Royal Institute of Philosophy
The Epistemology of Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism
Author(s): Gi-Ming Shien
Source: Philosophy, Vol. 28, No. 106 (Jul., 1953), pp. 260-264
Published by: Cambridge University Press on behalf of Royal Institute of Philosophy
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TI
OF BUDDHISM,
THE EPISTEMOLOGY
AND CONFUCIANISM
TAOISM
The ultimate teachings of Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianismare in
essence completelysimilar. It is said: "The more you know, the less you
really know; and the less you know,the more you reallyknow."
What is the reason forthis? "The moreyou know" pertainsto a knowledge
merely discursive and rational. "The more you do not know" pertains to
divine knowingof the pure [Link] profaneknowledgecomes from
the outside, there is a distinctionbetween the knowerand the thing outside
the knower. So you have the separate entitythat knows, and the thing or
object [Link] this distinctionexists,what is knownis only the appearance of things,the gross corporeal modality,while nothingis known of our
true selfor [Link],the moreyou know of appearances the less
from
you knowof [Link] example: waterforthe human beingis different
water forthe fish;forfishthe water is his true [Link] is a time of
darknessforman, but, foran owl, it is his day. Filth is rejected by humans,
but is home for the insects. Therefore,since the needs and environmentsof
every particular being vary, each point of view is relative to the particular
creature; all knowledgereceived fromsense impressionsis approximate and
relative,and has littleto do withthe true reality.
Should a cosmologicalexplanation be given by the fish,the owl or insects,
we should laugh at them. However, forthe owl, the moon is his sun, forthe
fish,the water is his atmosphere;and forthe insect filthis his delicious food
and finehome. We laugh at thembecause theyare ignorantof the truenature
of things,and we realize that the more they thinkthey know, the less they
actually know. It is the same for human beings; for we, too, gain our perceptionsas otheranimals do, throughexternalappearances. The animals can
thus laugh at us in our ignorance.
Knowledge knownfromthe outside is of appearance, and is not of reality.
Therefore,the morewe know,the less we reallyknow. But in what way can
we know reality?We must know our true or Inner Self; the principleof our
birthand becomingwhichwe share withall thingsin the [Link],
ifwe know our own True Self,and our grossphysicalself,then we shall know
all [Link] scientistswork day and nightin measuringthe quantity and
quality of [Link] these thingsall exist verynear to us-as close even as
[Link] can findthem directlyin the organismand in the cells of our
own self.
The Chinesephilosophersaid, "it is wonderfulthat men can use theireyes,
theirears, and theirthoughts,to see, to hear,and to thinkof thingsoutsideof
[Link] cannot they use theirears, theireyes, and theirthoughts,
to hear, to see, and to thinkinsidethemselves?-forthereis much circulating
and movingwithin,since thereare many parts such as lungs,liver,heart,and
intestines,etc. We should use our mind for understandingour own self, for
the source of all hearing,seeing,and thinking,etc., lies [Link], man can
see and hear that whichis outsideof him,yet that whichis inside,and so very
near, few men know. If we could know the principlewithin,then we should
know our True Self,and thus all things."
What is this reality,and how may we come to an awarenessof it? First,we
mustknow the one principleof all things-when knower,knowing,and known
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DISCUSSIONS
become one. True knowledgeis by identification,consequently,there is no
duality. True knowingis thereforeidentical with what is known, we then
have not rationalknowledgebut pure [Link] pure intelligencedoes
not know appearances, but ratherknows the essence of things.
An importantquestion mightbe asked. Why do men thinkthat knowing,
knowerand known are different?
Why cannot we be aware of our True Self,
and thus know the essence of all things?The answer,accordingto Buddhism,
Taoism and Confucianismis that we are bound to illusionsby appearances,by
physicalobjects. Therefore,if we can liberate ourselvesfrombecoming,from
that whichis unreal,we shall then know the realityof all things.
For solvingthis problemof obtainingtrue knowledge,we findin Buddhism,
Taoism and Confucianismthreedifferent
systemsor ways, but each path leads
to the same goal, which is freedomfromappearance, and awareness of true
reality.
The method of Buddhism is by contemplationand observance or [Link] to emptyoneselfof all irrelevantthoughts,
so that the pure reason may emerge,and we may keep it pure. Water, if there
is no wind,is clear. If dirtywater is allowed to stand, the dirtwill settle,and
the water will become clear.
Observance or discriminationmeans that we must continuallybe aware of
the unrealityof the material world, until finallywe see that all things are
unstable and but a flux: then the pure intelligenceis complete. There are
naturesof men.
many types of discriminationin accordancewiththe different
For example, if a man is tryingto freehimselffromindulgencewith a lovely
girl,he would at firstimagine in his mind a beautifulgirl,and then in his
mind imagineher deprivedof her skin,afterwhichthe blood would flowin a
red and [Link] remainslittleof beauty now. He would further
in his mindcut open her abdomen,and therefindthe intestines,stomach,etc.,
fullof digestedfood and [Link],we mightpicturethat the girlis dead,
and imagineher state afterone or two years. There is no morefleshnow, but
only many whitebones. Can you love her bones? Therefore,to "resolve" the
girlfromthe beginningto the end, we findthat all is emptiness,appearance,
[Link] is called the "white bone observance," and if this observanceis
followedevery day, sensualismwill naturallydisappear.
Again, if someone indulges in worldly property,he might follow the
"observanceofemptiness,"and findthat all his propertyis really illusory,and
will pass away. There are many kinds of such observances.
A most importantobservanceis the "not I observance,"which means that
there is no more myself,but only a temporarymixture,or fictitiousself. In
the teachingof Buddhism,all evils come fromthe idea of "I." If we have the
idea of "I," thereis a wall that separatesus fromrealityand the integralOne.
Accordingto the teaching of Buddhism, all the world of knowledgeis based
upon the idea of separation, and the notion of separateness is duality, and
this is the source of all evils.
In orderto freeourselvesfromthis idea of selfhood,at firstwe must know
that the human being is but a [Link] fact,thereis no
such thingas an "I," forthe "I" or selfis not a stable or immutablebeing.
Why is this? Accordingto Buddhism,the structureof man consistsof four
parts: Earth, the solid principle;water,the fluidprinciple; fire,the principle
of heat; and wind, the breath principle. These principles determine the
materialworld; they are the "fourgreatnesses"accordingto Buddhism; they
are the foundationof the world of Nature and man, althoughthey must not
be confusedwith corporealityitself,for they are [Link] are also
called the fourgreat germsor essences,not corporeal,but [Link]
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PHILOSOPHY
has eight senses or consciousnesses,all connectedwith mind. These are the
senses of hearing,seeing, smelling,tasting,touch; the sixth consciousnessis
equal to mind,and the seventhconsciousnessis a transitionbetweenthe sixth
and eighthconsciousness,the eighthconsciousness(or the kingconsciousness)
being the source of all the senses or [Link] is the structureof
man.
Now, ifwe have the idea of "I," we tryto discriminateand findout who this
"I" is-what particularpart representsthe "I." If we suppose it to be the
solid part, this is obviouslya part of the whole body, and since it is a part, it
cannot be the "I." Or if we suppose it to be the otherparts-fluid or heat or
breath, this is also [Link], further,we must know that we cannot
even possess the same quality of the solid, the liquid, or the breath elements
in the same or at a given time. Why is this? Every one knows that man is a
beingthat has a birthand death,whichhe shareswithall materialorganismsin
the [Link] also know that every one passes throughdifferent
stages,
fromthe baby to boy, to young man, to old age, to decay and to death. This
means that the material elementsof our fleshchange, are ever in a state of
[Link] changes do not come suddenly,but continuously,so that the body
is changingeveryminute,everysecond. It is undergoinga perpetualprocessof
decay and [Link] changingwe can perceive in [Link] cannot
possess the air in the breathingat a given moment,for,in the inhalationand
expiration,the air is constantlychanging,and when you try to grasp the
breath, it has already gone far away. Similarly,with all the otherparts (the
liquid, the fire,and the solid), you cannot possess them at a given moment.
All is flux,all is illusory,all is like a [Link] are you ? With whichpart can
you know yourself?Discriminatingin this vein, you lose all sense of self.
Again, you mightimagine that even if we cannot findourselves through
our materialparts,we could findourselvesin consciousness,that is to say, in
the mind. Because thereis some thingknown,and some thingis known by a
knower,we mightsay that the knoweris the true self. If you thinkthat this
is true,you would discriminateagain. Who is the consciousness?Who is the
knower? You could not findit, forif you suppose the sense of seeing,hearing,
smelling,and tastingis the true self,that is wrong,forthe activitiesof the
fivesenses are limitedby theirseparate [Link] are different
from
each [Link] cannot forma [Link], we mightsuppose that
the sixth consciousnessis the trueself,forit can receiveall senses of smelling,
seeing, hearing,etc. This is also wrong. For since the activity of the sixth
consciousnessis limited to comprehendingand perceivingthings,it also is
temporal.
In spite of the fact that the seventh consciousnessis eternal,it is likewise
incorrectto suppose that it is the true self. Accordingto the Buddha, the
relationbetweenthe sixth and seventhlevel of consciousnessis like that of a
the perceivingand discerningpowerof
lightto a candle,the lightrepresenting
the sixth consciousness;while the root and source of light is the candle, the
seventh [Link] candle, however,is light in potential; so, also, is
the seventh consciousness(the perceivingand discerningpower is potential
only); it is unconscious,and has no knowledgeof itself.
We may suppose that the eighthconsciousness(or the king consciousness)
which comprehendsand summarizes all consciousnessand remembersand
possesses all thingsmust be our true self. But according to the teachingof
Buddha, this is not the case. To illustrate:one sees the waterofthe ocean; the
foams and waves arising fromit are of different
formsand sizes, and show
only the appearance of water. But we cannot identifythem with the essence
of the water. The essence (or nature) of the water is its calmness and tran262
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DISCUSSIONS
quillity; it is neitheridentical with its manifestation(waves, foams), nor is
fromthem. Rather, it possesses a nature of neutrality.
it completelydifferent
Thus, the eighth consciousness,which is the source of all consciousness,
possesses and remembersall things, but in itself is neither consciousness
(of self),nor unconsciousness(of self),but it is of the "nature of neutrality."
Therefore,we cannot findout who we are fromthe eighthconsciousness.I
And in addition, the idea or sense of consciousnessis as much in flux as
is the breathingwhich was describedabove. When you make up your mind
to possess your idea and to findyour self,it is impossiblethat a conception
should be immutable,for thousands of ideas are in a constant state of flux
and interchange,like a series of pictures continuallymoving. You cannot
possess any idea in your mind at a given [Link],any idea you
have in your mind is not your real self.
Discriminationis thus necessaryin orderto freeus fromthe bond of self.
When we findthatthereis no immutableself,we enterintotheunifiedintellect,
and if we participatein this super-rationalintellect,we then become identical
with every object in its [Link], we findour own true self.
In summingup the teachingof Buddhism: the suppressingof desire is not
an end in itself,but is a way to lead us to reality. Our nature is ignorant
of [Link] the Buddha knows the reality,and returnsto this world to
teach us to see the realityourselves,very much as the men of Plato's cave,
after seeing the light, returnto the cave to teach those in darkness. The
firststep then is to learn to discriminatebetween appearances-to find a
door into [Link] second step is to enter into this reality,and to grow
in awarenessof it. The thirdstep is to attain perfectrealizationofthe supreme
identity.
Although there are many very valuable and important philosophical
theoriesin Buddhism,Buddhismis not propoundedforthe sake of knowledge
or to establish a philosophicalsystem; but, on the contrary,Buddha wants
to reduce the appearance to the reality, in order to lead man to observe
and discriminate,and to enter into reality. These teachings belong to
Mahayana Buddhism, and it wants us to enter into the world in order to
help all human beings to become Buddha. So, at first,Buddha recognizes
the world; second, he discriminatesthe world; third,he discoversthe illusory
characterof the world; fourth,he points out the unrealityof the world; and
fifth,he advises all human beings to leave the appearance and enter into
reality. So the teaching of Mahayana Buddhism is reasonable, while the
teaching of Hinhayana Buddhism is just the opposite. Thus Hinhayana
Buddhism gives us more meditationteachings, in order to get one's selfsalvation, and does not instructus to returnagain to this world to teach
realityto mankind.
The way of the Taoists is to follow certain breathingexercises,in order
to controlthe circulationof the blood which finallyinfluencesthe organism
of the body, so that our pure reason is liberated fromthe [Link] are
three stages or exercises in Taoism: (I) the biological exercise, to control
the physicalorganization;(2) the psychologicalexercise,to controlthe mind;
(3) spiritual exercise,which is the last stage and is the great liberationof
the spirit or soul. We can see that the Taoist methods are more scientific
and naturalistic,because the Taoist is very familiar with the biological
structureof our physical organization; consequently,most of the Chinese
medical doctrinescame fromthe Taoist school.
The methodof Confucianismis based upon [Link]'chiefteaching
in Western
fortheseventhand eighthconsciousness
I Thereis no equivalentterminology
philosophy.I want to apologisefortheseterms,whichseem unclearto the Westernmind.
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PHILOSOPHY
is piety in everything,and the practice of the pure reason in everything.
Here "piety" does not mean wordlypiety, but is the startingpoint of the
pure reason. You must controland preserveyour pure reason every minute.
The method of piety is non-self-indulgence,
forif you are not self-indulgent,
then pure reason opens to you. Our strength,therefore,lies in restraining
our desires. Piety does not come fromthe outside, but is the very nature
of pure reason.
To practisethe extensionof the pure reason in everythingis to start with
ethical love forparents; then to go to brothersand sisters; then to friends;
then to all men, and then even to all animals, trees and grass, until you
eventuallyembrace the whole [Link] the illusory"many" becomes
"One."
The teachingof Confucianism,on the one hand,is directedto consciousness
itself,which is pure reason. Feed it and it [Link] Taoism,
on the otherhand, teach the killingof the desiresof the [Link] although
theseare different
methods,the end is the same. For the one, whenwe destroy
desire, the pure reason appears; for the other, when there is pure reason,
thereis no [Link] thereforehave the same end.
GI-MING
SHIEN.
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