Eastern Philosophy Exam 2

Atman

self/soul

Maya

illusion/deception

Avidya

ignorance

Samsara

Reincarnation, cycle of rebirth

Moksha

Hindu enlightenment

Tat tvam asi

“That you are”, means that atman is brahman

Atman is brahman

the soul is ultimate reality (universal soul)

Vedas and Upanishads

hindu texts (upanishads has reincarnation), vedas oldest text

Jiva

when atman is in a living body

Gross Body

physical body

Subtle body

subtle and causal (karma sticks to subtle body) (atman and subtle body reborn in hindu)

Bhagavad Gita and death

teaches that death is not an end, but a natural transition of the eternal soul from one body to another (believes in reincarnation), death is an illusion (maya), it appears that people die but that's an illusion because atman can not be destroyed, krishna and arjuna story

The story of the Buddha and the mustard seed

 tells the story of Kisa Gotami, a grieving mother who lost her son. She brings the body to the Buddha, who asks her to find a mustard seed from a household that has never experienced death. Kisa goes door to door, and with each house, she learns of a death, eventually realizing that death is a universal and inescapable part of life. The parable teaches the importance of accepting impermanence and that suffering is a shared human experience, which helps alleviate the feeling of isolation in grief. (the point of the story is compassion, not cruelty or tough love)

The 5 remembrances

1. There is no way to escape growing old

2. There is no way to escape ill health

3. There is no way to escape death

4. There is no way to escape being separated from your loved ones

5. There is no way to escape the consequences of your actions, your actions are the ground upon which you stand.

Nirvana

buddhist enlightenment

Dukkha

suffering

Anicca

impermanence

Anatman

no self (buddhist)

3 signs of existence in buddhism

Dhukka, anicca, anatman

Conflict in believing in both anatman and reincarnation (samsara)

There would be no soul to get reincarnated, buddhists believe the karma gets reincarnated - there's no atman so what gets reborn? Hindu - atman and subtle body, Buddhist - (no such thing as atman or subtle body) karmic residue

What happens to the arhat (“saint”) after death

buddhist - says the question doesn’t make any sense, there is no arhat because there is no atman

Karmic residue

what gets reincarnated in buddhist views

Reincarnation in terms of continuity without identity

there is reincarnation, no atman, but karmic residue goes forward

Confucius on immortality

dont know, dont care. Confucius focused on living a virtuous and moral life on Earth rather than the afterlife, famously stating, "Not yet understanding life, how would you understand death?"

Ancestor veneration

Preserves the memory upon generations of somebody

Li

ritual, etiquette, propriety

Wang Ch’ung

opposed confucian death rituals, he thought all the superstitions (like ghosts) about after death were nonsense

Mohist 

you should love everybody equally, Oppose elaborate funeral rituals, they thought it was a waste of time and resources

Taoism on the relationship of life and death

 life and death are seen as two parts of a single, continuous cycle, and death is a natural, inevitable transformation rather than a final end to be feared, yin yang symbol

Chuang-tzu on death and mourning

viewed death as a natural transformation, like the change of seasons, rather than something to be feared or mourned excessively, rejects li on own funeral

Cherry blossoms

don't get sad and depressed over it, but enjoy it more because its a short time period

Ritual suicide

Seppuku (japanese), practice of self-inflicted death as a culturally sanctioned act of honor

The top 5 regrets of the dying

1. Live your own life, not the life others expect of you

2. Wish you hadn’t worked so hard

3. Wish you had the courage to express your feelings

4. Wish you would have stayed in touch with friends

5. Wish you would have let yourself be happier