Philosophy-Reviewer.docx

Philosophy Reviewer\ Lesson 4-5\ \ **Lesson 4\ Why Become a philosopher?\ On Attaining a Comprehensive Outlook in Life\ \ A. Western and Non-Western Tradition\ **- **3** Great Original Centers of Philosophy in the World: **Greek, Indian, Chinese\ **- Historically, **Asian classics of the Indians and...

Philosophy Reviewer\ Lesson 4-5\ \ **Lesson 4\ Why Become a philosopher?\ On Attaining a Comprehensive Outlook in Life\ \ A. Western and Non-Western Tradition\ **- **3** Great Original Centers of Philosophy in the World: **Greek, Indian, Chinese\ **- Historically, **Asian classics of the Indians and the Chinese** lived earlier than the Greeks\ - In the 1^st^ Century, there were **more philosophical activity in the East than in the West**\ - The Greek **Triumvirates: Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle\ **- In our present century, almost all the **major philosophical ideas emanates from Western thinkers** (Quito 1991)\ \ **Three Attitudinal Imperatives (Quito 1991)\ [1. THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE EAST AND THE WEST]\ A. Occidental or Western Mindset --** Linear Manner means **life begins and ends in a straight line.\ B.** **Oriental or Eastern Mindset** is **Circular Manner** which the end conjoins the beginning in a cyclic style.\ - Nothing begins absolutely or ends absolutely\ - The indispensable understanding of ***samsara* or rebirth** within the various spheres of life, the vegetative, animal, and human\ - The world did not have an absolute beginning but was **merely a continuation of an earlier world in an earlier time\ **- There is a succession of worlds and a succession of lives\ **[2. The attitudinal imperative is the assumption that the East does not make a rigorous distinction between Religion and Philosophy\ ]**- Basic philosophical concepts are **shrouded in religious beliefs and myths\ **- In the **East**, Philosophy is Religion and Religion is Philosophy\ - Life for Oriental thinkers is a translation of thought; it is **philosophy in action**\ - For Quito (1991), it is not accurate to judge that Asia is poor because of Religion\ - It is poor because it **cannot accept** the **polarization or division of theory and practice**, of philosophy and religion, of its way of thinking and its way of living.\ **[3. The third attitudinal imperative is the acceptance of the validity of intuition and mysticism, the readiness to revert to extra logical, if not illogical modes of thinking]**\ - Oriental thought **does not follow structured mode**. By its very nature, it cannot but be intuitive and mystic\ - The West must theorize and speculate; **no application to life is necessary**. Western philosophers render lip service; their application to practice is still being contested by other Western philosophers (Mitchell 2011)\ **\ Filipino Thinking: From Local to Global\ **Filipinos do have their own philosophy. The three dimensions of Filipino thought are:\ **1. *Loob: Holistic and Interior Dimensions*** *- kagandahang-loob, kabutihang-loob, kalooban -- the use of intermediaries, the values of loyalty, hospitality, pakikisama (camaraderie), respect to authority.* **2. Filipino Philosophy of Time** \- Time is considered cyclic. Gulong ng Palad nonetheless blends well with foreign philosophical ideas in the Asian region. It approaches karma of the Indians and yang and yin thought of the Chinese. \- Also, Filipino Time is interpreted as always delayed in the committed time of arrival. **3. *Bahala Na*** *- The Bahala Na philosophy puts complete trust in the Divine Providence.\ \ SA LARO NI TEACHER EDS\ [Transmigration: The movement of a soul into another body after death\ Lotus Flower: Associated with purity, spiritual awakening, and faithfulness]\ ***\ Lesson 5\ Methods of philosophizing\ **In search for wisdom, the learner must evaluate arguments and ways of expressing one's beliefs, emotions, and opinions. - Philosophizing is to **think or express** oneself in a philosophical manner. It considers or discusses a matter from a philosophical standpoint. - **PHENOMENOLOGY**: Truth is based on the person's consciousness. - **EXISTENSIALISM**: Truth is based in exercising choices and personal freedom. - **POSTMODERNISM**: It is accepted that truth is not absolute (i.e. cultural) - **LOGIC**: Truth is based on reasoning and critical thinking. **\ **