Today, due to the astonishing advances in science and technology and the corresponding expansion of human knowledge, the true unity of humankind is rapidly becoming a reality. However, because of the historical and regional differences in philosophy, religion, ideology, and interest, it is also likely that the world will experience much conflict and confusion in the process of becoming one.

As the birthplace of some of the most profound philosophies and religions, Asia will play a crucial role in this process. Without a unified Asia, a unified world can scarcely be imagined.

Among Asian civilizations, the Chinese civilization is one of the oldest and richest. It is only appropriate that we initiate a conversation between the Chinese civilization and Christian philosophy as we enter the new millennium. This goal is made even more timely and urgent because it is clear that the Pacific Rim will increasingly become the center of world thought, economics, politics, and culture.

The Chinese civilization has never been expansionist, but rather peace-loving; it has always been able to absorb foreign cultural influences. As one of the world’s oldest civilizations the Chinese has encountered, and has many times been invaded by, foreign civilizations. However, it has always absorbed those cultures to create syntheses. Moreover, Chinese civilization has helped in the further development of all those cultures with which it came into contact, providing them with new incentives and directions. In the recent era, she has absorbed communism.

Now, as we enter the new millennium, China will have to meet the challenge of a global culture that is increasingly becoming one. In this process, it cannot avoid an encounter with Christianity. During the past 2000 years, Christian thought has been the spiritual foundation on which the Western civilization has been built. On the other hand, by undergoing a process of indigenization through its encounter with Chinese thought, Christianity needs to absorb all the Chinese civilization has to offer. Through mutual understanding and cooperation, Christianity and Chinese civilization can contribute to the formation of a unified Asia and a unified humankind.

At the same time, Christianity and Western civilization need to be aware of the fact that, since the latter half of the 20th century as Western colonialism came to an end, the younger generations in many Asian countries began to express an even greater attachment to their traditional cultures. During the past few centuries, Western imperial powers, by using their advanced science and technology (guns, cannons, and the art of war), have colonized vast stretches of Asia. However, they have not been able to dominate Asia in cultural and spiritual terms. The younger generations of Asia are delving into the study of their traditional cultures with increasing conviction, partly as a reaction against past Western dominance and partly based on the new-found conviction that their traditional culture is superior to that of the West. There are many instances of young intellectuals with doctorates from leading universities of the West who have been immersing themselves in the study of Asian thought, especially their own native thought.

As we embark on the process of effecting a unity of all humankind, Christian philosophy, Chinese culture, and all other religions and cultures of Asia have to take as their starting point the most basic point on which all can agree. In other words, we need to start our conversation from something that all people, individuals and religions can accept as being the most fundamental. Then we should try to build on that point so as to construct a common culture for all humankind. This common point, I think, is none other than love of life.

That is why I have titled my paper "The Philosophy of Life in the Oriental Philosophies and the Theory of Thomas Aquinas: Immanence and Transcendence. In this paper, I wish to compare, contrast, and synthesize in some sense the conceptions of life found in Asian philosophies and religions, on the one hand. On the other hand, Thomas Aquinas thought as a distillation of Christian philosophy. This is with a view toward constructing a common culture of mankind based on the love of life.

In 1991, Sogang University of Korea founded the Research Institute for Life and Culture. At that time, Korean society was witness to a rash of horrible crimes such as child kidnapping and murder, while environmental destruction through air and water pollution was becoming increasingly acute as the result of rapid industrialization. In response to these problems, various government agencies, academic institutions, the media, and religious organizations convened seminars, hearings, and meetings to increase people’s awareness. However, none were as effective as the institute, which was founded under the motto, Pro Mundi Vita, "For Life in the World "(John 6, 25) by Sogang University, a mission school. With enthusiastic response and support from the media and the public, the institute and the university were instrumental in stemming the tide of child kidnapping and murder and instilling an awareness among the public of environmental issues.

The national committee, which drafted a "National Declaration of the Environment" exchanged the views of many segments of Korean society, including religious and civic organization leaders, all of whom were experts on the environment and issues of life in Korea. All this instilled an even stronger sense of the sacredness of human life and nature.

Both Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu ascribed the origin of life to the tao. In addition, Chuan Tzu introduced the conception of "chi" (translated as spirit of breath or vital force) to explain the process of birth and death. According to Chuang Tzu, birth and death are a result of the gathering and dispersion of chi. While life lasts for only a short moment and vanishes into an ever-evolving universe, chi, the origin of life, exists forever and presides over the evolution process.

The elevation of spiritual life is a way of returning to the origin of life. This is called "returning to the root". The tao works to produce all things and lets them converge back to the tao. Returning to the root enables people to peel off the layers of pleasures of the secular life one after another, ultimately entering into the state of void. Returning to the root is a way of nature.

Natural Life and Moral Life. The Taoist is interested in natural life while the Confucianist attaches great importance to moral life. The Taoist view of life can be found in Yang Chu’s theory of selfishness.

From the above quotations, we can conclude that Yang Chu’s basic thought was to value life and despise the external trappings of life, for example, fame, wealth, high rank, etc. The followers of Yang Chu seek extreme selfishness. They might be given to self-indulgence or free indulgence of the appetites. The Yangist regards oneself not as a moral self but as a sensual self. Therefore, selfishness cannot help degenerating into greed. They are susceptible to Nihilism.

People cannot live alone. They live according to many relations, for example, father and son, ruler and ruled, husband and wife, elder and younger, friend and friend, which are called the five cardinal relations in Confucian Ethics. In order to avoid conflict between members of society, there are norms that make a society vibrant and stable. The norm that maintains good relations is called Propriety. However, the Propriety of a kinship society can become empty. Confucius enlivens it with his teaching of human heartedness (benevolence). The Chinese character consists of two words, man and two. It cannot be obtained through selfishness; human heartedness comes through a respect for the life of others.

Thunder and wind encounter and respond to each other. Kan water and Li fire are irreconcilable opposites. However, they do not conflict: On the contrary, they balance each other and constitute a harmonious world.

Confucius systematized the tradition. He spoke of Tien (Heaven) as purposeful and the master of all things. It is not the "greatest of all spiritual beings who rules in a personal way," but a Supreme Being who only reigns, leaving his moral law to operate by itself.

Chou Tun-I (Chou Lien-hsi, 1017-1073) is the pioneer of neo-Confucianism and was influenced by Taoism. He used the concepts of the Great Ultimate of Wu-chi (Non-Ultimate), which came from Lao-Tzu. He blended the Taoist element of the void with Confucian thought, but Chou never explained the nature of the Great Ultimate.

The Confucian view of life seems more illuminating on aspects of morality. Confucian moral views such as the Three Cardinality, the Five Constant Relationship, Benevolence, Righteousness, Ritual and Wisdom, etc., articulated the most profound version of natural morality. To discuss its content further, however, will inevitably take us into a broader realm, beyond the focus of this paper.

It is generally said that the reality of man is divided into two parts. One is man’s body made up of four elements—earth, water, fire, and wind—and the other is man’s spirit in man’s body. This is the view of life in Buddhism. In Buddhism the essence of human life is Buddha nature.

Buddhism maintains that all sentient beings in this world, even insects, have Buddha nature in them. Every creature in this universe has already existed in various incarnations by Karma which is the law of moral causation; basically it is volition. Volitions may be good or ill. So actions may be wholesome or unwholesome according to their results. This endless play of action and reaction, cause and effect, seed and fruit continues in perpetual motion, which becomes or the continual changing process of the psycho-physical phenomena of existence. Therefore, the natural law is: if this exists, that also exists; otherwise, that does not exist, either.

This is the reality of life and the principle of existence. This shows us that everything into his universe is one and whole; an object is one and you and I live in mutual society or in mutual Karma.

In both the five precepts and the ten precepts of Buddhism, the thought, "Not to kill anything which has its own life," is one of the fundamental items in practicing human moral principles. This view of life about the human spirit produced the notion of Karma, with which originated the thought of rebirth. Karma is the corollary of rebirth; rebirth, on the other hand, is the corollary of Karma.

All things in the universe—green leaves, red and yellow flowers, mountains, rivers, the sun, murmurs of the stream, the sound of wind, and so on—is the sound of life. This is the essential view of life in Buddhism. As I am a small universe as well as an element in the big universe, I am the reality of life.

Buddha saw the suffering of people and started to search for a solution to this problem. He became aware of the futility of social living and of philosophical discourse and taught that they hindered man’s right living. Finally, he came to the conclusion that nothing was eternal and thought that all was impermanent (Sanscrit: anitya), even gods. For him, all was a flowing reality (be it external things or human beings); all existence meant suffering; and all was a concatenation of points called dharmas.

Buddha also denied the essential or ultimate reality of things and the existence of the self or soul (atman). Consequently, he said that there was no eternal "I." For him, human beings and gods are caught in the cycle of births and deaths (samasara) because the extinction of life is only a projection toward a new existence. This cycle goes on until the effect of a completed deed (karma) is stopped. Karma is not substantial, but after a man dies his acts remain in another kind of corporal form. Those acts are rewarded or punished in heaven or hell but even heaven and hell are impermanent. For Buddha then, there will be further reincarnation and transmigrations, that is, new births or new existences that are also subject to misery and suffering.

Life is one of the most interesting concerns in religions, East and West. Nonetheless, it is not easy to find a very discourse about what life is. In the world of religions, they say that all living things, human beings included, are created by God. In the folk religion of Korea, this kind of belief is expressed by, "God blesses with a baby." The deity of pregnancy, birth, and bringing up a child is called Samshin (p. 13) in Korea folk-belief, and/or in Korean, shamanism. According to research, the belief in Samshin is a widespread phenomenon all over the country. So, in this article I shall try to uncover the identity of Samshin in the stories about the life-giving deity in folk-belief and in the shamanistic world in Korea.

Belief in Samshin appears in various forms. The prayer for delivery of a son that is related to the Samshin shows the following characteristics: firstly, this Samshin-belief is dominated by women; secondly, this is a kind of natural thing (for example, people pray mainly to huge rocks and big trees); thirdly, they pray in famous mountains and near big rivers. So it is a kind of belief in mountain-god (sanshin) and in water-god (sushin).

According to the shamans’ transmission of words, the first deity among Samshin is for pregnancy, the second gives bones, and the third gives soul. These three deities have functionally different roles, but they are originally one God. This seems to be a kind of cosmic Triad theory in Korean shamanism. The effort to secure life is a natural conclusion, if one holds that life is sacred.

We can often hear of the Samshin-myth, even nowadays in shamanistic rituals, for example, we can analyze the identity of Samshin in the shaman’s song, named ‘samt’ aejap uri, chesokponp’uri or langgumagit aryong. According to this, Samshin is born from a deity disguised as a Buddhist monk and a girl named Tanggumagi. In this story, we find the religious thought that while the direct cause of human birth is the sexual relationship between a man and a woman, the fundamental reason is the purpose of the deity (Samshin). In the field of Korean folk religion, it is believed that birth, bringing up, and death are beyond human control. Control over life belongs to the supra-mundane realm of the deity (Samshin). Here we can see that folk religiosity expresses what the human life itself possesses. God gives life to human beings. Therefore, the vital force or vital principle belongs to the divine realm. So a human being should not dare to invade this holy realm.

The shaman’s explanation, through the Samshin-story about the origin and principle of life, shows that such phenomena as life and death are personalized or deified. They speak of the strong impurity, which the phenomenon such as death accompanies, of the cautiousness and prudence that tries to secure life from the contagion of death. This dark shadow, far from the order of life, is thought to access living people. This kind of attitude would confirm the characteristics of the religious life of most Korean people.

The shaman (called Mudang in Korea) is the mediator between the spirits (Kwisin) and humans. From early times, the ancestors were honored as members of the family and clan. Their descendants believed in their ancestors’ power beyond death. This belief generated anxiety to keep them placated in order to receive protection and blessings. People feared evil spirits and venerated the good ones.

Thomas Aquinas explains his theory of life at first from the point of view of experience of vegetative, sensual, and intellectual lives. Finally, he reaches Divine Life, which is life itself and the first principle of all life. I treat here Thomas Aquinas’ theory of life according to his Summa Theologiae I. 18. 75 and 78, from which I will quote frequently the texts by Thomas Aquinas because they are clear and concise.

In this way Thomas clarifies the essence of the sense-life with self-movements not only in itself but also with regard to things at a distance. But this kind of life is limited to implantation by nature. Hence Thomas Aquinas’s consideration on life goes further, to a higher level of life which is an intellectual one transcending all the sense activities.

Although intellectual activity or intellectual life is higher than the other, still it is restricted to the implantation of nature, that is, for the first principles and ultimate end of intellectual life, etc. Therefore, Aquinas’s consideration of life goes still further to the highest life without any limitation, that is, life itself. Such life is Being itself as it always in the state of activity.

Then Aquinas considers the principles (sources) of lives, that is, the principles of the vegetable, sense, and intellectual lives from the different activities of three kinds of souls, that is, of anima vegetativa, sensibilis and rationalis.

Thomas here refers to Aristotle’s De Anima II which notes: "Digestion and its sequel takes place through the instrumentality of heating."

Furthermore, Thomas Aquinas considers the modes of living in terms of grades of living things.

Furthermore, scholastic philosophers and theologians explain the spirituality of the rational soul from its immateriality as rational soul transcends total materiality. Accordingly, such a spiritual soul bears immortality as it has not been composed of any material parts. From this point of view an eternal life can be endowed to the soul of a human being supposing the grace of God.

There are many similarities between the oriental philosophies of life based on religions and the Christian notion of life, especially as found in the phenomenal dimension of Thomas Aquinas. However, among them there is also a great difference in the ontological dimension.

These differences arise from the notions of immanence and transcendence. Oriental philosophies, in general, concentrate on the studies of the first principle (source) that makes up the phenomenon of life—that is, on the studies of the beginning of life phenomena and its return to the first principle. This is a kind of transcendence in a broad sense, but, in this case, we can say that the root (source) and phenomenon, strictly speaking, are philosophically homogeneous or univocal, as the term "analogous" cannot be predicated properly of the root (the first principle) and phenomenon, nor can the term "equivocal" be predicted of them. From this viewpoint, oriental philosophies of religion are rather pantheistic, naturalistic and anthropomorphic.

The Tao in Taoism is the first principle of the existence of all things, including human life. All things come into existence from the Tao and return to the Tao which pervades all the things in the universe. If the notion of the Tao is void, then can the Tao be different from all things in the universe? It is very difficult to understand the reality of the Tao as just "void." So there is no clear distinction between Tao and all the creatures.

In Confucianism, the origin of all things is explained by the eight elements, that is, heaven, earth, mountain, pond, thunder, wind, water, and fire. The movement of the universe and the natural phenomena are explained by Shade and Light, the Five Functions, the Tao, and chi, The Great Ultimate, etc. Moreover, Confucianism views life as purely natural. The sacrificial ceremony for ancestors in Confucianism is an expression of a valued humanity and has some transcendent character in the sense that it is a representation of communication between the soul of the dead and living human beings. Today, the sacrificial ceremony for ancestors in Korea has become the national ceremony for reverencing ancestors. The material and the form of the sacrificial ceremony for ancestors are purely natural, human, and anthropomorphic. The notion of the supreme emperor, Chon, and the Great Ultimate that are developed through the long passage of history contains the idea of transcendence in some sense. These notions, too, in strict philosophical meaning, are anthropomorphic as they are considered only from the viewpoint of the realm of nature and human life.

To become a Buddha in human life is to enter into Nirvana by passing over imperfect earthly life. This stage is achieved only by the self-discipline of human beings. In fact Karma effects Nirvana; and becoming a Buddha is the manifestation of the various forms in human life.

In short, the great oriental religions, in general, explain the first principle and ultimate goal of human life within the realm of nature and the human being, but also include some kind of a notion of transcendence in that they seek to reach a higher stage by passing over the present state of life. It is common that religions believe in a supernatural being, in its power and in the communication of a human being with it. Therefore, although the oriental religions are consistent with the immanent element, they also include a transcendent tendency in their basis due to human nature. In other words, the oriental religions have a good disposition for real transcendence, especially Shamanism; they are very open to a real transcendence. The Korean religious mentality, in general, is affected deeply by Shamanism because of its location. That is why Christianity flourishes with many conversions and fervent devotion.

On the other hand, the Christian notion of life, especially that of Aquinas, explains life by the theory of three kinds of souls and considers human life or the soul as its source having immanent and transcendent character: individual human life derives from the intellectual, spiritual, and immoral soul. Immortal life, which is the deep hope of the human spirit, can be achieved by revelation and the grace of God. In fact, great oriental religions have achieved a high level in spiritual and moral life. But from the viewpoint of philosophy of religion, the ontological search, especially the question of transcendence is incomplete. They are obscure on the origin and ultimate goal of human life, that is, its final destiny.

Due to this incompleteness of Confucianism, Catholicism was introduced into Korea about 220 years ago by a pagan Confucian scholar from China. When Confucian scholars in Korea who belonged to the ruling party at those times, came to read (De Deo Verax Disputatio), written by Matto Ricci, a Jesuit missionary in Beijing, they were impressed by its clear explanation of the transcendent idea of the origin and ultimate goal of human life, and one of the Confucian scholars was sent to Beijing to study it. He learned the catechism by writing (although he knew Chinese characters very well, he didn’t know the Chinese pronunciation) and was baptized in Beijing. Returning to Korea, he did missionary work, beginning the life of the Catholic Church in Korea. These Confucian scholars tried to build up a so-called "Supplemented Confucianism" in Korea in which they added the clear Christian notion of the origin and ultimate goal of human life lacking in Confucianism, that is, the Christian notion of transcendence and immortality.

Life is precious, and, above all, human life is the most precious in the universe. Since every religion agrees to this, all the religions give their priority to protect and enrich human life. Thus, religions have a similarity or homogeneity in moral life, which is the proper domain of the human being. The comparison of the Decalogue in Christianity with the Three Fundamental Principles (the Three Bonds) and the Five Moral Disciplines in human relations (the Five Relationships), and the comparison of the Decalogue and Septem Vitia Capitalia in Christianity with the Five and the Ten Buddhist Commandments are examples.

The slogan which led humanity for the last few centuries was "justice." The enlivening of this slogan was due to Marxism as a reaction against the harsh colonial reign throughout the world, and to the strenuous efforts of the Catholic Church, which enhanced "human dignity" and "justice." Asia, being the birthplace of most of the distinguished religions and profound philosophies, and having the broadest area with the largest population, fell to become colonies of the Great Powers. Now the colonial period in terms of territorial rights is ended, but still exists in terms of economic exploitation. Under these circumstances the concepts of "human right" and "justice" still are greatly needed. Such concepts are always needed in human life.

In Korea, the Research Institute for Life and Culture, as mentioned above, has held many seminars on life for many years. It has gathered opinions broadly on the notion of life of the Korean religions. In fact, now there are some organizations for cooperation among religions for social welfare activities in Korea. Recently, some Catholic Institutes and periodicals in Korea have been trying to study and practice the notion of life and inculturation. Catholic philosophy can do its part in the formation and the expansion of a common culture with its ontological notion of being, including the transcendental notions of the one, the true, and the good. Up to now, Thomism has explained the ontological notion of being in the order of the "one", the "true", and the "good." But nowadays it is necessary that the Catholic Church practice the "good," which all human beings and religions can sympathize with. This must based on the "true," and this, in turn, on the "one". Then, by explaining the meaning of life in the order of the "good", the "true", and the "one", that is, basically by explaining the oneness of God, Catholic philosophy can contribute toward the formation of a new culture. In these terms, Mother Theresa in India can be considered as a great sign of the formation of the common culture of love of life in the new millennium.