이 글은 자신학화(self-theologizing)를 상호문화철학적 관점에서 비판적으로 검토해 보고자 하는 시도이다. 한국의 보수적 선교학계에서 서구 신학의 전통을 벗어나서 스스로 신학하고자 하는 필요성이 대두되고 있다. 그것이 자신학화이다. 한국 교회가 급속히 성장 하기는 했지만 그 신학은 서구 신학을 벗어나지 못하고 있다. 이것은 신학적 식민주의이 다. 이런 처지를 벗어나기 위해서 히버트는 자신학화를 요청한다. 이것은 상호문화철학의 노력과 많이 유사하다. 왜냐하면 그것은 한편에서 서구 중심주의를 비판하고 자신의 상황 하에서 주체적으로 신학하려는 노력임과 동시에 다른 한편 극단적인 문화상대주의도 비판 하여 기독교를 사회적 유용성에 의해서만 평가하지 않고 그 정체성을 (...) 유지하려고 노력하 기 때문이다. 다시 말해서 자신학화가 신학을 상황화하지만 종교다원주의나 문화상대주의 는 반대한다. 상호문화철학적으로 볼 때 자신학화는 강자의 중심주의인 서구 중심주의 비판이면서도 약자의 중심주의인 민족주의 비판이기도 하다. 또한 그것은 식민 제국주의의 단일문화주 의에 반대하면서도 민족주의의 단일문화주의도 비판한다. 자신학화가 한쪽 극단인 경직된 절대주의인 비상황화(non-contextualization)와 다른 극단인 상대주의인 무비판적 상황 화를 모두 피하는 비판적 상황화이다. 이것도 역시 상호문화철학과 같은 생각이다. 비판적 상황화는 결국 초문화 신학을 목표로 한다. 초문화 신학은 개별 신학들이 자기 문화의 상 황 속에서 신학하는 것은 허용하면서도 문화적 다양성과 특수성을 초월해서 신학하려는 노력이다. 이것은 상호문화철학이 온건한 상대주의는 긍정하지만 보편을 지향하는 것과 일치한다. 다만 보편적인 초문화 신학의 실현 가능성은 의심스럽다. (shrink)

Explores some steps toward non-assimilative encounters in the "global village.".

In this paper, we propose an understanding of philosophy of education as cultural and intercultural work and philosophers of education as cultural and intercultural workers. In our view, the discipline of philosophy of education in North America is currently suffering from measures of insularity and singularity. It is vital that we justly and respectfully engage with and expand our knowledge and understanding of sets of conceptual and life-practice resources, and honor and learn from diverse histories, cultures, (...) and traditions. Such honoring provides responsive conditions for our coming together in and across differences in order that we may productively and creatively address and overturn grammars of violence, destruction, and dis-ease in these complexly troubled times. Committing ourselves to deconstructing historical and contemporary beliefs, values, and practices that are compromising human and planetary flourishing, we undertake responsibilities to go cross-cultural and intercultural. (shrink)

This paper focuses on the philosophical analysis of interculturality. Globalization involves the problem of the universal and its relation to the particular in cultures. In some interpretations, universality is sharply opposed to particularity (Arjun Appadurai's theory of "break" in culture). In contrast to this, there are authors who allow for both particular and universal, focusing on their interrelation. Roland Robertson shows that diversity and multiculturality do not exclude forms of cultural unity. The analysis involves the current debate regarding the term (...) "intercultural philosophy" (Ram Adhar Mall, Franz Wimmer). Intercultural philosophy raises questions about philosophy itself, and involves the revision of the whole concept of philosophy. It brings to the forefront the problem of the interrelations between the cultural-specific and the universal in philosophy. For some philosophers, the notion intercultural seems to be incompatible with philosophy as universal knowledge. However, the adherents of interculturality develop a broader and more pluralistic concept of philosophy, viewed as embedded in certain cultural and philosophical traditions while dealing with perennial questions and aiming to give universally valid answers. Two main paradigms of interculturality are distinguished: one is Raimundo Panikkar's "intercultural-interreligious paradigm"; the other is the "intercultural-liberation paradigm" developed by Raul Fornet-Betancourt. At the heart of this analysis is Fornet- Betancourt's concept of the intercultural transformation of philosophy. It is related to interculturality, or the dialogue of cultures. It challenges the Eurocentric philosophical historiography and claims the necessity of the reconstruction of the history of ideas in Latin America, Africa, and Asia, thus creating a new view of the history of philosophy. The concept of intercultural dialogue is also considered as a "regulative idea" in creating an alternative to current globalization. (shrink)

The primary objective of this anthology is to make intergenerational justice an issue for intercultural philosophy, and, conversely, to allow the latter to enrich the former. In times of large-scale environmental destabilization, fair- ness between generations is an urgent issue of justice across time, but it is also a global issue of justice across geographical and nation-state borders. This means that the future generations envisioned by the currently living also cross these borders. Thus, different philosophical cultures and traditions (...) of thought should converse to re ect on what is fair to future people. In the remainder of this introduction, we will detail these claims and give an overview of the volume’s chapters. (shrink)

In this paper, we propose an understanding of philosophy of education as cultural and intercultural work and philosophers of education as cultural and intercultural workers. In our view, the discipline of philosophy of education in North America is currently suffering from measures of insularity and singularity. It is vital that we justly and respectfully engage with and expand our knowledge and understanding of sets of conceptual and life-practice resources, and honor and learn from diverse histories, cultures, (...) and traditions. Such honoring provides responsive conditions for our coming together in and across differences in order that we may productively and creatively address and overturn grammars of violence, destruction, and dis-ease in these complexly troubled times. Committing ourselves to deconstructing historical and contemporary beliefs, values, and practices that are compromising human and planetary flourishing, we undertake responsibilities to go cross-cultural and intercultural. (shrink)

Radical personal and systemic social transformation is urgently needed to address world-wide violence and inequality, pervasive moral confusion and corruption, and the rapid, unprecedented global destruction of our environment. Recent years have seen an embrace of intersubjectivity within discourse on educational transformation within academia and the public sphere. As well, there has been a turn toward contemplative education initiatives within North American schools, colleges and universities. This article contends that these turns might benefit from openness to the ontologies, epistemologies, and (...) ethics of the ‘wisdom traditions’ from which many contemplative practices are drawn. To illustrate this point, we discuss the value of intercultural philosophy of education, and introduce Eastern philosophical ideas, specifically, the Shambhala Buddhist notion of the nondual ground and wisdom of basic goodness and related teachings. We detail how awareness of basic goodness and its holistic expression in the ground, path, and fruition of Shambhala teachings can open vital questions regarding intersubjectivity, challenge and reinvigorate aspects of current engagements with contemplative practices, and provide significant insights and educational paths for transformational endeavours in neoliberal times. Informed by our learning from Shambhala, we conclude with a deepened understanding of intercultural philosophy of education. (shrink)

Carine Defoort, Mario Wenning, and Kai Marchal offer three ways of engaging with Chinese and Buddhist Philosophy in Early Twentieth-Century German Thought and the philosophical, hermeneutical, and historical issues it attempted to articulate and address.1 This work is historical with a contemporary philosophical intent: to reexamine a tumultuous contested epoch of philosophy’s past in order to reconsider its existing limitations and alternative possibilities. One dimension of this book is the investigation of constellations and entanglements of historical forces and (...) concepts for the sake of articulating critical models and alternatives for the present.2 In the book, I contested the modern self-image of philosophy... (shrink)

This paper is concerned with ways to make our education system more inclusive, to stimulate a more tolerant and democratic attitude among students, and to equip them to deal with complex issues in our society. Trying to understand and master plural viewpoints is more effective than applying the mainstream western perspective to relate to a fast-globalizing, interactive world. In existing curricula, students and teachers are often confronted with underlying assumptions that can be traced back to the ubiquitous influence of the (...) Enlightenment. They mirror what has been denied, like the colonization of large parts of the world by European countries. This paper illustrates how philosophical divides can be crossed. I elaborate on a method suitable for crossing these divides: dialogue. Finally, I highlight the transformation that the discipline of philosophy and our education system need to go through to open to different forms of obtaining knowledge. (shrink)

This paper focuses on the philosophical analysis of interculturality. Globalization involves the problem of the universal and its relation to the particular in cultures. In some interpretations, universality is sharply opposed to particularity (Arjun Appadurai's theory of "break" in culture). In contrast to this, there are authors who allow for both particular and universal, focusing on their interrelation. Roland Robertson shows that diversity and multiculturality do not exclude forms of cultural unity. The analysis involves the current debate regarding the term (...) "intercultural philosophy" (Ram Adhar Mall, Franz Wimmer). Intercultural philosophy raises questions about philosophy itself, and involves the revision of the whole concept of philosophy. It brings to the forefront the problem of the interrelations between the cultural-specific and the universal in philosophy. For some philosophers, the notion intercultural seems to be incompatible with philosophy as universal knowledge. However, the adherents of interculturality develop a broader and more pluralistic concept of philosophy, viewed as embedded in certain cultural and philosophical traditions while dealing with perennial questions and aiming to give universally valid answers. Two main paradigms of interculturality are distinguished: one is Raimundo Panikkar's "intercultural-interreligious paradigm"; the other is the "intercultural-liberation paradigm" developed by Raul Fornet-Betancourt. At the heart of this analysis is Fornet- Betancourt's concept of the intercultural transformation of philosophy. It is related to interculturality, or the dialogue of cultures. It challenges the Eurocentric philosophical historiography and claims the necessity of the reconstruction of the history of ideas in Latin America, Africa, and Asia, thus creating a new view of the history of philosophy. The concept of intercultural dialogue is also considered as a "regulative idea" in creating an alternative to current globalization. (shrink)

Intercultural philosophy emerged in the 1980s and 1990s in Germany and Austria. It has become widespread throughout the world. Geopolitical changes, which defined the nature of modernity as an era of post-colonialism and globalization, played a decisive role in its emergence. The new philosophic trend has grown from a comparative philosophy that has gone through three stages of evolution: from proving the universal "truth" of Western philosophy, to attempts to create a "synthetic philosophy" and, finally, (...) to the recognition of autonomy and significance of non-Western philosophies. Intercultural philosophy offers a new method of thinking, which involves the rejection of claims to the ultimate truth of the philosophical tradition of its own culture, respect for the heritage of other cultures, the deployment of large-scale discourse so that to find alternative approaches to solving both purely philosophical and global problems. (shrink)

Cinema is neither neutral nor a universal medium. Particularly in African contexts, cinema contributes to European exceptionalism, imposes European values as the norm, and acts as an instrument of cultural and psychological control. It seems that African cinema is ontologically, politically, and aesthetically Eurocentric. By introducing an intercultural philosophical approach to the realm of cinema, we aim to move away from Eurocentrism in African cinema towards a more intercultural and dialogical orientation as an input for the liberation of (...) humanity. Based on findings from a dramaturgical analysis of five films, we argue that African cinema shows a deficiency in communicating liberation and it often fails to portray African people’s values, will, and interests as it has been alienated from its nature and purpose. Overall, African cinema seems to be either in a state of assimilation or confusion. By exploring aesthetics of liberation in African cinema and art (as described in African and intercultural philosophy,) we search for alternative film aesthetics and a mode of filmmaking that seeks to liberate the image and the minds of the filmmakers and spectators of African cinema. Inspired by Kimmerle’s aesthetic-ethic alternative ‘Living (with) art’, we propose an alternative for critical filmmaking based on aesthetics of liberation with an intercultural orientation: Living cinema. Living cinema is a dialogical and liberational cinema with aesthetics of liberation at its core. Based on aesthetic-ethic principles of African philosophy and interculturality, the liberating function of living cinema can be found in reconnecting the aesthetics and filmmaking with African values. Simultaneously, it might be contributing to the liberation of world cinema as it has an impact on both the hegemonic and the suppressed cinema. (shrink)

For over twenty years Douglas Berger has advanced research and reflection on Indian philosophical traditions from both classical and cross-cultural perspectives. This volume reveals the extent of his contribution by bringing together his perspectives on these classical Indian philosophies and placing them in conversation with Confucian, Chinese Buddhist and medieval Indian Sufi traditions. Delving into debates between Nyaya and Buddhist philosophers on consciousness and identity, the nature of Sankara's theory of the self, the precise character of Nagarjuna's idea of emptiness, (...) and the relationship between awareness and embodiment in the broad spectrum of Indian thought, chapters exhibit Berger's unusually broad range of expertise. They connect Chinese Confucian and Buddhist texts with classical Indian theories of ethics and consciousness, contrast the ideas of seminal European thinkers like Nietzsche and Derrida from prevailing themes in Buddhism, and shed light on the spiritual and political dimensions of the Mughal prince Dara Shukoh's immersion into Vedantic thought. Always approaching the arguments from an intercultural perspective, Berger shows how much relevance and resonance classical Indian thought has with ancient Confucian views of ethics, Chinese Buddhist depictions of consciousness and medieval Mughal conceptions of divinity. The result is a volume celebrating the rigor, vitality and intercultural resonance of India's rich philosophical heritage. (shrink)

Book Information Intercultural Philosophy. By Ram Adhar Mall. Rowman & Littlefield. 2000. Pp. xiii + 152. Hardback, US$62.00. Paperback, US$16.95.

Resumen El propósito de este artículo es introducir al concepto de rakiduam del pueblo mapuche como término relevante para la revisión crítica de una filosofía intercultural. Se propone este término como parte de un diálogo de racionalidades con el que se pretende, como segundo objetivo, vincular el conocimiento de este horizonte-otro con el reconocimiento de nuestros propios horizontes y límites de comprensión, desde dentro de la tradición de la filosofía occidental, y además, en diálogo con la antropología.The purpose of (...) this article is to introduce and make a critical revision of the mapuche peoples notion of rakiduam as part of an intercultural philosophy. Ajpart of a dialogue between rationalities we propose to link the recognition of rakiduam as a different horizon to the recognition of our own horizon and limits of understanding from within the western tradition of philosophy, and furthermore, in a dialogue with anthropology. (shrink)

In this autobiographical essay, I will sketch some events which have played a significant role in my intellectual biography. I began my career with a study of Islamic thought in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries before turning towards a study of Sufism. The exchanges, which took place with colleagues during conferences conducted by the East-West Philosophers’ Conferences, proved to be crucial for my further philosophical development. My current philosophizing is marked by a turn towards intercultural philosophy. In many (...) ways, my own intellectual biography parallels socio-political developments. What began as an intellectual exchange with Soviet fellow philosophers during the heydays of the USSR has matured towards a quest for an intercultural philosophical standpoint. (shrink)

This book presents detailed discussions from leading intercultural philosophers, arguing for and against the priority of immanence in Chinese thought and the validity of Western interpretations that attempt to import conceptions of transcendence. The authors pay close attention to contemporary debates generated from critical analysis of transcendence and immanence, including discussions of apophasis, critical theory, post-secular conceptions of society, phenomenological approaches to transcendence, possible-world models, and questions of practice and application. This book aims to explore alternative conceptions of transcendence (...) that either call the tradition in the West into question, or discover from within Western metaphysics a thoroughly dialectical way of thinking about immanence and transcendence. (shrink)

Intercultural philosophy is the name of a relatively young discipline that did not emerge in German-speaking universities until the 80s and 90s. Its goal is to establish dialogue and understanding between the diverse, often vastly heterogenous cultures to make a peaceful coexistence possible that became a necessity in the course of globalization. Cultures differ not only in respect of the religious, political and social, but also in the patterns of thinking and acting, i.e. in respect of logic, the (...) conceptions of time and space, causality or analogy etc. It cannot be assumed that there are universals of thought and action. Is it even possible to establish a dialogue under these conditions? Several theories need to be discussed: 1. In case that we assume with Gadamer that philosophy in content and form is a European project that evolved in the west, then true dialogue would only be possible under the same or similar cultural conditions, specifically under the assumption of a euro-centrism that must be imposed on all cultures if a dialogue should be possible. Habermas’ discourse theory too turns out to be a disguised euro-centrism that assumes equality of opportunity for all participants of discourse while relying on identical communicative, constative, representative and regulative speech acts that belong to western logic. 2. In case that we limit philosophy to questions of content that are for example already characteristic of children and not to questions of form that may be different in different cultures, then mutual understanding would not be entirely impossible, but difficult, since the contents would have to be translated into different verbal or averbal modes of explication, e.g. in the case of primitive cultures also into artistic, mimic, gestic modes of expression. In any case, intercultural philosophical understanding is a difficult project that has little to do with soapbox oratories of mutual understanding and the advent of uniform global peace. (shrink)

Discusses the conditions of possibility for intercultural and comparative philosophy, and for crosscultural communication at large. This innovative book explores the preconditions necessary for intercultural and comparative philosophy. Philosophical practices that involve at least two different traditions with no common heritage and whose languages have very different grammatical structure, such as Indo-Germanic languages and classical Chinese, are a particular focus. Lin Ma and Jaap van Brakel look at the necessary and not-so-necessary conditions of possibility of interpretation, (...) comparison, and other forms of interaction and how we can speak of similarities and differences in this context. The authors posit that it is necessary to dissolve the question of universalism versus relativism by replacing the ideal language paradigm with a paradigm of family resemblances and that it is not necessary to share a common language to engage in comparison. Numerous case studies are presented, including many comparisons of Western and Chinese concepts. (shrink)

This book offers a concise overview of the development of intercultural philosophy since the early 1990s, focusing on one of its key pioneers Heinz Kimmerle (1930-2016). Building on influences from Gadamer, Heidegger and Derrida, Kimmerle's approach to intercultural philosophy is radical and fosters epistemic justice. Kimmerle critically reflected on his own western philosophical tradition, highlighting the problems of a discourse based on a dominant concept of rationality, and of excluding different approaches and participants. Instead, Kimmerle developed (...) an alternative way of thinking, emphasising the importance of recognising philosophies of different cultures. He focused particularly on African philosophies in academic discourse. In the book, the many layers of Kimmerle's intercultural philosophy are revealed, exploring how dialectics, hermeneutics, deconstruction and decolonization can contribute to epistemic justice. The author goes beyond Kimmerle and demonstrates how Kimmerle's approach can be further enhanced by using an intersectional approach and by engaging in dialogue with female philosophers and artists. This new study, which also introduces unpublished and untranslated texts from Kimmerle's work in German and Dutch, will be of considerable interest to researchers of continental philosophy, intercultural and African philosophy, political philosophy, decolonial and feminist studies. (shrink)

Since the 1990s epistemic justice has been a central issue of post-colonial and feminist studies. But only during the last decade the term has become paradigmatic and new aspects of the issue have been addressed – particularly because of the works of De Sousa Santos and Fricker. One of the pioneers of an intercultural approach to philosophy is the German philosopher Heinz Kimmerle, who in the 1980s began to focus his research on African philosophies. Intercultural philosophy (...) aimed for more epistemic justice in the academy long before the term epistemic or cognitive injustice was coined and became a new paradigm in the social sciences and humanities. Kimmerle, for example, was one of the main proponents of a radical reform of the Eurocentric curricula in academic philosophy, and he called for the inclusion of philosophical traditions from various regions of the world. Similarities in the starting point of research and research questions in philosophy and post- or decolonial studies, and proposed solutions to epistemic injustice in these disciplines, give enough reason to combine the social sciences’ theories of epistemic justice with the methods of intercultural philosophy for a reciprocal cultural enrichment between these disciplines. This article shows that theories of ‘epistemic justice’ could benefit from Heinz Kimmerle’s method of dialogue and reflective listening. Similarly, insights derived from post-colonial, decolonial and feminist theory could strengthen an awareness of structural power inequalities in intercultural philosophy. Therefore, we explore how theories of epistemic justice and intercultural philosophy can complement each other. (shrink)

I very highly recommend Fundamentals of Comparative and Intercultural Philosophy by Lin Ma and Jaap van Brakel, particularly with an eye toward the interdisciplinary foci of graduate programs that deal with critical thinking in globalized contexts. My enthusiasm for this book’s accomplishments are based on the intelligibility and clarity of the authors’ arguments, from which I refreshed my familiarity with theories of language and was able to learn recent developments and apply fundamental questions of translation, interpretation, and comparison (...) that they explored vividly in exemplary case studies. The success with which the authors lay out the fundamental issues of comparative philosophy, including the histories... (shrink)

Having a better understanding of what worldviews are and how they function may be able to contribute to the resolution of conflicts which arise when people from different cultures holding different worldviews interact with each other. This paper begins by examining the nature of worldviews and how they might be approached from the perspective of intercultural philosophy. The paper then turns to meta-philosophical questions regarding the disciplinary boundaries, goals, and methods of intercultural philosophy with respect to (...) worldviews. Attention is given to the possibility of adopting a constructivist, dialectical approach to cross-cultural dialogue on worldviews. (shrink)

The phenomenological research of the you-and-me relationship and the genetic method of phenomenology give an interesting methodological advantage to the research of the intercultural philosophy. The phenomenon of the you-and-me relationship comprises three different dimensions of being-human, namely the intercorporality before the split between the subject and the object, intersubjectivity within the split and that in its abolition. On the other hand, one of the features of the genetic methodology is the philosophical approach to the pre-linguistic, pre-reflexive intercorporality (...) and intersubjectivity in the ordinary sense of the word. And it can by way of a negative method and self-limitation of reflection at least make possible a closer approach to the third level of religiousness. (shrink)

상호문화주의가 우리 사회에 꼭 필요함에도 불구하고 다문화주의와는 달리 우리나라에서 아직도 낯설다. 그래서 나는 상호문화철학의 비전을 그려보고자 한다. 이를 위해서 나는 상호문화철학의 창시자격인 Ram Adhar Mall, Franz Martin Wimmer와 Raúl Fornet-Betancourt를 검토하고자 한다. 그들은 서로 유사한 점도 있고 다른 점도 있다. 그들 사이의 공통점은 상호문화철학의 일반적인 방향이다. 상호문화철학은 서구 중심주의 비판 그리고 이로부터 문화들의 다원성 그리고 가치의 동등성을 주장한다. 그런데 차이의 인정과 관용을 주장하는 다원주의와는 달리 상호문화철학은 대화와 소통 그리고 상호변혁을 주장한다. 또한 상호문화철학도 비교철학의 일종이지만 서구 중심주의 비판을 과격하게 주장하여 탈서구를 (...) 원한다. 이러한 공통점에도 불구하고 세 상호문화철학자들은 각자의 강조점이 다르다. Mall은 해석학에 관심을 가져서 ‘유비의 해석학’을 주장한다. 서구의 전통적인 해석학은 ‘동일성의 해석학’이다. 서구인들은 자기를 기준으로 타자를 이해하려고 했다. 그 정반대에 선 것이 포스트모던의 ‘차이의 해석학’이다. 그러나 차이가 너무 강조되면 이해는 불가능해진다. 그러므로 유비의 해석학은 차이들에도 불구하고 존재하는 겹침에 주목한다. Wimmer는 대화가 서구에 의해서 주도되는 것을 강하게 반대한다. 그것은 결국 독백에 불과하다. 그 대신에 그는 모든 문화들이 어떤 한 문화의 주도권 없이 서로서로 간에 동등하게 하는 대화를 의미하는 다자 대화(Polylog)을 주장한다. Fornet-Betancourt의 관심은 매우 실천적이어서 그의 상호문화철학은 정치적, 사회적 문맥성을 강조하고 사회변혁을 목표로 한다. 그 때문에 서구가 주장하는 형식적이고 객관적인 보편성을 거부하고 정치적, 사회적 역사성에 입각한 대화를 나누기 원한다. (shrink)

Many misappropriations and exclusions have arisen from the Western tendency to reduce and manipulate the ideas and values of non- Western religions and philosophies to fit within Western concepts and categories. How might comparative philosophy and religion change if the concepts and categories of non-Western philosophies and religions were taken as primary? This volume explores this question through Western analytic and phenomenological approaches of eminent scholars from both fields, infused with fresh strategies and modalities derived from or inspired by (...) non-Western traditions. A truly groundbreaking collection,_ After Appropriation_ inaugurates an entirely new integrative discipline of comparative religion and philosophy. (shrink)

In this essay, we present a theory of intercultural philosophical dialogue and comparative philosophy, drawing on both hermeneutics and analytic philosophy. We advocate the approach of “de-essentialization” across the board. It is true that similarities and differences are always to be observed across languages and traditions, but there exist no immutable cores or essences. “De-essentialization” applies to all “levels” of concepts: everyday notions such as green and qing 青, philosophical concepts such as emotion(s) and qing 情, and (...) philosophical categories such as forms of life and dao 道. We argue that interpretation is a holistic multi-directional process constrained by the principle of mutual attunement. It is necessary to assume that “the other” is a human being, who, in most cases, is consistent and stating that which is true or right. This is the condition of possibility for intercultural philosophical dialogue and comparative philosophy. No more necessary conditions are needed. There is no need to presuppose concepts or categories that are universal for all humans and their languages (such as emotion(s) and qing 情). (shrink)

In this research, an attempt is made to interrogate the practice of intercultural philosophy with a view to showing that the critical thinking mindset is imperative for a balanced, progressive, and respectful intercultural engagement. A world in which cultures relate to one another on the basis of equality, mutual respect, and recognition of one another’s identity and rights has remained elusive. The need for such a world and the dynamics of such transcultural relations form the central themes (...) of intercultural philosophy. Specifically, this article argues that there can be no genuine intercultural discourse without the core values of critical thinking, such as open-mindedness, fair-mindedness, intellectual empathy, intellectual humility, intellectual perseverance, intellectual integrity, and intellectual courage. This article’s claim is that genuine intercultural engagement devoid of ego politics and the geopolitics of marginalization and superiorization must transcend the barriers of egocentrism and sociocentrism. Using an example of the conversational method, the authors interrogate critical thinking as an integral component of a viable intercultural discourse. (shrink)

The study of religions is essential for understanding other cultures, building a sense of belonging in a multicultural world and fostering a global intercultural dialogue. Exploring Chinese religions as one interlocutor in this dialogue, Diana Arghirescu engages with Song-dynasty Confucian and Buddhist theoretical developments through a detailed study of the original texts of the Chan scholar-monk Qisong (1007-1072) and the Neo-Confucian master Zhu Xi (1130-1200). Starting with these figures, she builds an interpretive theory focusing on "ethical interrelatedness" and proposes (...) it as a theoretical tool for the study of the Chinese religious traditions. By actively engaging with other contemporary theories of religion and refusing to approach Chinese religions with Western frameworks, Arghirescu's comparative perspective makes it possible to uncover differences between the various Western and Chinese cultural presuppositions upon which these theories are built. As such, this book breaks new ground in the methodology of religious studies, comparative philosophy and furthers our understanding of the Confucian-Buddhist interaction. (shrink)

The paper discusses Rorty’s critique and special relation to intercultural thinking. It looks into the history of both pragmatism and intercultural philosophy, discusses some of their possible points of convergence, and finally follows the implications of this encounter for our intercultural underst..