26sol

panentheism pantheism and Dao

Recommended Posts

from wikipedia

Panentheism (from the Ancient Greek expression πᾶν ἐν θεῷ, pān en theṓ, literally “all in God” is the belief that the divine pervades and interpenetrates every part of the universe and also extends beyond time and space.Unlike pantheism, which holds that the divine and the universe are identical, panentheism maintains an ontological distinction between the divine and the non-divine and the significance of both.

In panentheism, God is viewed as the soul of the universe, the universal spirit present everywhere, which at the same time "transcends" all things created. While pantheism asserts that "all is God", panentheism claims that God is greater than the universe.

Pantheism is the belief that all reality is identical with divinity, or that everything composes an all-encompassing, immanent god.Pantheism is mentioned in a Papal encyclical in 2009 and a statement on New Year's Day in 2010, criticizing pantheism for denying the superiority of humans over nature and seeing the source of man's salvation in nature.

 

 

 

which of these terms better describe Dao,or none?The way I see it nature/universe is Dao but Dao is beyond nature.

If that is the case must humanity transcend nature in order to embrace the Divine?

  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Man is not to transcend nature.  Man is to be One with Nature.

 

Exchanging the word "God" with the word "Dao"; we all are an aspect of Dao.

 

 

 

  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
15 hours ago, 26sol said:

which of these terms better describe Dao,or none?The way I see it nature/universe is Dao but Dao is beyond nature.

If that is the case must humanity transcend nature in order to embrace the Divine?

 

Short answer: I have no idea. :) 

 

I guess it depends on what  words such as "beget" and "produce" mean, for example:

 

https://www.yellowbridge.com/onlinelit/daodejing42.php

 

If the model is something along the lines of ocean = wuji, waves = 10,000 things (with peaks = yang and troughs = yin) and Dao = just how the ocean wobbles/vibrates, then it seems to me it probably would be more along the lines of pantheism.

Edited by morning dew
  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
51 minutes ago, morning dew said:

 

Short answer: I have no idea. :) 

 

I guess it depends on what  words such as "beget" and "produce" mean, for example:

 

https://www.yellowbridge.com/onlinelit/daodejing42.php

 

If the model is something along the lines of ocean = wuji, waves = 10,000 things (with peaks = yang and troughs = yin) and Dao = just how the ocean wobbles/vibrates, then it seems to me it probably would be more along the lines of pantheism.

 

Makes sense if there is one ocean.

The main reason I go with panentheism, is that Nature has all these patterns and tools which could be the software Dao put there in order to not be obliged to be around all the time.Of course software has to be operated every now and then.

  • Like 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
54 minutes ago, 26sol said:

 

Makes sense if there is one ocean.

 

Yeah. I'd hazard a guess that as the ocean/wuji is pre-material-universe and outside of space and time, it would have to be a unity as spatial dimensions (or at least the ones we're familiar with) wouldn't exist.

 

54 minutes ago, 26sol said:

 

The main reason I go with panentheism, is that Nature has all these patterns and tools which could be the software Dao put there in order to not be obliged to be around all the time.Of course software has to be operated every now and then.

 

Well, I guess you could change the model to: ocean = wuji, waves = 10,000 things (with peaks = yang and troughs = yin) and Dao = the wind blowing over the surface, causing waves and interpenetrating with them. I'd say that would fit with your model and panentheism, off the top of my head. 

 

I have no idea which one is the right model, though, or if it's something else completely different. :) 

Edited by morning dew
  • Like 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites