An Exploration into Non-Western Philosophies

"What are some non-western philosophies that can help to combat pandemic related challenges? Are there books I can read to learn about the philosophies?"

Philosophies in Africa

Ochieng, O. (2020, April 28). What African Philosophy Can Teach You About the Good Life. Retrieved November 04, 2020, from https://iai.tv/articles/what-african-philosophy-can-teach-you-about-the-good-life-auid-1147

The article is from a news outlet written by Professor Ochieng, who specializes in North Atlantic and African philosophy. Therefore, I consider the source reliable since there is little to no possibility for malicious bias and slants. My research process for philosophies developed in Africa and/or by African scholars is extremely onerous. There are several reasons: 1. many philosophies in Africa were not recorded or published for wider appreciation; 2. Works of contemporary African philosophies often have limited distributions. However, this source pointed me to three sectors of African philosophies that may be helpful.

1. The teachings of Ptahhotep, an ancient Egyptian official. Through the source, I was able to find his thirty-seven theses translated into English online. https://archive.org/details/TeachingsOfPtahhotep/page/n65/mode/2up

2. In the 1970s, Odera Oruka undertook a “Sage Philosophy Project” where he interviewed local sages on the topics of ethics, metaphysics, epistemology, and philosophy of religion. I believe his work can give me tremendous insight into contemporary, local wisdom that are not widely appreciated. However, I was unable to find related works as it was recorded solely in German. Nevertheless, his work aspires me to look into local, less well-known philosophies.

3. Oyeronke Oyewumi, a Nigerian gender scholar has written the book The Invention of Women, where she argued that gender did not feature as a vector of social organization and hierarchy prior to Western colonization.

These are all potential works of African philosophy that I can use to combat specific pandemic-related challenges.

Philosophies in India

Mohanty, J. N. (n.d.). Indian philosophy. Retrieved November 04, 2020, from https://www.britannica.com/topic/Indian-philosophy

Britannica is generally considered a reliable source. This source provides a comprehensive overview of the history, development, and branches of Indian philosophy. The orthodox (astika) systems include the Nyaya, Vaisheshika, Samkhya, Yoga, Purva-Mimamsa, and Vedanta schools of philosophy. The Unorthodox (nastika) systems include Buddhism and Jainism. I believe Indian philosophy can be of great help as it focuses on cosmology, metaphysics, logic, epistemology, ethics, and the philosophy of religion. Although many Indian philosophies are fundamentally intertwined with religion, Nyaya and Madhyamika are schools of philosophy almost exclusively preoccupied with logical and epistemological issues.

Philosophies in the Middle East

Hendricks, S. (2018, December 03). 10 Golden Age Philosophers, and Why You Should Know Them. Retrieved November 04, 2020, from https://bigthink.com/scotty-hendricks/ten-islamic-philosophers-you-dont-know-and-why-you-shoud

Unlike my previous sources, this source does not provide much background and development on Middle Eastern philosophies. Instead, it provides a direct list of philosophers during the Golden Age (8th century - 13th century) in the Middle East. Big Think, the source, presents itself as unbiased, trusted, and reliable. During my examination of the source, I did not find any discernible bias. Here are what I found useful:

1. Sohrevardi (1154 CE - 1191 CE) was a Persian Philosopher who founded the Islamic school of Illuminationism. The school combines metaphysics, Islamism, and Platonic ideas. I can read about this philosophy in the book Illusionism: As a Theory of Consciousness by Keith Frankish.

2. Fatema Mernissi (1940 - 2015) was a Moroccan Feminist and sociologist who specialized in Islamic thoughts and the role of women in it. She wrote in her book, Beyond the Veil, “When a woman thinks she is nothing, the little sparrows cry. Who can defend them on the terrace, if no one has the vision of a world without slingshots?.”

Philosophies in China

Speaking from my personal knowledge.

Ancient Chinese philosophies flourished during the Zhou and Han Dynasty (1027 BCE - 100 AD). Each of the schools was born of necessity to solve some type of problem. This characteristic, therefore, makes Chinese philosophy suitable resources for my project.

Legalism

Widely employed by the Qin Dynasty, legalism believed that humans are fundamentally evil and driven by greed. The only means to channel such desires into functional society is through rewards and punishments. Because strict human laws override everything in a legalistic society, many scholars found this philosophy to be violent and cruel.

Confucianism

Confucianism believes that people could become truly noble not necessarily through birth and title but because they are humane and righteous. Although Confucius himself did not record any of his teaching, his students compiled his philosophy into a book called the Analect. One of the most famous contemporaries of Confucius is Mencius, who believed people to be good and that the government should provide education to cultivate virtues.

Taoism

Taosim founded by Lao Tzu between 300 BCE and 200 BCEE, during a turbulent era of Chinese history. Taoists see the world has naturally cruel. Specifically, people or animals were treated as "straw dogs" by Nature. Any purposeful acquisition of knowledge is against "the way" or Nature. To abide by "the way", people must learn to live without basic necessities such as food, water, shelter, and clothing. You may also find Taoism controversial as it believes that the government must not act to alleviate troubles.