西田幾多郎(Nishida Kitaro)(1870-1945)

Although there are successors to Nishida's philosophy in America, I always wonder how western philosophers think of Nishida philosophy. Well, Goodness is attainment of personal quality and realizing true self for Nishida Kitaro. He was a lay disciplinant of Zen as well as he was a philosopher. I suppose most of all Christians think that believing is way to the Goodness, but it is realizing for Nishida Kitaro.



In buddhism, overall, realizing is superiority and believing is inferior. Because getting enlightenment is realizing. "Believe" is medical lie. So, I think automatically Christian faith's dogma regarded as inferior and the deeper religious experience(like meditation) of Christian faith is regarded as superiority by Nishida.　And his stance is that philosophy of religion precedes philosophy. In his case, that is, philosophy of enlightenment.



Nishida seems also to put Christian God into Buddhism, it is basically same logic as Taishaku's net. I suppose Christian faith without religious awareness would be a gem. Faith with religious awareness can be eternity. That I think through reading his essays is that he denied Christian dogma but he didn't denied the religion itself. That's why I criticize Christian dogma but I don't deny the religion itself. Of course the God would be different from Christians think of, but I do enjoy Bach's works. I learned about it from him. Well, putting aside about myself, I cite some from his essay.



Nishida said:



宗教とは神と人間の関係である。神とは種々の考え方ができるであろうが、これを宇宙の根本と見ておくのが最も適当であろうと思う、而して人とは我々の個人意識をさすのである。この両者の関係の考え方に由って種々の宗教が定まってくるのである。然らば、如何なる関係が真の宗教的関係であろうか。もし神と我とはその根底において本質を異にし、神は単に人間以上の偉大なる力という如き者とするならば、我々はこれに向かって毫も宗教的動機を見い出すことはできぬ。あるいはこれを恐れてその命に従うこともあろう。我々はこれに媚びて福利を求めることもあろう。しかし皆利己心より出でるにすぎない。本質を異にせる者の相互の関係は利己心の外に立つことはできないのである。

「宗教の本質」より



Religion is the relation between Human and God. Although we human kind has varied concept about what God is, I think a concept that God is the root of space is just as well. And the word "human" means personal conscious mind. Depending on concepts about the relation, diverse religions were established. Then, what true relationship with God is? If God and ourself don't have same essence, and if God is merely a greater power than human, we can't find our motivation toward God. Possibly, we would comply with the order out of fear, we would try to gain God's favor and request welfare. But all those are affairs referred from selfish spirit. The relation between existences has different essence each other can't stand on out of selfish spirit.

"The true nature of God"



凡ての宗教の本には神人同性の関係がなければならぬ、即ち父子の関係がなくてはならぬ。しかし単に神と人と利害を同じうし神は我らを助け我らを保護するというのでは未だ真の宗教ではない、神は宇宙の根本であって兼ねて我らの根本でなければならぬ、我らが神に帰するはその本に帰するのである。また神は万物の目的であって即ちまた人間の目的でなくてはならぬ、人は各神において己が真の目的を見い出すのである。手足が人の物なるが如く、人は神の物である。我々が神に帰するのは一方より見れば己を失うようであるが、一方より見れば己を得る所以である。基督が「その生命を得る者はこれを失い我が為に生命を失う者はこれを得べし」といわれたのが宗教の最も醇なる者である。真の宗教における神と人の関係は必ず斯の如き者でなければならぬ。

「宗教の本質」より



There must be a relation that God and human have same nature in all religions. That is, there must be a relation of "father and son". However, those religions which merely regard that God and human have same interest and God helps and protects us is not true religion. God must be a root of the space and must be a root of us. That we come to God is to come to the root. And God must be a purpose of all things and, namely, must be a purpose of human. Each people discover their true purpose from God. Like hands and foots are human's, human is God's. Although it seems that we come to God is losing ourselves, we obtain ourself on the one hand. Jesus Christ said "Those who obtain the life lose it, those who lost the life for me obtain it" This is most mature thing. In true religion, the relation between God and human must be so.

"The true nature of God"



我々の神とは天地これに由りて位し万物これに由りて育する宇宙の内面的統一でなければならぬ、この他に神というべきものはない。

「宗教の本質」より



Our God must be the God that universe depends upon, the universe is given the position, all things depend it and are nurtured and must be an inside integration. There is no other God.

"The true nature of God"



神とは宇宙の根本をいうのである。上に述べたように、余は神を宇宙の外に超越せる造物者とは見ずして、直ちにこの実在の根底を考えるのである。神と宇宙との関係は芸術家とその作品との如き関係ではなく、本性と現象との関係である。宇宙は神の所作物ではなく、神の表現 manifestation である。

「神」より



God is the root of the universe, as I said, I think God is not a creator transcending to out of the universe but directly I think God is root of our existence. The relation between God and human is not like the relation between an artist and its works, but the relation between true nature and phenomenon. Universe is not creature made by God but manifestation of the God.

"God"



自然と精神とは全然没交渉のものではない、彼此密接の関係がある。我々はこの二者の統一を考えずには居られない、即ちこの二者の根底に更に大なる唯一の統一力がなければならぬ。哲学も科学も皆この統一を認めないものはないのである。而してこの統一が即ち神である。

「神」より



The relation between nature and spirit doesn't have nothing to do with each. There is a relation have a close connection. We cannot help thinking about the integration between nature and God. That is, there must be a greater unifying power at the basis of the two. Both philosophers and scientists admit the integration. And the integration is the God.

"God"





God he said is, that is, Buddha theorized. Even though I'm not optimistic, if there is a way to integrate them, this become a meaningful essay. Then Christian must throw much more dogma than Buddhists. Those two essays are combined in 善の研究(Zen no Kenkyu, which means "Study of Goodness"). The book was the first book of him. I studied about his final essay named "場所的論理と宗教的世界観" to make my graduation thesis at university. We can find difference concepts from Zen no Kenkyu, and it is more interesting but I need to explain with too long sentences to read, therefore I cited from Zen no Kenkyu which is easy to read. Oh, 場所的論理と宗教的世界観 means "Logic of the field and interpretation of the world of religion". He practiced Zen and reading many Buddhist books and he theorized what he experienced and what he thought. Nishida was a classmate of Suzuki Daisetsu and he affected so much from Suzuki. Even though Suzuki doesn't have talent as philosopher, I think Nishida had it. If he live a longer life, Japan might be changed. He died in 1945, the WWII ended.



It is a photo of "Tetsugaku no michi" where Nishida often took a walk.