The Nature Of Beings Essay Research Paper
The Nature Of Beings Essay, Research Paper
The Nature of Beings and Their Not Bing
The western manner of life and more by and large, the manner westerners think and behave, in the 20th century appears to hold small or no connexion to the E and eastern doctrines, but in fact America has been more influenced in these factors by the E than about any other part. A society s manner of life is governed, to an extent, by the current theories and doctrines of that clip period, and so to analyse a society s mentality, an analysis of the doctrines of the clip is indispensable. Current doctrine is descendent chiefly of pragmatism and existential philosophy, both of which owe its ain yesteryear to every other doctrine that has come before it. However, doctrines can be looked at separately within domains of idea without losing the significance of any single doctrine.
Late in the 19th century, Charles Peirce wrote How to Make our Ideas Clear, meaning it to be a expression for doing ordinary thought more scientific. The book was ignored until subsequently in the beginning of the 20th century, William James interpreted the book s thoughts as a doctrine capable of deciding metaphysical and spiritual quandary, and saw it as both a theory of significance and a theory of truth. The decision reached by James was that there can be no difference anyplace that doesn Ts make a difference elsewhere. To understand what James means with this doctrine, the phrase God exists can be tested for matter-of-fact significance. If certain people believed that God existed, they would gestate of the universe really otherwise from those that believed God did non be. However, there are still others besides these two groups whose constructs would be indistinguishable in pattern whether the believed in God or non. For them, the proposition that God exists and God does non be would intend the same thing. For people who find themselves someplace between these two extremes, the proposition God exists agencies On Sunday, I put on nice apparels and travel to church. This is because for them, prosecuting in this activity is the lone practical result of their belief ( and as Peirce said, a belief is merely a regulation for action ) . The theory of truth evidenced in this phrase can merely be applied to those for whom the differentiation between God s being and non-existence is meaningful. Harmonizing to James, the empirical grounds is every bit indecisive for or against God s being. About this and similar instances, James said, Our passional nature non merely legitimately may, but must, make up one’s mind an option between propositions, whenever it is a echt option that can non by its nature be decided on rational land. James went on to state that this would set the people into a province of paranoic fear vis- -vis the remainder of their experiences. Therefore, for the group of people, God exists is true, and for the 2nd group, it is false ( Palmer 279-281 ) .
The development of and the revenge to pragmatism, existential philosophy, was chiefly founded by Jean-Paul Sartre. Although it is more of a shared attitude than a school of idea, it can however be approximately defined by stating that being precedes kernel. This is the thesis that there is no human nature that precedes our presence in the universe, and all worlds separately create humanity at every minute through their free Acts of the Apostless. The thought procedures involved in existential philosophy therefore are alone to each individual, and non merely a set of regulations and beliefs that make up a doctrine, as is the instance with most belief systems. Because of this ambiguity, existential philosophy is harder to trap down than pragmatism, which is exactly what makes it existential philosophy. In Zen aesthetics there is besides a clear analogue to this phenomenology. When, following Kierkegaard, existentialists speak of the demand to jump from one province of consciousness committedness to another, higher, province they are stating basically exactly what the Zen Masterss have ever said ( Palmer 383-384 ) .
Both of these doctrines, through analytical dissection, can be linked back to the doctrines presented in Zen Buddhism, nevertheless opposite the two may look. Zen is elusive, and hard to near for comparing intents. The best definition is no definition at all, and as D. T. Suzuki says, from afar it looks so accessible, but every bit shortly as you come near it you see it even further off from you than earlier. A common subject in Zen Buddhism is The manner to go up unto God is to fall into one s ego. Kierkegaard, a precursor of existential philosophy, presented a similar theory, and though the concluding terminal to this descent is different, the agencies are the same. Both Zen aesthetics and Kierkegaard recognized that this journey is different for every individual, therefore there can be no way, and accordingly no instructors. This can be straight linked to the matter-of-fact ideals of self-truths, that is, the thought of truths being subjective to the percipient alternatively of nonsubjective as truths are normally thought of. This is besides seen to a great extent in existential philosophy, as is really about the very footing of its theories of there being no being but what we make for ourselves ( Suzuki Zen Buddhism 43 ) .
Although the mean American does non follow these western doctrines straight, or is even cognizant of the doctrines existence in most instances, their life is still to a great extent influenced by these two chief theories of being, and accordingly, the thoughts of Zen, and their behaviour is straight linked to them.
The most obvious influence is in faith. As Zen can be both a manner of life and a faith, it can therefore easy influence other faiths. The links between Christianity and Buddhism are present throughout the Bible, although non readily presented to the insouciant reader. The thought of Buddhist religion has three degrees, esteem, aspiring, and strong belief, and a analogue is seen in the Christianity through foremost, a practicians devotedness to and esteem for Jesus from reading the Bible, 2nd, the aspiration to achieve the full flawlessness of the godly nature, or brotherhood with God, and in conclusion, with this sense of aspiration, a deep strong belief that it is possible to hone such a province of being ( The Dalai Lama ) .
Religion of persons is besides being influenced by Zen Buddhist beliefs in a clip when the Dali Lama is deriving more and more acknowledgment since the award of his 1991 Nobel Peace Prize, going a symbol of passive resistance and a brooding doctrine of being. In an progressively secular and scientific age, Buddhist beliefs have become the perfect manner to fulfill the religious hungriness of people populating now. Even many trusters in a Christian faith agree that you can take the good parts of Buddhism and it s beliefs and use them to their ain lives ( Veenker ) .
Merely as evident, but more applicable to every twenty-four hours life is the theory of feng shui, literally air current and H2O. At its kernel, feng shui describes the natural flow of these elements along the way with the least opposition, and is based upon a simple truth: all life is interrelated and dynamically altering ( Figure 1 ) . An architectural theory of arrangement, feng shui is evolved from the eastern thought of Thai qi and the thoughts of Chinese Ch an such as harmoniousness with one s milieus, and is going more and more prevailing in western society ( Bramble ) .
Movies besides show their nexus to Zen Buddhism, evidenced through movies such as Star Wars, in their belief in a life giving force that surrounds us, penetrates us, binds the galaxy together, merely as the Dharma is huge and elusive. D. T. Suzuki relates the narrative of a blade maestro s province of head during a affaire d’honneur: I as a fencer see no opposition facing me. . . every motion he makes every bit good as every idea he conceives are felt as if they were all my ain and I intuitively know when and how to strike him. ( Suzuki Japanese Culture ) This is related to Obi-Wan s message to Luke during his preparation, to allow travel your witting ego and act on inherent aptitude. ( Figures 2 and 3, Lucas )
Western music besides shows many of the influenced traits of Zen belief systems, such as the pattern of Zen Guitar, a method of practising and let go ofing the inner vocal that is in all living things. Zen Guitar teaches the same way as Zen, in that one starts a novice with a white belt, progresses from white to black by pattern, attains a black belt through duty towards oneself, progresses once more from black belt to white belt through the cognition of the ego, and eventually returns to the white belt with the manner of the Zen Guitar in their Black Marias. Many instrumentalists playing manners are one and the same with the manners of Zen Guitar, and many hold the same beliefs as a Zen Guitarist would, such as Jimi Hendrix, Brian Eno, Carlos Santana, Les Paul, and B. B. King ( Figure 4, Sudo 23, 34, 79, 83, 143 ) .
Radiohead in its recent musical enterprises approaches more and more a province of Zen enlightenment, shown with the vocal Paranoid Android, a vocal about a apparently simple individual populating a simple life. Although a simple life, it lacks a certain quality for him, and begins to drive away the composure, calm feelings of his life in order to replace them with a combustion hatred for everyone. This is easy led into a province of paranoia that instills feelings of insubstantiality in his life and all he has worked for, and finally is set off into an detonation of emotion, breaks down, and is all of a sudden replaced with the unagitated serene cloud nine he has been seeking for. This represents the adult male s enlightenment after holding fallen off from the universe and its impermanency. This cloud nine does non last nevertheless, and all of a sudden is realized to intend that he is merely one measure closer to enlightenment. The emphasis of this and the universe is intolerable and the adult male realizes that he will ne’er be complete and tears out the last spots of hair he has. The adult male so calmly goes to kip merely to wake up degree Fahrenheit
or a new twenty-four hours, reiterating the same ordeal. This represents the metempsychosis of animate existences in the Buddhist belief system, and besides the unconscious realisation of the agony nowadays in all life, with no manner to avoid it, a realisation that is imperative for enlightenment ( Figure 5 ) .
Even exercising techniques show their roots in Zen Buddhism, with the pattern of Body Dynamics.
Body Dynamics is similar to, and draws inspiration from Zen Buddhism, in which the practical pursuit for self-knowledge and development seems, above all other oriental instructions, most acceptable to the American matter-of-fact disposition.
Although the mean American does non pattern Body Dynamics, the theories presented within, such as deep external respiration and endeavoring for bodily flawlessness in wellness, are besides presented in many similar activities and even in seemingly unrelated activities ( Enelow 26-27 ) .
Short fiction of the 20th century has been influenced to a great extent by the manner of the Zen, seen really conspicuously in J. D. Salinger s novels and short narratives, such as Catcher in the Rye. Salinger s characters act as a sort of instructor, while the reader is the pupil, a relationship that is built-in in Zen Buddhism. When the character is confronted with a moral quandary, the reader is given the reply to the job through a koan, therefore leting the reader to make their following phase of enlightenment. Holden, in the concluding chapters of Catcher in the Rye, appears to hold reached enlightenment and is at peace with the universe, and so coatings with a simple that s all I m traveling to state you and returns to inquire the sort of inquiries which have plagued him throughout the book. Apparently holding returned to square one of his being, he is in fact in melody with the existence and is associating the rhythm of the Buddhist life style, to return to the beginnings of our creative activity and the beginnings of our heads. The narrative, merely like a koan, has the intent of exciting our heads into another plane of being as we are compelled to happen the reply with non-logic ( Salinger 213-214 ) .
Zen is even present in the scientific universe, where one would believe it least likely to demo up, as related by Robert Pirsig:
If that jurisprudence of gravitation existed, I candidly don Ts know what a thing has to make to be nonexistent. It seems to me that jurisprudence of gravitation has passed every trial of nonentity there is. You can non believe of a individual property of nonentity that that jurisprudence of gravitation didn T have. Or a individual scientific property of being it did hold. And yet it is still common sense to believe that it existed.
This analysis of the words of Newton s jurisprudence of gravitation shows the built-in nature of Zen that is present in all things. The more something appears to miss Zen qualities, the more Zen qualities it really has, chiefly because it is thought to miss them, for it is the nature of non being ( Pirsig 30-31 ) .
Poetry itself is the really life breath of Zen, as it s signifier and non-form are the bosom of Zen, the ability to populate freely without regulations or restraints, and yet still remain within the confines of a linguistic communication to show the feelings of the writer. Truong Dinh s poesy is most evident in it s Zen nature with haikus such as
semen is to be gone
be gone is to go new
new is to be old ( Figure 6 )
This shows the cyclic nature of our being in Zen beliefs, and accordingly shows the influence of Zen on our lives, with merely three simple lines ( Dinh ) .
Therefore, in our lives and in our ideas, Zen is present everyplace. To try to deny its presence is merely to reenforce it even more, and to try to seek it merely serves to do it more elusive. Merely when 1 is in harmoniousness with the existence, holding attained enlightenment, and realizes they interconnection of all living things and the existence can one cease to be and get down to genuinely be.
Appendix
Figure 1
In a place like this one, where
air flows in the front door and
straight out the back, create a
buffer such as a wall screen or
an agreement of workss or
trees to equilibrate the air
motion.
Feng shui
( Peake )
Figure 2
YODA: And good you should non. For my ally in the Force. And a powerful ally it is. Life creates it, makes it turn. Its energy environments us and binds us. Aglow existences are we & # 8230 ; ( Yoda pinches Luke & # 8217 ; s shoulder ) & # 8230 ; non this petroleum affair. ( a sweeping gesture ) You must experience the Force around you. ( gesticulating ) Here, between you & # 8230 ; me & # 8230 ; the tree & # 8230 ; the stone & # 8230 ; everyplace! Yes, even between this land and that ship!
( Lucas )
Figure 3
Ben: I suggest you try it once more, Luke.
Ben places a big helmet on Luke & # 8217 ; s caput which covers his eyes.
Ben: This clip, allow travel your witting ego and act on inherent aptitude.
Luke: ( express joying ) With the blast shield down, I can & # 8217 ; t even see. How am
I supposed to contend?
Bens: Your eyes can lead on you. Don & # 8217 ; t swear them.
( Lucas )
Figure 4
My ain thing is in my caput. I hear sounds and if I don t acquire them together cipher else will. Jimi Hendrix
A nonmusician is thrilled to be making music and is rather happy to sit at that place and clop one note all twenty-four hours. And is really watchful to the consequence of that. Nonmusicians truly listen sometimes, because that s the lone thing available to them. Brian Eno
If [ you re ] traveling to brush the floor, sweep it better than anybody in town. And if you re traveling to play the guitar, truly, truly, truly acquire in it, and wear T be jivin. Carlos Santana
My chops were non as fast. . . [ but ] I merely leaned more on what was in my head than what was in my chops. I learned a long clip ago that one note can travel a long manner if it s the right 1, and it will likely flog the cat with 20 notes. Lupus erythematosus Paul
Playing the guitar is like stating the truth you ne’er have to worry about reiterating the same [ prevarication ] if you told the truth. You don Ts have is make-believe, or cover up. If person asks you once more, you don Ts have to believe about it or worry about it. . . because there it is. It s you B. B. King
( Sudo )
Figure 5
Please could you halt the noise, I & # 8217 ; m seeking to acquire some remainder
From all the unborn poulet voices in my caput
What & # 8217 ; s that & # 8230 ; ? ( I may be paranoid, but non an humanoid )
What & # 8217 ; s that & # 8230 ; ? ( I may be paranoid, but non an humanoid )
When I am king, you will be foremost against the wall
With your sentiment which is of no effect at all
What & # 8217 ; s that & # 8230 ; ? ( I may be paranoid, but no humanoid )
What & # 8217 ; s that & # 8230 ; ? ( I may be paranoid, but no humanoid )
Ambition makes you look reasonably ugly
Kicking and oinking gucci small piglet
You don & # 8217 ; t retrieve
You don & # 8217 ; t retrieve
Why Don & # 8217 ; t you remember my name?
Off with his caput, adult male
Off with his caput, adult male
Why Don & # 8217 ; t you remember my name?
I guess he does & # 8230 ; .
Rain down, rain down
Come on rain down on me
From a great tallness
From a great tallness & # 8230 ; height & # 8230 ;
Rain down, rain down
Come on rain down on me
From a great tallness
From a great tallness & # 8230 ; height & # 8230 ;
Rain down, rain down
Come on rain down on me
That & # 8217 ; s it, sir
You & # 8217 ; rhenium go forthing
The crackling of pigskin
The dust and the shriek
The yuppies networking
The terror, the puke
The terror, the puke
God loves his kids, God loves his kids, yeah!
( Yorke )
Figure 6
Haiku of the psyche
1
semen is to be gone
be gone is to go new
new is to be old
2
forenoon blossoming up
birds go forthing nest & # 8211 ; feeding on
dawn smiling out
( Dinh )
Plants Cited
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Dinh, Truong. Online Posting. 1 Dec. 2000
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Pirsig, Robert M. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry into Values.
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Salinger, J. D. Catcher in the Rye. Massachusetts: Little, Brown and Company, 1945.
Star Wars: Episode V & # 8211 ; The Empire Strikes Back. Dir. Irvin Kershner, With Mark Hamill,
Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Billy Dee Williams, and Anthony Daniels.
Lucasfilms Ltd. , 1980.
Star Wars: Episode IV & # 8211 ; A New Hope. Dir. George Lucas, With Mark Hamill, Harrison
Ford, Carrie Fisher, Peter Cushing, Alec Guinness, and Anthony Daniels.
Lucasfilms Ltd. , 1977.
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– & # 8211 ; – . Zen and Nipponese Culture. New Jersey: Princeton University Pr, 1970.
The Dalai Lama. The Karma of the Gospel. Newsweek 27 Mar. 2000: 56.
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