Comparison of Eastern and Western Philosophy
By Jimmy Kurian
The search and love for knowledge are as intrinsic to human nature as the drives for self-preservation and social interaction. From the time we wonder at the colors and sounds about us to the moment we finally confront eternity with our last breaths, we are occupied with the pursuit of understanding our environment, ourselves, and the nature of whatever reality may exist beyond. People essentially want to know, and the basic questions of life? why, who, whence, whither, and how? tease even the staunchest materialist in the quiet moments of awe or the times of pressing injustice. To answer these questions, there have evolved two great philosophies, which are usually designated by the geographical divisions of East and West. The modern Western approach addresses the problem from an objective, theoretical, and pluralistic standpoint, whereas the ancient Eastern approach is more subjective, experiential, and holistic. The West looks outward to external data, and the east turn inward to internal experience; one method is based primarily on dialectics and discursive deductive speculation, while the other is based on introspection and direct intuitive insight.
The Eastern orientation is becoming increasingly important in the West as we begin to realize the there are more things in heaven and earth that are dreamt of most Western philosophies, As proponents of the Western approach investigate increasingly subtle aspects of reality, the basic assumptions of the two philosophies are becoming less divergent. The philosophy of the Vedânta long ago declared that the whole universe is Brahman? all-pervading Consciousness? and modern science is now beginning to come to ...