Out of the Dreamtime

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
John L. Culliney ◽  
David Jones
Keyword(s):  
Natural World ◽  
The Self ◽  
Oral Histories ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
The West ◽  
The World ◽  
Abrahamic Religions ◽  
Scientific Terms ◽  
Traditional Cultures

Chapter 2 diverges from science to follow some primordial strands of thought on origins. An intimate, participatory universe was anticipated before human beings began to articulate worldviews in philosophic or scientific terms. Our search for the fractal self begins by tracing prototypes recorded in myths and oral histories. Anthropologists, such as Levy-Bruhl, concluded that people in remote traditional cultures understood themselves as embedded with nature. Their demigods, such as Coyote, Maui, Hermes, and Dionysus, roamed their environs and instigated changes and events for good or ill. Shamans interpreted and engaged natural forces and negotiated with nature on behalf of humans. Such figures embodied qualities of the fractal self. The break came in the West. Early cosmogonies featured characters such as Gaia and Ouranos, avatars of intimacy with nature and exalted authority respectively. However, as influenced by Plato and Aristotle the development of Abrahamic religions situated humans apart from the rest of nature and under the rule of an omnipotent, transcendent God. The identity of the self at one with nature ultimately subsided and was brutally suppressed in much of the world. However, Daoism and Buddhism remained attuned with ideas of humanity as deeply interdependent with the natural world.

Self within World

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
John L. Culliney ◽  
David Jones
Keyword(s):  
Personal Development ◽  
The Self ◽  
The Other ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Dynamic Flow ◽  
The West ◽  
Self In Relation ◽  
The Core ◽  
The World ◽  
Constructive Interaction

We describe the foundations of the fractal self in relation to the Chinese notion of personal development and enhancement of adeptness in the world and mutualism with the other. This seeking, described in the codified system of Daoism, is a pathway that may progress to the highest level of achievement of such a self: that which defines a sage. The chapter introduces the view that a sage is a fractal self that achieves a peak of intimacy and constructive interaction with the world. We detail the development of human beings on this pathway, emerging beyond the core embodiments of empathy, sympathy, and rudimentary morality observed in apes. The self for the early Chinese was always a being that was embedded in the world and dynamic flow of forces. This self was defined in intimate terms as adaptable and adept, seeking to be a microcosmic contributor to some holistic macrocosm. In this chapter, Daoism leads our thinking on how the fractal self engages with the world. In turn, this way of understanding selfness and its potential to enrich its system from within resonates with discussions of the interactive self of Buddhism and was also in the minds of Pre-Socratic thinkers in the West.

scholarly journals KECERDASAN GURU DALAM PERSPEKTIF BARAT DAN ISLAM

2015 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Irwandy Irwandy
Keyword(s):  
Human Beings ◽  
The West ◽  
Library Research ◽  
The World ◽  
Rule Out

<p>Abstrak: Untuk mencapai pembelajaran yang optimal, peran guru masih sangat penting sehingga seorang guru dituntut untuk memiliki berbagai kecerdasan untuk menopang profesionalismenya. Dalam konteks kekinian, kajian-kajian tentang kecerdasan masih tetap didominasi oleh penemuan-penemuan Barat, padahal dalam Islam tidaklah menutup kemungkinan persoalan ini terekam dalam sumber ajaran Islam secara rapi. Untuk mengetahui itu, dalam tulisan ini akan diulas dengan metode library research untuk mengungkap bagaimana kecerdasan guru perspektif Barat dan Islam. Kecerdasan merupakan daya dalam diri manusia yang mempengaruhi kemampuan seseorang di berbagai bidang. Dalam perspektif Barat, teori tentang kecerdasan banyak sekali bentuknya, namun tetap dalam lingkup pengembangan kualitas diri manusia. Dalam perspektif Islam, kecerdasan (al-dzaka) memiliki beberapa aspek, dan setiap aspek yang ada tetap sejalan dalam mewujudkan orientasi kehidupan dunia dan akhirat yang lebih baik.</p><p><br />Abstract: Teachers’ Intelligence in the Perspectives of the West and Islam. To achieveoptimal learning, the teacher’s roleis still very important that a teacheris required to have a variety of intelligence to sustain professionalism. In thepresent context, studies on intelligenceis still dominated by the discoveries of the West, but Islam does not rule out the possibility of this issueis recorded in the source of Islamic teachings neatly. To know that, in this paper we review the methods of library research to reveal how intelligence perspective teachers the West and Islam. Intelligence is a power in man which affectone’s ability invarious fields. In the perspective of the West, theories about intelligence in numerable forms, but still with in the scope of the development of quality human beings. In the perspective of Islam, intellect (al-dzaka) has several aspects, and each aspect that is still consistent in realizing the orientation of the life of the world and the here after better.</p><p><br />Kata Kunci: kecerdasan majemuk, pendidikan, guru, Islam</p>

Afterword

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathleen Long
Keyword(s):  
Early Modern ◽  
Natural World ◽  
Knowledge Systems ◽  
The Self ◽  
Modern World ◽  
Production Of Knowledge ◽  
The World ◽  
Human Understanding ◽  
Modern Era

In the early modern world, exceptional bodies are linked to knowledge, not as the production of knowledge of the self through the scrutiny of those who have been ‘othered’, but as a means of inducing self-scrutiny and awareness of the limitations of human understanding. Exceptional beings and phenomena entice us to consider the world beyond that which is familiar to us and raise questions concerning our knowledge systems based on notions of what is natural or, in our modern era, normal. Rather than reacting with horror, disgust or pity, we can learn to respect the variety, mobility and resilience of the natural world in our contemplation of that which we see as exceptional.

3. Animals and the environment

2020 ◽  
pp. 31-47
Author(s):  
Damien Keown
Keyword(s):  
Human Life ◽  
Natural World ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Meat Eating ◽  
Plant Life ◽  
The World ◽  
The Buddha

Is Buddhism truly an ‘eco-friendly’ religion? ‘Animals and the environment’ examines the implications of Buddhist teachings such as that human beings can be reborn as animals and vice versa. While the Buddhist ‘sublime attitudes’ such as kindness and compassion seem at first to favour animals to a greater degree than we find in Christianity, human life still takes precedence in the hierarchy of living beings. Rules about plant life are unclear, with Buddhist writers acknowledging the beauty of both the wilderness and civilization. Vegetarianism is largely seen as a morally superior diet, but meat-eating was common at the time of the Buddha and is widely practised by monks today. Buddhist attitudes toward the natural world are complex and are to some extent overshadowed by the belief that the world as we know it is fundamentally flawed.

Oral Tradition and Sierra Leone History

1985 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
pp. 65-72
Author(s):  
C. Magbaily Fyle
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Leone ◽  
Oral Tradition ◽  
Oral Traditions ◽  
Oral Histories ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
The West ◽  
The Past ◽  
Number Of Factors ◽  
Human Problem ◽  
Written Sources

This paper attempts to examine specific problems encountered with the collection and interpretation of oral traditions in Sierra Leone and ways in which these were approached. I will suggest with examples that problems facing oral traditions are not always peculiar to them, as the researcher with written sources faces some similar problems.Much has been said about methodology in collecting oral tradition for it to warrant much discussion here. One point that has been, brought out, however, is that methods which work well for one situation might prove disastrous or unproductive in another. It is thus necessary to bring out specific examples of situations encountered so as to improve our knowledge of the possible variety of approaches that could be used, while emphasizing that the researcher, as a detective, should have enough room for initiative.For the past eight years, I have been collecting oral histories from among the Yalunka (Dialonke) and Koranko of Upper Guinea, both southern Mande peoples, and the Limba and Temne, grouped under the ‘West Atlantic.’ Extensive exploration into written sources has indicated that similar problems arise in both cases. In both situations, the human problem was evident. For the oral traditionist this problem is more alive as he is dealing first hand with human beings. A number of factors therefore, like his appearance, approach to his informants, his ability to ‘identify’ with the society in question, may affect the information he receives. These could provide reasons for distortion which are not necessarily present with written sources.

scholarly journals Ecosocial Philosophy of Education: Ecologizing the Opinionated Self

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jani Pulkki ◽  
Jan Varpanen ◽  
John Mullen
Keyword(s):  
Sense Of Self ◽  
Philosophy Of Education ◽  
Real Life ◽  
The Self ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Life Problems ◽  
Epistemic Humility ◽  
The World ◽  
Human World ◽  
Flexible Boundaries

AbstractWhile human beings generally act prosocially towards one another — contra a Hobbesian “war of all against all” — this basic social courtesy tends not to be extended to our relations with the more-than-human world. Educational philosophy is largely grounded in a worldview that privileges human-centered conceptions of the self, valuing its own opinions with little regard for the ecological realities undergirding it. This hyper-separation from the ‘society of all beings’ is a foundational cause of our current ecological crises. In this paper, we develop an ecosocial philosophy of education (ESPE) based on the idea of an ecological self. We aspire to consolidate voices from deep ecology and ecofeminism for conceptualizing education in terms of being responsible to and for, a complex web of interdependent relations among human and more-than-human beings. By analyzing the notion of opinions in light of Gilles Deleuze’s critique of the ‘dogmatic image of thought,’ we formulate three aspects of ESPE capable of supporting an ecological as opposed to an egoistic conception of the self: (i) rather than dealing with fixed concepts, ESPE supports adaptable and flexible boundaries between the self and the world; (ii) rather than fixating on correct answers, ESPE focuses on real-life problems shifting our concern from the self to the world; and (iii) rather than supporting arrogance, EPSE cultivates an epistemic humility grounded in our ecological embeddedness in the world. These approaches seek to enable an education that cultivates a sense of self that is less caught up with arbitrary, egoistic opinions of the self and more attuned to the ecological realities constituting our collective life-worlds.

How to Rule the World: An Introduction to Xenophon'sThe Education of Cyrus

2015 ◽  
Vol 109 (1) ◽  
pp. 143-154 ◽  
Author(s):  
ROBERT C. BARTLETT
Keyword(s):  
The Self ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
The World ◽  
Moral Excellence ◽  
Self Knowledge

As a contribution to the study of empire and imperial ambition, the present study considers the greatest analysis—Xenophon'sThe Education of Cyrus—of one of the greatest empires of antiquity—the Persian. Xenophon's lively and engaging account permits us to watch Cyrus as he builds a transnational empire, at once vast and stable. Yet Xenophon is ultimately highly critical of Cyrus, because he lacks the self-knowledge requisite to happiness, and of the empire, whose stability is purchased at the price of freedom. Cyrus finally appears as a kind of divinity who strives to supply the reward for moral excellence that the gods evidently do not. Xenophon implies that any truly global empire would have to present itself as a universal providential power capable of bestowing on human beings a blessed happiness that as such transcends our very mortality.

‘The solitary saint walks forth to meditate at even-tide’

2021 ◽  
pp. 39-67
Author(s):  
Christopher Stokes
Keyword(s):  
Natural World ◽  
The Self ◽  
Spiritual Autobiography ◽  
Strong Connection ◽  
William Cowper ◽  
The World ◽  
Physical Spaces

This chapter illustrates a strong connection between prayer and what I term radical interiority—a self defined by the authenticity of a supposed depth or secrecy—across the work of Evangelical poet William Cowper. Expressing this inward and grace-filled self is always accompanied by and conceived on the model of intense prayer; by contrast, prayerlessness equals spiritual desolation. The connection is particularly torturous in melancholic early texts such as Adelphi (his spiritual autobiography) and the Olney Hymns. In his most famous poem The Task, a poetics interlinking prayer and interiority continues: despite an initial elision in favour of hymning the natural world and focusing outside the self, it is reasserted through a quietist turn. Cowper’s final praying self retreats from the world, meditatively into itself but also in occupying hidden physical spaces as prayer closets, a combination inspired by his translations of French mystic, Madame de Guyon.

Diskursus Pluralisme Agama dalam Perspektif Aksi Komunikatif

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (02) ◽  
pp. 205-236
Author(s):  
Sri Rosmalina Soedjono
Keyword(s):  
Religious Pluralism ◽  
Interfaith Dialogue ◽  
Modern World ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
The West ◽  
The World ◽  
Islamic Religion ◽  
Truth Value

Discourse on religious pluralism emerged in the west along with the demands of globalization. Where the owner of power over the modern world wants an order that can bring together the various inhabitants of the world by removing various religious barriers and a single claim to the truth. But this current of view becomes problematic when it collides with the truth by various existing religions. The rejection is very strong, especially from within the Islamic religion. Although the concept of pluralism meets equality in Islam which means diversity, but the fundamental paradigm on which pluralism is built is very different, Western Pluralism departs from the value of secularism while Pluralism in Islam's view is built on the truth value of the revelation of the Qur'an and Hadith. Diversity according to Islam does not require that there is a truth that must be recognized together, but the truth of each religion must be defended. Furthermore, even though humans have different religions and views of life, according to Islam, fellow human beings must be able to work together within the boundaries of worldly affairs to create a just and compassionate life together with fellow human beings, while still holding fast to their respective religions. Although the atmosphere of interfaith dialogue does not need to be prevented and hindered each other, all in an atmosphere of freedom and harmony.

CALAMITIES VS CYCLES

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1989 ◽  
Vol 84 (1) ◽  
pp. 164-164
Author(s):  
Student
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Buenos Aires ◽  
The Self ◽  
Asian Countries ◽  
The West ◽  
Global Event ◽  
The World ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Rich Countries ◽  
First World

AIDS quickly became a global event—discussed not only in New York, Paris, Rio, Kinshasa but also in Helsinki, Buenos Aires, Beijing, and Singapore—when it was far from the leading cause of death in Africa, much less in the world. There are famous diseases, as there are famous countries, and these are not necessarily the ones with the biggest populations. AIDS did not become so famous just because it afflicts whites too, as some Africans bitterly assert. But it is certainly true that were AIDS only an African disease, however many millions were dying, few outside of Africa would be concerned with it. It would be one of those "natural" events, like famines, which periodically ravage poor, overpopulated countries and about which people in rich countries feel quite helpless. Because it is a world event—that is, because it affects the West—it is regarded as not just a natural disaster. It is filled with historical meaning. (Part of the self-definition of Europe and the neo-European countries is that it, the First World, is where major calamities are history-making, transformative, while in poor, African or Asian countries they are part of a cycle, and therefore something like an aspect of nature.)

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