Today's Syllabus: 16 November 2009

4 Western vs. Eastern Thinking

4 An Introduction to Eastern Philosophies

4 The Vinegar Tasters

4 Taoism

4 Voices of Taoism

4 Confucianism

4 Voices of Confucianism

4 Excerpts from The Tao Te Ching of Lao Tzu

4 Excerpt from The Analects of Confucius

Due Wednesday 18 November 2009

4 Buddhism

4 The Story of the Buddha

4 Voices of Buddhism

4 Excerpts from The Dhammapada of Buddha

4 Identifying Eastern Voices in Poetry

4 Interpretations of Chinese Poetry

4 Hinduism

4 The Avatars of Vishnu

4 Reading Guide: The Ramayana (Prologue and chapters 1-2)

You may access and print every page of Unit 4 by clicking the following link.

Today's Topics

Eastern Philosophies and Scriptural Literature

I introduced three main Eastern philosophies today and reviewed some scriptural literature that illustrates these ideas.

Taoism

Taoism, a feminine philosophy, asks us to go with the flow of life and to not resist change, which is the law of life.

Here are some explanations of Taoism from its source, The Tao Te Ching, found on pages 346-352 of your coursepacket:

Passages from The Tao Te Ching	Commentary
"Even the finest teaching is not the Tao itself. Even the finest name is insufficient to define it" (1).	The Tao cannot be understood with words, much like the concept of love cannot be represented fairly by any one definition, poem, or song lyric.
"Great good is said to be like water, sustaining life with no conscious striving, flowing naturally, providing nourishment, found even in places in which a desiring man rejects" (8).	Much like water, the Tao flows and conforms to its setting. Water fits into the little cracks and can help us to see the need to be flexible and adaptive.
"The Tao is abstract, and therefore has no form. It is neither bright in rising, nor dark in sinking. It cannot be grasped, and it makes no sound. Without form or image, without existence, the form of the formless is beyond defining, cannot be described, and is beyond our understanding. It cannot be called by any name. Standing before it, it has no beginning; even when followed, it has no end. In the now, it exists. To the present apply it, follow it well, and reach its beginning" (14).	If you picture the yin/yang, you realize that one side cannot overtake the other, revealing a balance in duality. Every end is a beginning to something else. This helps us to avoid thinking in straight lines, instead reflecting on the cyclical nature of everything around us.
"The external world is fragile, and he who meddles with its natural way risks causing damage to himself. He who tries to grasp it, thereby loses it. It is natural for things to change -- sometimes being ahead, sometimes behind. [...] Sometimes one is strong, and sometimes weak, sometimes healthy, and sometimes sick, sometimes first, and at other times behind. The sage does not try to change the world by force, for he knows that force results in force. He avoids extremes and excesses, and does not become complacent" (29).	To Eastern philosophers, change is the universal law of life. One must accept change and not be attached to the past. Eastern philosophers believe that the present moment, the "here and now," is the only moment with which we should be concerned.
"The motion of nature is cyclic and returning. Its way is to yield, for to yield is to become. All things are born of being; being is born of non-being" (40).	Eastern thinkers use the words "being" and "becoming" to illustrate the changes in nature that fold into themselves, like one season preparing the world for the next.
"Only the soft overcomes the hard, by yielding, bringing it to peace. Even where there is no space, that which has no substance enters in. Through these things is shown the value of the natural way" (43).	Since Taoism is a feminine ideal, taking the role of the more flexible option makes one stronger in the end because of adaptability. Think back to "The Oak and the Reed" poem that I read on the first day of class.
"Man is born gentle and supple. At death, his body is brittle and hard. Living plants are tender and filled with life-giving sap, but at their death they are withered and dry. The stiff, the hard, and the brittle are harbingers of death, but gentleness and yielding are the signs of that which lives" (76).	Again, the affinity for that which is malleable and soft allows an individual to "go with the flow" and avoid pushing things too far. If you have no musical ability, don't try to be a music major. Follow what your natural talents allow you to pursue with enjoyment.

Confucianism

Confucius wanted people to follow a rigid ethical code that promoted discipline, study, and kindness toward others. It is a masculine philosophy and the most dogmatic of the Eastern beliefs.

Here is some analysis of the scriptural work of Confucianism, The Analects, located on pages 352-368 in your coursepackets:

Passages from The Analects	Commentary
7:1 Confucius said: "I am a transmitter, rather than an original thinker. I trust and enjoy the teachings of the ancients." 7:19 Confucius said: "I was not born with wisdom. I love the ancient teachings and have worked hard to attain to their level."	These passages come from the subsection "Confucius' Character." They reveal the Master's penchant for studying and attaining knowledge. Without study, one may repeat the mistakes of the past or be fooled by a slick salesman. Unlike Taoism, Confucianism prides itself on training the mind with discipline in order to attain higher levels of human achievement.
10:10 When eating, he did not converse. When in bed, he did not speak. 10:12 If his mat was not straight, he did not sit on it.	These passages come from the subsection "Confucius' Character" as well. Notice that, to Confucius, everything has its time and place. When eating and sleeping, one should not talk, as everything is most proper when utilized as intended.
2:13 Tzu Kung asked about the character of the Superior Man. Confucius said: "First he practices what he preaches, and then he follows it."	This passage comes from the subsection "The Superior Man." This concept sets the goal of every person to achieve his or her potential, most likely through study. One should not only say the right words but also put them into consistent action. It's easy to be good for one day, but can you be consistently good?
4:11 Confucius said: "The Superior Man cares about virtue; the inferior man cares about material things. The Superior Man seeks discipline; the inferior man seeks favors." 13:23 Confucius said: "The Superior Man is in harmony, but does not follow the crowd. The inferior man follows the crowd, but is not in harmony."	These passages also come from the subsection "The Superior Man." They point to the motivation of the scholar. Will you get a college degree to please others or to learn about the world? Many people attend college simply because their parents expect them to or because most of their friends are doing it. Are these adequate reasons if one wants to stand alone from the crowd?
2:15 Confucius said: "To study and not think is a waste; to think and not study is dangerous." 2:17 Confucius said: "Yu, shall I teach you about knowledge? What you know, you know; what you don't know, you don't know. This is knowledge." 15:15 Confucius said: "If a man doesn't continually question, 'What is it? What is it?' then I don't know what I can do for him."	These passages come from the subsection "Study and Knowledge." These get at the heart of what the Master means by proper study. As simple as it sounds, one who attains knowledge simply knows things and can separate facts from opinions. In Greece at the same time (5th century BCE), Socrates was reported to have said the following: "The only thing that I know is that I know nothing." Now this is knowledge!
6:15 Confucius said: "Who can go out without using the door? So why doesn't anybody follow the Tao?"	This passage comes from the subsection "Tao." Notice that Confucianists (and Buddhists) believe that the Tao as the controlling force of Nature. If a door allows you to enter and exit a room, then why would you attempt to do so any other way? Use things as they are intended. Walk into the room through the door because that's its purpose. Hammer a nail into wood with a hammer, not a wrench.
3:17 Tzu Kung wanted to do away with the sacrifice of the sheep on the first of the month. Confucius said: "Tz'u, you love the sheep; but I love the ceremony."	This passage comes from the subsection "Miscellaneous." Confucius was strict in his adherence to traditions and rituals that connect society through the ages. Attend to traditions and keep them alive. If you don't, you will lose essential wisdom that can be communicated through these experiences.

Quiz 8

NOTE: Quiz 8 is formatted differently than the previous quizzes. Instead of three questions, I have provided seven passages from Chinese poetry for you to identify as representations of either Taoism, Confucianism, or Buddhism.

Each response will ask you to circle one of these three choices and then defend your selection with a 2-3-sentence statement that refers to the passage. Each answer will be scored on a 3-point scale, meaning that there will be 21 total points possible on Quiz 8 (as opposed to the typical 13 possible points on the other quizzes). Quiz 8 is not worth more than any other quiz (the only difference is the number of questions).

Please contact me if you are having difficulties with this quiz.

To assist you further, I recommend reading pages 339-345 in the coursepackets where I model this task with similar Chinese poems.

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