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Understanding of existentialism
Essays on existential theory
Essays on existential theory
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Whenever we see or think of something, we picture its image with matched meanings and specific traits already ‘cooked’ in mind. We are used to regarding these meanings and qualities to be inherent in the thing itself rather than attached. It might be wondered by some people what is the ‘authenticity’ or nature of all things, so a way of removing all words and concepts which human could come up with to describe one thing has been tried out to see what is left for us to perceive then. Both Daoism and Existentialism adopt this way to question the nature of existence in the world and then lay out respective propositions based on their observations. This is like the first step in a knocking-down construction. Daoism and Existentialism firstly
agree on one view concerning the relationship between the ‘matter’ and the mind — the originality of a matter is usually wrapped by human’s established ideas, so the first step they take to unwrap is alike. In some cases which may be experienced by many, Sartre’s feeling of meaninglessness of a substantial object could be shared. For instance, when you repeatedly write down a known Chinese character for 30 times, or you stare at a wire pole for 15 minutes, all of a sudden all thoughts about that are gone, and that object seems to be stunningly bare, meaningless and unrecognisable — this is a state which Sartre regards as ‘attaining direct consciousness of pure materiality’. As a result, for existentialist Sartre and Camus, they think the nature of existence is nothingness and purposeless, which is absurd and frightful, and it is only human beings that could give meaning to the material world. Further, they contend that we should actively face the world, define oneself and the world, and build up our existence against the absurdity and meaninglessness of material reality. For Daoists, after peeling off all humanly ascribes meanings and ends of objects, they think there is intrinsic value which Daoism refers to as Dao that is more precious than ‘usefulness’ in human’s definition. Thus, they are opposed to human intervention (carve the block) and advocate a return to nature, to the pure simplicity (道法自然 返璞歸真) through letting things be and acting nothing (無為) in order to find the Dao.
Daoism is a Chinese philosophy that focuses on Dao, or, "the way". Daoists believe in the supernatural, nature, and hope to understand the natural principles that governed the world and how we could learn to live in harmony with them. Judge Dee relies heavily on spiritual inspiration when all else fails. When Judge Dee was having a hard time solving the Bee Hsun case, he decided to go to the city temple, and pray. Judge Dee thought that begging to the "Powers on High" (79) would show him to the way of this case. This suggests that the magistrate depends on spiritual forces in times of need. After, he tries to meditate, which is also a Daoist idea. "He sat down on the cushion, with crossed legs and his body erect. Closing his eyes, he tried to achieve a tranquil state of mind." (79) Judge Dee was using meditation, which is to reach a level of spiritual peace by becoming one with your surroundings, which is very Daoist. This shows that Judge Dee uses Daoist qualities in attempt to be a more effective
... subtle and elusive. It can’t be named, held, seen, or heard, but it is the essence of it. It is part of us and everything around us. It is first and foremost life itself. Unfortunately, we do not recognize it unless we truly destroy of our ignorance. Daoism and Hinduism influenced the Dao and the Brahman in their own unique ways but the core remains the same – indescribable. The Dao is motion-like and entails a process thus called “The Way,” while the Brahman relates to the transcendent spirit. Perhaps each possesses its own cultural uniqueness originating from India and China but both are pointing to the fundamental nature of reality. The Dao and the Brahman are in nature, are natures; they are the life force, and the core of nature. In order to experience them, we must at least follow world-renowned martial artists, Bruce Lee’s advice: “Be like water, my friend.”
For example, he argues, that the experience of temperature can be understood with the analogy of the experience of pain, and just as the pain is not 'in the needle', so the warmth I feel is not in the fire. (2) He then argues in a similar vein that visual experience is reducible to collections of colour sensations because light passes into the eye ball and strikes the retina, in much the same way that a sharp object striking the skin produces a sensation of pain, such as a sensation of blue or red. (3) The sensation being the effect of the physical and chemical properties of the world on the sense organs and is as distinct from the world as photographic images are from the objects which cause them.
Let’s say that you had to choose to believe in one of the following schools of philosophies: Existentialism and Nihilism. Which one would you choose? You wouldn’t take a long time deciding because these two are significantly different from each other. Existentialism is appreciating life and living life passionately. It is believing that one’s actions determine his own fate, meaning that it all depends on the choices one makes throughout life. Nihilism, however, is the exact opposite. Anything that restrains you from living life to the fullest is considered nihilistic. It is the belief of not believing in anything, assuming it’s worthless. In Grendel, the two most dominant schools of philosophy presented are Existentialism and Nihilism. Grendel
While possessing similar goals, Confucianism and Daoism texts have conflicting information on how to achieve these goals. Confucianism and Daoism have some similarities such as the belief that “human fulfillment lay in harmonizing our thinking and behavior with the Way (dao)” and a refinement of the self to gain an objective (Adler, Chinese Religious Traditions, 15). Both traditions recognize that we can do better as humans. While there are similarities between these religious traditions, their written teachings have very different instruction on how to achieve the Dao. Confucianism encourages the notion of ru, which is “evoking a commitment to learning, refinement, cultural accomplishments, and the practice of rites and
It was created in China And Lao-Tzu was a person who showed and experienced it. Tao Te Ching is the primary text of Daoism. It includes philosophy, mysticism, consideration and lyrics. Daoism focusses in detail on the connection between the humankind and the world. The essential idea of Chinese philosophy, Dao, can be literally translated as “path”, “way”, “road” or “method”. It has the three meanings: the way of ultimate reality, the way of the universe and the way of human life. People cannot perceive Dao in its first concept. It even cannot be obviously comprehended, as its idea is too enormous and vast for human’s mind. In Dao’s next perspective, it is the way of the universe, the standard, the tempo, the power in everything. In the third sense, it signifies the manner of people’s lives. These paths of Daoism are joined. Daoists cannot practice one of them without experiencing all three. There are three approaches to Daoism. The first one is philosophical. It tries to keep ch’e by consuming it efficiently. It is more an approach to life so it can be used widely. The next one is psychophysical. Following it, Daoists try not only to consume, but also to increase the amount of ch’e. It can be done with the help of a diet (a wide range of Chinese foods and herbs), martial arts (psychophysical disciplines) and meditation (yoga). The last approach is religious Daoism. It is mostly based on Chinese folk religions. This approach was greatly influenced with Buddhism. Lao-Tzu was accepted as a deity by its followers. The main idea of Philosophical Daoism is to live life flowing slowly and making no efforts. Life’s goal is stated in Tao Te Ching’ s idea, "The way to do is to be" (Smith 198). In this meaning, no action is needed. Human life is compared to the stream of water. It adjusts itself to its surrounding and tries to find the
Although there is a enormous amount of literature involved with Daoism, the Daoist canon itself contains 1,120 volumes (Coogan 241), there are two texts that are the heart and soul of Daoism; the Tao Teh Ching and the Zhuangzi. The Tao Teh Ching was legendarily written by Lao Tzu himself and is the basis for much of what Daoists believe. With just over five thousand Chinese characters, the Tao Teh Ching addresses confusing questions with confusing answers, providing advice that is at once practical and impractical. Although the debate rages over whether it is a collection of works from separate authors or a true compilation of the potentially real Lao Tzu, the Tao Teh Ching's philosophies on life and the Dao are remarkable. They are, but they aren't. It is, but it isn't. Full of sagacity and wisdom, the Tao Teh Ching first addresses the issue of the Dao and its place as a core belief among Daoists.
While the Way can be considered an intangible idea of how to live your life, others believe it is an omnipotent force that shapes all things and cannot be named. Confucianists believe the former, where they have a superior chance of achieving a better life through ritual. Daoists, however, trust in nonaction, in not interfering with nature, to have a better and longer life. Conversely, the Daoist idea can only hold true in an ideal society, since it would be hard to employ. I will argue that a Confucianist society is better, because it relies on action in a society, the use of virtue with rituals to learn, and the overall betterment of the self to create order in the community as a means of reaching Way.
Taoism is the school of philosophy that stresses on the importance of living harmoniously with the essence of our human nature and the nature that surround us. Taoism follows the principle of Laozi, who is the author of the book called Dao De Jing. Similar to Confucius’s The Analect, Dao De Jing is a guideline to understand the concept of virtue and how path to archive it. The ideology of Taoism is considered the polar opposite of Confucianism. Taoism illustrates the meaning of life through the concept of Dao which translate as "the way". They believed that everything happens naturally in the world, from the changing of the seasons to our nature to grow and change based on our surrounding nature. So in order for an individual to grow and improve themselves over a certain period of time, an individual must not hurry and change based on all the changes happening around them, as it would violate their own nature and steer them down to a wrong path. What that person need to do is to act naturally upon their nature. If no action is required of the individual to change the law of nature, then any action they take will be forced and unnecessary. This is the concept of wei wu-wei, which can be translate as “Action with Non-Action”. An example of wu-wei when Laozi said: “Do not exalt the worthy, so that the people shall not compete. Do not value rare treasures, so that the people shall not steal. Do not display objects
"Dao" is used as a general name for any kind of native Chinese religion or ancient belief. From ancestor worship to Taoist philosophy in Han Dynasty, it has strong connections with rules, principles, states, ultimate truth and so on (Huber & Zhao, 2011). Confucianism and Taoism inherit the essence of “Dao”, which have common pursuit and different thoughts in terms of politic and values. Confucianism is a both philosophy and religion, while Taoist thinking transferred from philosophy to Taoism that influences deeply to the Han Dynasty. Taoism is basically a term for China’s indigenous philosophies and religious beliefs, indicating as China’s main religion that colors all the others.
“Be strong yet supple, this is the way to rule.” (Lee, CTHD 2000). This quote is the perfect example of both Confucianism and Daoism. From the Analects: “Confucius said: … ‘If a ruler himself is upright, all will go well without orders. But if he himself is not upright, even though he gives orders they will not be obeyed.’ [XIII:6]” (de Bary, Confucius, 32), this implies that when one acts with virtue and responsibility, others in the community will reciprocate. From the Dao De Qing: “Since [water] is without strife, it is without reproach.” (de Bary, Taoism, 53), this means that if everyone were to listen to their intuition and take life as it comes, there is no need for blame and hate. Self regulation in East Asian societies depend of both Confucianism and Daoism. Although Daoism and Confucianism are on opposite ends of the spectrum, it is still the same spectrum of self regulation. The Daoist principles of open mindedness and oneness and the Confucian principles of virtue and kindness are shown by the Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon characters Li Mu Bai, Shu Lien, Jen, and Lo.
The Existential Approach stands for respect for the person, for exploring new aspects of human behavior, and for divergent methods of understanding people (Corey, 2013). Existentialists do not focus on instinctive drives or internalized others but on the person's unavoidable confrontation with the givens of the human condition. Yalom (1980) described those givens as death, freedom, isolation, and meaninglessness. (Bauman, & Waldo, 1998).
The principle in life is that life is suffering in Buddhism, while life is good in Daoism. For Buddhism it is the cycle of suffering that brings it into the cycle of reincarnation. The emotions of greed and jealousy is what plays into the cycle because it slows the process of enlightenment. To escape the suffering and the cycle of birth and death is when the end goal of Nirvana¬ can be obtained. Yet the end goal in Daoism is to live a peaceful and content life and to be with the Dao. Even though there are desires which tempt the subject away from the Dao, if this attachment can be let go, then there would be harmony with nature. To gain balance in life, be one with nature and to go with its flow instead of counteracting it, is when the end goal will be
Ontology visual artwork may be considered comparable with other artifacts ontology success as a result of painting produced by a piece of material that is above the canvas with paint smears on it. This analogy can also be described with a spoon made from a parti...
To be a teacher it is imperative to have philosophies on teaching; why you want to teach, how you want to teach, and what you want to teach. There are six main philosophies of education; essentialism, behaviorism, progressivism, existentialism, perennialism, and reconstructionism. My two strongest philosophies are progressivism and existentialism. Progressivism in short is the philosophy where the student utilizes their ability to access knowledge for themselves with a method they have discovered on their own instead of simply being told answers. This creates deeper thinking. Existentialism is the philosophy that the student decides how and what they will learn, they also decide what they think to be true and false. This creates