F arose in 7-6 AD in the East and was brought to India by the Aryans from Iran. Vedas (literally - "knowledge") - religious and philosophical treatises. included: - “holy scripture”, religious hymns (“samhitas”); - Description of rituals ("Brahmins"), composed by Brahmins (priests) and used by them in the performance of religious cults; -Books of forest hermits ("aranyaki"); -Philosophical comments on the Vedas ("Upanishads" are the final part of the Vedas, literally "sitting at the feet of the teacher", they give a f-th interpretation of the content of the Vedas. In the same era, teachings appear that are in opposition to the Vedas (Kshatriya f): Buddhism, Jainism (each an individual and an eternal soul, and he himself is responsible for his actions), Charvana-lakayata, Ajivika is one of the unorthodox teachings of the denial of the existence of the soul, karma, brahma, samsara.At the same time, a number of philosophical schools ("darshan") who develop the Vedic teaching: Yoga, Vedanta, Vaisheshina, Nyaya, Minimansa, Sankhya.
The period of ancient Indian philosophy ends with the era of sutras (II century BC - VII century AD) - short philosophical treatises that consider individual problems (for example, the “nama-sutra”, etc.). Later, in the Middle Ages, the dominant position in Indian philosophy was occupied by the teachings of Gautama Buddha - Buddhism.
Ontology of Indian philosophy (the doctrine of being and non-being). Existence and non-existence are associated respectively with the exhalation and inhalation of Brahma-Cosmos (Creator God). In turn, Cosmos-Brahma (Creator God) lives for 100 cosmic years, after which he dies and absolute non-existence sets in, which also lasts 100 cosmic years - until the new birth of Brahma. The whole endless history is the alternation of the life of the Cosmos (Maha Manvantara) and Absolute Non-Being (Maha Pralaya), which replace each other every 100 years. With each new birth of Cosmos-Brahma, life reappears, but in a more perfect form. The world is interconnected. Any event affects the life of the Cosmos. The goal of evolution, development is the achievement of an ever more perfect spirit through the constant change of material forms. The main feature of ancient Indian epistemology (the doctrine of cognition) is not the study of external (visible) signs of objects and phenomena (which is typical for the European type of cognition), but the study of the processes occurring in consciousness when objects and phenomena come into contact with the world. The soul in Indian f consists of two principles: Atman - a particle of God-Brahma in the second soul. The Atman is original, unchanging, eternal. Manas is the soul of the h that arises in the process of life. Manas is constantly evolving, reaching high levels or deteriorating depending on the actions of h, his personal experience, the course of fate.
Also, Indian philosophy is characterized by the teachings of samsara, ahimsa, moksha and karma. Samsara is the doctrine of the eternity and indestructibility of the soul, which goes through a chain of suffering in earthly life. Karma is the predetermination of h-th life, fate. The purpose of karma is to lead the h through trials so that his soul improves and achieves the highest moral development - moksha. Moksha is the highest moral perfection, after reaching which the evolution of the soul (karma) stops. The onset of moksha (the cessation of the evolutionary development of the soul) is the highest goal of any soul that can be achieved in earthly life. Souls who have reached moksha are freed from the chain of endless life and become mahatmas - great souls. Ahimsa - the unity of all forms of life on earth, the most important principle - non-harm to that which surrounds, non-killing.
Buddhism is a religious and philosophical doctrine that spread in India (after the 5th century BC), China, Southeast Asia (after the 3rd century AD), as well as other regions. It originated in the 6th-5th centuries. BC e. , in the 3rd c. BC e. declared the official religion. The founder of the doctrine is Siddhartha, nicknamed the Buddha (enlightened). He put forward three positions: life is full of suffering, there is a reason for the occurrence of suffering, there is a possibility of getting rid of suffering. He preaches getting rid of suffering by giving up desires and achieving "higher enlightenment" - nirvana. Nirvana is a state of complete equanimity, liberation from everything that brings pain, distraction from thoughts, the outside world. There is no single god. The soul as a special entity does not exist. There is only a stream of constantly changing states of consciousness. Everything in the world is temporary
Chinese philosophy.
The philosophy of China in its development has gone through three main stages:
7th century BC e. - III century. n. e. - the origin and formation of the most ancient national philosophical schools;
III - XIX centuries. n. e. - penetration of Buddhism into China from India (3rd century AD) and its influence on national philosophical schools;
20th century n. e. - the modern stage - the gradual overcoming of the isolation of Chinese society, enrichment Chinese philosophy achievements of European and world philosophy.
The oldest national philosophies in China were:
Confucianism is the oldest f-th school, which considers h, first of all, as a participant in social life. The founder of the conference is Confucius (Kung Fu Tzu), who lived in 551-479. BC e. , the main source of teaching - the work of Lun Yu ("Conversations and Judgments"). Kofuts-in the doctrine of a noble husband. The order in the universe depends on the social order and the poet must exist 5 constant relationships: M / y - primary and subordinate, - husband and wife, - father and son, - elder brother and younger brother, - elder friend and young friend . The main questions addressed by Confucianism are: How should people be managed? How to behave in society? The Confucian golden rule of human behavior in society says: do not do to others what you do not want to yourself. The teachings of Confucius played a big role in unifying Chinese society. It remains relevant today, 2500 years after the life and work of the author.
Taoism is the oldest Chinese teaching, which tries to explain the foundations of the construction and existence of the surrounding world and find the path that h, nature and the cosmos should follow. The founder of Taoism is Lao Tzu (Old Teacher), who lived at the end of the 6th - beginning of the 5th centuries. BC e. The main sources are the f-th treatises "Daojing" and "Dejing", jointly referred to as "Daodejing". "Tao" has two meanings: 1 the path along which h and nature, the universal world law that ensures the existence of the world, must go in their development; 2 the substance from which the whole world originated, the beginning, which was an energetically capacious void. "De" - grace coming from above; energy, thanks to which the original "Tao" was transformed into the surrounding world.
F Taoism carries a number of basic ideas: everything in the world is interconnected; the matter of which the world is composed is one; there is a circulation of matter in nature, today h yesterday was - a stone, trees, parts of animals, and so on; the world order, the laws of nature, the course of history are unshakable and do not depend on the will of h, therefore, the main principle of life h is peace and non-action ("wu-wei"); the emperor is sacred, only the emperor has spiritual contact with the gods and higher powers; through the emperor to China and all the number descends "De" - life-giving power and grace; the closer h is to the emperor, the more "De" will pass from the emperor to him; to know "Tao" and get "Te" is possible subject to the laws of Taoism; the path to happiness, knowledge of the truth - liberation from desires and passions; you have to give in to each other in everything.
Legalism - advocate for managing society through state violence, based on laws. Thus, legalism is the function of a strong state power. Its founders were Shang Yang (390 - 338 BC) and Han Fei (288 - 233 BC). In the era of Emperor Qin-Shi-Hua (3rd century BC), Legalism became the official ideology. The main question of legalism (as well as Confucianism): how to manage society? The main postulates of legalism are as follows: h has an inherently evil nature; the driving force of h-their actions are personal selfish interests; the interests of individual individuals (social groups) are mutually opposed; in order to avoid arbitrariness and general enmity, state intervention in social relations is necessary; the state (represented by the army, officials) should encourage law-abiding citizens and severely punish the guilty; the main incentive for lawful behavior is the fear of punishment; the main distinction between right and wrong behavior and the application of punishment are laws; laws are the same for everyone, and punishment should be applied to commoners and high officials (regardless of rank) if they violated the laws; the state apparatus should be formed from professionals (those bureaucratic positions are given to candidates with the necessary knowledge and business qualities, and are not inherited); the state is the main regulatory mechanism of society and, therefore, has the right to interfere in social relations, the economy, and the private life of citizens.
Less common are: Moism; natural philosophy; nominalism. After the penetration of Buddhism into China (3rd century AD) and until the end of the 19th century. (second stage) the basis of Chinese f is composed of: Chan Buddhism (national Chinese Buddhism, which arose as a result of the influence of Chinese culture on Indian Buddhism, borrowed by China; neo-Taoism; neo-Confucianism. According to Chinese f, h is a clot of 3 types of cosmic energy: jing; qi Shen. Jing is the energy of the origin of all things, the "root", "seed" of a living organism. Qi is the material and spiritual energy that serves " building material"of everything that exists (unlike jing - the energy of generation), qi is divided into: material qi, thanks to which things and living organisms acquire a material form; spiritual qi - the soul of h and other living beings. Shen is an indestructible spiritual energy that exists in h, which is the "core" of the h-th personality and does not disappear after the death of h (unlike qi).In addition to the 3 types of cosmic energy kit f, everything that exists is divided into two opposite principles - male (yang) and female (yin). concerns both animate and inanimate nature (yang is the Sun, the sky, and yin is the Moon, the Earth).At the basis of the existence of animate and inanimate nature, all the surrounding reality lies "Tai Chi" - unity, struggle, interpenetration and complementarity of yang and yin.
Describing the ancient Eastern philosophy (India, China), the following should be noted . First of all, it was formed in the conditions of despotic states, where the human personality was absorbed by the external environment. Inequality, rigid caste division largely determined the socio-political and moral-ethical problems of philosophy. Secondly , the great influence of mythology (which was anthropomorphic in nature), the cult of ancestors, totemism affected the insufficient rationalization and systemic nature of Eastern philosophy . Thirdly , unlike European philosophy, Eastern philosophy is autochthonous (original, primordial, root).
Despite the diversity of views in ancient Indian philosophy the personality component is weakly expressed. Therefore, it is customary to consider, first of all, the most famous schools. They can be divided into orthodox schools - mimamsa, vedanta, sankhya and yoga, and unorthodox- Buddhism, Jainism and Charvaka Lokayata. Their difference is mainly due to the attitude to the sacred scripture of Brahmanism, and then Hinduism - the Vedas (orthodox schools recognized the authority of the Vedas, non-orthodox ones denied it). Written in poetic form, the Vedas contain questions and answers to them about the origin of the world, the cosmic order, natural processes, the presence of a soul in a person, the eternity of the world and the mortality of an individual.
The Indian philosophical tradition has formed a number of basic philosophical and ethical concepts that make it possible to form a general idea of the ancient Indian philosophical teachings. First of all, this concept karma - the law that determines the fate of man. Karma is closely related to the doctrine of samsara (chains of rebirths of beings in the world). Liberation or exit from samsara is moksha . It is precisely the ways out of moksha that distinguish the views of different philosophical schools (these could be sacrifices, asceticism, the practice of yogis, etc.) Aspiring to liberation must follow the established norms and drachma (certain way of life, way of life).
ancient chinese philosophy, the development of which falls on the middle of the first millennium BC, was formed simultaneously with the emergence of Indian philosophy. Since its inception, it has differed from Indian and Western philosophy, as it relied only on Chinese spiritual traditions.
Two trends can be identified in philosophical thought China: mystical and materialistic. In the course of the struggle between these two tendencies, naively materialistic ideas about the five elements of the world(metal, wood, water, fire, earth), oh opposite principles(yin and yang), oh natural law(dao), etc.
The main philosophical directions (teachings) were: Confucianism, Mohism, Legalism, Taoism, yin and yang, school of names, Jinistics.
One of the first major Chinese philosophers is considered Lao Tzu , founder of the doctrine Taoism. His teaching about the visible phenomena of nature, which are based on material particles - qi, subordinate, like all things in nature, to the natural laws of Tao, was of great importance for the naive-materialistic substantiation of the world. Another striking materialistic teaching in ancient China already in the 4th century BC. was teaching Yang Zhu about the recognition of the laws of nature and society. Not the will of the sky, the gods, but the universal, absolute law - Tao determines the existence and development of things and human actions.
The most authoritative ancient Chinese philosopher was Confucius (551-479 BC). His teaching, having turned out to be dominant in the spiritual life of China, achieved in the 2nd century BC. the official status of the dominant ideology. The focus of Confucianism is the problems of ethics, politics, and education of a person. The sky is the highest power and the guarantor of justice. The will of heaven is fate. A person should fulfill the will of Heaven and strive to know it. The Law (Li) is recognized as the core of human behavior, ritual. Confucianism declares the idea of humanity, self-respect, reverence for elders, reasonable order as the principle of moral perfection. The main moral imperative of Confucius is “do not do to others what you do not wish for yourself.”
§ 3. Ancient philosophy
Ancient philosophy, rich and deep in its content, was formed in Ancient Greece and ancient Rome. According to the most common concept, ancient philosophy, like the entire culture of antiquity, went through several stages.
First- origin and formation. In the first half of the VI century. BC e. in the Asia Minor part of Hellas - in Ionia, in the city of Miletus, the first ancient Greek school was formed, called the Milesian. Thales, Anaximander, Anaximenes and their students belonged to it.
Second- maturity and flourishing (V - IV centuries BC). This stage of development is ancient Greek philosophy associated with the names of such thinkers as Socrates, Plato, Aristotle. In the same period, the formation of the school of atomists, the Pythagorean school, and the sophists takes place.
Third stage- the decline of Greek philosophy in the era of Hellenism and Latin philosophy of the period of the Roman Republic, and then the decline and end of ancient pagan philosophy. During this period, skepticism, epicureanism and stoicism became the most famous currents of Hellenistic philosophy.
- early classic(Naturalists, Pre-Socratics). The main problems are "Physis" and "Cosmos", its structure.
- middle classics(Socrates and his school; sophists). The main problem is the essence of man.
- High classics(Plato, Aristotle and their schools). The main problem is the synthesis of philosophical knowledge, its problems and methods, etc.
- Hellenism(Epicurus, Pyrrho, the Stoics, Seneca, Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius, etc.) The main problems are morality and human freedom, knowledge, etc.
Ancient philosophy is characterized by the generalization of the rudiments of scientific knowledge, observations of natural phenomena, as well as the achievements of scientific thought and culture of the peoples of the ancient East. This specific historical type of philosophical outlook is characterized by cosmocentrism. macrocosmos- this is nature and the main natural elements. Man - a kind of repetition of the world around - microcosm. The highest principle that subjugates all human manifestations is fate.
The fruitful development of mathematical and natural science knowledge during this period led to a unique combination of the rudiments of scientific knowledge with mythological and aesthetic consciousness.
Search for the origin (foundation) of the world - characteristic ancient, especially early ancient philosophy. The problems of being, non-being, matter and its forms, its main elements, the elements of the cosmos, the structure of being, its fluidity and inconsistency worried the representatives of the Milesian school. They are called natural philosophers. So, Thales (VII - V i centuries BC) considered water to be the origin of everything, the primary substance, as a kind of element that gives life to everything that exists. Anaximenes considered air to be the basis of the cosmos, Anaximander - apeiron (indefinite, eternal, infinite something). The main problem of the Milesians was ontology - the doctrine of the basic forms of being. Representatives of the Milesian school pantheistically identified the natural and the divine.
Spontaneous materialism and dialectics were developed in the work of thinkers of the Ephesian school, a prominent representative of which was Heraclitus (c. 520 - c. 460 BC). Coming from a noble aristocratic family, he defended the interests of his class, but entered the history of philosophy primarily as the "father of dialectics." According to his philosophy, the world is one, not created by any of the gods and by any of the people, but was, is and will be an ever-living fire, naturally igniting and naturally extinguishing. Nature and the world are an eternal process of movement and change of fire. Developing the idea of perpetual motion, Heraclitus develops the doctrine of logos as a necessary and regular process. This process is the reason, the source of movement. Heraclitus meant that everything in the world consists of opposites, opposing. As a result, everything changes, flows; You cannot step into the same river twice. The philosopher expressed thoughts about the mutual transition of the struggling opposites into each other: the cold gets warmer, the warm gets colder, the wet dries up, the dry gets moistened.
Heraclitus philosophy was sharply criticized by representatives of the Eleatic school - thinkers from the city of Elea. The founder of the school is considered Xenophanes(c.570-480 BC). Subsequently, the head of the school became Parmenides(c.540 - 480 BC), and his legendary student Zeno of Elea(c.490-430 BC). Systematized and completed the traditions of this school Meliss of Samos(V century BC). The formation of ancient philosophy ends in the school of the Eleatics. Contrasting the problem of multiplicity with the elemental dialectic of Heraclitus, they came up with a number of paradoxes (aporias), which still cause ambiguous attitudes and conclusions among philosophers, mathematicians and physicists. The aporias have come down to us in the presentation of Zeno, therefore they are called the aporias of Zeno (“Moving bodies”, “Arrow”, “Achilles and the tortoise”, etc.). According to the Eleatics, the apparent ability of bodies to move in space, i.e. that, what we see as their movement, in fact, contradicts multiplicity. This means that it is impossible to get from one point to another, since you can find many other points between them. Any object, moving, must constantly be at some point, and since there are an infinite number of them, he does not move and is at rest. That is why the swift-footed Achilles cannot catch up with the tortoise, and the flying arrow does not fly. Isolating the concept of being, they designate with it the single, eternal, motionless basis of all that exists. The ideas designated in aporias, refuted many times, proved their metaphysics and absurdity.At the same time, an attempt to explain the movement, changes is dialectical.The Eleatics showed their contemporaries that it is important to look for contradictions in explaining reality.
A large role in the development of ancient philosophy was played by the ideas of atomists, supporters of materialistic teachings. Leucippe and Democritus(V - IV centuries BC). Leucippus argued that the eternal material world consists of indivisible atoms and the void in which these atoms move. Vortices of motion of atoms form worlds. It was assumed that matter, space, time cannot be divided to infinity, because there are the smallest, further inseparable fragments of them - atoms of matter, amers (atoms of space), hrons (atoms of time). These ideas made it possible to partially overcome the crisis caused by Zeno's aporias. Democritus considered the true world to be an infinite, objective reality, consisting of atoms and emptiness. Atoms are indivisible, immutable, qualitatively homogeneous and differ from each other only in external, quantitative features: shape, size, order and position. Thanks to perpetual motion, a natural necessity is created for the convergence of atoms, which in turn leads to the appearance of solid bodies. The soul of a person is also represented in a peculiar way. Soul atoms have a thin, smooth, round, fiery shape and are more mobile. The naivety of the ideas of the atomists is explained by the underdevelopment of their views. Despite this, the atomistic doctrine had a huge impact on the subsequent development of natural science, the materialistic theory of knowledge. Epicurus, a follower of Democritus, concretized the teachings of Democritus and, in contrast to him, believed that the sense organs give absolutely accurate ideas about the properties and characteristics of objects and processes in the surrounding reality.
Second phase development of ancient philosophy (middle classics) is associated with the philosophical teachings of the sophists. (Sophism is a philosophical direction based on the recognition of the ambiguity of concepts, deliberately false construction of conclusions that formally seem correct, snatching out certain aspects of the phenomenon). The Sophists were called wise men, and they called themselves teachers. Their goal was to give knowledge (and, as a rule, this was done for money) in all possible areas and to develop in students the ability for various kinds of activities. They played a huge role in the development of the technique of philosophical discussion. Their reflections on the practical significance of philosophy were of practical interest to subsequent generations of thinkers. The sophists were Protagoras, Gorgias, Prodik, Hippias. Greek thinkers treated the sophists negatively. So, "the wisest of sages" Athenian Socrates (470-399 BC), who himself was influenced by the sophists, ironically over the fact that the sophists undertake to teach science and wisdom, while they themselves deny the possibility of any knowledge, any wisdom. In contrast, Socrates did not ascribe to himself wisdom itself, but only the love of wisdom. Therefore, the word "philosophy" - "love of wisdom" after Socrates became the name of a special field of knowledge and worldview. Unfortunately, Socrates did not leave behind written sources, so most of his statements have come down to us through his students - the historian Xenophon and the philosopher Plato. The philosopher's desire for self-knowledge, for self-knowledge precisely as a "man in general" through an attitude to objective universally valid truths: good and evil, beauty, goodness, human happiness - contributed to the promotion of the problem of man as a moral being to the center of philosophy. An anthropological turn in philosophy begins with Socrates. Next to the theme of man in his teaching were the problems of life and death, ethics, freedom and responsibility, personality and society.
The high classics of ancient philosophy is associated with the greatest thinkers of Ancient Greece Plato (427-347 BC) and Aristotle (384-322 BC). Plato expressed his thoughts in works equally belonging to ancient literature and philosophy. Aristotle gravitated toward encyclopedism. The theory of ideas became the core of Plato's teachings. The objective, irrelevant, independent of time and space, incorporeal, eternal, inaccessible to sensory perceptions, the idea is comprehended only by the mind. It represents the formative principle, and matter represents the possibilities. Both of them are the causes of the objective world ordered by the demiurge. Ideas make up a special realm of ideal entities, where the highest idea is the Good.
Plato developed the theory of knowledge. He believed that true knowledge is the knowledge of the world of ideas, which is carried out by the rational part of the soul. At the same time, sensual and intellectual knowledge were distinguished. Plato's "theory of memories" explains the main task of knowledge - to remember what the soul observed in the world of ideas before it descended to earth and embodied in human body. The objects of the sense world serve to arouse the memories of the soul. Plato proposed to develop the art of controversy ("dialectics") as a way to clarify the truth.
Plato considered many other philosophical problems, among which the doctrine of the “ideal state”, the theory of space, and ethical doctrine deserve attention.
The rich philosophical heritage of Plato was critically rethought by his student, the scientist-encyclopedist Aristotle.
Aristotle founded his philosophical school of "peripatetics" (by the name of the lecture halls in the covered galleries - peripatos). His teaching later had a decisive influence on the formation and development of not only philosophy, but also European culture as a whole. First of all, Aristotle, much wider than any of his predecessors, carried out an intellectual coverage of all forms of contemporary knowledge and culture in general. He was interested in questions of natural science, philosophy, logic, history, politics, ethics, culture, aesthetics, literature, theology, etc. Secondly, he formulated the concept of philosophy. As the "first philosophy" he considers "metaphysics" and "second philosophy" - physics. "Metaphysics" is the most exalted of the sciences, because it does not pursue empirical or practical goals. It answers the questions of how to investigate the causes of the first or higher principles, to know “being as it is being”, to gain knowledge about substance, God and supersensible substance. In the doctrine of matter and form, Aristotle considers the two beginnings of every thing (thing = matter + form). For the first time he introduces the concept of matter. Each thing becomes itself due to the form (eidos).
The study of being is possible only with the help of logic (an organon is a tool for studying being). Logic, according to Aristotle, has methodological significance for knowledge.
Continuing the tradition of his teacher Plato, Aristotle pays great attention to the human soul and develops his own ethics. A characteristic feature of Aristotle's philosophy is the vacillation between materialism and objective idealism, dialectics and non-dialectical method.
Hellenism. The main currents of Hellenistic philosophy were Stoicism and Epicureanism.
Philosophical direction - stoicism existed from the 3rd century BC. until the 3rd century AD The main representatives of early Stoicism were Zeno of China, Xenophanes, Chrysippus. Later, Plutarch, Cicero, Seneca, Marcus Aurelius became famous as Stoics. All of them were followers of the school of Stoia (Athens), their life ideal- equanimity and calmness, the ability not to respond to internal and external irritating factors. Stoicism as a doctrine absorbed much of the previous Greek philosophy. There are several sections of this philosophy: physics, logic and aesthetics. In physics, the Stoics stood on the positions of pantheism. God-Logos, Logos-nature. The logos of the Stoics is identical to matter and God and at the same time the divine mind. All people of the world are involved in the Logos. According to a long ancient tradition, fire was considered by the Stoics the main element of the universe.
Problems of logic occupied a significant place in the work of the Stoics. They divided it into rhetoric and dialectics, understanding the latter as the art of reaching the truth with the help of a dispute. Nevertheless, the pinnacle of Stoic philosophy is its aesthetic teaching. It substantiated the main categories of Stoic ethics: autarky - self-satisfaction, independence, isolation; ataraxia - equanimity, complete calmness, serenity; quietism - an indifferent, passive attitude to life; affect; lust; passion; apathy - dispassion. The ultimate goal of man is happiness. Virtue is a life in harmony with the nature-Logos. There are four virtues in life: wisdom, temperance, courage and justice.
Epicureanism, which existed simultaneously with Stoicism, is associated with creativity Epicurus (341-270 BC). He founded his own school - the "Garden of Epicurus", the source of the philosophical teachings of which was the teaching of the Milesian school on the fundamental principle of all things, the dialectic of Heraclitus, the doctrine of pleasure. Epicurus continued the traditions of the atomistic doctrine, supplementing it with the concepts of atomic weight, curvilinearity, the randomness of the movement of atoms, etc. In the theory of knowledge, he defended sensationalism, unlimitedly trusting the readings of the senses and not trusting the mind. Like Stoicism, Epicureanism assigns a large place in its philosophy to ethical teaching. The main principle, the goal of human life, is declared to be pleasure, pleasure. A means in the fight against suffering, a way to achieve peace of mind (ataraxia) and happiness (eudaimonia), Epicurus considers following the essence of reasonable human moral requirements.
An even more holistic atomistic picture of the world was presented in his teaching by the Roman sage Titus Lucretius Car (c. 96 - 55 BC), who supplemented it with provisions on the eternity of being, the inseparability of motion and matter, the multiplicity of objective qualities of matter (color, taste, smell, etc.). His philosophy completes the development of the materialism of the ancient world.
It should be emphasized that the variety of philosophical ideas of the period of antiquity gives grounds for the conclusion that in ancient Greek philosophy, almost all later types of worldviews are contained in the embryo, in the form of brilliant conjectures.
§ 4. Medieval philosophy
Medieval philosophy belongs mainly to the era of feudalism (V - XV centuries). The entire spiritual culture of this period was subordinated to the interests and control of the church, the protection and justification of religious dogmas about God and his creation of the world. The dominant worldview of this era was religion, so the central idea of medieval philosophy is the idea of a monotheistic God.
A feature of medieval philosophy is the fusion of theology and ancient philosophical thought. Theoretical thinking of the Middle Ages at its core theocentric. God, and not the cosmos, is presented as the root cause, the creator of all things, and his will as a power that reigns supreme over the world. Philosophy and religion are so intertwined here that Thomas Aquinas described philosophy as nothing more than "the servant of theology." The sources of medieval European philosophy were predominantly idealistic or idealistically interpreted philosophical views of antiquity, especially the teachings of Plato and Aristotle.
The main principles of medieval philosophy were: creationism- the idea of the creation of the world by God from nothing; providentialism– understanding of history as the implementation of God's plan for the salvation of man; theodicy- as God's justification ; symbolism- a peculiar ability of a person to find the hidden meaning of an object; revelation- the direct will of God, accepted by the subject as an absolute criterion of human behavior and cognition; realism- the existence of common in God, in things, in people's thoughts, words; nominalism- special attention to the singular.
In the development of medieval philosophy, two stages can be distinguished - patristics and scholasticism.
Patristics. During the struggle between Christianity and pagan polytheism (from the 2nd to the 6th centuries AD), a literature of apologists (defenders) of Christianity arose. Following apologetics, patristics arose - the writings of the so-called church fathers, writers who laid the foundations of the philosophy of Christianity. Apologetics and patristics developed in Greek centers and in Rome. This period can be divided into:
- a) the apostolic period (until the middle of the 2nd century AD);
- b) the era of the Apologists (from the middle of the 2nd century AD to the beginning of the 4th century AD). These include Tertullian, Clement of Alexandria, Origen and others;
- c) mature patristics (IV - VI centuries AD). The most prominent figures of this period were Jerome, Augustine Aurelius and others. During this period, the ideas of monotheism, the transcendence of God, the three hypostases - God the Father, God the Son and the Holy Spirit, creationism, theodicy, eschatology were at the center of philosophizing.
During this period, philosophy is already divided into three types: speculative (theological), practical (moral), rational (or logic). All three types of philosophy were closely related to each other.
Scholasticism(VII - XIV centuries). The philosophy of the Middle Ages is often called in one word - scholasticism (lat. scholasticus - school, scientist) - a type of religious philosophy based on the combination of dogmatics and rationalistic justification with a preference for formal logical problems. Scholasticism is the main way of philosophizing of the Middle Ages. This was due First of all, close relationship with holy scripture and Sacred Tradition, which, complementing each other, were an exhaustive, universal paradigm of philosophical knowledge about God, the world, man and history ; Secondly, traditionalism, continuity, conservatism, dualism of medieval philosophy; third, impersonal character of medieval philosophy, when the personal receded before the abstract-general.
The most important problem of scholasticism was the problem of universals. Three philosophical currents are associated with an attempt to solve this problem: conceptualism(existence of the general outside and before a particular thing), realism(before the thing) and nominalism(existence of the general after and outside the thing).
Follower of Plato Augustine the Blessed stood at the origins of medieval philosophy. In his works, he substantiated the idea that the existence of God is the highest being. The good will of God is the cause of the appearance of the world, which, through the body and soul of man, ascends to its creator. Man has a special place in this world. The material body and rational soul constitute the essence of a person who, through his soul, acquires immortality and freedom in his decisions and actions. However, people are divided into believers and non-believers. God takes care of the first, and the second is given the opportunity to save himself through the conversion to faith. A. Augustine believed that a person has two sources of knowledge: sensory experience and faith. His religious and philosophical teaching served as the foundation of Christian thought until the 13th century.
Leading theologian of the Catholic Church Thomas Aquinas sought to harmonize the teachings of Aristotle with the requirements of the Catholic faith to achieve a historical compromise between faith and reason, theology and science. He is known for developing five "ontological" proofs for the existence of God in the world. They boil down to this: God is "the form of all forms"; God is the prime mover, i.e. the source of everything; God is the highest perfection; God is the supreme source of expediency; from God comes the lawful, orderly nature of the world.
Philosophy and religion, according to the teachings of Thomas, have a number of common provisions that are opened both by reason and by faith in cases where a choice is presented: it is better to understand than just to believe. On this is based the existence of the truths of reason. The teachings of Thomas, called Thomism, became the ideological support and theoretical tool of Catholicism.
The philosophical thought of the Byzantine East is associated with the names of Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian, Athanasius of Alexandria, John Chrysostom, Gregory Palamas, and others. Byzantine medieval philosophy is distinguished by an intense, dramatic search for the spiritual foundations of a new Christian culture, autocratic statehood.
In the Middle Ages, the development of scientific knowledge in the countries of the Muslim East was significantly ahead of European science. This was due to the fact that during this period idealistic views dominated in Europe, while Eastern culture absorbed the ideas of ancient materialism. As a result of the interaction of the Islamic value systems, the traditional cultures of the peoples belonging to the Arab Caliphate, and later to the Ottoman Empire, a syncretic culture began to develop, which is usually called Muslim. The most characteristic philosophical currents of Arab-Muslim philosophy were: Mutualism, Sufism, Arab peripatetism. The most significant phenomenon in its philosophical content was Eastern peripatetism (IX-XI centuries). The leading representatives of Aristotelianism were Al-Farabi, Al-Biruni, Ibn-Sina (Avicenna), Ibn-Rushd (Averroes).
The strong influence of Islam did not allow the development of independent philosophical teachings, therefore, the initial principle of constructing a picture of the world is God as the first reality. At the same time, Arab thinkers developed Aristotelian ideas about nature and man, his logic. They recognized the objectivity of the existence of matter, nature, their eternity and infinity. These philosophical views contributed to the development scientific knowledge in mathematics, astronomy, medicine, etc.
Despite some monotony of medieval philosophy, it became a significant stage in the development of philosophical knowledge of the world. Noteworthy is the striving of this philosophy to more fully comprehend the spiritual world of man, to attach him to a higher God. It should be noted that the religious exaltation of man as the "image and likeness" of God contributed to the advancement in philosophical understanding person. Philosophy has taken a step from naturalistic ideas to the realization of the individuality of the human spirit and the historicity of man.
Medieval philosophy made a significant contribution to further development epistemology, having developed and specified everything logically possible options the ratio of rational, empirical and a priori, the ratio, which later will become not only the subject of scholastic disputes, but also the foundation for the formation of the foundations of natural science and philosophical knowledge.
§ 5. Philosophy of the Renaissance
The era of the Middle Ages is replaced by the Renaissance (Renaissance), the term "Renaissance" was first used by the Italian artist and architect Giorgio Vasari in 1550.
In XV - XVI centuries in Western Europe, in the depths of feudalism, capitalist relations begin to take shape. The developing productive forces lead to the rapid progress of natural science. The human mind begins to turn to nature, to the material activities of people.
The Renaissance is one of the brightest pages in the history of culture. It is marked by an unprecedented creative upsurge in the field of art, literature, science, socio-political thought. Looking back at the brilliant achievements of antiquity, the figures of the Renaissance created, in fact, a new culture. This could not but leave an imprint on the development of philosophy.
The philosophy of the Renaissance overcomes scholasticism and at the same time inherits many of its distinctive features. Medieval theocentrism is supplanted by anthropocentrism. God in the philosophical reflections of this era continues to play the honorable role of the "creator" of the world, but a man appears next to him. Formally, he remains dependent on God (he was created by him), but, being endowed, unlike the rest of nature, with the ability to create and think, a person next to God actually begins to play the role of a being, so to speak, “equal” with God, the role of a “second god” , as one of the leading thinkers of the Renaissance, Nicholas of Cusa, put it. Next to God, a person is exalted as the creator of the world of culture, deified as a subject creative activity. The man of the Renaissance overcomes ancient contemplation and medieval passivity in relation to the outside world, actively asserts himself in science, ideology and practical activity. Thus, the philosophy of the Renaissance takes a person out of the sphere of religious competence and turns him into the highest meaning-forming value, into the center of a worldview perspective. The world appears not in its objective reality, but through the prism of the inner world of man.
Philosophy of Ancient China
The philosophy of Ancient China dates back to the beginning of the 1st millennium BC.The formation of philosophical ideas in China took place in difficult social conditions. Already in the middle of the II millennium BC. e. there is a slave-owning way of economy, the birth of economy of ancient China .
The labor of slaves, in which the captured prisoners were converted, was used in cattle breeding, in agriculture. In the XII century BC. e. As a result of the war, the state of Shan-Yin was defeated by the Zhou tribe, who founded their own dynasty, which lasted until the 3rd century BC. BC e.
In the era of Shang-Yin and in the initial period, the existence of the Jou dynasty was dominant religiously - mythological worldview. One of distinguishing features Chinese myths are zoomorphic character gods and spirits acting in them.
The supreme deity was Shang-di- Ancestor and patron of the Chinese state. He obeyed both gods and spirits. Often the personified power of Heaven appeared in the image of Shang-di. According to the ideas of the ancient Chinese, impersonal, but all-seeing The sky controlled the entire course of events in the universe, and its high priest and sole representative on earth was emperor, who bore the title of Son of Heaven.
Features of the philosophy of ancient China
1) The cult of ancestors- was built on the recognition of the influence of the spirits of the dead on the life and fate of descendants. The duty of the ancestors who became spirits included constant care for the descendants living on earth.
2) The idea of the world as an interaction of opposite principles: female yin and male - yang . In ancient times, when there was neither heaven nor earth, the Universe was a gloomy formless chaos. Two spirits were born in it - yin and yang, who were engaged in ordering the world. The yang spirit began to rule the sky, and the yin spirit - the earth. In the myths about the origin of the universe, there are very vague, timid beginnings of natural philosophy.
3) Holism- the world and each individual are considered as a "single whole", more important than its constituent parts. The idea of the harmonious unity of man and the world is central to this thinking. Man and nature are considered not as subject and object opposing each other, but as a "holistic structure" in which body and spirit, somatic and mental are in harmonious unity.
4) Intuitiveness- In Chinese traditional philosophical thinking, methods of cognition similar to intuition are of great importance. The basis of this is holism. The “One” cannot be analyzed in terms of concepts and reflected in terms of language. To understand the "single wholeness" - it is necessary to rely only on intuitive insight.
5) Symbolism- knowledge was combined with aesthetic sensation and the will to implement moral norms in practice. Moral consciousness played the leading role in this complex.
6) Collectivism- the priority of the social principle over the personal.
7) Traditionalism - a broad reliance on the customs and traditions of a given society.
8) Conformity- fear of change.
9) Hierarchy – building a society from the highest to the lowest
Philosophical schools of ancient China
1) Confucianism
Confucianism (school of scientists, school of scribes) is a religious and philosophical system that formed in China in the 6th century BC, the founder of which was Confucius (Kung Fu Tzu).
B over two millennia this philosophical, religious and ethical doctrine regulated all aspects of Chinese life starting from family relations and ending with the state-administrative structure. Unlike most other world religious doctrines, Confucianism is not characterized by mysticism and metaphysical abstractions, but strict rationalism putting the public good above all else and priority of general interests over private ones. There is no clergy here, as, for example, in Christianity, its place was taken by officials performing administrative functions, which included religious functions.
Confucianism is often interpreted as a way of life that for two thousand years maintained the religious unity of the Chinese people and promoted ethnic consolidation.
This school is founded by Kung Fu Tzu (Confucius) (551-479 BC). Relatively little known during his lifetime, Confucius became widely known after his death. According to this teaching, wisdom comes from the past, and failures befall the one who rejects traditions.
The main principle of social organization is "he" (harmony, unity), to which they come by mutually overcoming polar interests and opinions. The fusion of opposites is the basis of all things.
Confucianism formulates concepts "jen" (humanity, philanthropy) and "li" (rules, ethics).
In Confucianism, society was divided into two categories - noble and common people. noble husband
strives for philanthropy and justice, the "little" person strives for wealth and profit.
A noble person cares about the observance of morality, a "small" one thinks about the earth.
The noble takes care of the observance of the law, and the "small" one takes care of receiving good deeds. It is necessary to be an honest dignitary and honor the ruler.
In Confucianism developed public administration system: at the top is the highest ruler - the "son of Heaven".
Love and respect for the "superior", love for the mother and respect for the father are preached. being put forward principle of justice as the basis for solving cases. Unwavering loyalty to the doctrine, the ability to master it and keep it is an important requirement of Confucianism. A person's personal desire should be reduced to caring for others, and not about their own well-being. Love is the best test of a person's greatness.
cultivated respect for ancestors and seniors. filial duties are of two types:
caring for the food and health of parents and maintaining parental authority, caring for parents after their death by performing ceremonies;
maintaining family authority.
Confucianism proclaimed the doctrine of following "middle way" to avoid extremes. To achieve perfection, a balance in activity is necessary:
adaptation to the conditions of life and submission to the authority of the authorities. Justice and laws are the result of a long development of thought and practice. Only a few are capable of self-sacrifice, while most people must be kept within the bounds of the law, asserting it by force.
People are divided into three groups:
1) good by nature, the qualities of which are improved by education;
2) bad by nature, who are kept only by the fear of punishment;
3) mixing good and evil in their behavior, which can move in different directions.
The canons of Confucianism were created over thousands of years by many authors and played a huge role in the spiritual life of Chinese society until the 20th century. On the basis of the canon, systems of upbringing and education were built, each official, in order to occupy certain place in the state apparatus of China, was required to pass an exam on knowledge of the Shi-sanjing texts, etc. The influence of Confucianism on Chinese culture remains significant today. According to rough estimates, at present the number of followers of Confucianism is St. 300 million people.
2) Taoism
2. Taoism- the oldest philosophical doctrine of China, which tries to explain the foundations of the construction and existence of the surrounding world and find the path that man, nature and space should follow.
The founder of Taoism is considered Lao Tzu(Old Teacher) who lived at the end of the 6th - beginning of the 5th centuries. BC e.
2. The basic concepts of Taoism are "Tao" and "Te". "Tao" has two meanings:
The path along which man and nature must go in their development, the universal world law that ensures the existence of the world;
The substance from which the whole world originated, the beginning, which was an energetically capacious void. "De" - grace coming from above; energy, thanks to which the original "Tao" was transformed into the surrounding world.
3.Philosophy Taoism contains a number of key ideas:
Everything in the world is interconnected, there is not a single thing, not a single phenomenon that would not be interconnected with other things and phenomena;
The matter of which the world is composed is one; there is a circulation of matter in nature ("everything comes from the earth and goes into the earth"), that is, today's man was embodied yesterday in the form of other forms that exist in the universe - stone, wood, parts of animals, and after death what the man consisted of , will become the "building material" of other forms of life or natural phenomena;
The world order, the laws of nature, the course of history are unshakable and do not depend on the will of man, therefore, main principle human life - peace and inaction ("wu-wei");
The person of the emperor is sacred, only the emperor has spiritual contact with the gods and higher powers; through the personality of the emperor, "Te" descends on China and all mankind - life-giving power and grace; the closer a person is to the emperor, the more "De" will pass from the emperor to him;
To know "Tao" and get "Te" is possible only with full observance of the laws of Taoism, merging with the "Tao" - the origin, obedience to the emperor and proximity to him;
The path to happiness, knowledge of the truth is liberation from desires and passions;
It is necessary to yield to each other in everything.
3) Legalism
Legalism(fr. Légisme) - the philosophical school of China, formed in the IV-III centuries. BC BC, also known as the "School of Lawyers" (fajia).
The founders of t Theories and practices of legalism are considered Guan Zhong(late 8th–7th century BC), Zi Chan (6th century BC), as well as Li Kui, Li Ke (perhaps this is one person), Wu Qi (4th century BC AD). The largest theorists of legalism are recognized Shang Yang, Shen Dao, Shen Buhai (4th century BC) and Han Fei(3rd century BC; see Han Feizi).
Shang Yang
The main idea of the school was the equality of all before the Law and the Son of Heaven, which resulted in the idea of distributing titles not by birth, but by real merit. According to the ideas of legalism, any commoner had the right to rise to any rank, up to the first minister.
The Legists were infamous for the fact that when they came to power, they established extremely cruel laws and punishments.
The main ideas of the school:
The equality of all before the Law and the Son of Heaven was proclaimed and, as a result, the emergence of the idea of distributing titles not by birth, but by real merit, according to which any commoner had the right to rise to the rank of first minister. Shang Yang recommended to nominate in the first place those who proved their devotion to the sovereign in the service in the army.
Success in politics is achieved only by those who know the situation in the country and use accurate calculations.
The experience of previous rulers should be assimilated. And at the same time, "in order to benefit the state, it is not necessary to imitate antiquity."
The economic situation in the country is very important for politics.
In the field of administration, it was proposed to concentrate all power in the hands of the supreme ruler, deprive the governors of power and turn them into ordinary officials. A smart ruler, says the treatise Shang jun shu, "does not condone turmoil, but takes power into his own hands, establishes the law and restores order with the help of laws."
In order to ensure the representation of the wealthy strata in the state apparatus, the sale of bureaucratic positions was envisaged.
Shang Yang made only one requirement for officials - to blindly obey the sovereign.
It was supposed to limit communal self-government, to subordinate family clans and patronymics to the local administration.
It was also proposed to establish uniform laws for the entire state. The law was understood to mean repressive policies (criminal law) and administrative orders of the government.
Shang Yang considered the relationship between the government and the people as a confrontation between the warring parties. “When the people are stronger than their authorities, the state is weak; when the authorities are stronger than their people, the army is powerful.” In a model state, the power of the ruler is based on force and is not bound by any law.
The slightest offense should be punished by death. This punitive practice was to be supplemented by a policy aimed at eradicating dissent and stupidity of the people.
The supreme goal of the sovereign's activity is the creation of a powerful state capable of uniting China through wars of conquest.
4) Moism
Mohism founder
is considered the philosopher Mo Di, who lived in the 5th-4th centuries. BC.
Major Theories of Mohism set out in the treatise Mo-tzu, which is the main theoretical monument of this school. Mo Di believed that every person has an equal political opportunities, it all depends on his innate abilities. He opposed the nomination of officials by kinship.
The ethical system of Mohism is expressed the principle of mutual respect and mutual assistance of all inhabitants of the country. Rulers, the Mohists believed, should work on an equal footing with everyone, set a good example with their actions and deeds. They also advocated an ascetic lifestyle, i.e. rejection of luxury, for savings in burials, against music.
Mohists considered heaven as a model for the embodiment of ethical principles. They said that it applies equally to all who are on earth.
Mohism flourished in the 4th century BC, and already in the third century the Mohist school broke up into three currents, and then completely began to lose its position and popularity. Moreover, having broken up into currents, it became associated with popular movements and conspirators. Despite the fact that some of the ideas of Moism influenced people until the 20th century, it still lost its original role in antiquity and could not restore it, which soon led to its disappearance.
ON PHILOSOPHY.
TOPIC 2. PHILOSOPHY OF ANCIENT CHINA AND ANCIENT INDIA.
1. Features of the emergence and development of philosophy in ancient China.
China is a country ancient history, culture, philosophy; already in the middle of the second millennium BC. in the state of Shan-Yin (17-9 centuries BC) a slave-owning economy emerged. Slave labor was used in cattle breeding and agriculture. In the 12th century BC. as a result of the war, the state of Shan-Yin was defeated by the Zhou tribe, who founded their own dynasty, which lasted until the 3rd century BC.
In the era of Shan-Yin and in the initial period of the existence of the Jou dynasty, the religious and mythological worldview was dominant. One of the distinguishing features of Chinese myths was the zoomorphic nature of the gods and spirits acting in them. Many of their Chinese deities had a clear resemblance to animals, birds and fish.
The most important element of the ancient Chinese religion was the cult of ancestors, which was based on the recognition of the influence of the dead on the life and fate of their descendants.
In ancient times, when there was neither heaven nor earth, the Universe was a gloomy formless chaos. Two spirits, yin and yang, were born in him, who took up the ordering of the world.
In the myths about the origin of the universe, there are very vague, timid beginnings of natural philosophy.
The mythological form of thinking, as the dominant one, lasted until the 1st millennium BC.
The decomposition of the primitive communal system and the emergence of a new system of social production did not lead to the disappearance of myths.
Many mythological images pass into later philosophical treatises. Philosophers who lived in the 5th-3rd centuries. BC, often turn to myths in order to substantiate their concepts of true government and their norms of correct human behavior. At the same time, Confucians carry out the historicization of myths, demythologization of plots and images of ancient myths. Rationalized myths become part of philosophical ideas, teachings, and the characters of myths become historical figures used to preach Confucian teachings.
Philosophy was born in the depths of mythological ideas, using their material. The history of ancient Chinese philosophy was no exception in this regard.
The philosophy of ancient China is closely connected with mythology. However, this connection had some features arising from the specifics of mythology in China. Chinese myths appear primarily as historical legends about vulgar dynasties, about the "golden age".
Chinese myths contain relatively little material that reflects the views of the Chinese on the formation of the world and its interaction, relationship with man. Therefore, natural philosophical ideas did not occupy the main place in Chinese philosophy. However, all the natural-philosophical teachings of Ancient China originate from the mythological and primitive religious constructions of the ancient Chinese about heaven and earth, about the "eight elements".
Along with the emergence of cosmogonic concepts, which were based on the forces of yang and yin, there are naive materialistic concepts that were associated with the "five elements": water, fire, metal, earth, wood.
The struggle for dominance between the kingdoms led in the second half of the 3rd century BC. to the destruction of the "Warring States" and the unification of China into a centralized state under the auspices of the strongest kingdom of Qin.
Deep political upheavals were reflected in the stormy ideological struggle of various philosophical, political and ethical schools. This period is characterized by the flourishing of culture and philosophy.
In literary and historical monuments, we encounter certain philosophical ideas that arose on the basis of a generalization of the direct labor and socio-historical practice of people. However, the true flowering of ancient Chinese philosophy falls precisely on the period of the 6th-3rd century BC. BC BC, which is rightly called the golden age of Chinese philosophy. It was during this period that the formation of Chinese schools took place - Taoism, Confucianism, Mohism, Legalism, natural philosophers, who then had a huge impact on the entire subsequent development of Chinese philosophy. It was during this period that those problems, concepts and categories were born, which then become traditional for the entire subsequent history of Chinese philosophy, right up to modern times.
Two main stages in the development of philosophical thought in ancient China: the stage of the birth of philosophical views, which covers the period of 8-6 centuries. BC, and the heyday of philosophical thought - the stage of rivalry "100 schools", which traditionally refers to the 4th-3rd centuries. BC.
The period of the formation of the philosophical views of the ancient peoples, which laid the foundations of Chinese civilization, coincides in time with a similar process in India and Ancient Greece. On the example of the emergence of philosophy in these three regions, one can trace the commonality of the patterns that followed the formation and development of human society of world civilization.
At the same time, the history of the formation and development of philosophy is inextricably linked with the class struggle in society and reflects this struggle. The confrontation of philosophical ideas reflected the struggle of different classes in society, the struggle between the forces of progress and reaction. Ultimately, the clash of views and points of view resulted in a struggle between two main trends in philosophy - materialistic and idealistic - with varying degrees of awareness and depth of expression of these trends.
The specificity of Chinese philosophy is directly related to its special role in the acute socio-political struggle that took place in numerous states of ancient China during the periods of "Spring and Autumn" and "Warring States". In China, a peculiar division of labor between politicians and philosophers was not clearly expressed, which led to the direct, immediate subordination of philosophy to political practice. Issues of managing society, relations between different social groups, between kingdoms - that's what mainly interested the philosophers of ancient China.
Another feature of the development of Chinese philosophy is connected with the fact that the natural scientific observations of Chinese scientists did not find, with a few exceptions, a more or less adequate expression in philosophy, since philosophers, as a rule, did not consider it necessary to refer to the materials of natural science. The only exception is the Mohist school and the school of natural philosophers, which, however, ceased to exist after the Zhou era.
Philosophy and natural science existed in China, as if fenced off from each other by an impenetrable wall, which caused them irreparable damage. Thus, Chinese philosophy deprived itself of a reliable source for the formation of an integral and comprehensive worldview, and natural science, despised by the official ideology, experiencing difficulties in development, remained the lot of loners and seekers of the elixir of immortality. The only methodological compass of Chinese naturalists remained the ancient naive-materialistic ideas of natural philosophers about the five primary elements.
This view arose in ancient China at the turn of the 4th and 5th centuries and lasted until modern times. As for such an applied branch of natural science as Chinese medicine, it is still guided by these ideas to this day.
Thus, the isolation of Chinese philosophy from specific scientific knowledge has narrowed its subject matter. Due to that nature philosophical concepts, explanations of nature, as well as problems of the essence of thinking, questions of the nature of human consciousness, logic have not received much development in China.
The isolation of ancient Chinese philosophy from natural science and the lack of elaboration of questions of logic are one of the main reasons for the fact that the formation of the philosophical conceptual apparatus proceeded very slowly. For most Chinese schools, the method of logical analysis remained virtually unknown.
Finally, Chinese philosophy was characterized by a close connection with mythology.
2. The idea of the world and man in Confucianism and Taoism .
Confucianism is an ethical and philosophical doctrine developed by its founder Confucius (551-479 BC), developed into a religious complex in China, Korea, Japan and some other countries.
The state cult of Confucius, with an official sacrificial ritual established in the country in 59 AD, existed in China until 1928. Confucius borrowed primitive beliefs: the cult of dead ancestors, the cult of the earth and the veneration by the ancient Chinese of their supreme deity and legendary ancestor - Shang-di. In Chinese tradition, Confucius is the guardian of the wisdom of the "golden age" of antiquity. He sought to restore the lost prestige to the monarchs, improve the morals of the people and make them happy. Moreover, he proceeded from the idea that the ancient sages created the institution of the state in order to protect the interests of each individual.
Confucius lived in an era of major social and political upheavals: patriarchal and tribal norms were violated, the very institution of the state was being destroyed. Speaking out against the reigning chaos, the philosopher put forward the idea of social harmony, based on the authority of the sages and rulers of ancient times, priority over which became a constantly acting impulse of the spiritual and social life of China.
Confucius expounded the ideal of a perfect man, considering personality as self-valuable. He created a program for the improvement of man: with the aim of achieving a spiritually developed personality in harmony with the Cosmos. A noble husband is the source of the ideal of morality for the whole society. He alone has a sense of harmony. And an organic gift to live in a natural rhythm. It shows the unity of the inner work of the heart and external behavior. The sage acts in accordance with nature, since from birth he is attached to the rules of observing the "golden mean". Its purpose is to transform society according to the laws of harmony that reigns in the Cosmos, to streamline and protect its living. For Confucius, five "permanences" are important: ritual, humanity, duty-justice, knowledge and trust. He sees in the ritual a means that acts as a "basis and utopia" between heaven and earth, allowing each individual, society, state to be entered into the infinite hierarchy of a living cosmic community. At the same time, Confucius transferred the rules of family ethics to the sphere of the state. He based the hierarchy on the principle of knowledge, perfection, the degree of familiarization with culture. The sense of proportion, embedded in the inner essence of the ritual through external ceremonies and rituals, conveyed the values of harmonious communication at an accessible level to everyone, introducing them to the virtues.
As a politician, Confucius recognized the value of ritual in governing a country. Involving everyone in compliance with the measure ensured the preservation of moral values in society, preventing, in particular, the development of consumerism and damage to spirituality. The stability of the Chinese society and state, nourished by the vitality of Chinese culture, owed much to the ritual.
Confucianism is not a complete doctrine. Its individual elements are closely connected with the development of ancient and medieval Chinese society, which it itself helped to form and conserve, creating a despotic centralized state. As a specific theory of the organization of society, Confucianism focuses on ethical rules, social norms and regulation of management, in the formation of which it was very conservative.
Confucius focuses on educating a person in a spirit of respect and reverence towards others, towards society. In his social ethics, a person is a person not “for himself”, but for society. The ethics of Confucius understands a person in connection with his social function, and education is leading a person to the proper performance of that function. This approach was of great importance for the ordering of life in agrarian China, but it led to the reduction of individual life, to a certain social status and activity. The individual was a function in the social organism of society.
The performance of functions based on order necessarily leads to the manifestation of humanity. Humanity is the main of all the requirements for a person. Human existence is so social that it cannot do without the following regulators: a) help other people achieve what you yourself would like to achieve; b) what you do not wish for yourself, do not do to others. People differ depending on their family and then social status. From family patriarchal relations, Confucius derived the principle of sons and brotherly virtue. Social relationships are parallel to family relationships. The relationship between subject and ruler, subordinate and superior is the same as the relationship between a son and a father and a younger brother to an older brother.
To comply with subordination and order, Confucius develops the principle of justice and serviceability. Justice and serviceability are not connected with the ontological understanding of truth, which Confucius did not specifically deal with. A person must act as the order and his position dictate. Correct behavior is behavior with respect for order and humanity.
Taoism arose in the 4th-6th centuries BC. According to legend, the ancient legendary yellow emperor discovered the secrets of this teaching. In fact, the origins of Taoism come from shamanic beliefs and the teachings of magicians, and its views are set forth in the "Canon on the path and virtue", attributed to the legendary sage Lao-tzu, and in the treatise "Zhuan-tzu", reflecting the views of the philosopher Zhuan Zhou and "Huainan- Tzu".
The social ideal of Taoism was a return to the "natural" primitive state and intracommunal equality. The Taoists condemned social oppression, condemned wars, opposed the wealth of luxury and the nobility, castigated the cruelty of the rulers. The founder of Taoism, Lao Tzu, put forward the theory of "non-action", calling on the masses to be passive, to follow the "tao" - the natural course of things.
The philosophical constructions of ancient Taoism became the foundation of the religious teachings of the Taoists in the Middle Ages as part of the syncretic complex of the "three teachings", along with Confucianism and Buddhism. The Confucian-educated intellectual elite showed interest in the philosophy of Taoism, the ancient cult of simplicity and naturalness was especially attractive: in merging with nature, freedom of creativity was acquired. Taoism adopted some features of the philosophy and cult of Buddhism in the process of adapting the latter to Chinese soil: Buddhist concepts and philosophical concepts were transferred into familiar Taoist terms. Taoism influenced the development of neo-Confucianism.
Taoism focuses on nature, the cosmos and man, however, these principles are comprehended not in a rational way, by constructing logically consistent formulas, but with the help of direct conceptual penetration into the nature of existence.
Tao is a concept with the help of which it is possible to give a universal comprehensive answer to the question of the origin and mode of existence of all things. In principle, it is nameless, it manifests itself everywhere, because there is a “source” of things, but it is not an independent substance or essence. Tao itself has no sources, no beginning, it is the root of everything without its own energy activity.
Tao has its own creative power de, through which Tao manifests itself in things through the influence of yin and yang. The understanding of de as an individual concretization of things for which a person is looking for names is radically different from the anthropologically directed Confucian Confucian understanding of de as a moral force of a person.
The ontological principle of sameness, when a person, as a part of nature from which he emerged, must maintain this unity with nature, also postulates epistemologically. Here we are talking about harmony with the world, on which the peace of mind of a person is based.
3.Sociocultural origins of Indian philosophy. Fundamentals of Buddhism, Jainism.
If we abstract from the most ancient written monuments found on the territory of Ancient India, then the texts of the Hindu culture (2500-1700 BC), which have not yet been fully deciphered, are the first source of information about life (together with archaeological finds) ancient Indian society - the so-called Vedic literature.
Vedic literature has evolved over a long and complex historical period, which begins with the arrival of the Indo-European Aryans in India and ends with the emergence of the first state formations uniting vast territories. During this period, important changes take place in society, and initially nomadic tribes Aryans turn into a class-differentiated society with developed agriculture, crafts and trade, social structure and hierarchization, containing four main varnas (estates). In addition to the Brahmins (clerics and monks), there were kshatriyas (warriors and representatives of the former tribal government), vaishyas (farmers, artisans and merchants) and shudras (a mass of directly dependent producers and a predominantly dependent population).
Traditionally Vedic literature is divided into several groups of texts. First of all, these are the four Vedas (literally: knowledge - hence the name of the entire period and its written monuments); the oldest and most important of them is the Rigveda (knowledge of hymns) - a collection of hymns, which was formed relatively long time and finally took shape by the 12th century BC. Somewhat later are the brahmanas - the manuals of the Vedic ritual, of which the most important is Shatapathabrahmana (brahmana of a hundred paths). The end of the Vedic period is represented by the Upanishads, which are very important for the knowledge of ancient Indian religious and philosophical thinking.
The Vedic religion is a complex, gradually developing complex of religious and mythological ideas and their corresponding rituals and cult rites. Partially archaic Indo-European ideas of the Indo-Iranian cultural layer slip through it. The formation of this complex is being completed against the background of mythology and the cult of the native (not Indo-European) inhabitants of India. The Vedic religion is polytheistic, it is characterized by anthropomorphism, and the hierarchy of the gods is not closed, the same properties and attributes are alternately attributed to different gods. The world of supernatural beings is complemented by various spirits - the enemies of gods and people (rakshasas and asuras).
The basis of the Vedic cult is the sacrifice, through which the follower of the Vedas appeals to the gods in order to ensure the fulfillment of his desires. Ritual practice is devoted to a significant part of the Vedic texts, in particular the Brahmins, where certain aspects are developed to the smallest detail. Vedic ritualism, which concerns almost all spheres of human life, guarantees a special position for the brahmins, the former performers of the cult.
In the later Vedic texts - the Brahmins - there is a statement about the origin and emergence of the world. In some places, old provisions are being developed about water as the primary substance, on the basis of which certain elements, gods and the whole world arise. The process of genesis is often accompanied by speculation about the influence of Prajpati, who is understood as an abstract creative force that stimulates the process of the emergence of the world, and his image is devoid of anthropomorphic features. In addition, in the Brahmins there are provisions pointing to various forms of breathing as the primary manifestations of being. Here we are talking about ideas that were originally associated with direct observation of a person (breathing as one of the main manifestations of life), projected, however, onto an abstract level and understood as the main manifestation of being.
The Brahmins are, first of all, the practical guides of the Vedic ritual, the cult practice and the mythological provisions associated with it are their main content.
The Upanishads (literally: sit around) form the consummation of the Vedic literature. The Old Indian tradition has a total of 108 of them, today about 300 different Upanishads are known. The predominant mass of texts arose at the end of the Vedic period (8-6 centuries BC), and the views that develop in them have already been modified and are influenced by other, later philosophical trends.
The Upanishads do not provide a coherent system of ideas about the world; one can find only a mass of heterogeneous views in them. Primitive animistic representations, interpretations of sacrificial symbolism and priestly speculations are interspersed in them with bold abstractions that can be characterized as the first forms of truly philosophical thinking in ancient India. The dominant place in the Upanishads is occupied by a new interpretation of the phenomena of the world, according to which the universal principle acts as the fundamental principle of being - an impersonal being (brahma), which is also identified with the spiritual essence of each individual.
In the Upanishads, Brahma is an abstract principle, completely devoid of previous ritual dependencies and designed to comprehend the eternal, timeless and supra-spatial, many-sided essence of the world. The concept of atman is used to denote an individual spiritual essence, the soul, which is identified with the universal principle of the world (brahma). This statement of identity various forms being, the elucidation of the identity of the being of each individual with the universal essence of the entire surrounding world is the core of the teachings of the Upanishads.
An inseparable part of this teaching is the concept of the cycle of life (samsara) and the closely related law of retribution (karma). The doctrine of the cycle of life, in which human life is understood as a certain form of an endless chain of rebirths, has its origin in the animistic ideas of the original inhabitants of India. It is also associated with the observation of certain cyclic natural phenomena, with an attempt to interpret them.
The law of karma dictates constant inclusion in the cycle of rebirths and determines the future birth, which is the result of all the deeds of previous lives. Only he, the texts testify, who performed good deeds, lived in accordance with the current morality, will be born in a future life as a brahmana, kshatriya or vaishya. The one whose actions were not correct may in the next life be born as a member of the lower varna (estate), or his atman will fall into the bodily storehouse of the animal; not only varnas, but everything that a person encounters in life is determined by karma.
Here is a peculiar attempt to explain the property and social differences in society as a consequence of the ethical result of the activity of each individual in past lives. Thus, one who acts according to existing standards may, according to the Upanishads, prepare for himself a better fate in some of the future lives.
Cognition consists in full awareness of the identity of atman and brahma, and only one who realizes this unity is released from the endless chain of rebirths and rises above joy and sorrow, life and death. His individual soul returns to brahma, where it remains forever, having come out from under the influence of karma. This is, as the Upanishads teach, the path of the gods.
The Upanishads are basically an idealistic teaching, however, it is not holistic in this basis, since there are views close to materialism in it. This refers to the teachings of Uddalaka, who did not develop a coherent materialistic doctrine. He attributes creative power to nature. The whole world of phenomena consists of three material elements - heat, water and food (earth). And even the atman is a material property of man. From materialistic positions, the notions are discarded, according to which at the beginning of the world there was a carrier, from which the existing and the whole world of phenomena and beings were born.
The Upanishads had a great influence on the development of later thinking in India. First of all, the doctrine of samsara and karma becomes the starting point for all subsequent religious and philosophical teachings, with the exception of materialistic ones. Many of the ideas in the Upanishads are often referred to by some later schools of thought.
In the middle of 1 thousand BC. great changes begin to take place in the Old Indian society. Agrarian and handicraft production, trade are developing significantly, property differences between members of individual varnas and castes are deepening, the position of direct producers is changing. The power of the monarchy is gradually increasing, the institution of tribal power is falling into decay and losing its influence. The first large state formations arise. In the 3rd century BC e. Under the rule of Ashoka, almost all of India is united within the framework of a single monarchical state.
A number of new doctrines are emerging, fundamentally independent of the ideology of Vedic Brahminism, rejecting the privileged position of the Brahmins in the cult and approaching the question of a person's place in society in a new way. Around the heralds of the new teachings, separate directions and schools are gradually formed, naturally with a different theoretical approach to pressing issues. Of the many new schools, the teachings of Jainism and Buddhism are acquiring pan-Indian significance, first of all.
Jainism.
Mahavira Vardhamana (4th century BC) is considered the founder of Jainism. He was engaged in preaching activities. He first found disciples and numerous followers in Bihar, but soon his teachings spread throughout India. According to the Jain tradition, he was only the last of 24 teachers whose teaching originated in the distant past. The Jain teaching existed for a long time only in the form of an oral tradition, and a canon was compiled relatively late (in the 5th century AD). The Jain doctrine proclaims dualism. The essence of a person's personality is twofold - material (ajiva) and spiritual (jiva). The connecting link between them is karma, understood as subtle matter, which forms the body of karma and enables the soul to unite with gross matter. The connection of inanimate matter with the soul by the bonds of karma leads to the emergence of an individual, and karma constantly accompanies the soul in an endless chain of rebirths.
Jains believe that a person, with the help of his spiritual essence, can control and manage the material essence. Only he himself decides what is good and evil and to what to attribute all that he encounters in life. God is just a soul that once lived in a material body and was freed from the fetters of karma and the chain of rebirth. In the Jain concept, god is not seen as a creator god or a god who interferes in human affairs.
Jainism places great emphasis on the development of an ethic traditionally referred to as the three jewels (triratna). It speaks of right understanding based on right faith, right knowledge and right knowledge that follows from this, and finally right living. The first two principles concern, first of all, faith and knowledge of Jain teachings. Right living is essentially a greater or lesser degree of austerity. The path to liberation of the soul from samsara is complex and multi-phased. The goal is personal salvation, for a person can be freed only by himself, and no one can help him. This explains the egocentric character of Jain ethics.
The cosmos, according to the Jains, is eternal, it was never created and cannot be destroyed. Ideas about the ordering of the world come from the science of the soul, which is constantly limited by the matter of karma. The souls that are most burdened with it are placed the lowest, and as they get rid of karma, gradually rise higher and higher until they reach the highest limit. In addition, the canon also contains discussions about both basic entities (jiva-ajiva), about the individual components that make up the cosmos, about the so-called environment of rest and movement, about space and time.
Over time, two directions were formed in Jainism, which differed in their understanding of asceticism. The orthodox views were advocated by the Digambaras (literally: dressed in air, that is, rejecting clothes), a more moderate approach was proclaimed by the Shvetambaras (literally: dressed in white). The influence of Jainism gradually declined, although it has survived in India to this day.
Buddhism.
In the 6th century BC. Buddhism emerged in northern India, founded by Siddhartha Gautama (585-483 BC). At 29, he leaves his family and goes into "homelessness". After many years of useless austerity, he achieves awakening, that is, comprehends the right life path who rejects extremes. According to tradition, he was subsequently named Buddha (literally: Awakened One). During his life he had many followers. Soon there is a large community of monks and nuns; accepted his teachings a large number of people leading a secular lifestyle, who began to adhere to certain principles of the doctrine of the Buddha.
The center of the teachings are the four noble truths, which the Buddha proclaims at the very beginning of his preaching activity. According to them, human existence is inextricably linked with suffering. Birth, illness, old age, daring, encountering the unpleasant and parting with the pleasant, the impossibility of achieving the desired - all this leads to suffering.
The cause of suffering is thirst, which leads through joys and passions to rebirth, rebirth. The elimination of the causes of suffering consists in the elimination of this craving. The path leading to the elimination of suffering, the wholesome eightfold path, is as follows: right judgment, right aspiration, right attention, and right concentration. Rejected as a life devoted to both sensual pleasures, and the path of asceticism and self-torture.
In total, five groups of these factors are distinguished. In addition to physical bodies, there are mental ones, such as feelings, consciousness, etc. The influences acting on these factors during the life of an individual are also considered. Particular attention is paid to further refinement of the concept of "thirst".
On this basis, the content of the individual sections of the eightfold path is developed. Right judgment is identified with the right understanding of life as a vale of sorrow and suffering, right decision is understood as the determination to show sympathy for all living beings. Correct speech is characterized as unsophisticated, truthful, friendly and precise. The right life consists in prescribing morality - the famous Buddhist five precepts, which both monks and secular Buddhists must adhere to. These are the following principles: do not harm living beings, do not take someone else's, refrain from forbidden sexual intercourse, do not make idle and false speeches, and do not use intoxicating drinks. The rest of the steps of the eightfold path are also analyzed, in particular, the last step is the peak of this path, to which all the other steps lead, considered only as a preparation for it. Right concentration, characterized by four degrees of absorption, is related to meditation and meditation practice. A lot of space is given to it in the texts, separate aspects of all mental states that accompany meditation and meditation practice are considered.
A monk who has gone through all the stages of the eightfold path and, with the help of meditation, has come to a liberated consciousness, becomes an arhat, a saint who stands on the threshold of the ultimate goal - nirvana (literally: extinction). This does not mean death, but the way out of the cycle of rebirths. This person will not be reborn again, but will enter the state of nirvana.
The most consistently adherent to the original teaching of the Buddha was the direction of the Hinayana (“small cart”), in which the path to nirvana is completely open only to monks who have rejected worldly life. Other schools of Buddhism point to this direction only as an individual doctrine, not suitable for spreading the teachings of the Buddha. The cult of bodhisattvas plays an important role in the teachings of the Mahayana (“big cart”) - individuals who are already able to enter nirvana, but postpone the achievement of the final goal in order to help others achieve it. The Bodhisattva voluntarily accepts suffering and feels his predestination and calling to care for the good of the world for so long until everyone is freed from suffering. Followers of the Mahayana consider the Buddha not as a historical figure, the founder of the doctrine, but as the highest absolute being. The essence of the Buddha appears in three bodies, of which only one manifestation of the Buddha - in the form of a man - fills all living things. Special meaning acquire rites and ritual actions in the Mahayana. Buddha and bodhisattvas become objects of worship. A number of concepts of the old teaching (for example, some steps of the eightfold path) are filled with new content.
In addition to the Hinayana and Mahayana - these main directions - there were a number of other schools. Buddhism soon after its origin spread to Ceylon, later through China penetrated to the Far East.
List of used literature:
1. Introduction to philosophy: in 2 parts. M., 1990.
2.Historical and philosophical knowledge (from Confucius to Feuerbach). Voronezh, 2000.
3. Brief history of philosophy. M., 1996.
4.Philosophy. M., 2000.
5. Philosophy of Ancient India and Ancient China (Confucianism and Taoism).
Philosophical Ideas in Ancient India
Philosophical ideas in Ancient India begin to take shape around the 2nd millennium BC. In our time, they became known thanks to ancient Indian literary monuments under the general name “Vedas”, literally meaning knowledge, knowledge. “ Vedas" represent they are a kind of hymns, prayers, chants, spells, etc. They were written approximately in the second millennium BC. e. in Sanskrit. In the "Vedas" for the first time an attempt is made to approach the philosophical interpretation of the human environment. Although they contain a semi-superstitious, semi-mythical, semi-religious explanation of the world around man, nevertheless they are considered as philosophical, and more precisely, pre-philosophical, pre-philosophical sources.
Philosophical works, corresponding to our ideas about the nature of the formulation of problems, and the form of presentation of the material and their solution, are “ Upanishads", which literally means to sit at the teacher's feet and receive instruction. They appeared approximately in the 9th-6th centuries BC and in form, as a rule, they represented a dialogue between a sage and his student or with a person seeking the truth and subsequently becoming his student.
In the Upanishads, the leading role in explaining the root cause and fundamental principle of the phenomena of the world, that is, the habitat, is assigned to the spiritual principle, which is denoted by the concept of “brahman” or “atman”. Noting the presence of an attempt to a certain extent natural-philosophical explanation of the root cause and fundamental principle of the phenomena of the world and the essence of man, it should be noted that the authors of the Upanishads nevertheless assigned the leading role to the spiritual principle - “brahman” and “atman”. In most texts of the Upanishads, “brahman” and “atman” are interpreted as a spiritual absolute, the incorporeal root cause of nature and man. Here is how it is said in the Upanishads: “19. Brahman arose first of the gods, the creator of everything, the keeper of the world.
The idea of the identity of the spiritual essence of the subject (man) and the object (nature) runs like a red thread through all the Upanishads, which is reflected in the famous saying: “You are that”, or “You are one with that”.
The "Upanishads" and the ideas set forth in them do not contain a logically consistent and holistic concept. With the general predominance of the explanation of the world as spiritual and incorporeal, they also present other judgments and ideas and, in particular, attempts are made to explain the natural philosophical explanation of the root cause and fundamental principle of the phenomenon of the world and the essence of man.
Cognition and acquired knowledge are divided in the Upanishads into two levels: lower and higher. On the lowest level only the surrounding reality can be known. This knowledge cannot be true, since its content is fragmentary, incomplete. Cognition of the truth, that is, the spiritual absolute, is possible only through the highest level of knowledge, which is acquired by a person through mystical intuition, the latter, in turn, is formed largely due to yoga exercises.
Thus, the thinkers of ancient India noted the complexity of the structure of the human psyche and distinguished in it such elements, as consciousness, will, memory, breath, irritation, calm e, etc. Their interconnection and mutual influence are emphasized.
Paying considerable attention to ethical problems, the authors of the Upanishads actually call for passive-contemplative behavior and attitude towards the surrounding world, considering the highest bliss for a person to be completely estranged from all worldly concerns. To the highest bliss they refer not to sensual pleasures, but to a blissful, calm state of mind. Incidentally, it is in The Upanishads for the first time pose the problem of the transmigration of souls (samsara) and evaluation of past actions (karma), which later developed in religious beliefs.
2. Philosophical thought in ancient China
The most prominent philosophers of Ancient China, who largely determined its problems and development for centuries to come, are Laozi (the second half of the 6th - the first half of the 5th century BC) and Confucius (Kung Fu Tzu, 551–479 BC. ).
Lao Tzu and his writings laid the foundations of Taoism, the first philosophical system of ancient China, which received a long life and has not lost its significance today. The philosophical views of Laozi are contradictory. This should not be surprising, they could not be otherwise. In that era, the process of formation of Chinese philosophy was going on, and every great thinker, and Laozi was such, could not but reflect in his teaching the inconsistency of the world around him.
Central to Taoism is the concept of Tao. which constantly, and not once, appears, is born at any point in the Universe. However, the interpretation of its content is ambiguous. On the one hand, "dao" means natural way of all things, which does not depend on either God or people, and is an expression of the universal law of motion and change of the world. In accordance with this approach, all phenomena and things, being in a state of development and change, reach a certain level, after which they gradually turn into their opposite. At the same time, development is interpreted in a peculiar way: it does not go along an ascending line, but is carried out in a circle.
On the other hand, “tao” is an eternal, unchanging, unknowable principle that does not have any form, and is not perceived by the human senses. "Tao" acts as an intangible spiritual basis of all things and phenomena of nature, including man.
Laozi and his followers are convinced of the need for knowledge and note its enormous role in human life.. However, their ideal of knowledge, their understanding of knowledge differ in originality. This is, as a rule, contemplative knowledge, that is, a statement, fixation of things, phenomena and processes occurring in the world. In particular, this finds confirmation in the recognition that “Since everything that exists changes by itself, we can only contemplate its return (to the root). Although things (in the world) are complex and varied, yet they all flourish and return to their root. I call the return to the former root peace, and I call peace the return to the essence. I call the return to essence constancy. Knowing permanence is called achieving clarity, and not knowing permanence leads to confusion and trouble. He who knows permanence becomes perfect.
But what ideas are expressed about the social structure of society and its management. So, characterizing the style of government, and indirectly this implies forms of government, the ancient Chinese thinker considers the best ruler of the one about which the people know only that he exists. Somewhat worse are those rulers whom the people love and exalt. Even worse are those rulers whom the people fear, and worse than all those rulers whom the people despise. It is said about the method, the style of public administration, that when the government is calm, people become simple-hearted. When the government is active, people become unhappy. And as a kind of recommendation and advice, rulers are invited not to crowd people's homes, not to despise their lives. Whoever does not despise the common people will not be despised by them. Therefore, a wise man, knowing himself, is not imbued with pride. He loves himself, but he does not exalt himself.
The further formation and development of ancient Chinese philosophy is associated with the activity confucius. The formation of Confucius as a thinker was largely facilitated by his acquaintance with ancient Chinese manuscripts: “The Book of Songs” (“Shits-zing”), “Books of Historical Traditions” (“Shujing”). He put them in proper order, edited them and made them available to the general public. The great popularity of Confucius for many centuries to come was brought by substantial and numerous comments made by him to the "Book of Changes".
The basic concepts of Confucianism, which form the foundation of this teaching, are “jen” (philanthropy, humanity) and “whether”. “Ren” acts both as the foundation of the ethical-political doctrine and as its ultimate goal. The basic principle of "jen": "What you do not wish for yourself, do not do to people." "Lee"(reverence, community norms, ceremonial, social regulations) includes a wide range of rules governing, in essence, all spheres of public life, ranging from the family and including state relations, as well as relations within society - between individuals and various social groups. Moral principles, social relations, problems of public administration are the main topics in the teachings of Confucius.. Confucius considers moral behavior, for example, of a son who respectfully observes his actions during the life of his father, and after death follows the example of his actions and does not change the rules established by the parent for three years. To the question of how to control people and how to make common people obey, Confucius answers: If you instruct people with the help of moral requirements and establish a rule of behavior in accordance with “li”, then people will not only be ashamed of bad deeds, but will sincerely return to righteousness. way.
As regards comprehension and knowledge of the surrounding world, Confucius basically repeats the ideas expressed by his predecessors, and in particular, Laozi, even yielding to him in some ways. So, the surrounding world, the nature of Confucius, in essence, narrows and limits only the celestial sphere. An essential element of nature for him is fate, as something innately predetermining the essence and future of man. So, he says: “What can be said about the sky? The change of the four seasons, the birth of all things.” It is said about fate: “Everything is originally predetermined by fate, and here nothing can be added or subtracted. Poverty and wealth, reward and punishment, happiness and unhappiness have their root, which the power of human wisdom cannot create.” Analyzing the nature of human knowledge and the possibilities of cognition, Confucius believes that by nature people are similar to each other. Only the highest wisdom and extreme stupidity are unchanging. People begin to differ from each other due to habits and upbringing. As for the levels of knowledge, he makes the following gradation: “Higher knowledge is innate knowledge. Below is the knowledge acquired by teaching. Even lower is the knowledge acquired as a result of overcoming difficulties.