Taoism, Buddhism and Chinese Fraternity

Paper Summary:

This paper reviews how the cultural values of the Chinese people, especially that of the fraternal respect that is seen amongst siblings, comes largely from the religious beliefs and values of the Chinese. The paper discusses Taoism and Buddhism, relating these religious values and perspectives to the Chinese culture of fraternity.

From the Paper:

"In "The Tao of Physics," Fritjof Capra talks of the blending of east and west that can occur when mysticism and science meet and mingle. Much of this is happening today to some degree because of the globalization of society. In the east, Taoism is more of a religion. In the west, it is a system of belief that can be applied to something specific to see what kinds of results are achieved. This is different than applying it to daily life and everything one does, but it is still important. However, in China Taoism is used to teach many different cultural values, including the fraternal respect that siblings need to have for one another.
In the book, Capra says that "If there is an intuitive element in science, there is also a rational element in eastern mysticism" (33). By this, he means that both science and mysticism are more than what they seem on the surface and the opinion that science is purely analytical, or the opinion that mysticism is purely theoretical, is simply not correct. It does not delve deeply enough into what science and mysticism really are, and this deep exploration is the only way to understand them fully. Capra's statement shows to all of his readers that he values the eastern beliefs just as much as the western beliefs, for there are elements of each in mathematics, science, and other arenas that many western thinkers see as factual and nothing more. "

Sample of Sources Used:

• Bogdan, R. C., & Biklen, S. K. (1992). Qualitative research for education: An introduction to theory and methods (2nd ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
• Brandt, R. S., & Tyler, R. W. (1983). Goals and objectives. In F. English (Ed.), Fundamental curriculum decisions (pp. 40-52). Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.
• Capra, Fritjof. (2000). The Tao of Physics: An exploration of the parallels between modern physics and eastern mysticism. Boston: Shambhala.
• Chelimsky, E. (1993). Drug education: Limited progress in program evaluation (Report No. GAO/T-PEMD-93-2). Gaithersburg, MD: U.S. General Accounting Office. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 358 385)
• Chen, T. (1984). China: Education. Encyclopedia Americana, 6, pp. 504-508. (International Ed.) Danbury, CT: Grolier.

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