Since the early debates about Evolution in the 1990s and the tragic circumstances of 9/11, its rather safe to say that if you've live somewhere in the Western world you have undoubtedly tripped over the great debate about Religion's relationship to Science.
I would really really love to avoid all the polemics involved in that debate, often dubbed by professional historians of science as the "warfare thesis." Mainly because, I don't really find the whole exercise to be intellectually fruitful or stimulating.
But, for the purposes of this blog, we need to address the differences in the relationship of Religion and Science between the cultures we are investigating.
1.) The great big "firewall" that exists between science and religion/spirituality in the West does not exist in Asia.
We should recognize that the reason we divide up our mental activities into categories such as "religion" or "philosophy" or "science" in the first place is a direct outcome of the trajectory of Western civilization. The advent of Christianity in the West resulted in a predominate religious institution, the Catholic Church, whose internal hierarchy and authority was nearly autonomous from the various states it resided in. That separation of religious and civil concerns was further accelerated by the secularization of the West.
Long Story Short: Religion has slowly fallen out of orbit with the rest of the other academic disciplines or fields of knowledge so that it is considered merely a private concern.
Contrast this for a moment with the Chinese experience, where religious institutions were tied to and regulated by the state. In essence, religious establishments and the issues they specialized in where never considered "separate" or autonomous from the State.
2.) Religion, as a category of thought, was not demarcated as such in the traditional civilizations of China and India.
We got the same exact problem with chopping up religion in these cultures that we did with trying to chop up what could be considered as science in these places. Their historical experiences simply did not differentiate these subjects in the manner in which we did.
Which leads to the interesting situation where Metaphysical Ideas are shared in common between science, philosophy, and religion in historical India and China.
I would argue that this is probably one of the reasons why many people tend to look upon Asian philosophy and spirituality as being holistic. You can derive a type of Organic Interlocking view of the world where disparate disciplines seem to have underlying connections with one another.
Follow the chain of logic:
1.) Philosophy in Asia, regardless of its speculative nature, had the conduct of human life as its ultimate concern.
2.) Conduct generally amounted to following a Metaphysical Idea, like Dharma or the Dao, which would make one ethically good and happy.
3.) The reason why it would make one ethically good and happy, is because following the Dharma or Dao would essentially mean your life is in accord with the natural patterns of the universe.
4.) Consequently the reverse is true. Failing to follow these ethical rules not only causes disruption or social embarrassment, it threatens the natural order.
As one can guess, this is quite different from the manner in which the West approaches the same type of concerns and issues. Modern man generally denies that there is a connection between ethics and the structure of the universe. One is "made up" and the other is "real."
Those who reject this disjunction between Man and the Universe have, since the 1960s, generally "gone East" in search of wisdom that might reconnect the two. However, they did so on their own terms.
Take for example the fact that Indian and Chinese spirituality is often associated with modern counterculture. Yet the hedonistic tendencies of that counterculture do not show up in the traditional sources.
Whereas the West is given over to Protest and Rebellion, the East tends to advocate a Withdrawal from the World. That links back into the whole "Follow the Natural Order" business.
The answer to social problems and dilemmas in classical India or China were not necessarily greeted by calls for social change (which itself is a big shot in the arm toward innovation and scientific development). Rather the solution was thought to be in a return to the pre-established order.
Extol exemplary behavior, make sure Ritual Observances were not neglected, and punish those who violated social roles or propriety.
If not, then understand that you have gone against Nature itself. Prepare to suffer the Wrath of Heaven.
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