Philo

Socratic Philosophers
Socrates
[SOK-ruh-teez]
(470-399 B.C.E.)
Man is a Soul
Beauty and goodness should be
determined by usefulness and fitness of
function, rather than by mere
appearance or personal feelings of
delight; for the appearance of the body
is less important than how it functions.
Man is a Soul
Man is not the body, but the psyche.

Seeking my own welfare means seeking
the welfare of the soul.
Man is a Soul
One has to prefer a good and beautiful

soul to a pleasing body that housed a
lesser self because true beauty is inner
beauty, beauty of spirit and character.
No One Knowingly Does Evil
A man does evil because he does not

know any better, or that his knowledge
is imperfect or inadequate. Wrong
doing is always involuntary, being a
product of ignorance.
No One Knowingly Does Evil
Socrates points out that when people

do what appear to be bad or distasteful
things, it is always with some ultimate
good in mind.
“An unexamined life is not a life worth
living”
-Socrates
Man should discover the truth; truth
about good life, for it is in knowing the
good that man can act correctly.
Knowledge and virtue is not
distinct from each other because the
two are one.
Plato
[Plai-toh]
(427-347 B.C.E.)
Plato’s Metaphysical System
Plato believed that this world is not the

basis for the attainment of true and real
knowledge.
He assumed the existence of another
world in another dimension.
Everything in this world is considered as

appearances (shadows of reality).
Thus the things that we perceive
through our senses are always
changing.
World of Forms Ultimate Reality
Shadows of Reality World of Matter

Man is a Metaphysical Dichotomy of body and
soul
This world could not be the source of

real and ultimate knowledge because
for something to be accepted as
knowledge, that object of knowledge
must be ageless and eternal.
Objects that we see in this world could

not serve as the ultimate basis of
knowledge.
The Allegory of the Cave
1. In Plato’s allegory, he described

prisoners inside a cave, where they are
chained facing the wall.
2. Behind and above the prisoners are

people carrying objects along a road
and beyond this road is a burning fire.
3. The burning fire would cast the

shadows of the people with their
objects to the wall in front of the
prisoners.
4. Consequently, the prisoners could

see only the images or shadows cast by
these objects.
5. One’s the prisoner is free, and would

be force to turn around, he would
realize that the cause of the shadows
were the people on the road with the
objects they carry and the fire.
The Divided Line- Knowledge and Opinion
1. World of Forms- (World of True

Knowledge)
2. World of Matter- (Opinion, Illusion and
Imagination)
1. Opinion- a view or judgment formed

about something, not necessarily
based on fact or knowledge.
2. Illusion- an instance of a wrong or

misinterpreted perception of
sensory experience.
3. Imagination- the faculty of forming

new ideas, or images or concept of
external objects not present to the
senses.
Aristotle
There is no soulless body and
bodiless soul
- Aristotle
Man is a Rational Animal
- Aristotle
Three Fold Nature of Man
1. Vegetative
2. Animal
3. Rational
1. Vegetative- the growth of the body

represents the vegetative aspect.
e.g. human hair grows as does any
form of vegetation.
2. Animal- man’s emotional, sensual,

and sensuous nature.
3. Rational- cultivates the vegetative

nature and regulates the animal
nature of man.
If one seeks true happiness, or at least
his full complement and full measure he
must actualize to the fullest extent, all
three natures
- Aristotle
Socrates & His
Philosophy of the
Human Person
DR. LIONEL E. BUENAFLOR

H E A D — B ATA N G A S H E R I TA G E C E N T E R
U N I V E R S I T Y O F B ATA N G A S
His teachings called the attention
of the political government.
He was accused by the poet Meletus, the

politician Anytus, and the orator Lycon
of 2 charges:
1. Corrupting the mind of the youth;
2. Denying the national gods and
introducing new gods in their stead.
Socrates
(459-400 BCE)
The main feature of his philosophy is
his thought on ETHICAL WISDOM—
the recognition of the fundamental
importance of doing good as the basic
principle of human activity.
The focal point of his thought was the

personal, i.e., of what a virtuous person
might be, or what it was that could
rightly be called wisdom.
Socrates His most persistent command was:

(459-400 BCE) “KNOW THYSELF.”
“AN UNEXAMINED LIFE IS NOT

WORTH LIVING.”
A life devoid of philosophical speculation
is hardly a human life because it is
incomplete and is not fully functioning. It
lacks virtue or excellence..
The essence of man is the psyche—a

combination of what we think as the
mind and soul: consciousness, the
capacity to REFLECTIVE THINKING.
Socrates
(459-400 BCE) An unexamined life is a life that takes
the psyche for granted.
“To know the good is to do the good.”

Knowledge is virtue. Ignorance is a vice.
Happiness can only be attained if a

person possesses knowledge.
Knowledge leads a human person to

become virtuous. If he does not
become virtuous, it must be that he
does not know.
Socrates Virtue is a natural endowment. It is

(459-400 BCE) not acquired through education.
However, it is also possible that this
virtue can be taught.
If virtue can be taught, it is not
something that will seem like introducing
something new to the mind.
Learning is a form of
intellectual midwifery.
A person is capable of doing good because

goodness is already innate in him.
Socrates He created the concept of the psyche.

(459-400 BCE) What makes the human person act is the
psyche or the human soul.
The activity of the soul is to know and
direct our behaviour in our day-to-day
living.
The soul is the one that animates the

body.
Our responsibility is to take good care of

the soul and make this soul as good as
possible.
Socrates
(459-400 BCE)
Wrongdoing is involuntary. It is always a
product of ignorance.
Knowledge should not be theoretical and
speculative. It should be put into action.
To obtain happiness, a person has to be

virtuous. To become virtuous, one should
fulfil his own function.
True respectability stems not from the will

of the majority but from proper reasoning.
Socrates We should not be intimidated by bad

(459-400 BCE) thinking, even if it comes from the lips of
teachers of rhetoric, mighty generals, and
well-dressed aristocrats.
We should not care much about what the
populace will say of us, but about what
the expert on matters of justice and
injustice will say.
Instead of listening to the dictates of

public opinion, we should rather strive to
Socrates listen always to the dictates of reason.
(459-400 BCE)
Aristotle and His
Philosophy of
Person

ARISTOTLE
-Student of Plato
-Teacher of Alexander the Great
-His writings were the first to create
a comprehensive system of
Western philosophy, encompassing
ethics, aesthetics, logic, science,
politics, and metaphysics.
-Founder of the school “Lyceum”
-Creator of the first important
library
ARISTOTLE’S IDEA ABOUT MAN
The sensible world is the real world. The practical world
Everything is composed of form and matter
◦ Form is that which makes a thing what it is
◦ Matter is the physical attribute. It is capable of changing because matter is composed of
many accidence such as the texture, color, height etc.
A thing would undergo change only
insofar as the nature of such thing
permits it to be such. In other words,
there must be a principle within such a
thing to allow for the change.
Although the principle vary according to

the kind of change involved, in general,
they can be referred to as the principle of
actuality and the principle of potentiality.
Aristotle
In the physical thing, these principle are
(384-322 BCE)
the form, which signifies the act, and the
matter, which signifies the potency or the
capacity of the matter to obtain another
act. This teaching is called the
hylomorphic doctrine.
A human being is composed of a
body and a soul.
The soul and the body are not separate

entities in a human person.
The soul forms the entelechy, the definite

form of the body.
The human mind is a tabula rasa, or a

blank sheet.
Aristotle
Reason makes a human person resemble (384-322 BCE)
the Supreme Reason, who rules and guides
the destinies of individuals and nations
and leads all things to their proper ends.
LADDER OF BEINGS
1. N0N-LIVING – NO SOUL
2. PLANTS (Vegetative Soul) – refers to the capacity to reproduce,
develop, and grow
3. ANIMALS (Sensitive) – refers to the capacity of the operation of
senses, feelings, and movements
4. MAN (Rational Soul) – refers to the capacity to think, reason out,
contemplate and choose
With the three functions of life, man is different from other creatures.
The perfect man is the one using his intellect.
Since Aristotelian philosophy
speaks about the proper end of
things, his philosophy is
considered to be teleological.
Man can only be considered good if and

only if he is functioning as a human
person.
Everyone must be able to discover first

the distinctive function of everyone in
order to obtain goodness.
Aristotle
(384-322 BCE)
But what then is the function of purpose

of the human person?
The function of the human person is an
activity of the human soul, which follows
or implies a rational principle.
The end or function of man must have

something to do with his specific activity.
Every human person is naturally seeking

towards the attainment of happiness. Aristotle
(384-322 BCE)
The word Aristotle used that is so often
translated as “happiness” is eudaimonia.
PHRONESIS/PRACTICAL
WISDOM
“CONTEMPLATION”
MESOTES/JUST
MIDDLE
GOAL / END
Happiness
“EUDAIMONIA”
Meaningful Life
POLIS
Eudaimonia implies being really alive
rather than just existing: fully aware,
vital, alert.
Happiness should not be connected with

pleasure. A life devoted solely to pleasure
is a life fit only for a cattle.
Pleasure is not the goal of life; nor is the

acquisition of wealth. Fame and public Aristotle
success does not lead one to eudaimonia.
(384-322 BCE)
The more self-sufficient we are, the

happier we will be.
There is a greater peace of mind and
satisfaction in knowing that I can provide
for my own needs than there is in
depending on others.
A reasonable person does not avoid life.

Rather, he engages in it fully.
A rich and full life is a social life.
Human beings are political (social) Aristotle

creatures designed by nature to live with
(384-322 BCE)
the others.
All actions of man can be adjudged as

good or bad depending on the goodness or
badness of its effect on others.
What is that particular action that will lead
the human person to this ultimate
happiness?
From the objective point of view, a morally

virtuous act consists of a measured
activity, following the rule of the Just
Middle or the metoses.
Virtue is an activity that proceeds from

certain proper dispositions. A Virtuous Aristotle
Act, therefore, is that which proceeds
(384-322 BCE)
from a habitual state or disposition
acquired through constant practice.
A virtuous act is that which proceeds from

right intention.
In order for the human person to be sure
that his action is done in permanent
disposition, it should be done in the act of
contemplation.
Whenever an action is performed based on

contemplation, such action is said to be
coming from fronesiV (phronesis) or the
practical wisdom.
As an action, the phronesis is the practical

intellect that properly decides to act. Aristotle
(384-322 BCE)
Aristotle, like Plato, viewed the communal

life of the polis as the proper place for the
exercise of the moral virtue.
Because man has a function to fulfil, his
life constitutes being one with the
community.
Contemplation is therefore to engage in

the highest, most perfect type of
reflection. Aristotle
(384-322 BCE)
MAN AS AN EMBODIED SPIRIT
MAN AS AN EMBODIED SPIRIT
1.MONISM – MAN IS EITHER A BODY (MATERIALISM) OR
SOUL (IDEALISM) ALONE
2. DUALISM – MAN IS BOTH BODY & SOUL

Plato and His
Philosophy of
Person

PLATO
-A mathematician and a student of
Socrates
-The founder of the Academy in
Athens
-One of the best students of
Socrates
-Teacher of Aristotle
THE ACADEMY
Plato’s idea of building this kind of school is to
pass down their knowledge to the youth so that it will be
developed and will not perish. That there must be a
place for this transfer of learning.
“Let no one enter here without knowledge Geometry”

this is written on the entrance of the Academy as a proof
that the Academy is as strict and center of science of
that time.
He founded the Academy on the principle
that students should learn to criticize and
think for themselves rather than simply
accept the views of their teachers..
The Academy was considered as the first

university. Many of the finest intellects in
the classical world were schooled here.
Average persons lack wisdom and self-

restraint.
Plato
(428-347 BCE)
The trial and death of Socrates showed
Plato what would happen when justice is
detached from wisdom and self-restraint
and reduced to a majority vote.
His great influence stems from the
manner in which he brought all the diverse
philosophic concerns into a unified system
of thought including the reconciliation of
the views of Heraclitus and Parmenides.
Plato
One of the first problems of the early (428-347 BCE)
Greek thinkers during Plato’s time was on
the unity and multiplicity of things.
The Allegory of the Fall
PLATO’S IDEA ABOUT MAN
According to the theory of forms there are two worlds the
apparent world, which constantly changes and an unchanging and
unseen world of forms which may be caused of what is apparent.
2 TYPES OF REALITY ACCORDING TO PLATO:

World of forms (soul) – what is real found in the world of forms
or in the ideas of God. This is perfect and unchanging world.
World of matter (body) – what is present and which not perfect
and is always changing.
The human person is The body is subject
composed of a body to change and
and a soul. impermanence.
Since man is capable

of knowing the Plato The part of the
permanent and the ON THE HUMAN PERSON human person that
essences of things, helps him to know
then part of him the permanent is his
should also be soul.
permanent.
The real man is the There is the pre-existence

soul. It is the whole of the soul. (He took this
of the human idea from Pythagoras and
person. Empedocles.
Plato
ON THE HUMAN PERSON
The soul is composed of 3 distinct faculties, the three

levels of knowledge and desire. These 3 levels are:
1. Sensation (aisthesiV)
2. Opinion (doxa)
3. Mind or Intellect (nouV)
Since the soul is
imprisoned in the body, Life in this world is a
the soul finds itself spiritual journey, a
dragged down towards return to the soul’s
a life of mere sense and roots and beginnings.
physical pleasure.
Plato
ON THE HUMAN PERSON
The tendency of the The NOUS has to

soul is to yearn for that overrule the soul so
which is beyond. This is that man will always
due to the soul’s have the yearning for
connaturality with God. the world of forms.
Morality is achievable
when reason overcomes
the appetites and the Knowledge is innate.
stimuli of the body.
Plato
ON THE HUMAN PERSON
In order to obtain true

Only knowledge can knowledge, one has to
produce virtue because be aware that he is
it is ignorance or false ignorant and therefore,
knowledge that has has to search his way
produced evil. back towards the state
of knowledge.
Learning is a form of Good life is a life of
reminiscence. inner harmony with the
real world.
Plato
ON LEARNING & EDUCATION
Virtue could only be attained

when each part of the soul is Harmony can be
fulfilling its own function, achieved only if the
i.e., when the lower parts of parts of the soul were
the soul would be subjected fulfilling its function.
to the sovereignty of the
rational element.
Needs must be met by The REPUBLIC is a
the 3 classes of people: study of Plato’s ideal
(1) workers, (2) warriors society and a study of
(3) guardians types of individuals.
(philosopher-king).
Plato
ON SOCIETY & POLITICS
The society should provide A good life can be lived

the people in meeting the 3 only in a good society. No
basic needs: (1) nourishing one can live a good life
needs (food, shelter, without having some social
clothing); (2) protection activities, obligations, and
needs (military, police); (3) concerns.
ordering needs (leadership
and government).
A state is just when
An ideal state is that it functions fully.
which is just to its An unjust state is
subordinates. dysfunctional if it
fails to meet some
Plato essential need.
The good life is nothing more-or less-

than each individual functioning well
according to his or her own nature, in
a state that is well-ordered and wisely
ruled.
Plato
Injustice originates from Some imbalance always

imbalance in a society. When results when one part
the society will not be of the state tries to
functioning properly, then fulfil the function of
injustices will surely occur. another part.
Chapter 7
Buddhism
C H A IR — SO C IA L A ND B E H AV IO RA L SC IE NC ES
Understanding Buddhism
• The Dharma Wheel, the symbol of
Buddhism. The eight spokes symbolize
the Eightfold Path.
• Buddhism is a way of life. It provides its
adherents a guideline as to how man
should consider life and how this life
should be lived.
• Buddhism began as a pure ethic, which
rejected the authority of the Vedas and
the Brahamanas, and established a way
to human liberation and salvation solely
through human effort and discipline,
which refused any supernatural
revelation or intervention.
Dr. Lionel E. Buenaflor

• True happiness is not to be obtained
solely through temple offerings and
ritual sacrifices.
• Happiness can be obtained by way of
living a moral life and performing good
deeds to fellow human beings.
• The known founder is Siddhartha
Gautama.
• Siddhartha was believed to be born at
Lumbini, in the Terai lowlands near the
foothills of the Himalayas in modern-day
Nepal.

• He left the palace four times. During

this time, he was able to encounter an
old man, a sick man, a corpse, and
finally, an ascetic man.
• The teachings of Siddhartha are
contained in the canon of the Sacred
Scriptures.
• The teachings appear in two main forms:
the Pali (Chinese version) and the
Sanskrit (Tibetan version).

• In both, it is made up of three

parts: hence, it is called
Tripitaka: (1) Sutras (sermons and
fables); (2) Vinaya (collection of
monastic laws); and (3) Avhidarma
(collection of moral and
metaphysical treatises).

The Buddhist Philosophy of the Human Person
• Buddhist adherents follow the Hindu

belief that a human person, in reality,
was originally united with the Brahman.
• This human person was accidentally
born into this earthly life; thereby,
acquiring an atman.
• The atman was not simply the soul but
the whole personal life of the human
person.
• When the human person became a
mortal body, he was made subjected to
diseases, death and decomposition,
which brought the human person to
experience pain and suffering.

The Buddhist Philosophy of the Human Person
• Sufferings and pains would end due to

their belief that there is reincarnation.
• Reincarnation should not be seen as an
opportunity; rather, it should be seen as
a punishment for failing to live a moral
and holy life.
• Nirvana is the sinless, calm state of
mind, the destruction of earthly desires,
the absence of lust, and the cessation
of sorrows.

The Fourfold Noble Truth
1. Life is suffering;
2. Suffering involves a
chain of causes;
3. Suffering can cease;
4. There is a path that
leads to the cessation
of suffering.

The Noble Eightfold Path

The Buddhists’ Guide to Doing Good
• Every human person is obliged to

follow the ahimsa (not harming).
• Ahimsa includes a number of other
obligations: maîtri, dana, and
karuna.
• Maîtri means loving-kindness. It is a
call for heroism.
• Maîtri is not genuine if it does not
lead to dana, which can be
perfected by danaparamita.
• Karuna is more perfect than
danaparamita. It is the virtue of
helping others by raising others from
misery and introducing them into
beatitude.

• The 3 Cardinal Faults of humans are

greed, hatred, and delusion as
represented by the pig, snake and
the rooster.

• We have to have one passion only:

the good of others.
• People are never happy because they
have always been seeking for their
own happiness.
• There are two essential
characteristics of good action:
universality and disinterestedness.

The Buddhist Religion
• Buddhism does not have a concept

of a god.
• It is more important to follow the
Buddhist path than to worship gods.
• The reason for one’s suffering is
ignorance, which is of two kinds:
1. That which leads people to
think and act as if they are
eternal;
2. That which leads the people to
think and act as if everything is
permanent.

• Nothing is permanent in this world.
Hence, one should not crave for the
attainment of material things.
• To overcome ignorance, one should
be able to put into one’s heart the
Buddhist truths and at the same
time transform one’s thought,
action, and experience.
• Buddhism received different
interpretations resulting to the
development of the Mahayana
Buddhism and the Theravada
Buddhism.

• Mahayana Buddhism emerged in the

1st century CE as a more accessible
interpretation of Buddhism.
• It is considered as the “Greater
Vehicle” because it accommodates
people from all walks of life—both
the ascetics and the lay people.
• This is the primary form of
Buddhism in North Asia and the Far
East, including China, Japan, Korea,
Tibet and Mongolia. This is also
known as the Northern Buddhism.

• Theravada Buddhism is being
practiced in the South, which
includes Sri Lanka, Thailand, Burma,
Laos, Cambodia and in some parts
of Southeast Asia including some
areas in the Philippines.
• Theravadans believe that one has to
strive to become arhats, or the
perfected saints who have attained
enlightenment and nirvana.
• The ultimate purpose in life can only
be attained by monks and nuns. The
laity can obtain meaning by way of
hoping to be reborn in the monastic
life.

ADHERENTS OF BUDDHISM
6%
38%
Theravada
56%
Mahayana
Vajrayana (Tibetan)

• Mahayana Buddhists do not hope to

become arhats but instead become
Boddhisatvas.
• Enlightenment can be attained in a
single lifetime and this can be
accomplished even by a lay person.
• The three Mahayana tradition like
Zen Buddhism, Nichiren Buddhism
and Pure Land Buddhism are
teaching different methods on how
to attain such enlightenment.
• Mahayana is more religious than
Theravada.

• Mahayana includes veneration of

celestial beings like Buddhas and
boddhisatvas.
• They also perform religious rituals
and magical rites.
• They also use icons, images and
other sacred objects in religious
ceremonies.
• Buddhism does not totally reject
other religious beliefs. Some
followers can have other religious
practices.

• Majority of the Buddhists have a
well-developed tradition on
meditation.
• Theravada Buddhism practice
Samadhi meditation, which is
dealing with some exercises so as
to correct certain vices and
vipassana or an insight meditation
which aims at a complete
awareness of the environment.
• Followers of Zen Buddhism
practice zazen or sit meditation
and kinhin or walk meditation.
Through zazen, they will be able to
experience satori.

The Buddhists’ Celebration of Festivals
• The Buddhists celebrate New
Year, which occurs on the new
moon of February. This
celebration symbolizes new life.
• The Vaishakha festival, which is
celebrated on the 8th day of the
second lunar month, is the time
to remember the birth of
Buddha, his enlightenment, and
his passing into nirvana at his
death.
• Hana Matsuri feast is being
celebrated on April 8. This is the
Japanese celebration of
Buddha’s birth.

Chapter 2
Hinduism
C H A IR — SO C IA L A ND B E H AV IO RA L SC IE NC ES
Understanding Hinduism
• This is the religion of the majority of
people in India and Nepal.
• It is the world’s first organized
religion.
• In terms of population, it is said to be
the third world’s largest religion. It
grew in number because it is an
umbrella religion as it included any
Indian religious practice that does
not claim to belong to another
religion.
• The different religions acknowledge
the authority of the sacred texts
known as the VEDA.

Understanding Hinduism
• “Hinduism” is the Western name given

to the lossely-knit family of diverse
religious beliefs and practices which
call themselves “Vaidika” (Vedic)
after these sacred texts.
• It has no single founder, no single
scripture, and no commonly agreed
set of teachings.
• Hinduism is considered as just “a way
of life” or a mere ‘family of religions.’

The Practical Character of Indian Philosophy
• India has been famous for giving high

regard to those who seek for wisdom.
• About 3000 years ago, the wise men
of India were trying to provide an
answer to the questions: “What is
the self and what is the nature of the
ultimate reality?”
• Though it focuses on the spiritual
character of the self, it has also a
great practical character.
• Indian philosophy insists on self-
discipline and self-control as the way
to eliminate suffering.

• Wisdom comes from the knowledge

of one’s self.
• Wisdom is not a rejection of worldly
pleasures. Worldly pleasures will be
considered bad only if it will create a
vacuum between what is and what
one desires.
• The desire to establish the
connection is what is considered as
the darshana (“vision”) or translated
also as “philosophy’.
• Indian philsophers were busy with
how to find ways on how to get rid of
suffering.

• The way to get out from suffering

became their darshana, their
philosophy of life.
• This philosophy is not free from
error. It has to be verified by the
evidence of truth. To verify, there
are to methods:
1. Logical analysis
2. By way of determining the result
in practicing one’s philosophy.
• Darshana must be put into practice.
• Vision are considered true
depending on how they can improve
the quality of life.

The Self as the Focus of Philosophy and Religion
• The self bears a dignity of its own
because the Indian thinkers,
particularly the Upanishads, would
consider the Brahman (the one who
energizes the universe), and the
atman (the spiritual energy of the
self) are connected to one another.
• The life of each person is a
continuing cycle wherein one may
reincarnate in a number of times.
This is called karma.
• Liberation from the cycle of
suffering is called moksha.
• The goal is the attainment of nirvana.

The Self as the Focus of Philosophy and Religion
• Everyone must act in order to

maintain the order of the family,
society, and the entire universe,
thereby contributing to the well-
being of others. This is called
dharma (“to uphold or support
existence”).

Historical Background of Hinduism
• The first religions and philosophical

writing that has been recorded in India
is the Rig Veda, which may have been
composed as early as 1500 BCE.
• The history of Hinduism may be divided

according to the following philosophical
traditions: the Vedic period (1500 to 700
BCE); the Epic period (800BCE to 200
CE); the Sutra period (400 BCE to 500
CE); the Contemporary period (400 CE
to 1700 CE); and the Modern period
from 1800 CE to the present day).

• The Vedic period began when the Aryan

people moved from Indus Valley around
1500 BCE).
• The cultural tradition of this people
were received by those who are in the
valley. This became the beginning of the
Indian culture.
• The main texts of the Vedic period are
the Rig Veda, Sama Veda, Yajur Veda,
and Atharva Veda.
• Each Veda has four parts: (1) samhita; (2)
Brahmana; (3) Aranyaka; (4) Upanishads.

• Among the Vedic texts, it is said that

the Upanishads is considered to be the
most important because it contains the
most profound inquiries into the
meaning of life.
• Upanishads are to the Vedas as the New
Testament is to the Bible.
• Upanishad comes from the Sanskrit
words upa, meaning “nearby”, ni meaning
“devotedly” and sad meaning “seated”.
• Upanisad refers to one seated devotedly
around a teacher to receive instruction
from him.

• Upanishad can also be interpreted as a

secret teaching. Since the Brahman is so
holy, they should not be made accessible
to everyone.
• It was in Upanishads where the duality
between the Brahman and the atman was
reconciled.
• The word Brahman comes from the
Sanskrit root brh meaning “to make big
or strong.” In this regard, no one can
really grasp the Brahman because it is
always dynamic.

• To understand the Brahman, one should

identify himself with it so that the
distinction between the Brahman and
one’s self no longer applies.
• Atman comes from the Sanskrit word
manah meaning “thought” or “thinking”.
• The self is known only through thought
or through one’s consciousness. In
short, the atman is the self.
• To know the Brahman, one should resort
to the self because the Brahman is All.

The Hindu Beliefs
• Persons reach true

enlightenment and happiness only
after freeing themselves from
their earthly desires. This can be
achieved by way of worship, the
attainment of knowledge, and
the continuous performance of
virtuous acts.
• In terms of worship, Hinduism
does not have a set of creed or
system of beliefs.
• Relationship with God is only
between him and his God.

The Hindu Beliefs
• Hindus do not actively attempt

to convert non-Hindus to their
religion.
• Although it is not required, most
Hindus share a common set of
beliefs.
• Hindu believe in reincarnation.

The Hindu Beliefs
• Hindu society was divided into four
castes:
1. Brahmins or the priests who
are concerned with helping the
people with worship (puja);
2. Kshatriyas (soldiers and the
people who belonged to the
nobility);
3. Vaishyas (farmers, merchants
and craftspeople);
4. Shudras (servants and the
laborers);
5. Dalits or untouchables
• People were born into certain
caste because of their karma from
their past life.

The Hindu Beliefs
• Some Hindu believers were
objecting to the level of power the
Brahmins had. Eventually, another
group of religious leaders emerged:
the hermits.
• The Upanishads were actually
composed of the forest hermits.
• One of the main teachings of
Hinduism was regarding the process
of undergoing birth, death, and
rebirth, which they called samsara.
• The cycle will end up when a person
achieves moksha, the final stage of
purity attained by repeated good
deeds.

The Hindu Concept of Deities
• Many Hindus are henotheists.
They acknowledge many gods but
they devote themselves only to one
god.
• The Hindu atheists believed that a
non-personal reality, who is not
God, underlies the world of
appearances.
• Most Hindu, particularly the
Puranas, grouped their gods
under the triad of Brahma the
creator, Vishnu the preserver of
the universe, and Shiva the
destroyer, whose role is to destroy
the universe in order to re-create
it.
• Brahma should not be confused

with the Brahman, who is the
supreme God force present within
all things.
• Brahma is the least worshipped
god in Hinduism today. There are
only 2 temples in the whole of
India devoted to him.
• His consort is Saraswati.
• He created a woman by the name
of Shatarupa.

• Because Brahma demonstrated

incestuous behaviour, Shiva
admonished him by chopping off
his fifth head for such an unholy
behaviour.
• Shiva’s curse was that people
should not worship Brahma as a
form of repentance.
• Brahma was not worshipped also
because his role as a creator has
already ended when everything
has already been done.

• Shiva is responsible for change

both in the positive and negative
sense.
• What is destroyed is the illusion
of individuality in order to purify
and to see reality more clearly.
• Destruction opens the path for
a new creation of the universe, a
new opportunity for the beauty
and drama of life.
• Hence, Shiva represents the
most essential goodness.

• Shiva is also the deity where the

art of meditation takes its most
absolute form. He is the symbol
of deep meditation.
• The snakes in his head are
indications that he is beyond the
power of death and poison.
• The sound of Shiva’s two-sided
drum maintain the rhythm of the
heartbeat and creates the sound
AUM in the overtones. AUM
means everything.

Absolute
consciousness
The
unconscious
state, the
deep sleep or Maya (illusion)
death. that prevents
people from the
infinite state.
The conscious
The dream state or
state or the state
the state of
of being awake
experiencing the
and experiencing
world without
life through the
being fully awake
five senses.
or deeply asleep.

Crescent and
dot
symbolizes
SHIVA, the
destroyer.
Symbolizes
BRAHMA, Symbolizes
the creator VISHNU, the
of the preserver and
universe. protector of
the universe.

• The role of Vishnu is to return

to the earth in troubled times
and restore the balance of good
and evil.
• He is reincarnated nine times
and it is believed that he will be
reincarnated one last time close
to the end of this world.
• Hence, he is likened to Jesus
Christ of the Christian religion.
• His worshippers were called
Vaishnava. Vishnu monotheism is
called Vaishnavism.

• Like Jesus, he is associated with

the light. He is considered as
the leader of the seven solar
gods (Adityas).
• He is considered as the most
important of all gods.
• He has appeared in various
incarnations.

• The first incarnation of Vishnu

is as Matsya, who took the form
of a fish.
• This story is similar to the
biblical representation of Noah.

• The second incarnation was
as Kurma, a turtle who is so
powerfully capable of
stirring the Great Ocean.
• This is an explanation as to
how the gods were able to
defeat the demons and
thereby became immortal.
• Vishnu told the gods and
demons that they should use
Mount Madura as a stirrer
with the giant serpent
Vasiku as a rope.

• When the elixir of
immortality rose up, the
demons rushed to grab it
but Vishnu assumed the
form of Mahini, a beautiful
woman who captivated all
the demons. Through
magic, he changed the elixir
into alcohol and brought it
to the gods.
• Together with the elixir and
the precious stones rose
Lakshmi, a beautiful woman
standing on a lotus flower.

• The third form was Varaha

who took the form of a boar.
• In this image, Vishnu was able
to recover the stolen Vedas.

• The fourth form was as

Narasimha, who was in the form
of a half-lion and half-man
creature.
• Through this form, he was able
to conquer the devil who had
become tremendously powerful
that no man, beast, or god were
capable of overcoming his
evilness.

• The fifth form was as a dwarf

sage named Vamana.
• The evil Bali conquered the
world and warded off the gods
from the heavens.
• As a dwarf, he tricked Bali by
saying that he can cover all of
Bali’s empire only by three steps.

• The sixth form is as Parasurama,

the fierce hunter.
• In this form, Vishnu was able to
free the earth from the
irreligious and sinful leaders of a
kingdom or society.

• The 7th form is as Rama, the

greatest warrior and the
ideal husband who killed the
demon King Ravana, the
abductor of his wife Sita.

• The 8th form is as Krishna, a

highly intelligent man who is
depicted as the hero of the epic
poem Mahabharata.
• In this poem, Krishna delivered
his famous message, the
Baghavad Gita.

• The ninth incarnation of Vishnu

is in the form of Buddha, the all-
knowing one, who appeared in
the 5th century BCE.
• In some traditions, Buddha was
replaced by Balarama as an
incarnation of Vishnu.

• These incarnations of
Vishnu will happen again
towards the decline of this
present age.
• The incarnation will be in
the form of Kalki, who will
be arriving as a person
gloriously seated on a white
horse.

The Hindu Practices
• Hindus are required to practice a

sanatana dharma, where one’s action
should be according to one’s varna, the
ritual class in the caste system to which
he is born and according to the asrama,
or his stage of life.
• Women do not enjoy other practices. In

the Laws of Manu, it was written: “Her
father guards her in childhood, her
husband guards her in her youth, and
her sons guard her in old age. A woman
is not fit for independence.

The Hindu Practices
• No matter how great the
accomplishments of women in
the intellectual, political,
military and religious fields,
they are still not given the
same rights as that of their
male counterpart.
• Boys are required to perform
Vedic rituals throughout their
working years and retirement.
• The most common worship
practice is the Puja or the
worship of a god in image form
either at home or at a temple.

The Hindu Practices
• Hindus perform yoga to free

themselves from karma.
• Women are important teachers
of their children.
• Hindu festival, such as the
Festival of Holi, does not
occur on a specific Gregorian
date.
• This festival recalls the story
of Prince Prahlada, who faced
death rather than cease
worshipping Vishnu.

RITUAL
Hinduism

Philo

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Socratic Philosophers

Man is not the body, but the psyche.

One has to prefer a good and beautiful

A man does evil because he does not

Socrates points out that when people

Plato believed that this world is not the

Everything in this world is considered as

World of Forms Ultimate Reality

Shadows of Reality World of Matter

This world could not be the source of

Objects that we see in this world could

1. In Plato’s allegory, he described

2. Behind and above the prisoners are

3. The burning fire would cast the

4. Consequently, the prisoners could

5. One’s the prisoner is free, and would

1. World of Forms- (World of True

1. Opinion- a view or judgment formed

2. Illusion- an instance of a wrong or

3. Imagination- the faculty of forming

1. Vegetative- the growth of the body

2. Animal- man’s emotional, sensual,

3. Rational- cultivates the vegetative

DR. LIONEL E. BUENAFLOR

He was accused by the poet Meletus, the

The focal point of his thought was the

Socrates His most persistent command was:

“AN UNEXAMINED LIFE IS NOT

The essence of man is the psyche—a

“To know the good is to do the good.”

Happiness can only be attained if a

Knowledge leads a human person to

Socrates Virtue is a natural endowment. It is

A person is capable of doing good because

Socrates He created the concept of the psyche.

The soul is the one that animates the

Our responsibility is to take good care of

To obtain happiness, a person has to be

True respectability stems not from the will

Socrates We should not be intimidated by bad

Instead of listening to the dictates of

DR. LIONEL E. BUENAFLOR

Although the principle vary according to

The soul and the body are not separate

The soul forms the entelechy, the definite

The human mind is a tabula rasa, or a

Man can only be considered good if and

Everyone must be able to discover first

But what then is the function of purpose

The end or function of man must have

Every human person is naturally seeking

Happiness should not be connected with

Pleasure is not the goal of life; nor is the

The more self-sufficient we are, the

A reasonable person does not avoid life.

A rich and full life is a social life.

Human beings are political (social) Aristotle

All actions of man can be adjudged as

From the objective point of view, a morally

Virtue is an activity that proceeds from

A virtuous act is that which proceeds from

Whenever an action is performed based on