FINALS
Lesson 1: An Embodied Spirit Coexisting with the Environment
Human Being’s Understanding of Himself/Herself
Human being is the source of many questions about the existence of the world and everything that exists in it.
When he/she is confronted with the question “Who Am I,” which directly unveils his/her existence, he/she is pushed to the limit of existence.
Jose Rizal
believes that because a human being is endowed with reason, he/she wonders and questions about everything including his/her existence.
Who Am I?
According to Rizal and Kant
Human being is endowed with reason
He is self autonomous with self regulating will
According to Karl Jaspers
Human being is more than what he/she knows about himself/herself (Perennial Scope of Philosophy)
According to Kant, human individuals…
determine themselves through their interaction with their environment.
they act autonomously, they make choices, including moral choices, with the aid of their reason.
They have a strict duty to make these choices in accordance with moral law.
Karl Jaspers
Believes that human, the being of human is lost in a context of total determination. Thus what seems to be an obvious and ordinary question “Who am I” leads him/her into the depth of his/her being.
This task summons him/her to leave the ordinariness of given time and context of his/her existence.
Human beings Encounter with Existential Limit Situation
Limit Situations
German: Grenzsituation
Any of certain situations in which a human being is said to have differing experiences from those arising from ordinary situations.
Boundary Situations
are inescapable and inevitable breaks of ordinary patterns of human existence, such as death, sufferings, conflict, tragedy, sickness, failures, communication, struggles and guilt.
These boundary situations break the conventional pattern or ordinaryness of life.
According to Jaspers, boundary situations lead..
to a deeper consciousness and experience of her limitations and fortitude.
humans to a deeper level of reflection of her own self being.
Sickness and Pain are opportunities to know more about yourself as human beings.
Lesson 2: Various Ways in Dealing with the Question “Who Am I? In the Course of History
Duality of Body and Soul
Our body is separate and distinct from the soul
Soul is immaterial
Body shows corporeality (existing as physical body)
We have soul or spirit (Lorenz 2009)
Soul or the spirit is philosophically discussed as mind.
For dualists, mind (mental) is not to be mistaken as brain (physical) since the mental is a unique phenomenon that cannot be reduced to a non mental or physical.
Dualism
a philosophical theory based on the idea of opposing concepts, human beings are made up of two independent constituents, the body and the mind or soul.
Plato
believes in the dualism of body and soul
Human soul exist prior to the body and even if after the body is gone
Doctrine is connected to theory of forms, material is separate from spiritual realm of forms or essences (world of ideas)
Physical world is made up of appearances (destructible, illusionary and unreliable) or copies of what is real.
Knowledge is to be found in the realm of ideas or essences which are eternal and true.
The soul that humans possess pre-existed in the world of forms or ideas.
Soul is immortal, learning is mere remembering or recollecting what the soul once knew when it was in the realm of forms.
Rene Descartes
Also recognized dualism
He exists because doubt requires a doubter
Him doubting is proof that he exists.
He that exists is clearly a thing that thinks.
He acknowledge that he is a body that is bound by some figure that can be located in some place and occupy space.
Has the power to move, feel and think - this is attributed to body and soul.
Unity of Body and Soul
Thomas Aquinas
Did not believe dualism
Body and soul are not two separate entities, that interact with each other but are one being made up of matter and form
Matter (body) and form (soul) cannot remain a being if matter and form are not united.
A being ceases to exist in death, because the matter and form that make up that being is no longer complete.
Whole is the sum of its parts, remove one part it is no longer whole.
Aristotle
Man is the whole of his body and soul.
They are one like the oneness of the ugly and his figure. The relation of the body to the soul is the relation of matter
to form. The body and soul are only two aspects of the whole man.
Are the Spirit and Soul the same?
Your soul speaks of your inner-life in relation to your own experience: your mind, heart, will, and imagination. It also includes your thoughts, desires, passions, and dreams.
But your spirit speaks of the same inner-life in relation to God: your faith, hope, love, character, and perseverance.
BODY, SOUL and SPIRIT according to Christian Perspective
Body (Soma) – The Outermost Man
5 physical senses: smell, taste, touch, hear, see
physical needs & desires: food, water, activity, shelter, clothing, oxygen, sleep, temperature regulation
(FoWaSh TeReSOCA)
Soul (Psyche) – The Outer Man
SELF - identity, personality, character
EMOTIONS - feelings & passions
EVIL - dwelling place of sinful nature & evil spirits
CONSCIENCE - know right from wrong
INTELLECT - mind & thoughts
WILL - your own will & desires
(Seeciw)
Spirit (Pneuma) – The Inner Man
Spiritual Discernment
Peace
Revelation
True Ministry
Communicate with God
Home of the Holy Spirit
(Speret Coho)
Human Consciousness and Existence
John Locke
advanced the theory of tabula rasa (blank slate or page)
thoughts are conscious (we reflect and introspect)
our consciousness is the criterion (standard) for personal identity
as a thinking being ourselves consists of thoughts and sensation (physical feeling) of which we are conscious (awareness).
Rene Descartes
( I ) self is a thinking thing.
But what then am I? A thing which thinks. What is a thing which thinks? It is a thing which doubts, understands, affirms, denies, wills, refuses, which also imagines and feels. -said in Meditations on First Philosophy
He exists and continues to exist as long as he is a “thing that thinks”.
This consciousness that allows us to know that we exist composes our soul, which is a substance for Descartes, self-identity depends on consciousness.
Immanuel Kant
The self is a rational agent who can know their own thoughts and attitudes, and be responsible for them.
Intentionality of consciousness (Phenomenologists)
Feelings are being awakened by consciousness (Existentialists)
To a phenomenologists, Man as an embodied subjectivity that gives meaning , with his body making incarnate or alive the meaning he gives (Dy 2001)
Consciousness is thought that is always directed towards an object.
Existentialists on the other hand confront the possibility.
I might have been someone else or might have not existed (Tallis 2004).
Our mind presents phenomena that are distinct from those experienced by the body.
The Faculty of Reason
Human beings have a mental faculty or capacity that enables them to think, reason, understand, compare, analyze, associate ideas.
Human Being a Limited Being
“The soul is the essence of the self”
According to Aristotle the three kinds of soul: vegetative, sentient, and rational.
Vegetative Soul
includes the physical body that can grow.
Sentient Soul
includes sensual desires, feelings, and emotions.
Rational Soul
is what makes man human. It includes the intellect that allows man to know and understand things.
Thus, Aristotle suggests that the rational nature of the self is to lead a good, flourishing, and fulfilling life (self-actualization).
The pursuit of happiness is a search for a good life that includes doing victorious actions. In saying this, he posits (postulates) that part of the rational soul is characterized by moral virtues such as justice and courage.
St. Augustine of Hippo
a saint of the Catholic Church, and his authority in theological matters was universally accepted in the Latin Middle Ages and remained, in the Western Christian tradition, uncontested till the 19th century.
The impact of his views on sin, grace, freedom and sexuality on Western culture can hardly be overrated. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (2019)
He ultimately viewed the body as the "spouse" of the soul, both attached to one another by a "natural appetite."
He believes that the body is united with the soul, so that man may be entire and complete. As a religious philosopher, he contemplates on the nature of man with emphasis on the soul as an important element of man. He believes that the soul is what governs and defines a man.
Augustine espouses the significance of reflection and the importance of prayers and confessions to arrive at a justification for the existence of God. For him, "knowledge can only come by seeing the truth that dwells within us."
Descartes
asserts that the "thinking self" and "physical body" are distinct, they are complete opposites. He says that the mind houses our understanding, intellect, and passion.
While our body is just a shape with different sizes that showcase motion.
"I think, therefore I am".
"I think therefore I am." Cogito ergo sum
This phrase was first seen in his literary work “Discourse on Method”.
For him, the act of thinking about the self (or being self conscious) is in itself proof that there is a self .
John Locke
bases his argument on his conception that human minds are blank slates or—tabula rasas—at birth. So, to develop a sense of ‘self’, we must experience and create memories.
From there, after having gathered these experiences, we are able to mold and shape the self because we slowly become conscious of our abilities to think, reason, and introspect; we have developed a sense of ‘self’.
If one remains unconscious, they are unable to construct themselves.
Therefore, the ability to be conscious of oneself constitutes one of having a self. "The self is consciousness."
David Hume
a Scottish philosopher
Hume says that in the content of one's experience, there will be two distinct entities ; impressions and ideas .
Hume talks about how the self is just an illusion. "There is no self."
Karl Jasper
We see man’s body in its comparable expression. It belongs to man himself, has its own unique specificity, its nobility and beauty.
The Relation of I and the Body
The capacity of the human being to think or feel is the very basis of consciousness of the “I” of its existential existence; that tangibly exists as a thinking substance
My body- main basis for reflection and self consciousness
Loss of consciousness and arousal are frequent after severe brain injuries. Usually, patients recover from this transient state of coma to a normal state of consciousness even though they can suffer from various cognitive deficits.
Paul Churchland
Self is inseparable from the brain
The brain is all that a person has, therefore if it is lost, the person is no longer there.
A person's concept of self is given by their actual brain, not their fictional mind.
Since the mind cannot be perceived by the senses, it does not actually exist. "The self is the brain."
10 Signs of People with Dementia
Memory loss
Difficulty performing familiar tasks
Problems with language
Disorientation to time and place
Poor or decreased judgment
Problems keeping track of things
Misplacing things
Changes in mood and behavior
Challenges understanding visual and spatial information
Withdrawal from work or social activities
Bertrand Russel
The British philosopher described them—each in his own case. Each person seems to have direct, immediate knowledge of his own conscious sensations and of the contents of his propositional attitudes—what he consciously thinks, believes, desires, hopes, fears, and so on.
Immanuel Kant
Our minds actively sort, organize, relate, and synthesize the fragmented, fluctuating collection of sense data that our sense organs take in.
The unity of consciousness is a phrase invented by Kant to describe the fact that the thoughts and perceptions of any given mind are bound together in a unity by being all contained in one consciousness—my consciousness. "We construct the self."
Kant disagrees with the notion that the self is formed or developed through experiences. He doesn’t believe that experiences and the self must co-exist for there to be a self. ➢ The self already pre-exists before we experience anything. It is the one that processes our experiences and synthesizes them into something familiar, orderly, and meaningful. "We construct the self."
Sigmund Freud
Austrian psychotherapist (he is not a philosopher) according to Freud, the self has three layers to the self: the conscious, unconscious, and preconscious.
The Unconscious Mind
Conscious – The small amount of mental activity we know about.
Thoughts
Perceptions
Preconscious – Things we could be aware of if we wanted or tried
Memories
Stored Knowledge
Unconscious – Things we are unaware of and can not become aware of
Fears
Unacceptable Desires
Violent Motives
Irrational Wishes
Immoral Urges
Selfish Needs
Shameful Experiences
Traumatic Experiences
Gilbert Ryle
According to British philosopher ,the self is best defined as a pattern of behavior, or as a person's tendency or disposition to behave in a particular way under specific conditions. Ryle’s concept of the human self thus provides the philosophical principle, “I act therefore I am.”
There are complex and personal connections between the body and mind that are inherent (inborn).
He says that behavior reveals the full range of human dispositions, which make up the mind. However, Ryle is certain that the complete system of feelings, thoughts, and behaviors that comprise the human self is expressed by the mind.
Maurice Merleau-Ponty
All self-knowledge is derived from the "phenomena" of experience.
The "I" is a composite of mental, physical, and emotional components.
Individuals will realize that the mind and body are one.
He notes in his book, Phenomenology of Perception, that everything that people are aware of is contained within the consciousness.
Consciousness is a dynamic form that actively structures conscious thoughts and actions. "The self is embodied subjectivity."
The embodied self is, at the same time, subjectively aware of the world, and objectively part of the world as a human, animal, or other being. The self in the first sense will here be called “subject for the world” and in the second “object in the world.”
Consciousness – means awareness of self and environment.
I-existence
Certainty of something is always related and rooted on the very foundation of reflection: “my body”
My body feels something (reality)
My body senses (touches, smells, hears) the I - existence and the existence outside of itself.
Objectives
Recognize own limitations or possibilities for one’s transcendence
Evaluate own limitations and the possibilities for one’s transcendence
Thomas Aquinas
Of all creatures human beings have the unique ability to change themselves and things for the better.
Human beings are moral agents
Humans are both spiritual and material; our spirituality separates us from animals. It separates the moral dimension of our fulfillment in action.
We have conscience, determining good and evil are our responsibility.
Evaluate our Limitations and the Possibilities for Transcendence
Forgiveness
as a conscious, deliberate decision to release feelings of resentment or vengeance toward a person or group who has harmed you, regardless of whether they actually deserve your forgiveness.
It frees us from our anger and bitterness caused by the actions and/or words of another.On the other hand, the hardness of our heart is reinforced by a whole series of rational arguments.
Failure
Failures force us to confront our weaknesses and limitations and to surrender to a mystery or look upon a bigger world.
Acceptance of our failures makes us hope and trust that all can be brought into good.
Loneliness
It is our choice to live in an impossible world where we are always “happy” or to accept a life where solitude and companionship have a part. Our experience of loneliness can help us realize that our dependence on other people or gadgets is a possessiveness that we can be free from.
Love
To love is to experience richness, positivity, and transcendence. Love can open in us something which takes us beyond ourselves.
Transcendence
We have to struggle to regain spontaneous and vital awareness of our own spirituality.
Transcendental and transcendence convey the basic ground concept from the words’ literal meaning (from Latin), of climbing or going beyond, with varying connotations in its different historical and cultural stages.
The Human Person as an Embodied Spirit
Theism
is the belief that at least one god exists and that he or they created the universe and governs it.
Deism
is the belief that a higher being, i.e. god exists, but does not tell people what to do.
Monotheism
follows the same context as theism, except that it states there is only one God, hence religions such as Christianity, Judaism, and Islam fall under monotheism.
Polytheism
follows all the principles of theism, except that it believes that there is more than one god, which defines the beliefs of religions such as Hinduism.
Oriental Philosophy
Connected to mythology and is religious in nature.
Persian Philosophy (Zoroastrianism)
Indian Philosophy (Buddhism & Hinduism)
Chinese Philosophy (Daoism & Confucianism)
Eastern Philosophy
Eastern Philosophy is a diverse approach to life and philosophizing, particularly centered on understanding the process of the universe and endless “becoming”.
centered on spirituality
Parameters of Comparison
Eastern Religions
Western Religions
Beliefs
most of them have a core belief of Karma and Dharma
mostly based on day to day good deeds and the concept of judgment day
Geography
East and Southeast Asia mostly no religion is ever geographically bound.
Mostly in the Western world no religion is based on boundaries.
Existence of
Supreme Power
Have a varying degree of polytheists( Hinduism) to monotheists( Buddhism)
They are mostly Monotheists where they believe in only one God.
Consists of
Buddhism, Hinduism, Shintoism, Confucianism.
Islam, Judaism, Christianity, Evangelicalism & Catholicism.
Zoroastrianism
Principle
Good thoughts, good words, and good deeds.
Belief about God
One God.
Concept of Deity
One good God who is always fighting against evil
Life after Death
Eternal life in either heaven or hell
Practices
Fire is used in worship and they pray 5 times a day.
Goal of Religion
To serve God by doing good deed for others
Belief
There is a battle going on between Ahura Mazda, the good God, and Ahriman, the evil God.
Sacred Scriptures
The Gathas, Yashts, and the Vendidad
Three Basic Teachings of Hinduism
Dharma
the religious duty of people to follow
the principles of cosmic order
rules that guide morality of human beings
Adherence to Dharma means following the laws and virtues of good living
Dharma is an important concept found in many spiritual philosophies from the Indian subcontinent, including Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism.
Karma
set of individual rules to a specific person’s life, based on their status and deeds in both their current and past lives. Any future existence depends upon a person’s good or evil actions.
Moksha
The state of escaping the sufferings of the physical world in death. It is the end goal in a person's life and marks the end of the cycle of rebirth.
Three Main Spiritual Philosophies on Transcendence
Hinduism
At the heart of Hinduism lies the idea of human beings’ quest for absolute truth, so that one’s soul and the Brahman or Atman (Absolute Soul) might become one.
The “AUM” symbol (or OM – the symbol in the center) symbolizes the Universe and the ultimate reality. It is the most important Hindu symbols.
At the dawn of creation, from emptiness first emerged a syllable consisting of three letters – A-U-M (often written as OM).
Atman
A Sanskrit word that means inner self, spirit, or soul; the essence of an individual.
There is a soul called Atman, Atman assumes a physical body through reincarnation (depending on the merits of one’s deeds.
Atman transmigrates during birth and rebirth until liberation is reached (samsara)
Atman however is connected to Bhraman (absolute self)
All living things are connected intimately, hurting another being is hurting oneself because the connection between the two beings (Brahman-Atman) is severed, causing suffering.
Hinduism is against killing any kind of living being (practice of ahimsa, or nonviolence to all living being).
Human beings have dual nature: the spiritual and immortal essence (soul) which is considered real; and the empirical life and character.
Hindus generally believe that the soul is eternal but is bound by the Law of Karma (action) to the world of matter, which it can escape only after spiritual progress through an endless series of births.
Closely involved in the Hindu doctrine of reincarnation.
The determining factor that decides the state of a person's rebirth is her action.
Caste System
Religious system of reincarnation
Higher caste members are worthy of privileges because of good karma
Lower classes hoped to improve their social status in the future lives if they behave well in the present
According to the Upanishads, Atman and Brahman are part of the same substance; Atman returns to Brahman when Atman is finally liberated and is no longer reincarnated.
This return, or reabsorption into Brahman, is called Moksha. When they merge at last into pure Being.
Humanity’s basic goal in life is the liberation (moksha) of spirit (jiva).
Hinduism holds that humanity’s life is a continuous cycle (samsara) where the body goes through a transmigratory series of birth and death, even though the spirit is neither born nor dies.
Dharma
(Duty)
Karma (Action & Reaction)
Moksha (Escaping Samsara)
One’s place in society
What goes around comes around
Attaining “heaven”
One’s duty
By following Dharma, one “builds up good Karma
Escape from the cycle of life, death, rebirth, life, death, rebirth, etc.
One’s path
Consequence
Becoming one with Brahman
Things you do in this life
Determines one’s social position in the next life
Ultimate goal of Hinduism
Whatever one does to acquire Artha (Wealth) should be bound by Dharma. Else, one is sure to end up in a chaotic life of suffering.
Moksha (liberation from the Samsara — from the cycle of births and deaths) is considered the highest goal of life.
The Hindu dharma (Righteousness) does not permit an unbridled life of carefree enjoyment; everything has its preset boundaries. ‘Eat, drink and be merry’ is never considered the goal of life.
Kama (pleasure) Hinduism permits enjoyment within boundaries.
Hindu Gods and Goddesses (33 Million)
In Hinduism, there is a belief in three highest deities, this is called Trimurti (trinity), of which Brama, is the creator, Vishnu the preserver and Shiva the destroyer.
Added Notes
Goddess Consorts
Saraswati, the goddess of speech is to Brahma
Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth is to Vishnu
Parvati worship as mother goddess is to Shiva
Unless the individual exerts real efforts to break away or liberate one’s spirit from the monotonous cycle, there will be no end to the cycle.
Ultimate liberation, that is, freedom from rebirth, is achieved the moment the individual attains the stage of life emancipation.
Hindu’s view of reality places a lot of emphasis on the attainment of self-knowledge.
The goal of human life as conceived by the different Upanishads (text) is to overcome congenital ignorance.
True knowledge (vidya) consists of an understanding and realization of the individual’s real self (atman) as opposed to lower knowledge that is limited to an interpretation of reality based solely on the data offered by sense experience.
One concept common to all expressions of Hinduism is the oneness of reality.
When we realize this unity with the absolute, we realize our true destiny.
Also common to all Hindu thought are the four primary values: wealth, pleasure, duty, and enlightenment.
To understand enlightenment, one must understand the law of karma, the law of sowing and reaping.
The wheel of existence turns until we achieve enlightenment.
Buddhism
Origins
developed in India 2500 years ago
based on many of the core concepts of Hinduism
essence of Buddhism is the attainment of enlightenment
points to a way of life that avoids self-indulgence and self-denial.
no supreme god or deity in Buddhism
Divisions of Buddhism
Theravada – found in Burma, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, & in part, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Malaysia
Mahayana – found in China, Japan, Korea, and Vietnam
Vajrayana – found in Tibet, Nepal, Sikkim, Bhutan, and Mongolia
Jodo Shin or Pure Land Buddhism – mainly from India, Japan
Zen – mostly in Japan
Siddhartha Gautama (563-483 BC)
Born in NE India (Nepal)
Raised in great luxury to be a king
At 29, he rejected his luxurious life to seek enlightenment and the source of suffering
Lived a strict ascetic life for 6 years
Rejecting this extreme, sat in meditation, and found nirvana.
Became “The Enlightened One” at 35.
Founder
Siddhartha Gautama or Buddha (means “enlightened one”)
lived in the 5th century BC
born into the Brahmin caste-led a luxurious lifestyle
Became troubled by the human misery that he saw around him everyday
Upon reflection, he deduced that desire was the root caused of all suffering (enlightened under a Bodhi Tree)
not considered a god by his followers
Main Philosophy
The Four Noble Truths – Siddartha’s philosophy of the nature of human suffering and its relation to desire is articulated by these four statements:
Life is full of pain and suffering.
Human desire causes this suffering
By putting an end to desire, humans can end suffering
Humans can end desire by following the Eightfold path.
The Eightfold Path
Wisdom (WIVIRIN)
Right View – Know the truth
Right Intention – Resist self-centeredness
Ethical Conduct (ECSAL)
Right Speech
Right Action
Right Livelihood
Mental Discipline (MEAR)
Right Effort
Right Awareness
Right Meditation
Reincarnation (Samsara)
concept that one must go through many cycles of birth, living, and death
After many such cycles, if a person releases their attachment to desire and the self, they can attain Nirvana (a state of liberation and freedom from suffering)
Nirvana can be achieved from meditating and following the guiding principles of Buddhism, such as the Four Noble Truths and 8-fold Path
Karma
the law that every cause has an effect, i.e., our actions have results.
This explains a number of things: inequality in the world, why some are born handicapped and some gifted.
Buddhists believe that our past actions have an effect on who or what we are in our next life.
Symbol of Buddhism
Wheel of Life (Bhavacakra) – represents the endless cycle of life through reincarnation. Each of its eight spokes represents one of the teachings of the Eightfold Path.
Lotus Flower – symbolizes purity and divine birth. The different color lotus flowers have specific meanings: for example, the red lotus signifies the qualities of the heart.
The Wheel of Life, a diagram depicting samsara, brings together all the different factors that define and characterize the cycle of conditioned existence.
Practices of Buddhism
Live by this moral code:
Do not take the life of anything living (non-violence / ahimsa)
Do not take anything not freely given (stealing)
Abstain from sexual misconduct and sensual overindulgence
Refrain from untrue speech (lying)
Avoid intoxication (drinking)
Do not lose mindfulness
Meditation
training the mind to empty all of thoughts. When this happens, what is important becomes clear.
Vegetarianism
Many Buddhists today eat only vegetarian foods, and most groups will instruct on a healthy vegetarian diet.
Buddhism Concept of Person/Being/HumanMan
Anatta means “no self” and the doctrine of anatta is the Buddha’s most unique and radical teaching
We usually assume that beyond our changing body, mind, and experience is an unchanging and unique ego or self
Having identified this self “me” we then identify other things as “mine”
This, according to the Buddha, is the cause of much of the distress and pain humans inflict upon themselves and others through greed, fear, ignorance, hatred, and self-deception
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