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Asian Values and Revival of Humanistic Practices: A Critique of European Building Blocks of Thoughts and Imaginations

Asian values are often discussed in the 21st century, whenever European cultures are trapped int their limits of imagination; undoubtedly, Greek and Roman had significant contributions in the advancement of Episteme. Europe witnessed some sparkling minds as well as aesthetic ones. Europeans were smart enough to recognize the wisdom of history and brought back some invaluable wisdom from the graveyard of history, particularly they looked back at Romans in order to develop a system of law; Bentham and Austin were fascinated by the wisdom of Romans, and their "twelfth table" was the remarkable example of a systematic and discursive foundation of law. But, Asians, particularly India and China neglected their own traditions; Chinese adopted Marxism in the leadership of Mao, but later on moved at the fundamental building blocks of a "market society". Their old traditions were very rich, particularly Confucianism and Daoism, in the leadership of Confucius and Lao Tzu flourished with distinction. China was one of the greatest ancient civilization which recognized the wisdom of Buddha. These sublime cultures made China a unique civilization in the world. These different philosophical traditions had, of course, one common thread that the practical wisdom preceded over any discursive foundations of thought. Lao tzu was a leader of practice who taught to live a life without being enslaved by the cacophony of desires. He was one of the earlier propounder of transformative philosophy, who believed in the mutability of nature; much later, Heraclitus, Hegel, and Darwin expounded this thesis, and became popular in Europe. Confucious was one of the most practical leader who emphasised upon practice and material well being of every person. The birth of Buddha was the remarkable phenomenon in India, particularly before Buddha, Indian cultural moorings were prone to the theoretical foundation of knowledge, and ceremonial traditions which could be traced in Vedas and Upanishads. Buddha revolutionized the idea of practices to emancipte self, from the opinions and constructions, imposed by societal conditions; be it self discipline, madhyamika (balance), equality towards fellow citizens, Buddha emerged as a philosopher with humanistic and spiritual vision, much later, Satre, Camus, Simone De Beauvoir, Sopenhauer, even Nietzsche found wisdom in sayings, and practices of Buddha. And that is how "Existentialism" came into being in philosophical thoughts of Europeans, after a much exhausted  analytic tradition produced all too signifiers and signifieds which lost a vital connection with the world they lived in. 

What was the reason we Asian neglected the wisdom of ancient thinkers and swayed away in the dialectics of Enlightenment? Is there any connection with colonization of what happened after that? If there is any such connection, are we not able to look back and think where are we heading to? Excessive materialist vision, competitive mentality, and destructive calculative reason; these are the leit motifs of modernity, which are progressing towards no stopping zone, and acceleration is caught in momentum which is devoid of any sorts of break. There is no destination; but only a few self-assured, and self-assumed truths; which is being pronounced and practiced everyday like a modern day Sysyphus.Revival is always an option but for that one must be aware of what is happening around us. A consumer will avoid any such question. Only a true citizen of the Universe can articulate the vision for the 21st Century of our world. Answer lies in Asian values; it can be a solution to the problems we are facing today. But for that one must trust the wisdom of history. All answers are there!

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