Two different schools of thought:

1. Materialism: The only thing that exists is matter. Any phenomenon is just a result of the interaction
among different matters. For example, I see a beautiful girl. She is there before I have any awareness
about her existence and her beauty.

- Materialism is based on monistic ontology [bản thể học nhất nguyên].

- Ontology is the philosophical study of the nature of being, existence or reality in general, as well as
the basic categories of being and their relations.

- Monism thinks that everything in this universe has the same nature and the same beginning [khởi
nguyên]. The Universe is really just one thing, despite its many appearances and diversities.

- Dualism is a philosophical theory that admits the independent existence of the 2 different entities :
matter and. Consciousness. It deals with the problem “Matter or consciousness, which one is primary?
which one is secondary?”

a. Dialectical materialism: Dialectics: a method of discovering of what is true by considering opposite

theories.

b. Historical materialism: a way of studying the nature around by looking at the history of human
development.

c. Metaphysical materialism [Chủ nghĩa duy vật siêu hình / siêu hiện thực]: Matter is the only thing that
is real. Thoughts, ideas and other non-physical things are merely movements of physical matter or
chemical reactions.

THE PROBLEM OF EVIL

Here is a metaphysical problem which has puzzled thinkers through the centuries. It is stated this way:

If God is all powerful and all good then there would be no evil in the world.

But there is evil in the world.

Therefore God is not all powerful or all good.

2. Idealism: Thinks that anything exists within intellect and consciousness [tâm thức (trí tuệ và ý thức)].

For example, I see a beautiful girl. My intellect tells me that is a girl. My conscious tells me that she is
beautiful. Without my intellect or consciousness about her existence, the girl is considered non-existent. It is
my perception [nhận thức] that makes the girl exist.

- Idealism is based on monistic ontology.

- There are 2 different schools of thought on idealism:
a. Subjective idealism: Strongly denies the existence of the objective world and believes that
only human perception induces matter.

Subjective idealism is a theory in the philosophy of perception. The theory describes a relationship between
human experience of the external world, in which objects are nothing more than collections of sense data in
those who perceive them. Reality is ultimately made up of only Mind and mental objects, properties, events, etc.

Subjective idealism is monistic, because it states that only the Mind exists.

b. Objective idealism: