Abstract
The highest category in Chinese philosophy is DAO, while in Indian philosophy, it is BRAHMAN. Belonging to Eastern thought, there is a certain consistency in the concepts of cultivation in China and India: since Plato, the Western philosophical tradition has been enthusiastic about the pursuit of BEING; in contrast, the concept of DAO in Chinese philosophy and the concept of BRAHMAN in Indian philosophy both embody the Eastern emphasis on BECOMING. The goal of Chinese cultural cultivation is "harmony between heaven and man", or "harmony between Tao and man", while in India, it is "union of Brahman and self". To achieve their respective goals, Indian culture uses YOGA as its primary practice, while Chinese culture has developed QIGONG. These cultural elements are distinct from the West world. However, the developing directions of Chinese and Indian cultures also differ significantly. From a morphological perspective, BRAHMAN is associated with GROWTH, while DAO is associated with WALKING. It is important to emphasize that the original meaning of the word DAO is simply ROAD (as a noun), and later it acquired the meaning of WALKING (as a verb). Therefore, we can consider that the characteristic of Chinese philosophy emphasizes "walking in the world, developing in motion", while the characteristic of Indian philosophy is "transcending the human world, reaching towards the higher world". Chinese philosophy and Indian philosophy are two major representatives of Eastern philosophy. In contrast to the philosophical tradition of ancient Greece, they both emphasize practice and realization while downplaying argumentation and reasoning.
Author Information
Chunyao Li, Nanfang College Guangzhou, China
Paper Information
Conference: KAMC2024
Stream: Language and Cultural Studies
This paper is part of the KAMC2024 Conference Proceedings (View)
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To cite this article:
Li C. (2024) “Dao” and “Brahman”: A Brief Comparison of Cultivation Beliefs in China and India ISSN: 2436-0503 – The Kyoto Conference on Arts, Media & Culture 2024: Official Conference Proceedings (pp. 727-736) https://doi.org/10.22492/issn.2436-0503.2024.62
To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.22492/issn.2436-0503.2024.62
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