Chinese PhilosophyI. Cosmology and world-

viewGeir Sigurðsson

Icelandic Centre for Asian Studies, University of Akureyri

11.12.2006

The power of cosmology

• The “cosmos” may not be so distant

• Our understanding of the world informs:– Meaning– Goals– Values– Actions/responses– Thus, quotidian

behaviour

...lest be bombarded with rotten tomatoes

• On generalizations:– Limited and often questionable– But inescapable– And: „the exception proves the rule“

• Philosophy schools both in China and the West are many and variable

• But have common (cultural) characteristics

• Philosophy as “truth“ or deepest structural layer of culture

Filosofia vs. 哲学• „Filo-sofia“ = love of

(theoretical) wisdom (Socrates)

• Contra practical use – „Wisdom for the sake of wisdom“ (Aristotle)

• Emphasis on reason – distrust of sense-experience. (Plato, Descartes)

• „Metaphysics“ – intelligible nature of the world, accessible only to philosophers (Plato)

• 哲 rather indicates practical and communicable knowledge

• 口 = mouth, 手 = hand, 斤 = tool

• The value of wisdom consists in its usefulness for everyday life

• „Know how“ rather than „know what“

• Wisdom is gained here and now, in mundane life

“Doesn’t time pass by just like this, never ceasing day or night!’” • How do we, Westerners,

understand world-operations?• Chinese starting point is not

“cause,” “creation” or “cosmos”, but that which exists now 世界，宇宙

• Tang Junyi (1909-1978): 生生不已• General assumption of the

ceaseless movement of the world:– Book of Changes (Yijing 易经 )

More on changes

• The world is self-engendering, no “prime mover – 自然 (self-so) instead of 使然 (made-so) – „a web without a weaver“

• Recurring (but not identical) elements, such as day and night, seasons, tide: “Returning is the movement of the dao” (DDJ 40) – time as a spiral

• The five phases (wu xing 五行 ) – water, fire, metal, wood, earth

Dual harmony but no “dualism”

• Harmony of opposing powers/dimensions– yin and yang 阴阳 , in and out 内外 , heaven and earth

天地– Tang Junyi: inseparability of the one and the many 一

多不分观– Harmony of the whole rather than logical hierarchy

• Rejection of dilemmas– Appearance is reality– mind (xin 心 ) and body (shen 身 )– Matter and spirit = qi 气

• No reductionism– All things are interrelated– “Essence” of thing is constituted by relations– No “substances” – nothing is “in-itself”

More characteristics

• No determinism, but dispositions: Tang Junyi non-fixed “destiny” 无定命观

• Focus on taking advantage of the chances opening up in the flow of things, 势， 时中

• Way 道 instead of truth• Right thinking instead of the right to

think• Strong (holy?) social awareness

– ren 仁 , renjia 人家 , shehui 社会 , xiao 孝 , li 礼

Some potential consequences

• More flexibility – less exactitute (e.g. Lin Yutang)?

• Scientific holism – negligence of natural laws?• Focus on circumstances rather than rules and

principles – can rules be broken if no one finds out?

• Focus on the present/serenity – carelessness/lack of responsibility?

• Focus on skill – opportunism?• Social holism – individual sacrificed for the

whole?• Family orientation – corruption/lack of care for

strangers?

Philosophy or religion?

• Again: rejection of dilemmas• “The question “is Confucianism a

religion?” is a question that Westerners could never answer and the Chinese could never ask” Wilfred Cantwell Smith

Some characteristics of Chinese religion (and

philosophy?)• No (or vague) transcendence• inseparability of “heaven” and “earth” 天

地• Gods are not omnipotent – shang di 上帝 –

first/supreme?• Gods are not chronologically prior to

world – no creation myth, cf. Daodejing 25• Focus on interhuman relations rather than

relations with gods – Analects, 11.12.• Distant respect for gods, not love for

them – Analects, 6.22

Harmony of heaven (nature) and human being

天人合一

Ancient philosophy schools

• Confucianism (rujia 儒家 ): 6th c. BCE

• Daoism (daojia 道家 ): 6th c. BCE• Legalism (fajia 法家 ): 5th c. BCE• Mohism (mojia 墨家 ): 5th c. BCE• Logicians (mingjia 名家 ): 5th c.

BCE• Buddhism (fojiao 佛家 ): 1st c. CE

Later schools:

• Neo-Confucianism (songming rujia 宋明儒家 ): 10th-19th century

• New Confucianism (xin rujia 新儒家 ): 19th-21st century