The Eastern Philosophy

1. The Indian tradition.

2. The Chinese tradition.

1.The history of Indian thought is to begin with Verdic literature . Verdic includes 4 parts:

- Verdas;

- Brahmans;

- Upanishads;

- Aranjaks.

Upanishads includes philosophical ideas. Indian philosophy is divided into 2 traditions:

• The orthodox schools;

• Non-orthodox schools.

The orthodox schools accepted Verdic authority ( Zamkya, Yogo, Vaisheshika, Nyaya, Mimansa and Vedanta).

The non-orthodox schools did not accept authority of Verdic (Charvaka, Jainism and Buddhism).

Buddhism – a religious and philosophical system springing from the life and teaching of Guatama Buddha, who in 16^th century BC rejected certain features of his native Hinduism, particularly the caste system, animal sacrifice and undue asceticism.

In his first Sermon he preached the Four Noble Truth:

1. Sorrow is the universal experience of mankind.

2. The cause Sorrow is desire, and there cycle of rebirths is perpetuated by desirefor existence.

3. The removal of Sorrow can only come from the removal of desire.

4. The desire can be systematically abandoned be following the Noble Eightfold Path, which is the basis of disciplines of Buddhism and find its origin in the corresponding yoga system.

The eight steps are not fully consecutive stage, but fall into three main groups.

1. Right understanding

2. Right speech (i.e no lying or abuse). Right conduct and right mean of livelihood.

3. Right striving, right self-possession and right contemplation.

2.The philosophical thought in China was concentrated on social and political problem. This assertion does not mean that cosmological and metaphysical speculation were not taken. The famous monuments of Chinese intelligence were 5 books and 5 classes which contained ancient Poetry, history, laws and philosophy.

1. Classic of poetry.

2. Classic of history.

3. Record of Rites.

4. Spring and autumn annals.

5. Classic of change. ( It reflected the base of the developing philosophical thought in China.)

Chinese philosophers gave much consideration to 2 forces, which were so prominent in their account of cosmos: the Yin and Yang.The Yin was a female, dark and passive; the Yong as male, active and light. Their interchange was away that all things occur. In traditional Chinese philosophies this way was called Tao. The classics of change just reflected Tao as the way of world development.

The following schools represent the ancient China philosophy :Confucianism and Daoism.

Confucianism.

Confucianism originated in the 6^th century BC. It was founded by Confucius (551-479) BC. It is the ethical-political teaching, where the problems of the art of management and upbringing in the spirit of respect to predecessors, state and other people are considered. The ideal of Confucianism management is based on the principle of moral pattern but not of moral order. Confucianism as a state ideology was directed at subordination of the interests to the state’s ones.

Daoism.

The second important Chinese tradition was Taoism. The teaching of Daoism best be characterized as teaching the eternal principle of reality and the way in which all things were governed by and found their true natural in it .

Whereas the Confucian tradition believed in the molding. Of the person through education, Chuang- tzu was the classed teaching of the schools as tending to lead the parson away from an understanding of the nature of things, the Tao and thus away from a genuine awareness of his own nature and place in the world.