Eastern philosophy

Eastern philosophy is a big idea that talks about many different ways of thinking. These ways of thinking started in East and South Asia. They come from places like China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, and India. These philosophies help people understand life, the world, and how to live well.

One famous part of Eastern philosophy comes from India. This includes Hindu philosophy, Jain philosophy, and Buddhist philosophy. These teachings have changed the cultures and beliefs of many countries. These countries include South Asia, Southeast Asia, Tibet, Japan, and Mongolia.

People who study Eastern philosophy ask questions about truth, knowledge, and how to live a good life. The ideas from this part of the world still influence many people today, both in Asia and around the world.

Indian philosophy

Main article: Indian philosophy

Further information: Hinduism, Hindu philosophy, and Indonesian philosophy

Indian philosophy is about old ideas from the Indian subcontinent. Hinduism might go back to the Indus Valley civilization. The big Hindu schools began between the start of the Common Era and the Gupta Empire. These schools mixed Brahmanical ideas with others from Buddhism and Jainism. Hindu ideas spread to places like the Srivijaya empire in Indonesia and the Khmer Empire in Cambodia. Today, Hinduism is important in South Asia. It has many traditions and ideas about life, like karma and dharma.

Some of the oldest books are the Upanishads. Big ideas include dharma, karma, samsara, moksha, and ahimsa. Indian thinkers talked about logic, knowledge, and reality. They also wrote about politics and love in books like the Arthashastra and the Kama Sutra. Later, ideas from Tantra and from Iran and Islam came in. Buddhism mostly left India after the Muslim conquest, but it lived on in other places.

Orthodox schools

The main Indian schools are called orthodox if they accept the Vedas as true. There are six big orthodox schools: Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Samkhya, Yoga, Mīmāṃsā, and Vedanta. Each school has its own ideas about knowledge, reality, and the universe.

Sāmkhya and Yoga

Sāmkhya looks at the link between our mind and the world. The Yoga school, which is close to Sāmkhya, focuses on meditation and freedom. Yoga can include a God, but most Sāmkhya thinkers do not.

Nyāya

The Nyāya school looks at how we know things and seeks right understanding to avoid trouble. It says there are four good ways to learn: perception, inference, comparison, and hearing from experts.

Vaiśeṣika

Vaiśeṣika believes the world is made of tiny parts called atoms. It says we can know things only through perception and inference.

Mīmāṃsā

Mīmāṃsā studies the Vedas and rites. It says the Vedas are forever true and must be followed.

Vedānta

Vedānta looks at ideas in the Upanishads, Brahma Sutras, and Bhagavad Gita. It thinks about the real nature of the world (Brahman), the soul (Ātman), and everyday life (Prakriti). Vedānta has different views like Advaita (no two things), Vishishtadvaita (special no two things), Dvaita (two things), and Bhedabheda (both same and different).

Heterodox or Śramaṇic schools

The heterodox schools come from traditions not using the Vedas. These include Jainism, early Buddhism, Cārvāka, Ajñana, and Ājīvika.

Jain philosophy

Jain philosophy talks about reality, cosmology, and the soul. It stresses not hurting others, seeing truth in many ways, and personal work for freedom.

Cārvāka

Cārvāka did not accept the Vedas or ideas about magic. It was unsure and focused on the world, thinking only what we see matters.

Ājīvika

Ājīvika was started by Makkhali Gosala and taught that everything is fixed by cosmic rules.

Ajñana

Ajñana was a group that thought we could never truly know deep truths.

Buddhist philosophies

Buddhist philosophy starts with the ideas of Gautama Buddha and grew in India and across Asia. It aims to end pain by seeing things as they are. Key ideas are the Four Noble Truths, not having a self (Anatta), and nothing lasting (Anicca). Later, it developed more ideas about the mind and the world.

Sikh philosophy

Sikhism began with Guru Nanak in Punjab. Its beliefs include thinking about God's name, following the Guru, living a normal life, doing what is true, treating everyone equally, and believing in God's kindness. Important ideas are Simran, Seva, and the Three Pillars of Sikhism.

Modern Indian philosophy

When colonialism came and Indians met Western ideas, new thoughts grew in the 1800s. These included Neo-Vedanta and Hindu modernism, which looked for unity in Indian ideas and all religions. Important people were Ram Mohan Roy, Swami Vivekananda, and Mahatma Gandhi.

East Asian philosophies

Main articles: Chinese philosophy, Japanese philosophy, Korean philosophy, and Vietnamese philosophy

Chinese

East Asian thinking began in Ancient China. Chinese philosophy grew during the Western Zhou and later in a time called the "Hundred Schools of Thought" from the 6th century to 221 BCE. Many new ideas appeared then. Important schools included Confucianism, Legalism, and Daoism. Others were Mohism, School of Names, and School of Yin Yang. These ideas shaped the East Asian cultural sphere. They connect to the natural cycles of the seasons. Buddhism arrived in China during the Han dynasty and later created its own forms, such as Chan or Zen.

Confucianism

Main article: Confucianism

Confucianism is a Chinese way of thinking. It focuses on values like family harmony, respect for elders, kindness, and good behavior. It started from the teachings of Confucius. Other thinkers like Mencius and Xun Kuang added more ideas.

Confucianism ties these values to a bigger idea called Heaven (Tiān 天). It became important in Chinese government and was revived many times. Today, many East Asian countries still feel its influence.

Legalism

Legalism focused on laws and strong government control. It aimed for order through strict rules. Important thinkers were Shen Buhai and Shang Yang. Later, Han Fei wrote a famous book, the Han Feizi, which helped guide rulers.

Mohism

Mohism began with Mozi. It taught that everyone should care for each other equally. Mozi also believed that government should be based on talent, not family. He liked simple solutions and strong defenses. Mohism faded away, but its ideas lived on.

Taoism

Main article: Taoist philosophy

Taoism is about living in harmony with the Tao, the natural way of the universe. It values simple living and natural behavior. Many Taoists believed in living forever through special practices. Taoism began in the 4th century BCE. Important books include the Dao De Jing and the Nan Hua Jing. Over time, Taoism grew into many groups and was shaped by Chinese Buddhism.

Modern East Asian philosophy

Chinese

Modern Chinese thinking grew from old ideas like Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism. It also included new ideas from the West, called "Western Learning". After difficult times, some leaders tried to mix Chinese traditions with Western knowledge. A movement called New Confucianism began in the 20th century to revive Confucian thought.

Japanese

Modern Japanese thinking was shaped by Western science. During the Edo period, Japanese people studied Western science, called Rangaku. In the Meiji period, thinkers mixed Western ideas with Japanese traditions. Later, during the Shōwa period, new ideas like State Shinto grew. Japanese Buddhist thinking was also shaped by the Kyoto School, which combined Western philosophy with Buddhist ideas.

Syntheses of Eastern and Western philosophy

See also: Buddhism and Western philosophy, Perennial philosophy, Intercultural philosophy, and New Age

In recent times, many people have tried to mix ideas from Western and Eastern philosophies.

For example, a thinker named Arthur Schopenhauer combined ideas from Hinduism with Western ways of thinking. Another group, called the Kyoto School, mixed ideas from Zen Buddhism with Western philosophy.

Some modern Chinese thinkers have also tried to blend Western ideas, like democracy, into their own traditions. Others have been influenced by Western thinkers and systems, like Marxism.

Criticism

Some people believe that the idea of "Eastern philosophy" was created by scholars in the 19th century and did not really exist in Asia before then. They say that in Asia, many different traditions developed separately instead of one big united tradition.

Some thinkers from Europe think that true philosophy only comes from Western cultures. For example, a philosopher named Martin Heidegger believed that only Greek and German languages could be used for deep thinking about life. Even today, many Western universities focus more on Western ideas and sometimes ignore the thoughtful traditions from Asia. Some experts agree with this view, while others think both Western and Asian ideas should be included equally. One person even says that what Asians have is different from what Westerners call philosophy.