THE BODY AND PHILOSOPHY IN CHINA
A PHILOSOPHY OF MIND AND BODY
Abstract
Chinese philosophy of mind does seem to show that it is possible to think outside of the box of Cartesian immaterialism, of the physicalist philosophy of the prevailing model of mind, and of other thought models constructed on Descartes’ exclusivist bipolar thought trajectory. It also offers a perculiar brand of anti-Cartesianism. It is partly for this reason that we undertake this study. In Chinese philosophy of mind, the core notion, xin, is simultaneously and inseparably heart and mind. To be faithful to this notion we refer to it as the heart-mind. The Chinese concept of xin shows that there is no distinction between the cognitive and the affective states. This is informed by a folk psychology that does not discriminate between cognition, representative ideas, beliefs, reason (cognitive states) and emotion, desires, motives, feelings (affective states). The concept of heart-mind unity is influenced by Chinese medicine. Chinese medical practice, with its procedure of acupuncture, accepts that various parts of the body are intimately connected with the entire body system, forming an undivided whole. At once going beyond speech and augmentation onto the sphere of the Tao, where all distinctions evaporate, and remaining within the earthly order, where complete happiness is realized in this world, Chuang Tzu achieves an immanent transcendence (Jana S. Rošker, 2014) that unifies the internal and the external, the object and the subject, the self and the world. Again, concurrently discussing the immaterial realm (dreams) and holding on to the equality of all things (material and immaterial, real and unreal), and by resisting the temptation to claim clear and distinct knowledge while holding on to the existence of the real and the unreal, where all there is, is one, Chuang Tzu seems to resolve all estrangements of self and world, object and subject, mind and body.
