Schopenhauer's Philosophy of Religion: Christianity vs Buddhism and Hinduism (all parts)
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- Опубликовано: 17 окт 2024
- You may not realize it, but hidden in his collection of essays, Arthur Schopenhauer has worked out a more or less systematic philosophy of religion. This is the first part in a series of videos that will cover Schopenhauer’s unique outlook on religion. If you want to be notified when the other parts come out, please consider subscribing and clicking the bell button.
Schopenhauer’s main gripe with religion is with the distinction they make between meaning in sensu proprio versus in sensu allegorico.
“Sensu proprio” is the Latin term he uses which basically means “in a literal sense.” Sensu allegorico, of course, means “in an allegorical sense.”
What happens with religion, is they present some kind of dogma, which might be true in an allegorical sense, but they have to pretend to mean it in a literal sense. Religion cannot pretend its main tenets are merely allegorical because doing so would mean to undermine their own credibility.
In the second part, we will zoom in on Schopenhauer’s criticism and evaluation of Christianity and the theological problem of reconciling the Old with the New Testament.
The main religious text in Christianity, the Bible, is composed of the Old and the New Testament. The problem is that Schopenhauer sees an optimistic worldview in the Old and a pessimistic worldview in the New Testament.
It is pretty well-known that Schopenhauer greatly admired both Buddhism and Hinduism. It’s said he read the Upanishads every night before bed, and at the end of his life he even taught himself Sanskrit. Let’s take a closer look at his thought on these Eastern religions.
Recall how in the previous parts we saw how Schopenhauer calls religions pessimistic or optimistic depending on how they interpret the nature of the material world. According to this classification, Judaism was optimistic while Christianity was pessimistic.
Buddhism and Hinduism of course, are both pessimistic with regards to the material world.
The Buddhistic acknowledgement that life is suffering, that earthly happiness cannot be found, the strict ascetic lifestyle of Buddhists and Brahmans, these factors are, in Schopenhauer’s lexicon, signs of a pessimistic religion: a religion that regards with contempt the material world and seeks to turn away from it through fasting, meditation, and abstinence.
The question is, where does this pessimism come from? Ultimately, the pessimistic outlook must stem from an epistemic scepticism regarding the material world. What this means is that there must be a conviction that the material world is not the world of supreme importance, that something exists beyond mere matter, that the material world is an illusion.
We see how Buddhism and Brahmanism (or Hinduism) are in fundamental agreement (even if there are some particular differences) with Schopenhauer’s metaphysical as well as moral teachings. While New Testament Christianity is certainly in agreement with Schopenhauer’s moral teachings, it is lacking on the metaphysical front. Buddhism and Hinduism, on the other hand, score well on both fronts. For this reason, Schopenhauer ranks the Eastern religions as the most perfect expressions of truth to be found in religion.
Yours is a gift. You teach and educate with the ease and charm of someone telling a story sitting around a campfire. You remind me of so many of my teachers back in the '50s and '60s. They had what seemed like a natural ability, that gift, to make learning...yes, fun, something not only well-worth the time invested but always eager for the next class. Thank you very much for these videos.
Thank you for the kind words
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You know what, I'll give another comment to help the algorithm. Love your videos, keep on making them. They are what I look forward to every week.
Thank you! It’s always good to see you pop up in the comment section. Appreciate it
It's good that Schopenhauer loved his own philosophy
Hello Charlie. Hope all is good with you buddy. Hugs.
@brick and mortar big hugs back 🤗
We need more people like you sir
Yes!
Thanks guys. Appreciate jt
This deserves a lot more views. Unfortunately 'religion' scares many off. As an atheist I think that is a shame.
You are to be commended for that view. Disregarding religion, humanities first striving for understanding and philosophy, is a major mistake, in my view. I have spent a lifetime studying religion and philosophy and they seem to be part of the same stream just using different language. I Schopenhauer was correct in that the major flaw in many major religions (primarily the Abrahamic religions) is that they are mired in “literalism”. The Bible is a fountain of wisdom and philosophy and presents a complex and even “viable” worldview , if seen as allegory. Christ as cosmic mirror is much more powerful than Christ as impossibility. All the best to you.
Dieser nich nur so einfach uns komplexe Zusammenhänge erklärende, sondern auch vollständig sie abdeckende, kanal braucht ein breiteres publikum. Vielen dank, Maester!
This has to be one of the best channels on RUclips for true individuals. Like Schopenhauer states: For the few, not the many. Thanks for this.
Thank you
REAL TRUTH ABOUT CREATION EXPLAINED !!!
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Maya is the illusory power of the Truth. Fascinating. Philosophical perspective of Hinduism is Gyana Yoga (akin to Gnosticism) & Bhakti Yoga is the optimistic perspective of Hinduism (Devotional Path). Different paths for different personalities
Ironically, Christian Science has been characterized as having an “Eastern” orientation. Schopenhauer explodes that notion with his optimist/pessimist assessment. Great job!
Thanks as always for all you do. The garments of falsehood mentioned reminds me of a story from Kamakura Buddhism where in actors ware masks for so long that they cannot remove them. Even today it is like this, I struggle often to find my authenticity!
Interesting! Always good to see you comment
@Caedmon Kline When alone and not thinking about it, I am just me. Often with others, I must think twice about what I might say or do. Your question is most worthy 🙌 👏 of reflection , thank you.
@Caedmon Kline You indeed reflect deeply. I can share this that follows. I go the way of the Zen Master Dogen Zenji which in brief goes like this. To study the Buddha way is to study the self. To study the self is to forget the self ✨ Dogen does not mean forgetting in the sense of getting high on some drugs or drinks, or having medical problems in our brain. Rather one just sits in zazen meditation letting thoughts ✨ come and go with no expectations of gaining anything. This sounds strange perhaps, but there can be times of a sense of release I can't find words for. Yet I admit this could be a form of conditioning itself. Thanks 😊 for a wonderful 👏 question!
@@frankchilds9848 Check out "Reflector in Human Design". It might interest you
Didn't get the notification of this one :/ awesome upload, bro 👊 I think old shoppie is essential to fully understand nietz, this puts a deeper angle on his dive into morality
How does this have only 2k views? You deserve so much more! Thanks for the video, really enjoyed it!
Thank you for the support!
I was not aware of this viewpoint. Thank you for posting! I'm interested in reading more of Schopenhauer's work.
REAL TRUTH ABOUT CREATION EXPLAINED !!!
ruclips.net/video/m83OdXHM01s/видео.html
Your work is outstanding. Thank you for sharing 🙏🏼♥️
Really good job.
I'm currently reading Kastrup's Metaphycis of Schopenhauer
We did a review of the book on the channel. It’s good
@@WeltgeistYT cool I'll check it out
REAL TRUTH ABOUT CREATION EXPLAINED !!!
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@Jonathan Andrews REAL TRUTH ABOUT CREATION EXPLAINED !!!
ruclips.net/video/m83OdXHM01s/видео.html
Schopenhauer himself recommended primary sources.
Great video! I’m really grateful to you for putting efforts into the making of it.
Gratitude is das father of all virtues:
Wisdom
Courage
Justice
And
Thank you I really appreciate and needed this door to open! I will explore this new to me world of wisdom. Peace and Light
Simple yet brilliant, these are topics that need commentary
So glad I found your channel. I like the material you cover and your delivery.
God i hope you'll get millions of views this stuff is SOOOO IMPORTANT right now!!!
Thx for this video. These insights are definitely helpful when comparing the work of other philosophers. If you want to understand Nietchze's eventual breaking away from his " great teacher", this is a strong example of some of those disagreements. Schopenhaur made a stronger case for the importance of pity and human compassion.
Thanks for taking the time to make this. Very informative.
Thanks for the kind words
Are you related to Einzelganger? Or you just from the same region of Germany? (identical accent)
The simple formula that's entrapping the mind :
past is sin, present redemption, future salvation..
And the business carries on
This is a School. We are here living this life to learn and grow. The lessons we are to be taught are already prepared and where some of them may be pleasant experiences many of them may be hard and painful as well.
School? Do you mean that literally or allegorically? 😉
This has been a very cruel and unproductive ‘school system’ for the majority of the ‘students’ on this planet. The large majority of human beings throughout history have suffered horrifically and learnt absolutely nothing of value before their own inevitable deaths.
Not to mention all of the other non-human sentient beings on this planet that are completely incapable of even comprehending that they are nothing more than survival machines
“The Old Testament is optimistic.” What about Ecclesiastes?
best book of the OT IMO
I was wondering exactly the same.
Seems like Ecclesiastes is pessimistic about man’s fate but still puts forth God as good. So still optimistic about God.
We truly are lucky to have this channel
THANK U🙂 GOD BLESS U😇
I like this very much sir, ur doing a great service to humanity. Keep safe, stay strong, & may COMPASSION be ever more in people's lives & belief. 😇😇😇
from Japan, thank you! Very clear and understandable
Weltgeist, huge fan. I think you should have way more views. I watch almost all youtube videos at double speed, and so I just realized your English is a little slow. Its very good english and the writing in your videos is excellent, so dont mistake this as a criticism, but Im curious if you might get slightly more views if you sped up your voiceovers by a barely noticeable margin to give some energy to your delivery and keep peoples attention. Just a thought, youll always have my view! Keep up the great videos
Yeah, I try to speak faster in more recent videos. Thank you for the elaborate comment
Thanks to his slow speaking I can watch the whole video without turning on the subtitles.
@@WeltgeistYT Don't worry about it. Schopehauer's so difficult and profound that 99% of the people wouldn't really understand if they listened to the same sentence a hundred times, so "speed-reading Schopenhauer" sounds like a Woody Allent joke.
Excellent video, very informative and well made. Hope to see more of your content
Thanks for your efforts brother, look forward to your future endeavors. Wonderful piece of work you've made here. Much love to you
Religion has played a major role in human history as it has provided people with both meaning and morality. Since humans have evolved to survive and reproduce, an essential mechanism of human psychology is the desire to search for purpose, something that gives us a reason to keep on living.
The morality point is also very significant because moral disagreements and searching for a basis of morality is hard and these questions have been debated for a really long time, but when you're simply told that what god says is right and that's it, it's a lot easier to maintain social cohesion.
There is no evidence of god and morality in the Bible is contradictory and infantile
@@tituslivius2084 are you a saxophonist?
Very good video but more emphasis should be placed on what really distinguishes Schopenhauer and Buddhism from the rest: the illusory nature not only of the material world but of the ego itself, and salvation as transcendence of the self rather than as entrance of the ego into some heavenly kingdom.
We’ll do a more in-depth vid on Buddhism in the future for sure
This is what Christ taught also but it was never understood by the Western church.
The Ethiopian church preserved the transcendental teachings of the Messiah of Israel.
Sounds like hell if you ask me.
@@thenowchurch6419 Do you have some videos or books we could look up to learn more about this? Thanks.
@@miesvaillanykyisyytta3252 For sure. Here is a link to one of the vids I created on my channel; ruclips.net/video/QHXIzf4Be1A/видео.html
There are quite a few more as well.
Peace.
Philosophy is questions that may never be answered. Religion is answers that may never be questioned.
Take your pick:
Freedom or shackles?
Inquiry or dogma?
False. But don't talk about the secular dogmatism of today... that cannot be questioned! _S-s-h-h!_ Freedom (Judeo-Christian principles) or shackles (secular regimes, communism, socialism, tyranny, dictatorships, etc.)
Inquiry (the reasonableness and internal consistency of Christianity and timelessness of those principles) or dogma (the atheists naturalistic philosophy that is accepted, not questioned and undermines equality, intrinsic human worth, liberty, and even science).
@@jessebryant9233 Lmao, poor you
@@FactStorm
That's it? That's all you've got? _Bwah-ha-ha-ha-ah!_ Maybe someday you'll care enough to bring some evidence or some kind of argument to the table? Or not! _Yeah, poor intellectually lazy you!_ (Proverbs 1:22)
@@jessebryant9233 Oh the irony..
@@FactStorm
Still nothing? Yeah, you bluff, I call.
Don't forget Feuerbach when talking about Schopenhauer criticism on religion. He followed a long-established tradition since the "philosophes" and Enlightenment.
In Christianity, the " Conceptio imaculata" is a kind of supernatural thing.
it is true.
Yay, a video! I loved this series, really helped on understanding Schopenhauer.
Thank you!!
Great video man 👍 you deserve more subscribers
Great content! Very concise and to the point 👏🏻👏🏻
Im glad I found your channel!
Welcome aboard
Can’t believe that content like this is free to watch, thank you
Thank you!
Most excellent coverage & precise explications - thank you
your channel is great my dude, thank you!
Thanks for the kind words
In Christianity, the ‘world’ and the ‘kingdom’ are both within, and one can die in the flesh or live in the light of eternity. This way of living requires very little vocabulary to be expressed and practiced; it’s a choice we are forced daily to make, fairytales or not. Personally, I’m attracted to Hinduism/Buddhism because it attempts to use reasoning as a basis to belief. But any honest monk will encourage worship and renunciation, however unreasonable, if it helps attain unworldly endearment. Thank you for what you do here, conveying so much clarity in such a short amount of time.
What is das fundamental law of Buddhism ?
This is because that is;
This is not because that is not.
This and that:
You are in me because I am in you;
We are 1!
Das one who knows das one becomes das one.
Oneness within oneself brings oneness with das whole universe.
Man is a god in ruin.
1. Illness exists because of
2. Illinterbeing.
3. Wellness exists because of
4. Wellinterbeing.
Das fundamental law of Buddhism gives rise to 4 noble truths:
1. Life is suffering
2. People suffer because of attachment to impermanent things.
3. Suffering can be liberated=happiness by
4. Right path.
There is only 2 mistakes on de Dao to nirvana:
1. Not starting
2. Not going all de Dao.
I love this got any more?
Amazing summary of Schopenhouer's philosophy. Thank you for sharing it.
Excellent thanks to You, I rather call the religion a sort of " masked dogmatism" , anyhow, the philosipia ancilas da Theologie.
If its masked it's because the people within it are arrogant and ignorant, I've met plenty of religious people that like to question things and ponder/review their own religion but the majority like to choose a team and follow it blindly rather than have to do any work for themselves and truly know what they believe
REAL TRUTH ABOUT CREATION EXPLAINED !!!
ruclips.net/video/m83OdXHM01s/видео.html
Fantastic video my man😮
Sensu propio was my religion before in early childhood only,I have problems because of it sometimes.
To be honest is very dangerous. To be autonomic under any dogma and misbeliefs is a death-penalted sin. We have deard an excellent narration. Thanks, you are not so fast and did articulation!!!
And to think that veds were written by one of the first human civilizations. Amazing.
Another thing to add, Buddhism emerged as a reaction to Hinduism ( specifically brhaman hegemony in Hinduism and the prevalence of rituals )
Just a note that the same antagonisms exist between Judaism and Christianity in their esoteric versions. For the most part Christian Gnosticism cannot be reconciled with Yaldabaoth’s material creation.
Thank you, I didn’t have to write it myself. Peace be upon you. -Padre Paulo Santo (Un-Orthodox Church of the Cosmic Cross)
this is very helpful thank you for your uploads new sub here :) very enjoyable
Thank you!
Thx for making A.S. more 'accessible'... nicely done!
Can you make a video on Advaita Vedanta philosophy.
hi does anyone know the name of the picture at 9:08?
Ecclesiastes 12:11 Words from wise people are like sharp sticks used to guide animals. They are like nails that have been driven in firmly. Altogether they are wise teachings that come from one Shepherd.
Ecclesiastes 12:12 So be careful, my son, about other teachings. People are always writing books, and too much study will make you tired.
Ecclesiastes 12:13 Now, everything has been heard,
so I give my final advice:
Honor God and obey his commands,
because this is all people must do.
The Bible is written on 3 different (but simultaneous) levels.
The first level is “literal”, the second level is pertaining to “types or foreshadowings” of Christ, and the third is “allegorical” for each person’s individual (spiritual) journey through life.
Even though I believe that the third level may be the most meaningful to me personally, that does not invalidate the other two. - As I’ve studied, I’ve found very good evidence that the more recent stories in the Bible are true. There is even significant archeological evidence for the flood and for the exodus. Therefore, I have no reason to doubt the literal story of creation either.
Just because I have no reason to doubt the literal accounts, does not mean that I think that the literal stories are “the point” that we need to take away. - The literal accounts are to express the allegorical meaning for your life and mine, which is expressed in the life of Jesus the Christ.
True kingdom "christianity" isn't pessimistic at all. I find views like this guy a way to escape accountability for their own choices. Of course those who hate the truth won't tell you why they REALLY don't believe... anything to put the responsibility on others
@@megancrager4397 - I struggled with Schopenhauer’s definitions of “optimism and pessimism”, but I think the narrator meant that he was talking about pessimism of our current “physical” world. When the Bible says “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” this is that “negative” view of the World that we find in Christianity…. Whereas, in the book of Genesis, God looked at His creation and said that it was “very good”.
there was no exodus thus invalidating both first and second testament. the hyksos were the israelies ousted from egypt to judea.
Well let's look at the creation story of the bible. Maybe school children may take it as a literal thing but by adolescence it seems preposterous to be so. Yet it is a great creation myth and just ones amonst thousands around the world.
How would a wise elder of a tribe explain to the rest the nature of man and his propensity towards selfishness and violence but also very selfless and giving and kind. To explain that in literal terms would fall so short. Talking snakes, burning bushes, magic tricks, super heroes can't be best for story telling. Don't believe me just look at the comic book heroe movies box office dollar amounts. They probably sell more copies than bible, Quran, Bhgadvita combined.
@@johnnytocino9313 - Ok, how would you say that the world began, and how we all got here?
Thank you so much for making this video! Salud!
I don't see how metaphysical one has to be to get the idea of loving your neighbor as you love yourself to treat people the way you would want to be treated and not to treat people the way you would not want to be treated. Maybe difficult to do all the time but not all that deep.
The series "Midnight Mass" currently streaming on Netflix actually is built around the dangers of literal interpretation of Scripture; and some of the scenes match up with the horrifying images being shown here. The series is terrifying on a number of levels.
REAL TRUTH ABOUT CREATION EXPLAINED !!!
ruclips.net/video/m83OdXHM01s/видео.html
Thanks for what you do!
Humanity is always searching for a hero - religion was inevitable ..... the challenge is that not all agree with this defined hero and therefore search for alternatives!
Why not become hero unto our self ?
@@satnamo I’m afraid to say that I don’t see too many hero potentials in this place .... in fact I see egos most of all dipped in arrogance and sugar coated in false worth.
Excellent. Many thanks.
adding a comment to help the algorithm and help you channel
Thank you, much appreciated
👏☪️🛐🕉️✝️🔯👏
DIVINE blessings of the DIVINE FREE WILL 👏🌹
can you make a video on Hegel pls
Guy was a genius
keep this kind of content up.
REAL TRUTH ABOUT CREATION EXPLAINED !!!
ruclips.net/video/m83OdXHM01s/видео.html
Great content
Excellent.
"Schopenhauer's reasoning is elitist"
...and its 100% objectively correct
Emanuel swedenborg exsplains all the allegory, ive been useing it in my regeneration guided threw the word repentance and prayer , all the bible has inner meaning and it refers to our regeneration
Having dived into Nietzsche, it's a fun trip to browse Schopenhauer... Lots of "Aha! They agree, once again!"
Schopenhauer: Religion is the metaphysics of the masses...
Nietzsche: Christianty is Platonism for the people.
Edit:typo
I knew a guy with such a cool name Schopenhauer would have quality thoughts and ideas.
Good stuff. Thanks. 👍
Thank you!
As a pagan, I find Schopenhauer's distinction between pessimism and optimism compelling, though I would argue for a middle ground, one of neutrality. This is where I think he is unfair to Judaism, which has idealistic elements (in the Talmud, and also influences from Neoplatonism, e.g., from Philo). There is also Judah HaLevy and Maimonides, who argue that (contra Aristotle) the world is not eternal. And on to Buddhism, there is not an emphasis on the complete denial of the material world (asceticism), since that itself is a form of striving, and a life of moderation is generally recommended (similar, interestingly, to Aristotle's ethics). So Schopenhauer does simplify a bit, either from incomplete understanding of particular religions, or from trying to fit them into his greater narrative. In this sense, he commits some of the same errors as his philosophical (and personal) nemesis, Hegel.
Respect
Thanks!
धन्यवाद ! ^^
Beautiful
When talking about religions, Ireland should be mentioned. This is where they all originate.
I wish I could show him the Nag Hammadi library
No mention of Islam here. Why?
Alleghory...Esoteric versus Exoteric. Inner outer court.
Omg yes. I had a teacher explain the inner and outer court. So interesting to see the people in my society that hold their faiths in absolutes and literal interpretation of allegory are not the types to be concerned or inspired by any philosophical texts. They are also deeply judgemental and simultaneously fearful of others religious practices.
@@johnnytocino9313 Yes...to take things literal is for the vulgar. It's not even worth debating people like that.
Opiate of the masses. Keeps them calmer than music, I found.
As you say Shopehauers knowledge of Buddhism was limited but your description of Buddhism is also limited. For the majority of practicing Buddhists your description is incorrect. You need to do more research on this subject
REAL TRUTH ABOUT CREATION EXPLAINED !!!
ruclips.net/video/m83OdXHM01s/видео.html
What's his ideas about Islam?
The views presented here of Schopenhauer's analysis of Judaism are completely wrong. It demands a great deal of discussion. But the statement "And He saw that is was good" can only be interpreted if the word "good" is understood. It does not mean what is claimed here.
can you elaborate please
@@Tom-qo4mz I hardly have the space and time. But a few things. Jewish teachings have layers of meaning. The repeated phrase of it was good refers to the each part of the plan is proceeding as desired. The creation is a stage in which free will can take place. The idea of the first fall does not occur in Jewish theology. That was an interpretation by the early (non-Jewish, since some of the early Christians were Jewish) Christian theologians. I would need to say more but briefly, the story in much of the Jewish Bible is the story of man's emerging consciousness. The leaving from Eden is man's departing from a pure animal consciousness to a new consciousness that involves the notion of responsibility, which is learned in stages. People in the Bible make mistakes quite often. There is a lot of trial and error. Turn to some of the many Jewish commentators on the Bible and you'll discover that many things commonly said about what the Jewish Bible means is not remotely close to what Jewish thinkers understand.
I would have liked to know his (and also Hegel's) opinion on The Quran
Nice video
Schopenhauer was right, and still is.
Informative
Samsara and nirvana are not external realities in Buddhism, rather they are the ways by which beings experience reality. That is, man's projection of a reality onto things is what makes them what they are and is what makes them liberating or enslaving. Reality itself cannot be considered independent from the mind that experiences it and is neither intrinsically good nor bad.
No samsara and nirvana are clearing external realities
There is no external reality. Reality is empty and it’s arising is dependent on your realization.
what does he think about islam though??
You didn’t mention caste system in Hinduism??
😂
@@ruthwikreddy9444 what?
hinduism is exonym of "santana dharma" which means eternal way of life, their is no caste system in hinduism. Caste system was made by human beings
@@Hoodiekat827 who told you that don't spread lie, go and read your scriptures
@@parsifel stfu i am Hindu i know about my religion more than you. If you dont believe me read manusmriti
Bravo!
I agree with the guy.
Very interesting
Why didn't you add Islam?
Judaism is the history of a tribe, and its narrative is aspirational, so 'optimistic' in that sense.
Christianity is dualistic and world-denying, Who was it called it 'Plato for the masses' ?
I have read some Schopenhauer, and he admires Buddhism for directly addressing the problem
of pain and suffering. Christianity does too, by inviting the worshipper to identify with Christ's
suffering. Buddha instead gives a recipe to escape suffering, by avoiding 'attachment' to material things.
Of course, conspicuous by its absence here is Islam, which has its mystical aspects, as well as
offering a solid structure of everyday life and a strong resonance with the Old Testament.
Schopenhauer said of the Koran " Perhaps it suffers in the translation, but I cannot find a single original idea in the whole thing!" Which misses the point that in rejecting Christianity Islam refers back to the Old Testament.