Liberation Philosophy: From the Buddha to Omar Khayyam: Human Evolution from Myth-Making to Rational ThinkingThe critical narrative of this interdisciplinary book offers a first-time look at the interrelationship between biology, mythology and philosophy in human development. Its daring premise follows the trajectory of human thought, starting with the biological roots of fear and the original need for religion, truth-seeking, and myth-making. The narrative then innovatively links a number of maverick philosophical teachings over the centuries, from pre-Buddhist times to the Buddha, from Epicurus and Pyrrho to Lucretius, and eventually to the seminal poetry of Omar Khayyam. These emergent philosophies exemplified liberation from the grasp of mythical and religious thinking and instead espoused an empirical and joyful mind. The narrative concludes with a look at the emancipating philosophical movement that resulted in the European Enlightenment, and it suggests that the philosophical teachings explored in the book may offer the potential for a second, broader Enlightenment. |
Contents
Not a Fallen Angel | 3 |
The Cognitive and Biological Foundations | 25 |
The IndoGrecoRoman Philosophies | 103 |
The Second Enlightenment | 257 |
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Common terms and phrases
afterlife Ājīvikas ancestors ancient animal anxiety atoms awareness Batchelor became become behavior beliefs biological body brain Buddha buddha-nature Buddhist Çārvākas cause century chapter claims cognitive consciousness culture Democritus developed Dharma Dharmakīrti Dōgen dogmatic dukkha dynamic emotional empirical emptiness Enlightenment Epicurean Epicurus evolution evolutionary existence existential experience fear genetic god’s gods happiness hīch hominid Homo sapiens human mind Ibid ideas imitation impermanence Indian intellectual Islamic Jain Jainism karma Khayyamian knowledge language liberation philosophy living logic Lucretius Madhyamika Majjhima Nikaya means mental metaphysical mini-nirvana mirror neurons modern Mūlamadhyamakakārikā Musō myth-making Nāgārjuna nastikā nature Neanderthal nirvana non-self nothingness obedience objects Omar Khayyam one’s oneself Oxford Pāli parinirvana Persian physical pleasure poetry primates psychological Pyrrho quatrains rational reality reason rejected religious rituals rubā‘ī Rumi scriptures Shāntideva species stories Sūtra Sutta teachings things thinkers thinking thought tradition truth understanding University Press wine words