Impermanence and Death in Sino-Japanese Philosophical Context :: Philosophy Buddhism Papers

Impermanence and Death in Sino- Nipponese Philosophical ContextThis paper discusses the nonions of impermanence and death as treated in the Chinese and Japanese philosophical traditions, particularly in connection with the Buddhist concept of emptiness and void and the original Daoist answers to the problem. Methodological problems are menti integrityd and two ways of glide path the theme are proposed the logically discursive and the meditative mystical one, with the two symbols of each, Uroboros and the open circle. The switch of consciousness is suggested as an essential condition for liberation of the egotism and its illusions. Rational logic as well as the sophisticated meditative ways of selflessness and detachment are suggested when treating the Chinese and Japanese philosophical notions, and examples of the discussed topics from the texts given. The elucidative seventh chapter of the classical Daoist work, Lie Zi, is analyzed in detail and put into contrast with the answer s given to that problem in the Greco-Judeo-Christian tradition. When reflecting on immortality, longevity, death and suicide, or pickings into consideration some of the central concepts of the Sino-Japanese philosophical tradition, much(prenominal) as impermanence (Chinese wuchang, Japanese mujo), we see that the philosophical methods developed in the Graeco-Judaeo-Christian tradition might not be genuinely suitable. On the other hand, it is instructive to put them into contrast with the similar themes developed in the Graeco-Judeo-Christian tradition, since these problems present a challenge for a redefinition of doctrine which has traditionally regarded itself as a European (and in an even less acceptable variation as a Western) phenomenon and therefore today the very borders of philosophical discourse known in European history as philosophia are reexamined (affected).By rethinking the history of philosophy as a single narrative, one might come closer to the movements related to the levels of consciousness that were activated in philosophical undertakings in various Asian philosophical schools. In this regard Japanese and Chinese philosophical traditions might be instructive, since from the beginning through the various stages of their development they have attempted to put into delivery the inexpressible. The awareness of the insufficiency of words brought many original solutions. In the Song dynasty, for instance China produced a variety of diagrams (tu), by which the philosophers and practitioners represented their theories, which often arose on the basis of meditation techniques and could not be fully transmitted by means of language alone. The illustration of the nine step process (known in Japan as kuso) is one such representation and it is taken here as a starting point for approaching the concept of impermanence and death in the Japanese philosophical