INTRODUCTION TO THE PHILOSOPHY OF

THE HUMAN PERSON

QUARTER I

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These most essential learning competencies are covered separately in 4 Lessons. As shown
below.
 Distinguish a holistic perspective from a partial point of view.
 Realize the value of doing philosophy in obtaining a broad perspective in life.
 Do a philosophical reflection on a concrete situation from a holistic perspective.
 Distinguish opinion from truth.
 Realize that the methods of philosophy lead to wisdom and truth.
 Evaluate truth from opinions in different situations using the methods of philosophizing.
 Recognize how the human body imposes limits and possibilities for transcendence.
 Evaluate own limitations and the possibilities for their transcendence.
 Notice the things that are not in their proper place and organize them in an aesthetic way.
 Show that care for the environment contributes to health, well-being and sustainable
development.
 Demonstrate the virtues of prudence and frugality towards environment.

LESSONS AND COVERAGE:

1. Pursuing wisdom and facing challenges in the 21st century
2. Methods of philosophizing
3. The human person as an embodied spirit
4. The human person in the environment

IN THIS LESSON YOU WILL ACHIEVE THE FOLLOWING:

Lesson 1  Distinguish a holistic perspective from

a partial point of view.
 Realize the value of doing philosophy
in obtaining a broad perspective in life.
 Do a philosophical reflection on a
concrete situation from a holistic
perspective.
Lesson 2  Distinguish opinion from truth.
 Realize that the methods of philosophy
lead to wisdom and truth.
 Evaluate truth from opinions in
different situations using the methods
of philosophizing.
Lesson 3  Recognize how the human body
imposes limits and possibilities for
transcendence.
 Evaluate own limitations and the
possibilities for their transcendence.

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 Lesson 4  Notice the things that are not in their
proper place and organize them in an
aesthetic way.
 Show that care for the environment
contributes to health, well-being and
sustainable development.
 Demonstrate the virtues of prudence
and frugality towards environment.

EXPECTED SKILLS:
To do well in this module, you need to remember and do the following:

1. Follow set standards

2. Pay attention to details
3. Take note of pertinent information
4. Generate ideas with supporting details
5. See the relationship and inter connectedness of concepts.
6. Organize and present ideas.

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WHAT DO YOU ALREADY KNOW?
Let us determine how much you already know about the lessons in this module. Take this test.

PRE-TEST

IDENTIFICATION:

____________________1. It is called science because the investigation is systematic.

____________________2.Philosophy investigates things, philosopher uses his natural capacity to
think or simply, human reason alone.
____________________3.All other sciences concern themselves with a particular object of
investigation. A philosopher studies human beings, society, religion, language, god, and plants,
among other concerns.
____________________4.A principle is that from which something proceeds in any manner
whatsoever.
____________________5. Is really only an extension of a fundamental and necessary drive in
every human being to know what is real.
____________________6. Is the branch of philosophy that explores the nature of moral virtue and
evaluates human actions.
____________________7. Deals with nature, sources, and limitations, and validity of knowledge.
____________________8. Is the science of the beautiful in its various manifestations including
the sublime, tragic, comic, pathetic, and ugly.
____________________9. Is the scientific study of the essential structures of consciousness
____________________10. Is the conviction that to some significant degree, philosophical
problems, puzzles, and errors are rooted in language and can be solved or avoided by a sound
understanding of language and careful attention to its workings.
____________________11. Based from observations in order to make generalizations.
____________________12. Draws conclusion from usually one broad judgement or definition
and one more specific assertion, often an interference.
____________________13.Someone tries to win false support for an argument or idea by
exploiting his or her opponent’s feelings of pity or guilt.
____________________14.Whatever has not been proved false must be true, and vice versa.
____________________15.This is a logical chain of reasoning of a term or a word several times,
but giving the particular word a different meaning each time.
____________________16.This infers that something is true of the whole from the fact that it is
true of some part of the whole.
_____________________17.One reasons logically that something true of a thing must also be true
of all or some of its parts.
_____________________18.Humans are superior and central to the universe.
_____________________19. The ecological or relational integrity of the humans, provides
meaning of our morals and values.
_____________________20. What is CFP?

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LESSON 1
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO KNOW?

1.1 THE MEANING OF PHILOSOPHY

Etymologically, the word “philosophy” comes from the two Greek words, “philo” meaning to
love and “Sophia”, meaning wisdom. Philosophy is also defined as the science that by natural light
of reason studies the first causes or highest principles of all things . under this definition four things
are to be considered:

a. SCIENCE. It is called science because the investigation is systematic.

b. NATURAL LIGHT OF REASON. Philosophy investigates things, philosopher uses his
natural capacity to think or simply, human reason alone.
c. STUDY OF ALL THINGS. All other sciences concern themselves with a particular object
of investigation. A philosopher studies human beings, society, religion, language, god, and
plants, among other concerns.
d. FIRST CAUSE OR HIGHEST PRINCIPLE. A principle is that from which something
proceeds in any manner whatsoever. The first principles:
 Principle of identity- whatever is is; and whatever is not is not; everything is what
it is.
 Principle of non-contradiction- it is impossible for a thing to be and not to be at
the same time, and at the same respect.
 Principle of excluded middle- a things is either is or is not; everything must be
either be or not be; between being and not being, there is no middle ground possible.
 Principle of sufficient reason- nothing exist without a sufficient reason for its
being and existence.

In attaining wisdom, there is a need for emptying. Emptying can be intellectual. For
instance, the Taoist considers and empty cup more useful than a full one. Emptying can be also
spiritual. For Christian philosophy, poverty in spirit means compassion. Emptying is also physical.
The Buddhist refrain from misuse of the senses thereby emphasizing a unified whole.

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GUIDED LEARNING
Share your concepts about the importance of philosophy. Give examples of these in politics, sports,
law, and daily life.

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1.2 RECOGNIZE HUMAN ACTIVITIES THAT EMANATED
FROM DELIBERATE REFLECTION
One of the greatest needs of anyone seeking wisdom is a genuine sympathy and an
understanding of all the most diverse points of view.

1.2.1 THE BRANCHES OF PHILOSOPHY

A. METAPHYSICS
Metaphysics is really only an extension of a fundamental and necessary drive in
every human being to know what is real. In our everyday attempts to understand the world
in terms of appearance and reality, we try to make things comprehensible by simplifying
or reducing the mass of things we call appearance to a relatively fewer number of things
we call reality.

Plato, Socrates most famous student, is a good example of a metaphysician who

draws sharpest possible contrast between reality and appearance. Nothing we experience
in the physical world with our five senses is real, according to plato. Reality, in fact,is just
the opposite. It is unchanging, eternal, immaterial, and can be detected only by the intellect.

B. ETHICS
How do we tell good from evil or right from wrong? Ethics is the branch of
philosophy that explores the nature of moral virtue and evaluates human actions.
Ethics is generally a study of the nature of moral judgements. It insists that obedience to
moral law be given a rational foundation in the thought of Socrates, we see the beginning
of a transition from a traditional, religion-based morality to philosophical ethics.

C. EPISTEMOLOGY
Specifically, epistemology deals with nature, sources, and limitations, and validity
of knowledge. Epistemology explains: 1. How we know what we claim to know; 2.how we
can find out what we wish to know; 3. How we can differentiate truth from falsehood.
Epistemology addresses varied problems: the reliability, extent, and kinds of knowledge;
truth; language; and science and scientific knowledge.

How do we acquire reliable knowledge? Human knowledge may be regarded as having

two parts.

1. Some philosophers think that the particular things seen, heard, and touched are more
important. They believe that general ideas are formed from the examination of
particular facts. This method is called induction, and philosophers who feel that
knowledge is acquired in this way are called empiricists. Empiricism is the view that
knowledge can be attained only through sense experience.
2. Other philosophers think it is more important to find a general law according to which
particular facts can be understood or judged. This method is called deduction; its
advocates are called rationalists. For instance, what distinguishes real knowledge from

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 mere opinion, in the rationalist view is that real knowledge is based on the logic, the
laws, and the methods of that reason develops.

D. LOGIC
Reasoning is the concern of the logician. The term logic comes from the greek word logike.
Etymologically, it means a treatise on matters pertaining to human thought. Logic is not interested
in what we know regarding certain subjects. Its concern, rather, is the truth or the validity of our
arguments regarding such objects. Aristotle was the first philosopher to devise a logical method.
Since the time of Aristotle, the study of lies or fallacies has been considered an integral part of
logic. Even before Aristotle down to the present, the study of logic has remained important. We
are human beings possessed with reason.

E. AESTHETICS
When humanity has learned to make something that is useful to them they begin to plan
and dream how to make it beautiful. What therefor is beauty?

Aesthetics is the science of the beautiful in its various manifestations including the sublime,
tragic, comic, pathetic, and ugly. To experience aesthetics, therefore, means whatever experience
has relevance to art whether the experience be that of the creative artist or of appreciation.
Importance of aesthetics:
 It vitalizes our knowledge
 It helps us to live more deeply and richly
 It brings us in touch with our culture

Dialog or conversation is important in interpreting works of art. A conversation involves an

exchange between conversational partners that seek agreement about some matter at issue;
consequently, such an exchange is never completely under the control of their conversational
partner, but is rather determined by the matter at issue.

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GUIDED LEARNING
1. What is your view about what is “right” or “wrong”?

2. How do you define “happiness”? Do you support the view of Socrates: “To become happy,
a person must live a virtuous life”? Explain.

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1.3 WHY BECOME A PHILOSOPHER? ON ATTAINING A
COMPREHENSIVE OUTLOOK IN LIFE
A. EXPANDING OUR PHILOSOPHICAL FRAMES: WESTERN AND NON-
WESTERN TRADITIONS
Many philosophers hold that there are three great original centers of philosophy in the
world- Greek, Indian, and Chinese. From the time of the Greek triumvirate ( socrtaes, plato,
Aristotle) there was a reversal.

This section underpins that the challenges of the global information age cannot be
understood by oversimplification. One does not fit all. The culture of the east is very different
from the west, but does not mean each culture is incapable of understanding certain features of
the other. Each society has its own ideas of itself, a definition of what is important in life, and
its own notions of what the world is like in general terms: thus each society or culture can be
said to have its own philosophy.

Three attitudinal imperative:

1. In a manner of speaking, nothing actually begins absolutely or ends absolutely.
2. In the east, philosophy is religion and religion is philosophy. Orientals believe that life
must be the extension of thought, its fruit, and its application.
3. The acceptance of the validity of intuition and mysticism, the readiness to revert to extra
logical, if not illogical modes of thinking.

If logic is no longer able to solve a life problem, Asian mind resorts to intuition. One should
not therefore be surprised at its propensity to mysticism, at its use of super-consciousness, or
of the existence of a third eye or sixth sense. When the intuition demands, it reverses the logical
patterns.

B. FILIPINO THINKING: FROM LOCAL TO GLOBAL

1. Loob: holistic and interior dimensions

Kagandahang-loob, kabutihang-loob, and kalooban are terms that show sharing of
one’s self to others. Loob puts one in tough with his fellow beings. The use of
intermediaries or go betweens, the values of loyalty, hospitality, pakikisama, and respect
to authority are such values that relate to persons. In short, the Filipino generally belives in
the innate goodness of the human being. The Filipino as individual looks at himself as
holistic from interior dimension under the principle harmony.

2. Filipino philosophy of time

Moreover, the Filipino- whether ilokano ( ti tao kasla kulintaba, no agtayab,
ngumato, bumaba), or kampampangan ( bie keting yatu, mengari yang ruweda, mibabo,
milalam, ing dios nug buri na ) proves that he believes in the gulong ng palad and hence,
looks at life as a series of ups and downs. Gulong ng palad nonetheless blends well with
foreign philosophical ideas in the Asian region. It approaches karma of the Indians and

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 yang and yin of the Chinese. Pakikisama on the other hand is close to the Chinese and
Japanese philosophy of living in harmony with nature.

3. Bahala na
The pre-spanish Filipino people belived in a supreme being, batula or bathala. The
Filipinos seems to signify that ultimately in life, we have to reckon not only with the nature
and human nature, but also with cosmic presences or spirits, seen to be the ultimate origin
of the problem to evil.
Bathala is not an impersonal entity but rather a personal being that keeps the
balance in the universe. The Filipino puts his entire trust in bathala who has evolved into
the Christian God.
Bahala na literally means leave everything to God who is bathala in vernacular. It
contains element of resignation. It is one aspect perceived as courage to take risks.

4. Filipino thought and values: positive and negative aspects

Filipinos does not identify horizontally with his class that cuts across the whole
community, but vertically with its authority figures distinguished by their wealth, power,
and age. He receives protection and other favors from above and should be ready to do the
same toward his ties below. Reciprocating depts. Of gratitude between coordinates and
subordinates holds the whole group together superordinate and superordinate (utang na
loob). The Filipino gives great value to endurance and hard work as means to economic
self-sufficiency.
Bayanihan is another moving spirit of the Filipino people. Deep down in the
Filipino psyche, there exists the belief that whatever good one has done will rebound to
one’s benefit because a supreme judge will dispense just compensation where in this life
or in the next.

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GUIDED LEARNING
1. Philosophical paper: if you are entertaining a tourist or balikbayan relative or friend, how
will you introduce the Philippines?

2. How important are kagandahang-loob and kabuting-loob to being pinoy?

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 C. PHILOSOPHY: TRANSCENDING AND AIMING FOR A LIFE OF ABUNDANCE
Abundance comes from the latin term, abundare meaning to overflow nonstop. It
is not about amassing material things or people but our relationship with others, ourselves,
and with nature. Aguilar assert that our very life belongs to god.

Abundance is not what we gather but what we scatter.

Often, abundance is equated with materialism, but it is when we raise our empty
hands and surrender, when we do not grab, when we are unattached to anything or anyone,
when we offer oneself- all these are abundance. Only if we have empty hands can we
receive full blessings.

Abundance is not what we keep but what we give away.

To live an abundant life, one must pursue one’s desire and inner self. One must go
after what fulfills, before making more money. To be able to acquire we must first control
ourselves.
Aguilar believes that to be abundant, we must learn to control our appetites and
desires, for they have impact on other people.

Abundance is not what we hold but what we share.

Aguilar reminds us that money should not matter much, for every moment is a
blessing, even if one does not have money. Abundance comes to the one who has money
and heart, money and values, money and relationships, money and deeper happiness.

Abundance is a choice.
The author realize that in pursuing her dreams, there are people who can be negative
regarding her efforts and successes. Negative thoughts, emotions, and people should be
avoided. Abundance is more an effort of the heart than mind alone. For Aguilar, to achive,
one must commit.

Abundance is to evolve into a higher being.

It becomes clear that the concept of abundance covers both external and internal
life.

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GUIDED LEARNING
HAPPIEST TIMES WORST TIMES
List the activities, people, locations, and List the activities, people, locations, and
conditions in your life you were most happy. conditions in your life when you felt
dissatisfied.

What did you learn about your purpose? What did you learn about your purpose?

1. 1.

2. 2.

3. 3.

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HOW MUCH HAVE YOU LEARNED?

A. CHECK YOUR KNOWLEDGE

Answer the following questions:

__________________________ 1. Which branch of philosophy deals with argument?

__________________________2. What Filipino value puts one in touch with one’s fellow
beings and is essentially interpersonal?
__________________________3. Which branch of philosophy evaluates human actions?
__________________________4. Etymologically, what does philo mean?
__________________________5. Etymologically, what does Sophia mean?

Who consists the Greek triumvirate?

6._________________________
7._________________________
8._________________________

___________________________9-10. Virtual reality vs. the real thing is under which

branch of philosophy?

B. CHECK YOUR UNDERSTANDING

1. How do you understand holism? Explain in five sentences.
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________.

2. Write your insights regarding the meaning of goodness. You can choose a specific topic
regarding good and bad e.g issues on poverty.
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________.

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LESSON 2
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO KNOW?

2.1 INTRODUCTION: METHODS OF PHILOSOPHIZING

A. PHENOMENOLOGY: ON CONSCIOUSNESS
Edmund Husserl founded phenomenology, which is essentially a philosophical
method. This focuses on careful inspection and description of phenomena or appearances,
defined as any object of conscious experiences, that is, that which we are conscious of. The
word phenomenon comes directly from the greek meaning appearance. Immanuel kant had
used the same word to refer to the world of our experience.
Phenomenology is the scientific study of the essential structures of consciousness.
Husserl’s phenomenology is the thesis that consciousness is intentional. The inspection
and description are supposed to be effected without any presuppositions, including any as
to whether such objects of consciousness are real or correspond to something external or
to what their causes or consequences may be.

The phenomenological standpoint is achieved through a series of phenomenological

reductions:
1. Suspension. All questions of truth or reality and simply describes contents of
consciousness.
2. Eliminates the merely empirical contents of consciousness and focuses instead on the
essential features, the meaning of consciousness.

B. EXISTENTIALISM: ON FREEDOM
Common themes:
 The human condition or the relation of the individual to the world;
 The human response to that condition;
 Being, especially the difference between the being of person and the being of other
kinds of things;
 Human freedom;
 The significance of choice and decision in the absence of certainty and;
 The concreteness and subjectivity of life as loved, against abstractions and false
objectifications.

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GUIDED LEARNING
How can truth have different interpretations?

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 C. POSTMODERNISM: ON CULTURES
Postmodernism has come into vogue as the name for a rather diffuse family of ideas
and trends that in significant respect, rejects challenges, and aims to supersede modernity;
the convictions, aspirations and pretensions of modern western thought and culture since
the enlightenment. Postmodernist believe that humanity should come at truth beyond the
rational to the non-rational elements of human nature, including spiritual.

D. ANALYTIC TRADITION
Analytic philosophy is the conviction that to some significant degree, philosophical
problems, puzzles, and errors are rooted in language and can be solved or avoided by a
sound understanding of language and careful attention to its workings.

E. LOGIC AND CRITICAL THINKING: TOOLS IN REASONING

Logic and critical thinking serve as paths to freedom from half-truths and
deceptions. Critical thinking is distinguishing facts from opinions or personal feelings. It
helps us uncover bias and prejudice and open to new ideas not necessarily in agreement
with previous thought.
Two basic types of reasoning:
Inductive reasoning- based from observations in order to make generalizations.
Deductive reasoning- draws conclusion from usually one broad judgement or definition
and one more specific assertion, often an interference.

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GUIDED LEARNING
1. Share your experiences on the times you did not use reason in your life but rather you relied
more on emotions or opinions of other people. What did you learn from the experience?

2. Determine which are the premises and the conclusion.

a. All known planets travel about the sun in elliptical orbits. Therefore, all planets travel
about the sun in elliptical orbits.

b. You have a very good circle of friends. Therefore, you are very good.

c. All oranges are fruits. All fruits grow on trees. Therefore, all oranges grow on trees.

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 F. FALLACIES
On the other hand, a fallacy is a defect in an argument other than its having false
premises.
Here are some of the usually committed errors in reasoning and thus, coming up with false
conclusion and worse, distorting the truth.

a. Appeal to pity
Someone tries to win false support for an argument or idea by exploiting his or her
opponent’s feelings of pity or guilt.
b. Appeal to ignorance
Whatever has not been proved false must be true, and vice versa.
c. Equivocation
This is a logical chain of reasoning of a term or a word several times, but giving the
particular word a different meaning each time.
d. Composition
This infers that something is true of the whole from the fact that it is true of some
part of the whole.
e. Division
One reasons logically that something true of a thing must also be true of all or some
of its parts.
f. Against the person
Link the availability of a premise to a characteristic or belief of the person
advocating the premise.
g. Appeal force
An argument where force, coercion, or the threat of force, is given as a justification
for a conclusion.
h. Appeal to the people
An argument that appeals or exploits people’s vanities, desires for esteem, and
anchoring on popularity.
i. False cause
Since that event followed this one, that event must have been caused by this one.
j. Hasty generalization
One commits errors if one reaches an inductive generalization based on insufficient
evidence.
k. Begging question
The proposition to be proven is assumed implicitly or explicitly in the premise.

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GUIDED LEARNING
Cite examples of how fallacies are used in daily life. Did you use the fallacies towards others?
How?

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 2.2 ANALYZE SITUATIONS THAT SHOW THE
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN OPINION AND TRUTH
APPLYING LOGIC AND FALLACIES IN DETERMINING TRUTH FROM OPINION:
Tractatus identifies the relationship between language and reality and to define the limits
of science. It is in the possibility of agreeing or disagreeing with reality, thus being true or false,
that the meaning of the picture lies.
The same thoughts occur later when Wittgenstein describes spoken and written language,
that is, propositions, as one of these pictures and define sits meaning in terms of its capacity for
being true or false. The logic of language shows how elements fits states of affairs and how state
of affairs in wider constellations can be linked together; we can decide on the basis of this logic.

Over the years, in the author’s view, the purpose of news reporting and journalism had
irrevocably changed. Con artists take advantage of the emotive side of language in two very
important ways. First, they use emotive meaning masked as cognitive meaning to whip up
emotions so that reason gets overlooked. Secondly, they use emotively neutral terms of
euphemisms to dull the force of what they say and, thus, make acceptable what otherwise might
not be. Ignorance can be cloaked in a false aura of authority.

GUIDED LEARNING
1. Each of the statements below violates at least one of the guidelines for critical thinking.
Identify the guideline that was violated and give brief explanation for your choice.
Determine whether the statements are expressing opinions or truth.

a. Anna bought a bottle of pain reliever because a TV commercial claimed that most
hospitals prescribes it.
_____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________.

b. You’re either for us or against us.

_____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________.

c. I get disgusted with my science classes. We study the principle of this and the theory
of that. Aren’t there any laws? Why can’t scientists make up their minds and stop acting
like they don’t know anything for sure.
_____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________.

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 2. How do you assess these words: terrorist, pretty, gay? Are your assessments based on
unfounded generalizations or facts?

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 2.3 REALIZE THE METHODS OF PHILOSOPHY THAT LEAD
TO WISDOM AND TRUTH
Three major characteristics:
1. philosophical questions have answers, but the answers remain in dispute.
2. Philosophical questions cannot be settled by science, common sense, or faith.
3. Philosophical questions are of perennial intellectual interest to human beings.

The methodology or method that philosophers use to address philosophical questions is critical
thinking. Critical thinking is the careful, reflective, rational, and systematic approach to questions
of very general interest. Critical thinking means understanding of philosophy and refraining from
merely giving claims but through careful thought, one reasons through argumentations.

Critical thinking is a lifelong process of self-assessment that further consists of:

 Defining, analyzing and devising solutions;
 Arriving at reasonable and informed conclusion;
 Applying understanding and knowledge to new and different problems;
 Willingness to change one point of view;
 Continually examining and re-examining ideas and;
 Willingness to say I don’t know.

The attributes of a critical thinker include:

 Looks for evidence to support assumption and beliefs
 Adjusts opinions
 Looks for proof
 Examines problem
 Rejects irrelevant and incorrect information

If one accepts one’s limits or has the courage to say I don’t know, then it becomes an honest
appraisal of say, solving a problem.

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GUIDED LEARNING
1. What makes a person critical thinker?

2. Who are bill gates and mark zuckerberg? What do you think are their positive attitudes that
made them successful?

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 3. What characteristics of a critical thinker do you think you possess or ought to have?

4. There was a robbery in which a lot in which a lot of goods were stolen. The robber(s) left
in a truck. It is known that: 1. Nobody else could have been involved other that A, B and
C. 2. C never commits a crime without A’s participation. 3. B does not know how to drive.
So, is A innocent or guilty? Explain your answer.

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HOW MUCH HAVE YOU LEARNED?

A. CHECK YOUR KNOWLEDGE

List the different methods of philosophy and choose a specific method that is most meaning
for you. Explain why did you choose it.
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________.

B. CHECK YOUR UNDERSTANDING

1. Explain the importance of logic and critical thinking.
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________.

2. Give five examples of informal fallacies and how they occur in life. How can we avoid
fallacies?
1.___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________.

2.___________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________.

3.___________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________.

4.___________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________.

5.___________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________.

3. How can we differentiate truth from opinion? Explain in five sentences.

_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________.

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LESSON 3
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO KNOW?

3.1 THE HUMAN PERSON AS AN EMBODIED SPIRIT

A. HINDUISM
Brahman is self-hood
At the heart of Hinduism lies the idea of human beings quest for absolute truth, so
that one’s soul and the brahman or atman might become one. For the Indians, god first
created sound and the universe arose from it. As the most sacred sound, the aum is the root
of the universe and everything that exists and it continues to hold everything together.

According to Hinduism, human beings have a dual nature: one is the spiritual and
the moral essence; the other is empirical life and character. Hindu generally believe that
the soul is eternal but is bound by the law of karma to the world of matter, which it can
escape only after spiritual progress through endless series of births.

Hinduism holds that humanity’s life is a continuous cycle. While it is the spirit is
neither born nor does it dies, the body, on the other hand, goes through a transmigratory
series of birth and death. Transmigration or metempsychosis is a doctrine that adheres to
the belief that a person’s soul passes into some other creature, human, or animal.

Ultimate liberation, that is, freedom from rebirth, is achieved the moment the
individual attains that stage of life emancipation, from which inevitably arises a total
realization by the individual of spiritual nature as well as the transient character of the
body. This hindu view of humanity’s reality places a lot of emphasis on the attainment of
self-knowledge.

One concept common to all expressions of Hinduism is the oneness of reality. Also
common to all hindu thought are the four primary values. In order of increasing importance,
they may be roughly translated as wealth, pleasure, duty, and enlightenment.

B. BUDDHISM: FROM TEARS TO ENLIGHTENMENT

Introduction to Buddhism
Another major eastern tradition is Buddhism, contained in the teachings of its
founder, Siddhartha Gautama or the Buddha. Gautama began searching for answers to the
riddle of life’s sufferings, disease, old age, and death. While resting and meditating in a
groove of trees, he came to a clear realization that the solution lays in his own mind.

From here on, Gautama’s life was devoted to sharing his dharma or law os
salvation- a simple presentation of the gospel of inner cultivation of right spiritual attitudes,
coupled with a self-imposed discipline whereby bodily desires would be channeled in the
right directions. Convinced that the way of escape from pain and misery lay in the

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 transformation of one’s mind and that liberation could come only with a sloughing off of
all vain clinging to the things of this life, Buddha set about sharing his discovery with
anyone who would listen to him.

In the four noble truths, Gautama taught:1. Life is full of suffering; 2. Suffering is
caused by passionate desires, lusts, cravings; 3. Only as this are obliterated, will suffering
cease; 4. Such eradication of desire may be accomplished only by following the eightfold
path of earnest endeavor.

Briefly these eight steps are: 1. Right belief in the acceptance of the fourfold truth;
2. Right aspirations for one’s self and for others; 3. Right speech that harms no one; 4.
Right conduct, motivated by goodwill toward all human beings; 5. Right means of
livelihood, or earning one’s living by honorable means; 6. Right endeavor, or effort to
direct one’s energies towards wise ends; 7. Right mindfulness in choosing topics for
thought; and 8. Right meditation, or concentration to the point of complete absorption in
mystic ecstasy.

The way to salvation, in other words, lies through self-abnegation, rigid discipline
of mind and body, a consuming love for all living creatures, and the final achievement of
that state of consciousness which marks an individual’s full preparation for entering the
nirvana of complete selflessness.

The following precepts represent the first steps that one can take after reading, hearing, and
pondering Buddhist teaching and establishing some confidence in it.
1. Refrain from destroying life;
2. Refrain from taking what is not given;
3. Refrain from the misuse of the sense;
4. Refrain from wrong speech;
5. Refrain from taking drugs or drinks that tend to cloud the mind.

The Buddhist practice the four states of sublime condition: love, sorrow of others, joy
in the joy of others and equanimity as regards one’s own joy and sorrow.

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GUIDED LEARNING
Based on the eightfold path, which is most important for you to cultivate in your life at present?

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 C. ST. AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO AND ST. THOMAS AQUINAS
The biblical God and humanity
In the 5th century, Augustine’s writing is considered to be the most influential in
the early medieval period. This section looks reasonableness of belief in God’s existence.

Religious people definitely do not treat god’s existence as a hypothesis, for god is
a constant presence, rather than a being whose existence is accepted as the best explanation
of available evidence. For the biblical writes, proving god’s existence would be as pointless
as trying to prove the existence of the air we breathe. The religious problem reflected in
the old testament narratives is not atheism but polytheism: not the denial of god but the
worship of too many gods.

In its earliest missionary endeavors, Christians directed their preaching to jews who
accepted the reality of god. For Augustine, wisdom is not just an abstract logical
construction; but it is substantially existent as the divine logos. Hence, philopophy is the
love of god: it is then, religious. For Augustine, Christianity, as presenting the full
revelation of the true god, is the only full and true philosophy. However, we can love only
that which we know. When comes this knowledge of God? It begins with faith and is made
perfect by understanding. It should be taken as humble acceptance of the fact that human
beings alone, without God, are bound to fail.
The lowest form of knowledge is that of sensation yet as we ascend higher to
knowledge of rational principles, it is the will which directs the mind’s eye to truth, first
invading to the mind itself, then upward to the eternal truth.

Only the pure in heart shall see god; the progress in knowledge and wisdom is not
only speculative, it is more fundamentally practical and moral. Through our spirituality,
we have a conscience. Thus, whether we choose to be good or evil becomes our
responsibility.

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GUIDED LEARNING
1. Choose a time and place where you can spend a short time quietly alone with god. Read
and brief quotation from this Sunday’s scripture readings. Turn in over in your mind,
picture a loving god, caring god, speaking these words to you personally. When you are
ready, write your reflection and then pray.

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 2. How can faith be translated into action?

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 3.2 EVALUATE OWN LIMITATIONS AND THE
POSSIBILITIES FOR THEIR TRANSCENDENCE
A. FORGIVENESS
When we forgive, we are freed from our anger and bitterness because of the actions and/or
words of another.

B. THE BEAUTY OF NATURE

There is perfection in every single flower; this is what the three philosophies believed.

C. VULNERABILITY
To be vulnerable is somehow inhuman. To be vulnerable is to be human.

D. FAILURE
Our failures force us to confront our weaknesses and limitations.

E. LONELINESS
Our loneliness can be rooted from our sense of vulnerability and fear of death.

F. LOVE
To love is to experience richness, positivity, and transcendence.

GUIDED LEARNING
1. How do you view suffering? A blessing or a curse?

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 2. How do you acknowledge helps of others?

3. How can forgiveness free us from anger?

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 3.3 RECOGNIZE THE HUMAN BODY IMPOSES LIMITS
AND POSSIBILITIES FOR TRANSCENDENCE
A. HINDUISM: REINCARNATION AND KARMA
An interesting Hindu belief is the transmigration of souls, reincarnation or
metempsychosis. Essential Hinduism is based on the belief in karma and has its first literal
expressions in Upanishads. Everything in this life, say the Hindus, is a consequence of
actions performed in previous existence. Only by building up a fine record, or karma, can
final salvation be achieved.

B. BUDDHISM: NIRVANA
Nirvana means the state in which one is absolutely free from all forms of bondage
and attachment. It means to overcome and remove the cause of suffering. It is also the state
of perfect insight into the nature of existence.

C. ST. AUGUSTINE AND ST, THOMAS AQUINAS: WILL AND LOVE

For St. Augustine, physically we are free, yet morally bound to obey the law. The
eternal law is god himself. According to this law humanity must do well and avoid evil,
hence, the existence of moral obligation in every human being. Christian life is not easy.
However, no human being should become an end to himself. We are responsible to our
neighbors as well as to our actions.

GUIDED LEARNING
1. How do you show love towards others? Friends? Family? People in need?

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 2. Rightness means pleasing god, can you give examples? If you are non-catholic, give
examples of doing right actions.

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 3.4 DISTINGUISH THE LIMITATIONS AND
POSSIBILITIES FOR TRANSCENDENCE
 It is the spiritual that endures and is ultimately real.
 There is the preoccupation with the inner life- the road to enlightenment that stretches not
outward but inward.
 There is an emphasis on the non-material oneness of creation.
 There is acceptance of direct awareness as the only way to understand what is real.
 There is a healthy respect for tradition, but never a slavish commitment to it.

According to St. Augustine, whatever you understand cannot be god. Simply because you
understand it. As St. Thomas would affirm in the summa theological god is honored by silence-
not because we cannot say or understand anything about him, but because we know that we are
incapable of comprehending him.

The root cause of both natural and moral evil leads to metaphysical evil, which according to
Augustine, pertains to certain imperfections that are inevitable in a created and dependent universe
and, thus, inevitable imperfections are the source of many or all other evils that occur in it.

EVIL AND SUFFERING

Suffering is close to the heart of biblical faith.
In Christianity, suffering leads to the cross, the symbol of reality of god’s saving love for
the human being. Compassion is the heart of religion, but compassion can disappear from it.
Religion, without compassion, becomes law and burden imposed in its adherents.

GUIDED LEARNING
1. How can we live a chaste life? How can we practice control?

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 2. Give examples of how we are physically free but morally bound.

3. How can our attachment to, or craving for worldly pleasures cause suffering? Cite
examples.

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HOW MUCH HAVE YOU LEARNED?

A. CHECK YOUR KNOWLEDGE

Answer the following.

1. What flower is commonly associated with Buddhism?__________________________.

2. What is the worlds oldest organized religion?_________________________________.
3. What do you call the oldest indian sacred text?________________________________.
4. Who constitutes the trimurti?______________________________________________.
5. What is the ultimate goal of Buddhism?_____________________________________.
6. What does the title Buddha mean?_________________________________________.
7. What is st. Augustine popular work?_______________________________________.
8. What concept did Christian philosopher develop?_____________________________.
9. What are st. Thomas Aquinas popular works?_________________________________.
10. Which belief holds that humanitys life is a continuos cycle of birth and rebirth?
_____________________________________________________________________.

B. CHECK YOUR UNDERSTANDING

1. Are we pushing the responsibility for our existence on to society, instead of facing the
questions of who we are? Explain.
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________.

2. Choose a hero/heroine. It could be based on the film viewed or not. What are the
qualities do you admire from your hero or heroine. Why? You can jot down memorable
lines you find meaningful in the film.
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________.

3. Explain: to one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no
explanation is possible.- st. Thomas Aquinas
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________.

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LESSON 4
WHAT DO YOU NEED TO KNOW?

4.1 NOTICE DISORDER IN THE UNIVERSE

There are different views or concepts on nature or the environment from which
debates or researches can be framed and reframed. Based on the anthropocentric model,
humans are superior and central to the universe. Ecocentric model, the ecological or
relational integrity of the humans, provides meaning of our morals and values.

The domination of humanity is linked to the domination of nature based on the

anthropocentric model. An unfair or unjust utilization of the environment result to
ecological crisis. From this point of view it follows that human arrogance toward nature is
unjustifiable in order to satisfy human interests. Sometimes, humans adopt an exploitative
attitude whenever nature is merely considered as an instrument for one’s profit or gain.

Research shows that implications for both abuses of natural resources and of the
generation of waste and emissions. Numerous concepts and indicators have been used to
understand environment impact such as the carbon foot print (CF).

CARBON FOOTPRINT HAS EIGHT CATEGORIES:

1. construction
2. shelter
3. food
4. clothing
5. mobility
6. manufactured goods
7. services
8. trade

Nature is not valued for the future survival of human species per se, but is unavailable
in itself. The study for instance, established that the damage is not inevitable but a
consequence of our choices. Accordingly, humanity needs to develop an ecological
conscience based on individual responsibility.

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GUIDED LEARNING
Make a poster showing the difference between anthropocentric model and ecocentric model.

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 4.2 NOTICE THINGS THAT ARE NOT IN THEIR
PROPER PLACE AND ORGANIZE THEM IN AN
AESTHETIC WAY
A. ANCIENT THINKERS
Early Greek philosophers, the milesians, regarded nature as spatially without
boundaries, that is, as infinite or indefinite in extent.

Pythagoras, described the universe as living embodiment of nature’s order,

harmony and beauty. He sees our relationship with the universe involving biophilia and
cosmophilia. The Chinese cosmic conception, on the other hand, is based on the
assumption that all happens in the universe is a continuous whole like a chain of natural
consequences.

B. MODERN THINKERS
In his third critique, critique of judgement, Immanuel kant expresses that beauty is
ultimately a symbol of morality. The beautiful encourage us to believe that nature and
humanity are part of even bigger design. Ultimately, kant believes that the orderliness of
nature and the harmony of nature with our faculties guide us toward a deeper religious
perspective.

For Herbert Marcuse, humanity had dominated nature. There can only be change if
we will change our attitude towards our perception of the environment. Moreover, for
mead, as human beings, we do not have only rights but duties. We are not only citizens of
the community but how we react to this community and in our reaction to it, change it.

GUIDED LEARNING
1. Compare the importance of nature from the ancient to the modern era.

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 4.3 SHOW THAT CARE FOR THE ENVIRONMENT
CONTRIBUTES TO HEALTH, WELL-BEING, AND
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
A. DEEP ECOLOGY
Ecological crisis is an outcome of anthropocentrism.

B. SOCIAL ECOLOGY
Ecological crisis results from authoritarian social structures.

C. ECOFEMINISM
This theory argues that ecological crisis is a consequence of male dominance.

Erich Fromm believes that it is about time that humanity ought to recognize not only itself
but also the world around it.

GUIDED LEARNING
Write your thoughts regarding these passages of this section.

1. The controlling attitude of humankind is extended to nature, when in fact, humanity is part
of nature.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________.

2. Destroying nature is a reflection wherein few people overpower others while exploiting the
environment for profit or self-interest.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________.

3. Fromm argues that as humans, it is also inherent in us to escape the prison cell of
selfishness.
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________.

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 4.4 DEMONSTRATE THE VIRTUES OF PRUDENCE
AND FRUGALITY TOWARD ENVIRONMENT
These are some of the functions of Fromm’s envisioned society:

1. The willingness to give up all forms of having, in order to fully be.

2. Being fully present where one is.
3. Trying to reduce greed, hate, and illusions as much as one is capable.
4. Making the full growth of oneself and of one’s fellow beings as the supreme goal of living.
5. Not deceiving others, but also not being deceived by others; one may be called innocent,
but not naïve.
6. Freedom that is not arbitrariness but the possibility to be oneself, not as a bundle of greedy
desires, but as a delicately balanced structure that at any moment is confronted with the
alternatives of growth or decay, life or death.
7. Happiness in the process of ever-growing aliveness, whatever the furthest point is that fate
permits one to reach, for living as fully as one can is so satisfactory that the concern for
what one might or might not attain has little chance to develop.
8. Joy that comes from giving and sharing, not from hoarding and exploiting.
9. Developing one’s capacity for love, together with one’s capacity for critical unsentimental
thought.
10. Shedding one’s narcissism and accepting that tragic limitations inherent in human
existence.

GUIDED LEARNING
Relate your answer on the following questions from Fromm’s view.

1. What is happiness?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________.

2. What is freedom?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________.

3. What is joy?
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________.

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HOW MUCH HAVE YOU LEARNED?

A. CHECK YOUR UNDERSTANDING

1. What are the different environmental theories discussed in this lesson?

2. What is carbon footprint?

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 B. CHECK YOUR UNDERSTANDING

1. Based on your own understanding, compare and contrast the anthropocentric and
ecocentric models.

2. In your opinion do animals deserve respect? Why or why not?

3. How do you understand the meaning of frugality and prudence toward the
environment? Cite three examples.

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POST-TEST

IDENTIFICATION:

____________________1. It is called science because the investigation is systematic.

____________________2.Philosophy investigates things, philosopher uses his natural capacity to
think or simply, human reason alone.
____________________3.All other sciences concern themselves with a particular object of
investigation. A philosopher studies human beings, society, religion, language, god, and plants,
among other concerns.
____________________4.A principle is that from which something proceeds in any manner
whatsoever.
____________________5. Is really only an extension of a fundamental and necessary drive in
every human being to know what is real.
____________________6. Is the branch of philosophy that explores the nature of moral virtue and
evaluates human actions.
____________________7. Deals with nature, sources, and limitations, and validity of knowledge.
____________________8. Is the science of the beautiful in its various manifestations including
the sublime, tragic, comic, pathetic, and ugly.
____________________9. Is the scientific study of the essential structures of consciousness
____________________10. Is the conviction that to some significant degree, philosophical
problems, puzzles, and errors are rooted in language and can be solved or avoided by a sound
understanding of language and careful attention to its workings.
____________________11. Based from observations in order to make generalizations.
____________________12. Draws conclusion from usually one broad judgement or definition
and one more specific assertion, often an interference.
____________________13.Someone tries to win false support for an argument or idea by
exploiting his or her opponent’s feelings of pity or guilt.
____________________14.Whatever has not been proved false must be true, and vice versa.
____________________15.This is a logical chain of reasoning of a term or a word several times,
but giving the particular word a different meaning each time.
____________________16.This infers that something is true of the whole from the fact that it is
true of some part of the whole.
_____________________17.One reasons logically that something true of a thing must also be true
of all or some of its parts.
_____________________18.Humans are superior and central to the universe.
_____________________19. The ecological or relational integrity of the humans, provides
meaning of our morals and values.
_____________________20. What is CFP?

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 CONGRATULATIONS
YOU HAVE
SUCCESSFULLY
COMPLETED MODULE 1

REFERENCE
Introduction to the Philosophy of the Human Person
Christine Carmela R. Ramos, PhD

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