virtuous, beneficial, and necessary. In Classical Western Philosophy, two very old phrases come to mind, Temet Nosce and Sapere Aude - know thyself and dare to know - the investigation of oneself and the investigation of the world - the outside world and the inner. In Buddhism we learn of the importance of meditation and in Christianity we learn of prayer. These are action-based requests which embody each of the Latin phrases above - investigating the self, investigating the fabric of our reality and querying the creator of such, for discernment, assistance and guidance in living correctly with it. Buddhism showcases many similarities with these concepts, particularly in the pathway and stepwise function of Nirvana or enlightenment. Kensho is the initial insight into one's true nature, achieved through meditation. And Satori is the full, deep, experience of enlightenment which allows one to reach the steady state of Nirvana. The common theme is that there is a investigative practice which leads to knowing oneself and in such, an outcome of knowing reality or oneness. The most prominent and perhaps most applicable example of this investigation into the nature of oneness is the observation of the cross and its profound impact on our ability to cope with the difficulty of life. The bible verse John 3:14 references an old testament narrative which parallels for us the concepts of observation and reflection as being the twin scrolls of understanding eternal truth, no different than Temet Nosce and Sapere Aude, or Kensho and Satori. Even in Buddhism, standing at the alter of a temple, the kanji characters which hang above your eyes translate to "Observe".   

[4] The last theme which both Eastern philosophy and Western philosophy converge on is the following: the way to embody oneness is through the discipline of living with and investigating oneness, and that such a framework is redemptive for the individual and the collective. 

Part A is the convergence in "the way". In the Old Testament, God wrestles with Jacob, and then gives him the name Israel, which means "to wrestle with God." The Jews consider themselves to be Israelites or God's chosen people, directly translating to "those whom wrestle with God", implying that to contend with the highest morality is found in wrestling/contending with the concepts of divinity and oneness. In Marcus Aurelius' Meditations, we learn of a Stoic heuristic for life: the obstacle is the way. This echoes the Israel anecdote, with implications that the embodiment of oneness lies where the obstacle is. As Jesus says in John 14:6, "I am the way, the truth, the life and the life." In Buddhism, the most important tenets of understanding reality lie in the 4 Noble Truths which are: (1) Suffering exists/life is suffering, (2) there is a cause to suffering which can be investigated, (3) we can put an end to suffering, (4) the path/the way to ending suffering is through the Eight Fold Path. In each case, there is a way, a path, to enlightenment, to heaven, to the embodiment of oneness, and in every case it lies within the obstacle itself, within the investigation and incorporation of oneness. 

Part B is the convergence on the idea of steps along the path/the way/the discipline we are called to exercise and the convergence on what those steps are. In the Old Testament, Moses is given the 10 Commandments; the first and most concise list of many rules to follow. In the New Testament, the gentiles are given the life of Jesus himself as the character to embody. In Matthew 10:34, he says "I did not come to bring peace, but a sword." "Sword" in this passage is the same term used in the book of Hebrews to depict scripture's ability to separate truth and error (Hebrews 4:12). Meaning that, his life, what he stood for and what he did, is the model for Christians to embody in order to live within oneness. That is the way. In Buddhism, the Eightfold Path is a series of instructions in the way to act in discipline according to a set of correct behaviors, which will end the suffering of reality and therefore propel oneself to the embodiment of oneness - nirvana. Those behaviors are [1] right speech, [2] right action, [3] right livelihood, [4] right effort, [5] right mindfulness, [6] right concentration, [7] right thought, and [8] right understanding. The behaviors listed here are reminiscent of the 10 Commandments, albeit less prescriptive and specific. Even the rules and disciplines themselves are quite similar. In Taoism, the way is through the Three Treasures: compassion, frugality, humility. In Christianity, there are the 7 Virtues which directly oppose the 7 Deadly Sins, giving us not only a window into what we should do but everything we mustn't do as well. The most concise summary of these steps, these actions, these disciplines which form the path or the way to embodiment of oneness, can be found in the 4 Cardinal Virtues, part of the 7 Virtues of Christianity, but far older than Christianity. 

The 4 Cardinal virtues first appeared in Plato's Republic, Book 4. The Stoic Cicero later summarized them, along with commentary from Aristotle, Solomon, Saint Augustine and Thomas Aquinas. Cicero wrote, "Virtue may be defined as a habit of the mind in harmony with reason and the order of nature. It has four parts, wisdom (prudence), justice, courage (fortitude), temperance." The reason I think this perfectly intersects the different disciplines embedded in Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism, Taoism, and Stoicism is the following: Virtue is a Christian/Jewish staple. Habit of the Mind is a core tenet of Buddhism. Harmony with reason is crucial to Stoicism, Harmony with nature is the crux of Taoism. And the words themselves, Temperance, Prudence (Wisdom), Justice, and Fortitude (Courage) are found across both Eastern and Western Thought.