Eastern and Western Thoughts

Introduction to the Western and Eastern Orientations

Different cultures and varying environment tend to create different perceptions of the “self” and
one of the most common distinctions between cultures and people is the Eastern vs. Western
dichotomy wherein Eastern represents Asia and Western represents Europe and Northern
America.

Besides a general observation of cultural/artistic/principal differences showing the distinction

between western and eastern concepts of ‘self’, in this lesson, we will look at religious beliefs
and political philosophies that greatly influenced the mindset of each nation or culture.

Are we all different and independent, or are all people part of one whole?

THE NATURE OF THE SELF

Ashley has been watching the news and the way everyone is at each other's throats, and though
it's painful and sad to watch, she also thinks it's inevitable. After all, people are all independent
and very different from one another.

Her friend Tan isn't so sure though. He believes that everyone is connected to each other and to
the world. To Tan, we are all one, so no one should be fighting.

Ashley and Tan are thinking about the nature of the self. When philosophers talk about the
nature of the self, what they are really asking is:

ARE WE SEPARATE FROM EACH OTHER AND FROM THE UNIVERSE?

In Western philosophy, people tend to think like Ashley people are separate and unique from
each other. What one person does or experiences is completely independent of other people and
the world at large. In the western understanding of the self there is a heavy emphasis on your
recognition that you are a separate entity that even you belong to a certain group of people
what is important for them is for you to realize that you have your own identity. That you have
the capacity to make choices hence what is important is for you to become a unique person.

However, in Eastern philosophy, the self is often treated as an illusion. That is, the idea that
people are separate entities from each other and the world is not considered a reality in Eastern
thought.

The Individualistic and Collectivistic Self

There are many differences between individualistic and collective cultures. In
general, individualistic cultures emphasize individual actions. In this culture, people are
encouraged to prioritize their own needs and their independence over the group’s needs.
In collective cultures, people are encouraged to prioritize the needs and harmony of the group
over their own success. These core differences in values impact the ways these cultures
communicate, celebrate, and cultivate the economy.

 WESTERN

The concept of the psyche is a western' model of the soul. Western traditions are always
preoccupied by the duality of the body and soul.

Plato started with the idea that the soul inhabited the world of ideas, while the body descended
to the world of the sensible. The ideal self is there up above the heavens while the bodily self, or
the soul imprisoned in a finite material body, by which we know today is only thrown into the
oblivion of remembering what the soul used to know while still living in the world of ideas.

Even Aristotle did not solve this problem of duality. He proposed the hylemorphic theory,

meaning that the human person is composed of matter or the body and form or the soul. Matter
is changeable while the form remains. This means that the body will grow and eventually die and
decompose and will be transformed into something else. The form however remains unchanged.
But unlike Plato, Aristotle asserted that the body is equally important as the soul, because the
former will give the latter the knowledge it ought to have through senses.
This is very much similar to the duality of body and soul of Descartes. The body is the one
gathering information through the senses, although he never always trusted the information
coming from the senses. It is the reason that processes all information and makes sense with
experiences of the body. In an attempt to solve the issue of duality, Descartes proposed that the
body and the soul fused in one very important part of the brain – the pineal gland.

Still, the western concept of the self is very much anchored on the individuality of the psyche.
The individual self is always in a struggle to reconcile the connection between the ideal self or
perfect soul and the limited self or sinful body. This dichotomy drives us in the understanding of
the self as lifetime toil for self-perfection. What is important in this concept of the self is the
development of the self from conception to death.

This will normally be in order to correspond with some determined ideal, depending on the social
and historical conditions under which a person lives. Once an individual has reached a
sufficiently high level of consciousness and self-knowledge, he or she has the capacity both for
self-analysis and observation, and for understanding the actions of others. Motivated by the wish
for acceptance and authority in a peer group, an individual develops personal qualities by self-
perfecting.

In other words, from the moment of conception, the self is molded and prepared to live a good
and happy life.

A daughter, for example will be provided with the best possible upbringing by the parents. She
will be sent to the best school in town in view of bestowing on her the necessary knowledge and
skills to be independent and successful professional in adult years. She is expected to compete
with other professionals in her field and become the best in her line of work. She will eventually
find a partner and raise children the way she was raised. This is such an example of an ideal self
that manifests the perfection of the soul.

When, on the contrary, the self did not have the opportunity to be raised, and to grow, and to
die a good and happy life, the self becomes a waste as it did not live the ideals of the soul. The
lone purpose of the self, therefore is:

To live according to the ideals of the soul.

The Greeks call this aréte -the ultimate goodness, perfection, excellence. All of life’s directions,
in as much as the western individualistic self is concerned, are geared towards self-perfection.
EASTERN

Although the self in the eastern perspective also wants to attain perfection in meditation and
enlightenment, there has never been an issue of dualism. Easterners do not have the notion of
the separation of the body and soul.

It is always one self.

A. The Atman - An Indian philosophy which is considered to be the seat of consciousness.

The atman may have different levels of consciousness but there is always one self. Even death is
considered to be just another level of consciousness but the atman continues to exist because it
is not dependent on the body. This in fact is also the concept of the non-self in Buddhism. In this
concept the self is considered as nothing but an evolution and transformation of inner
consciousness.

B. The Confucian – A philosophy from China that emphasized the relational self and the social
understanding of the self.

Scholars read Confucius’ philosophy in two ways.

1.The ideal moral self is always able to forego individual interest in view of prioritizing
the social interest.

In a way, the self is the ideal of a selfless person who is willing to forget about his self-interest in
favor of the interest of the community. In this conception, there is still the individual self and the
self is mutually exclusive as the social self. However, the individual self is subsumed in the
interest of the social self.
2.The individual self and the social self are not mutually exclusive but are
metaphysically and profoundly related.

The individual character of the ideal self cannot be separated from the social character of the
self. It means that the self is constructively connected with the pursuit of the social self.

Let us take as an example many family dynamics in which, when in dire poverty one or the
other sibling will be asked to stop going to school so that the family will be able to send the rest
of the children to school to continue with their education. Here, the self is willing to sacrifice and
may forget to assert self-interest in order to pursue the resolve of the whole family. The same
self-sacrifice may be manifested in groups, communities and nation.

Features of Individualism Features of Collectivism

·         “I” identity

·         Promotes individual goals, initiative ·         Each person is encouraged to be an

and achievement.
·         Individual rights are seen as being
the most important. Rules attempt to
ensure self-importance and individualism.
·         Independence is valued; there is
much less of a drive to help other citizens or
communities than' in collectivism.
·         Relying or being dependent on others
is frequently seen as shameful.
·         People are encouraged to do things
on their own; to rely on themselves people
strive for their own successes
active player in society, to do what is best
for society as a whole rather than in
themselves.
·         The rights of families, communities,
and the collective supersede those of the:
individual
·         Rules promote unity, brotherhood,
and selflessness.
·         Working with others and cooperating
is the norm; everyone supports each other.
·         as a community, family or nation
more than as an individual

The Social Construction of the Self in Western Thought

Social construction is a shared assumption or perception of the people in society. The western
social construct of the self can be characterized in three ways.

1. Individualistic self - At a very young age, the child is already taught to pursue what is
best for self. Thus, later in adult life, the measure of a successful life is when the self is
able to fulfil the life-goals set for and by the self.

The individualistic self is always conceived as the autonomous bounded entity. For one to be
autonomous, one must be able to show independence.

2. Self-sufficiency - This construct presumes that a successful self must be able to supply
one’s needs without external assistance.

Being self-sufficient also implies confidence in one’s capacity to provide what the self needs from
one’s own resources and authority. Therefore, it is important for the self to establish one’s
power and accumulate the needed knowledge and resources so that one will be able to provide
one’s needs.

3. The self being rational - In the western practice, there is no time for the self to be weak
and emotional. The self must not waste resources on meditation and other metaphysical
cognitions but to be constantly rational and reasonable.

The self masters the causal relationships of things. Everything must be explained by logic and
reason. Phenomenon outside the logical realm are simply discredited and rejected. This explains
the western logical positivist movement. It contends that what is rational and reasonable are
only those which can be logically viable. The successful self therefore, is grounded on one’s
investment on reason and logical thinking.
It also necessarily follows that. when the self adapts the rational-logical conception of things,
one must be scientific. The self marvels at the safety measures of scientific procedures.
Scientific researches ascertain the cause and effect relationship of things and phenomena.
Safety is derived from the mastery of the phenomena concerning the self.

This brings about the ideals of self-efficacy in which everything can be explained by science,
and everything can be provided for by science. The successful self embraces the scientific
conception of things that affect one’s growth, psycho-physical development, intellectual
capacity, interaction with others and involvement in societal institutions and infrastructures.

 Self-Efficacy is a person’s belief in their ability to succeed in a particular situation.

Psychologist Albert Bandura described these beliefs as determinants of how people
think, behave, and feel.

The Self as Embedded in Relationships and Through Spiritual Development in

Confucian Thought
Eastern social infrastructures are mostly seen as contrary to the western individualistic
construct. The eastern social construct is primarily viewed as collectivistic and is always
grounded on nature. There were many eastern traditions that flourished in the history of thought
that were firmly based on how the self relates to others, to the Divine Being and to nature.

Confucius or Kung Fu Zi ascertained the ancient Chinese civilization by establishing social

order. The society will be led by wise leaders who guaranteed peace, prosperity and harmony.
Here in the Confucian system we can immediately notice the primacy of the society over the
individual person. In fact, Confucius believed that the threat to social order is only caused by the
unchecked selfish desires of individuals.

The self therefore in the Confucian system is:

A person within the society who exhibits refinement and compassion.

Junzi - It is the new self formed in the right education under the virtuous teacher as
the role model.

Central in the educational formation of junzi are humanistic learning, refined personal manners
and the capacity to govern the community wisely and with compassion. In principle, the new self
of junzi the sage king brings to life the virtues of the ancestors to the new order of society. The
self therefore is the transmitter of the ancient virtues to the new world. 

Li – It is a refined manner of spiritual rituals and sacrifices, and protocols in honoring

the ancestors.

To carry out the transmission, one must have the correct procedures and protocol, In Chinese
philosophy, religious rituals are of great importance. The word li originally means sacrifice. Li is
both the restraining and the refinement of the self. The virtuous self must be able to practice the
correct customary procedures and protocols governing all of life.

Ren – It is the character of the self that sincerely shows compassion for others.

The self must embody human-heartedness by prioritizing the self-interest of others. The sage
king - jenzi - is characterized by his practice of ren in putting others first before the self.

Although Confucius was not given the opportunity to become the leader of China, his principles
of jenzi, li and ren became influential all throughout China even unto many other modern
civilizations of the world.

To conclude, we commonly hear the dichotomy between the east and the west. The
eastern traditions are known for their communal and spiritual constructs. On the other
hand, the western traditions developed a construct of being individualistic, self-
reliant, rational and scientific. In this chapter we were able to distinguish between the
individualistic and collective self. We clarified the many western constructs of the self
vis-a-vis the relational and spiritual construct of the east.
 Psychological Perspective of the Self
Introduction to the Psychological Perspective

We may only have one physical body but at times, it may feel like having several selves all at
once. In our own little corner, this might not be bothersome. But, to be asked in public “Who are
you?” could be stressful. This question seems to force us to come up with an interesting answer
that we might begin to feel unsatisfied with right after saying it.

If a picture, still and stagnant, paints a thousand words what more a moving living, complex,
dynamic, breathing human being? We may be able to figure out who we are to a certain aspects
but no answer might be enough to really articulate who we really are. Questioning who we are
and engaging in self-reflection to figure out and understand why we behave in a certain way is
normal and is actually beneficial in increasing self-awareness.

Most of the time, we are too hard on ourselves because of the many expectations we have. We
always want to be stable, in control and pleasing to others. As mentioned by Weiten (2014),
“possible selves are developed from past experiences, current behavior and future expectations.

Who we are, though not easily changed, might be likened to liquid, able to take many forms,
depending on the factors and context affecting it.

Self-Concept
SELF/SELF-CONCEPT

According to Carl Rogers, the self or our self-concept “is an organized, consistent of perceptions
of and beliefs about oneself”. These perceptions and beliefs that comprise our self-concepts are
called self-schemas. Self-schemas are formed by numerous factors that may be aware or
unaware of, some of which are: (1) past experiences, (2) personality traits, (3) abilities, (4)
physical features, (5) values, (6) goals, (7) social roles, (8) own observations and (9) feedback
from others.

Real and Ideal Self-Concepts

CARL ROGERS

“Carl Rogers (1959) believed that humans have one basic motive, that is the tendency to self-
actualize - i.e., to fulfill one's potential and achieve the highest level of 'human-beingness' we
can.  Like a flower that will grow to its full potential if the conditions are right, but which is
constrained by its environment, so people will flourish and reach their potential if their
environment is good enough. (McLeod, 2014)”

 Real self – includes all those aspects of one’s being and one’s experiences that are
perceived in awareness by the individual. It is the part of ourselves where we feel, think,
look and act involving our self-image.
 Ideal self – revolves around ambitions in life and is dynamic, the idealized image that we
have developed over time (what we admire in others, what our society promotes, what
we think in our best interest)

Who is your ideal and real self?

Our notion of both selves are results of

our self-schemas. Our ideal self is
essential in guiding and motivating us to
behave in a way that would lead us to the
best version of who we want to be – a
guide to the real self to continue
improving.

How aligned is you ideal self from

your real self?
When we feel good about ourselves, it is said that there is congruence or alignment or there is a
small gap between our real and ideal self. This gives us confidence, satisfaction, and a sense of
self-actualization or fulfilment leading to a high self-esteem.

However, when we are disappointed or frustrated about ourselves, it is said that there is
incongruence or misalignment or disparity or a huge gap between our real and ideal self. This
results to us being distressed, anxious, leading to a low self-esteem or self-worth and be
defensive in our actions. In cases where in the gap between the real and ideal self is immense,
this may cause instability to one’s psychological well-being.

Summary: If the way that I am (real self) is aligned with the way that I want to be (ideal self),
then I will feel a sense of mental well-being or peace of mind. If the way that I am is not aligned
with hot I want to be, the incongruence, or lack of alignment, will result in mental distress or
anxiety.  The greater the level of incongruence between the ideal self and the real self,
the greater the resulting distress.

If the level of incongruence is too much to handle, causing a person’s self-worth to be

questionable, it is best to seek help through counselling or seeking advice from people who can
help.

Experiencing incongruence may happen from time to time, most especially in cases or contexts
that are new or extreme. In circumstances like these, we need to reflect, evaluate our
behaviour, and be reminded of our ideal self to put us back on track. We have to learn to
separate behaviors from the totality of one’s being. We may have behaved badly but it does
not mean that we are automatically a bad person. Changing our way of thing may take a
bit of getting used to since most of us may have been exposed to people who might be given us
negative labels such as “bad, stupid, weak, fat, ugly etc.” Negative labels could come from a
single failure or blunder. Sadly, a single unintentional mistake is used to judge a person
holistically. We might have been victim of this or we might also be guilty of doing this to other
people.

Whether we feel it or not, we have to understand and accept that we are very capable to help
ourselves and attain the ideal self we intend to become. Ideal does not always have to mean
perfect. Life may be imperfect but we can work with that and use it to our advantage. We need
to decide and choose to stop comparing ourselves with other people especially to those we see
on social media.

The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change.
~Carl Rogers

A similar concept

KAREN HORNEY believed that everyone experiences basic anxiety through which we

experience conflict and strive to cope and employ tension reduction approaches.

Because people feel inferior, they develop an idealized self-image – an imaginary picture of
the self as the possessor of unlimited powers and superlative qualities. The actual self – the
person one is in everyday life – is often despised because it fails to fulfil the requirement of the
idealized image. Underlying both the idealized and actual self is the real self, which is revealed
only as a person begins to shed the various techniques developed to deal with basic anxiety and
to find ways of resolving conflicts.

Multiple versus Unified Selves

KENNETH GERGEN, in the view of postmodern psychology contends that man has an identity
that shifts and morphs in different social situations and in response to different stimuli. Having a
flexible sense of self in different context is more socially adaptable than force oneself to stick to
one concept.

Multiple selves are the capacities we carry within us from multiple relationships. These are not
‘discovered’ but ’created’ in our relationships with our people

Unified selves, as pointed out in Traditional psychology, emphasizes that well-being comes
when our personality dynamics are congruent, cohesive and consistent.

True versus False Selves

DONALD WINNICOTT believes that a person is in his true self if he has a sense of integrity

and of connected wholeness. When the person has to comply with external rules, such as being
polite or otherwise following social codes, then a false self is used.

Healthy false self is functional both for the person and for society then it is considered healthy.

Unhealthy false self fits in but through a feeling of forced compliance rather than loving
adaptation.

False selves can lead towards narcissistic personality (Kohut, 1971)