Comprehensive Knowledge: Neo-Confucian Principles (Li 理 ) and Unification Epistemology

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1 Discussion Draft Only: Not for Citation or Publication Comprehensive Knowledge: Neo-Confucian Principles (Li 理 ) and Unification Epistemology Dr. Thomas Selover Cheongshim Graduate School of Theology One of the significant questions in epistemology is the extent to which different orders of knowledge can be comprehended under the same methodology and system of knowledge. Can accurate knowledge of external things, self-knowledge, knowledge of other persons, and spiritual knowledge be comprehended by the same epistemological system? Unification epistemology claims that it can do so. In this paper, I propose to explore and develop this claim, by using a comparison of Unification epistemology with traditional Neo-Confucian epistemology. Introduction To a great extent, the explanations of Unification Thought in various published books, including the Epistemology chapters, have been developed in dialogue with major currents in Western philosophy, especially the thought of Immanuel Kant and Karl Marx. This paper begins from the premise that it is also fruitful to explore and develop Unification Thought in comparison with other intellectual traditions of the world, such as those found in East Asian philosophy. Accordingly, this paper will explore some of the resonances between Unification Thought and Neo-Confucian thought. 1 Like Unification Thought, Neo-Confucian thought is epistemologically realist. Both Unificationists and Neo-Confucians are confident that the world which we perceive around us exists apart from the human subject who perceives and cognizes it. 2 Both agree that our cognition can and does provide real knowledge of the real world beyond our minds. Historically, the Neo-Confucians made a major point of this because their rivals at the time, the Buddhists, were denying it. For purposes of this paper, realism will be taken as the shared ground or common base for the comparison between Unification and Neo-Confucian epistemologies. The paper will proceed by considering four areas of knowledge in turn: knowledge of external things, self-knowledge, knowledge of other persons, and spiritual knowledge. For each area, Neo-Confucian and Unification approaches will be compared. These four sections will be followed by a brief investigation of limitations and distortions that affect knowledge, 1 By Neo-Confucian thought, I mean the revival of philosophical interest in the resources of the Confucian tradition that began in the 11 th and 12 th centuries in China and later spread to Korea and Japan. 2 See New Essentials of Unification Thought: Head-Wing Thought, 2006, p. 401: Unification Thought, first of all, acknowledges that all things exist objectively, outside the human being; that is, it accepts realism. 1

2 and then the paper will conclude with a discussion of the purpose of knowledge, in light of the Principle of Creation. A. Knowledge of External Objects Traditional Neo-Confucian epistemology is an expansion of early Confucian thought in the direction of a consistent, somewhat rationalistic account of the possibility of knowledge. Neo-Confucian epistemology is pre-scientific in its overall approach, having been initially conceived during the Song 宋 dynasty period in China (especially during the 11 th and 12 th centuries) and then further developed in Korea and Japan as well as in China. This philosophical perspective came to be known as li xue 理學 after its fundamental organizing concept of li ( 理, principle or pattern). There were some earlier usages of li in the history of East Asian thought, along the lines of order or orderliness, even of a piece of writing or an examination essay. However, in the hands of the Neo-Confucian thinkers, li came to be identified with that by which a thing is what it is and the standard according to which it ought to be. 3 Zhu Xi ( 朱熹 ), the great systematizer of Neo-Confucian thought, considered li as the foundation of his philosophical approach. Though Zhu Xi speaks of a kind of logical priority of li over the vital energy of qi 氣, li as the principle in and of things is not reducible to words or definitions. In Neo-Confucian thought, li signifies the inherent principles of the natural world, as well as the human ability to understand those principles (intelligibility). For Neo-Confucian thought, li is both singular and plural; li is/are fundamentally immanent in the world of experience. In terms of objective phenomena, the li are perceivable as the principle or pattern of specific objects. Zhu Xi taught that discernment of li happens through a process of "investigation of things" (ge-wu 格物 ). The idea of investigation of things is based on a classic Confucian text, known as the Great Learning, which became newly important as a guide for Neo-Confucian learning. According to the eight steps of the Great Learning, investigation of things leads to extension of knowledge (zhi zhi 致知 ). For Zhu Xi, the gradual extension of knowledge through investigation of things is the basic formula for principled learning. No matter what kind of entity it might be, there must necessarily be a corresponding li that describes and prescribes it. At the same time, li is also the one unitary principle that unites all things. This Neo-Confucian insight is summarized in the philosophical axiom that the principle is one; the manifestations are many (li yi fen shu 理一分殊 ). The li as universal means that all things are connected and make sense together. For the Neo-Confucians, a sudden awareness of this connectedness ( 忽然貫通 huran guantong), of cohesiveness and coherence, is the sign of the achievement of comprehensive knowledge. 3 See A.C. Graham, Two Chinese Philosophers. 2

3 Turning to Unification epistemology, it is well known that the concept of li (principle, pattern) is a fundamental organizing concept for Divine Principle (K. wolli 原理 ) as well as for Unification Thought. Nevertheless, Unification epistemology is usually explained by contrast with Western epistemologies, so that the similarities and differences between Neo- Confucian and Unification understandings of li have not yet been fully explored. Instead, Unification epistemology uses a different set of basic terms to articulate its fundamental insights. Unification epistemology emphasizes accurate knowledge of external objects among all things (K. manmul 萬物 ). The most recent publications on Unification Thought add material on brain physiology to support Unification epistemology s claim to provide a superior account of the accurate cognition of external objects. This is the most developed aspect of Unification epistemology among the four areas of knowledge that we are considering in this paper. In describing the mechanism of knowledge of external objects, Unification epistemology begins from an account of the object of cognition, focusing on measurable qualities or attributes of physical objects, such as shape, weight, length, motion, color, sound, etc. These qualities are then complemented by identical qualities on the part of the knowing subject (the subject of cognition). 4 Based on this identity of attributes, Unification epistemology postulates a proto-consciousness of such external objects, based on awareness of those same qualities of the cells of one s own body. As explained in New Essentials: The content in the mind of the subject is the prototype, or more accurately, that part of the prototype that corresponds to the content. This refers to the protoimage, which appears in the protoconsciousness The protoimage is a mental image that exists in correspondence with the attributes of the human body. 5 The human body, as the microcosm of the physical universe, is taken as the middle term between the human mind and the external objects of knowledge. The strength of this approach is to provide a firm grounding for recognition of those external objects. Because of the connection between human beings and all things in terms of the prototypes based on the cells of the human body, Unification epistemology expresses confidence that completely accurate knowledge of all things is not only possible, but assured: Furthermore, since the human being and all things are in the relationship of subject and object, we can know all things fully and correctly. 6 4 New Essentials, p. 404: Since the object of cognition is all things, the content of an object refers to the various attributes it possesses, namely, shape, weight, length, motion, color, sound, smell, taste, and so on On the other hand, the subject of cognition is a human being; therefore, the content of the subject refers to the various attributes that a human being possesses, which actually are the same as the attributes of all things, that is, material content, such as, shape, weight, length, motion, color, sound, smell, taste, and so on. 5 New Essentials, p New Essentials, p

4 It seems that Unification epistemology affirms that there are no theoretical or absolute limits to human cognition. All things are inherently knowable, and the human mind is prepared (or designed) for knowledge. This significant positive point about our cognitive abilities is amply supported by the Principle of Creation of Divine Principle. 7 The capacity for knowledge, described in terms of the prototypes, is necessary but not sufficient for cognition to take place. The additional necessary element on the part of the subject of cognition is described in Unification epistemology as interest. This interest or desire to extend knowledge is stimulated by confidence in the knowledge that we already have, revealing the world as it really is. Interest on the part of the subject, along with the presence of the prototypes, provides for the possibility of cognition through the give and receive process that is at the core of Unification epistemology (and Unification Thought generally): The give and receive method, that is, the principle of give and receive action between subject and object, is the method in Unification epistemology. 8 Accordingly, Unification epistemology is known as give-and-receive epistemology. Unification epistemology further makes the mechanism and process of give and receive explicit in the form of collation : Cognition takes place as a prototype within the mind (internal image) and an image coming from an external object (external image) are collated. 9 As the Unification Thought books point out, the collation method as an explanation of cognition incorporates the strengths of both empiricist and rationalist epistemologies. It is significant that Unification epistemology is able to specify consistent characteristics of the prototypes of all things, in terms of the dual characteristics of Yin and Yang, and of internal and external. These dual characteristics, in turn, form reciprocal relationships in actually existing things. Thus, reciprocity is both the character of the objects of cognition and also the principle or method of perception and cognition itself. Properly perceived, what we discover in cognition is reciprocity, a pair system at every level of reality. In other words, we come to perceive relationality and reciprocity in the world of all things, such as the pair system among male and female animals and plants. At the same time, according to Unification epistemology, it is through relationality and reciprocity itself that perception and cognition are possible, through the process of collation. Therefore, we can say that our cognition is also moral knowledge in terms of our human selfunderstanding. All knowledge is moral knowledge, because it teaches and reinforces the fundamental relationality and reciprocity that is at the core of what it means to be human. 7 See Exposition of the Divine Principle, p. 46f. 8 New Essentials, p New Essentials, p

5 There is a family resemblance between the Neo-Confucian concept of li (principle or pattern, 理 ) and the Unification understanding of prototypes. Each of these concepts has the role of explaining how accurate cognition is possible. As we have seen, li is both multiple and unitary. For each thing there is a li that corresponds with it, just as there is a prototype for each thing. Yet at the same time, all the li are comprehended as one li, the principle or pattern of all things together. In the same way, the prototypes of Unification epistemology allow for accurate knowledge thing by thing, and yet because they are based on the pattern of the (unitary) human body, they all cohere with one another, producing not only accurate knowledge of individual things but also a coherent, meaningful cosmos. It is clear that Unification epistemology provides a superior account of the knowledge of external things. It is much more detailed and nuanced in describing both the possibility of knowledge of external objects and the way in which knowledge of external objects coheres to form a meaningful cosmos, based on the microcosm of the human body. Unification epistemology thus makes clear various aspects of the knowledge of external things that are left vague in Neo-Confucian epistemology. B. Self-Knowledge In the previous section, we pointed out the superiority of Unification epistemology over Neo- Confucian epistemology in its handling of the grounds for accurate knowledge of external objects. Turning to the other fields of knowledge, this paper will suggest that Neo-Confucian epistemology can make a contribution to Unification epistemology by stimulating its further development in articulating the other fields. Traditional Neo-Confucian epistemology, though it lacks some elements of accuracy and is pre-scientific in its overall approach, has the benefit of a drawing upon a foundational connection between external investigation and internal self-knowledge. Although Zhu Xi made gewu (investigation of things) the basis for his Neo-Confucian theory of knowledge and practice, on closer inspection it is not primarily an empirical investigation of all things (wanwu) leading in the direction of natural science. In practice, Zhu Xi was less interested in the things of the natural world than in the kind of self-knowledge that can spur moral selfcultivation. Zhu Xi let his students know that the core items for fruitful investigation and extension of knowledge are to be found in the Confucian classics and other important writings of the cultural and spiritual tradition. Thus, the Neo-Confucian discussion of knowledge leads very quickly to moral knowledge and action, and a vigorous practice of selfcultivation. Zhu s system of Neo-Confucian thought came to dominate both China and Korea, providing a strong link between personal knowledge and self-cultivation, with a correspondingly weak impetus for external or scientific knowledge. As the concept of li gained philosophical ground among Song period thinkers, it became identified with the fundamentally good qualities of human nature itself (xing, 性, 성 ), which had been discussed ever since the classical period of early Confucian thought (5 th -3 rd centuries BCE). Following Mencius, the Neo-Confucians re-affirmed human nature to be real 5

6 and good, the site of the four sprouts of goodness. 10 Mencius famous example of suddenly seeing a child about to fall into a well and feeling commiseration and alarm illustrates the vividness of the spontaneous reaction that is the sprout or beginning of human-kindness. This spontaneous reaction is immediately recognizable and knowable, and yet it is tied to a particular occasion. The Neo-Confucians connected this classical Confucian example of spontaneous goodness to the new organizing pattern of li. The effect was to underscore the knowability of one s own originally good nature as the foundation of selfknowledge. The summary phrase that the Neo-Confucians used to mark this insight was xing ji li 性即 理, meaning that the xing (human nature) is the fundamental pattern or principle of human life. Just as external things have that by which they are what they are, so human life also has a defining pattern or principle. Xing ji li means that the locus of li in the individual person is in the original human nature (benxing 本性 ), characterized fundamentally by the four core moral values of human-kindness, righteousness, propriety and wisdom, (ren, yi, li, zhi; 仁義禮智 ). As a result of the identification of xing with li, those fundamental personal qualities of original goodness are linked to the objective world of all things. If so, the very possibility of cognition of external things is intimately linked with the moral nature of human beings through the shared concept of li. In this sense, from a Neo-Confucian point of view, there is no proper cognition apart from or severed from the moral perception of human life. For the Neo-Confucians, the li are most apparent to the kind of knowledge that accompanies self-cultivation, leading even to the highest form of human life, becoming a sage or saint (shengren 聖人 ). Neo-Confucian thus epistemology begins from the introspective knowledge of one s own inner nature, and extends outward to the perception of order in the world, and thence to detailed cognition of all things ( 萬物 ). 11 Zhu Xi and his students distinguished between the moral mind (Dao-xin 道心 ) and the ordinary human mind (ren-xin 人心 ) within human consciousness. They were concerned about the subtlety of the moral mind, meaning that confident knowledge of one s own moral mind is much more difficult than we tend to think or imagine. The ordinary human mind-field, they felt, can be dangerously misleading in its uncharted ambiguity. The originally good human nature is the starting point for self-knowledge, but it is not the only aspect that human beings need to know about themselves. There are also counter tendencies, even evil tendencies in human beings as well, requiring self-cultivation to manage. There was an early version of Confucian thought which held that human nature itself is evil. 12 While the Neo-Confucians rejected that view and insisted on the goodness of human nature, 10 See Mencius 2A6. The four sprouts (siduan 四端 ) described by Mencius are compassion, disdain, deference, and approval/disapproval. 11 This internal focus is felt even more strongly in the later Neo-Confucian thought of Wang Yangming ( ). 12 See the classic essay by Xunzi, Human Nature is Evil. 6

7 they nevertheless recognized unwholesome tendencies, described in terms of selfish human desires (see Section E, below). Deepening self-knowledge led to a deeper awareness of the need for self-cultivation. In Unification Thought, human nature is described under the topic of Theory of the Original Human Nature. There is a detailed description of human nature in terms of two sets of dual characteristics, internal character and external form and Yang and Yin. The question for Unification epistemology is: how do we come to know that this is so? How would a person know that the theory of original human nature is an accurate and relevant description of that person s own human nature? How can the theory of original human nature become the content of self-knowledge? One important clue is provided by the connection between cognition and dominion: Cognition is closely associated with dominion. There is no dominion without cognition, and there is no cognition without dominion. 13 Applied to the field of self-knowledge, this would imply that self-knowledge advances along with dominion over oneself. Knowledge of one s body itself is surely part of self-knowledge, often underestimated, and yet the core values of the heart-and-mind are also essential to self-knowledge. For Unification epistemology, the original mind, which is the unity of the spirit mind and physical mind, manages sensation and memory while oriented to values (truth, goodness, and beauty). 14 In terms of identifying the fundamental (good) prototypes of the human heart-and-mind, it may be that Unification epistemology will develop in closer proximity to the other main stream of Neo-Confucian thought, which held that xin ji li ( 心即理 ), the (original) mind itself is the inherent principle li. For both Neo-Confucian and Unification epistemologies, this touchstone of the heart-andmind is not only essential for authentic self-knowledge, but also forms the basis for genuine knowledge of other persons. C. Knowledge of Other Persons Authentic, verifiable and reliable knowledge of other persons is of critical importance to us, yet few would claim that the kind of objective which is possible (and appropriate) for objects is possible for inter-human knowledge. Instead, authentic knowledge of other persons must include another standard of knowledge than simply that appropriate to external things. Neo-Confucian thought relies to a large extent on earlier Confucian insights concerning human-relatedness and the knowledge that goes with it. One classical Confucian method of learning about other persons and how to treat them is found in the concept shu 恕, 13 New Essentials, p New Essentials, p

8 translated by Herbert Fingarette as analogizing to oneself. 15 Fingarette goes on to point out that the appropriate analogy is not between the respective situations of oneself and other persons, but rather between oneself as a subject of cognition and another subject. In his classic description of the four sprouts of goodness cited earlier, Mencius draws out the consequences in terms of both self-knowledge and knowledge of others: To have these four sprouts but to say of oneself that one is unable [to be virtuous] is to rob oneself. To say that one s lord is unable [to be virtuous] is to rob one's lord. 16 The implication is that to view any other person as not being able to be virtuous is to rob that person. Thus extending this principle of the four sprouts to all other persons means that one acknowledges the other persons as indeed having the four sprouts of goodness as their core human nature. This is significant knowledge about those other persons. Confucius said, When I walk along with two others, they may serve me as my teachers. I will select their good qualities and follow them, their bad qualities and avoid them. 17 For Confucian thought, knowledge of others thus provides an opportunity through reflection (similar to collation ) to enhance self-knowledge as well. Reflecting on the virtue of ritual propriety ( 禮 li), Cheng Yi ( ), a close Neo- Confucian predecessor of Zhu Xi, identifies propriety with principle ( 理 li). In summary, he said, whatever is against li (propriety) is against li (principle). 18 Cheng Yi thus linked a key classical Confucian standard of how to treat others with the Neo-Confucian standard and basis of knowledge (principle). In the words of a later idiom, People accord with this heartand-mind; the heart-and-mind accords with this principle. 19 Self-knowledge helps us to understand other persons, and vice versa, knowledge of others helps us to know ourselves, for the betterment of ourselves and others. Unification epistemology in principle also includes knowledge of other persons in its range of knowledge. 20 However, we have seen above that the focus in current expressions of Unification epistemology is on knowledge of external things. Therefore, human attributes that would be important for self-knowledge and knowledge of other persons are deemphasized. 21 The current versions of Unification epistemology thus leave out of account those qualities of human beings (others and ourselves) in which we are most interested, such as the features of personality. Though there is acknowledgement that we are interested in 15 See Herbert Fingarette, Following the one thread of the Analects, Journal of the American Academy of Religion 47, no. 35, September 1979, pp Mencius 2A6. 17 Analects 7: See Huang Yong, Cheng Yi s Moral Philosophy in Dao Companion to Neo-Confucian Philosophy, edited by John Makeham, pp The idiom is 人同此心, 心同此理. 20 New Essentials, p. 416: As objects of cognition, there are all things in nature, as well as things, events, and persons in human society. 21 New Essentials, p. 404: Usually when we talk about human attributes, in many cases we are referring to reason, freedom, spirituality, etc., but in epistemology, since we are dealing with the resemblance in content, we focus on the same attributes as those of the object (all things). 8

9 personal knowledge (knowledge of other persons, as well as of ourselves), there is a need for further explanation of the mechanism of such knowledge, as well as its standard. The term personal knowledge is helpful because it reminds us that the human subject is also involved and implicated in all inter-human knowledge. There is an on-going collation process between internally experienced mental and emotional states and the outward signs of such states observed in others. In this way, we come to form judgments about the well-being of others, and also check our own self-knowledge. In developing Unification epistemology further, the principle of the prototype can also be applied to knowledge of other persons. In this case, the prototype includes not only the physical characteristics of the human body but also the full nuances of one s own human heart-and-mind. The consequence is that the more fully a person is aware of the nuances of his or her own heart-and-mind, the more fully he or she will be able to have empathetic knowledge of other persons. By the principle of reciprocity this knowledge of others in turn can broaden and deepen one s own self-knowledge and self-understanding. This kind of personal knowledge is itself a reciprocal process, a knowing while being known. This aspect of personal knowledge is beautifully captured by the Unification Thought term collation. Indeed, reciprocity is one of the most profoundly and personally significant things that we learn through cognition. D. Spiritual Knowledge One of the strengths of the Neo-Confucian concept of li is that it does not divide the world of our experience into material and spiritual the li (and qi ) include spiritual realities as well as the more commonly perceived physical realities. Thus, Neo-Confucian epistemology suggests a kind of natural extendability of the principles of cognition of the visible world to invisible but real entities of the spiritual world. In this way, the principle of reciprocity can be extended to applications for which the object of cognition is of a higher order than the subject. For Zhu Xi, all real phenomena are governed by li. Zhu tells his students that ghosts and spirits (guishen 鬼神 ), as well as the Lord of Heaven, all abide by the li, which establish the nature and quality of every real phenomenon. The Neo-Confucians are not materialists in a western sense and admit the existence of spiritual beings. However, they insist that ghosts and spirits must follow the principle, and are in that sense rational (=intelligible, knowable). When one of Confucius disciples asked him about knowledge or wisdom, Confucius gave the following advice: Respect ghosts and spirits but keep a distance. 22 For Confucius, spiritual knowledge is definitely included in the range of important human knowledge, but it is tempered with the caution that one ought not to become enthralled or entangled in interchanges with the spirit world. Instead, the proper way to relate with spiritual beings is based on the principles of human relations, as shown in Confucius response to the question 22 Analects 6:22: jing gueishen er yuan zhi 敬鬼神而遠之. 9

10 of how to serve ghosts and spirits. He replied: If you can't yet serve human beings, how can you serve the spirits? 23 For the Neo-Confucians, this sense of propriety in relation to spiritual beings was an important element of spiritual knowledge, complementing the sense of principled intelligibility. In relation to knowledge of spiritual beings also, li (propriety) is li (principle). How does Unification epistemology handle the possibility of spiritual cognition and spiritual knowledge? The original Unification Thought book, in a section on Spiritual Cognition, refers to cognition of spiritual beings: Besides all these, there are the spiritual cognitions belonging to the senses of the spirit man such as spiritual intuition, inspiration and ESP (extrasensory perception). In order to clarify the meaning of cognition perfectly we must enter these fields. (In fact, there have been many cases in which inventions, discoveries, and the creation of new theories depended on spiritual cognition.) However, there are so few people who have conscious spiritual experiences that we omit the explanation of this problem at this time to avoid unnecessary misunderstanding. 24 Later versions of Unification epistemology have not yet taken up the challenge of including this kind of spiritual knowledge in the range of authentic cognition. Eventually, cognition of spiritual phenomena should be very clear and principled. Since Unification epistemology s account of cognition of external things is based on the prototypes available in the microcosmic structure of the human body itself, is there a corresponding spiritual set of prototypes, based on the content and form of the spirit body? Can the principle of prototypes also apply to cognition of spiritual beings? If so, spiritual perception and cognition would be based on spiritual prototypes in one s own spirit body (and spirit mind, for values). We are able to verify the prototypes on the physical plane, because we can study the organs and cells of the human body through medical science. But perhaps we are not far from being able to reliably detect and study the spirit body as well. In Section A, we discussed the coherence of the pattern of all things that is comprehended in the Neo-Confucian concept of li as well as in Unification epistemology s concept of prototypes. Through the revelation of Divine Principle, the further step is to see the coherent pattern of the cosmos as the intelligent and loving design of God, our Creator and Parent. There is an intriguing footnote in the Epistemology chapter of the original Unification Thought book, which says that God can be an object of human cognition: Not only things, but also man, and even God, can be the objects of cognition. In status (position), God is the subject of man. But so far as cognition is concerned, since the one who recognizes is regarded as the subject, God 23 Analects 11:12: wei neng shi ren, yan neng shi gui 未能事人, 焉能事鬼? 24 Unification Thought, p

11 becomes the object. However, one can not see God as a concrete image; God can only be known spiritually through Heart. 25 So far, knowledge of God, which would seem to be a key point of spiritual knowledge, has not yet been clarified or developed in Unification epistemology. As revealed in Divine Principle, God is a God of Heart. To know and understand God in this way, spiritual teaching is needed, but we also have the prototype of our own sungsang internal character, as well as the knowledge of other persons extended based on that prototype, so that both self-knowledge and knowledge of other persons become an extended prototype for knowledge of God. E. Limitations and Distortions of Knowledge While it might be theoretically possible for human beings to know all things fully and correctly, at any given point in history, our human knowledge has limitations. These limitations affect each of us as an individual and all of us together, in relation to knowledge of external things, self-knowledge, knowledge of other persons, and spiritual knowledge. Therefore, it is essential to be aware of and acknowledge these limitations of knowledge in order to give a full account of human knowledge and to advance its development. According to the classic definition of knowledge attributed to Confucius, To say you know when you know, and to say you do not know when you do not, that is knowledge. 26 Clearly, human knowledge develops in history, over the course of time. Indeed, the late nineteenth-century confidence that just about everything was already known has been shattered repeatedly by new conceptions and paradigm shifts. The Consummation of History chapter of Divine Principle cites the increasingly rapid development of human scientific knowledge as a positive sign of the last days. Divine Principle is explicit that the providence of restoration to the originally created human state can be understood as the gradual overcoming of two types of ignorance, internal and external. On further examination, however, this ignorance is not simply a limitation or absence of correct knowledge, a simple not-yet that is on its way to fulfillment. Rather, it appears that there are fundamental distortions in our knowledge; human knowledge is not only incomplete but also biased and skewed. Although an originally good human nature may be affirmed in principle, the empirical self of which we have direct self-knowledge, and through which we have all kinds of knowledge, is itself flawed. A truly comprehensive epistemology must give an account of the problems of knowledge that result from this distortion, and how to solve them. Though the Neo-Confucians insist that humans have the completely good li at the core of our hearts and minds, they certainly know that we ordinary human beings are not sages, and that our potential for accurate and consistent perception and cognition of li is typically 25 Unification Thought, p. 205 (note). 26 See Analects 2:17; 知之為知之, 不知為不知, 是知也. 11

12 impaired by something. Neo-Confucian epistemology accounts for the interference that distorts human knowledge of principle with the concept of selfish human desires (renyu 人 欲 or siyu 私欲 ). The countervailing pull of selfish human desires obscures awareness of principle and contaminates perception and cognition of ordinary objects in the world. If our perception and cognition were not distorted, we would know that all li are connected to form one comprehensive pattern, which the Neo-Confucians called Heavenly Principle (Tianli 天理 ). In terms of moral psychology, Neo-Confucian Heavenly Principle is cognate with and comparable to Original Principle (K. Wolli 原理 ) in Unification thought. 27 In fact, however, we do not perceive Heavenly Principle in that way because of selfish human desires. The Neo-Confucians posit a stark dichotomy and opposition between Heavenly Principle and selfish desire (tianli 天理 and renyu 人欲 ) vying for our attention. Given this situation, the Neo-Confucians recommend the attitude and practice of inquiring thoroughly or exhaustively into principle(s) (qiong li 窮理 ). This means to invest everything in order to broaden and deepen our understanding, but at the same time to approach "all things" with an attitude of sincere respect (jing 敬 ). To do this, they developed selfcultivation practices, including scriptural study and a form of meditation known as quietsitting. The Neo-Confucian practice of quiet-sitting is a reflective practice, collating the words and teachings of the sages with the contours of one s own lived experience. These Neo-Confucian self-cultivation practices were aimed at a gradual process of step-by-step decreasing the influence of selfish human desires and becoming more fully aware of Heavenly Principle. The current expressions of Unification epistemology do not discuss the distorting factors that impair cognition. However, corresponding to the interfering pull of human desires, Divine Principle describes fallen nature in terms of four types of sin personal, collective, hereditary, and original. 28 Unification theology has an elaborate account of fallen nature and the origin of evil, drawing heavily on biblical sources, and other chapters of Unification Thought also discuss evil in detail. By acknowledging the distorting effects of fallen nature on cognition, Unification epistemology can then explicitly prescribe methods by which to overcome those distortions and enhance knowledge. Cognition in all four areas knowledge of external things, self-knowledge, knowledge of other persons, and spiritual knowledge is affected by the problem of fallen nature. Our tendency to perceive and cognize via the purpose for the individual, without reference to the purpose for the whole, means that even cognition of external physical objects is 27 This cognate relationship was pointed out to me some years ago by Michael Kalton, a scholar of Korean Neo- Confucianism. See his work on Yi T oegye s Ten Diagrams of Sagely Learning (Songhak Sipto), helpfully posted on his website at 28 See Exposition of the Divine Principle, especially pp To the four types of sin could be added the role of evil spirits (resentful spirits) in blocking correct perception even of objects in the physical world, such that they appear as "one-dimensional" in terms of value and purpose. 12

13 skewed. 29 The other three areas of knowledge are even more susceptible to these distorting effects. Given this situation, there is a need for practical methods that can enable human subjects of cognition to increase the possibility of accurate knowledge. For example, the Unification hoondokhae ( 訓讀會 ) tradition of thoroughly investigating and discussing scriptural sources can be fruitfully related to the Neo-Confucian practice of "qiong li" ( 窮理, exhaustively studying principle). Both are practices aimed at realizing the connection between the Principle and the circumstances of our actual life in order to strengthen our ability to overcome obstacles to knowledge. Unification cultivation practices such as hoondokhae study, prayer, and the chanyang sessions of the Cheongpyeong training center stimulate the original mind and counter the influence of selfish human desires, fallen nature and evil spiritual atmospheres, thus increasing the clarity of perception and cognition. For both Unification and Neo-Confucian epistemologies, there is a direct connection between spiritual cultivation practices and enhancing the actual possibility of clear and accurate knowledge. Conclusion: The Purpose of Knowledge We have seen that through the principle of the prototype, Unification epistemology s account of our knowledge of external things can be naturally extended to include selfknowledge, knowledge of other persons, and spiritual knowledge. This paper has attempted to suggest ways of extension by offering comparisons with the Neo-Confucian epistemology of principle. It is in accord with the basic framework of Unification Thought to extend the range of Unification epistemology in this way, because such extended knowledge is fundamentally connected to the overall context and purpose of human life. That purpose for human life is expressed in Divine Principle as the fulfillment of the God-given Three Great Blessings: Be fruitful, multiply, and have dominion. Once the connection between knowledge and purpose is made explicit, we can recognize that the appropriate standard for the pursuit of knowledge is what enables the fulfillment of the Three Great Blessings. For fulfilling the first blessing, which is the completion of individual character, selfknowledge and self-awareness is necessary. Therefore, one's own mind and body, and the relationship of mind and body, must be a possible object of cognition. Then the practice of accomplishing this first blessing is also a journey toward overcoming the distortion (selfish desire, fallen nature) that affects all aspects of our knowledge. For fulfilling the second blessing, which is multiplying goodness through the couple and family, knowledge of other persons, specifically family relations, is necessary. Therefore, other persons must be potential objects for cognition. Second blessing knowledge is a combination of first blessing knowledge (internal) and third blessing knowledge (external), 29 With respect to cognition, these dual purposes are explained in New Essentials (p. 414) as follows: For human beings, the purpose for the whole in cognition is to acquire knowledge for the sake of serving one s neighbors, society, nation, and the world, while the purpose for the individual is to acquire knowledge for the sake of the individual s life of food, clothing, shelter, and cultural life. 13

14 because we both observe other people as external objects of cognition and analogize between their internal reality and our own (by shu 恕 reciprocity, analogizing to one s self). Through the practice of accomplishing the second blessing, empathetic knowledge of others will broaden and deepen one s own self-knowledge and self-understanding. For fulfilling the third blessing, which is loving dominion over all things, cognition and knowledge of all things is required. As pointed out earlier, Unification epistemology draws a direct connection between cognition and dominion: There is no dominion without cognition, and there is no cognition without dominion. In the practice of accomplishing the third blessing, collation works in both directions: perception of principle in the natural world reinforces one s moral perception of human nature and the purpose of human life, including one s own life specifically. That moral perception in turn gives insight into the human significance of the things of the external world. Since extended knowledge is necessary for the fulfillment of the Three Great Blessings, it could be said that the God-given purpose of cognition is to enable human beings to fulfill the Three Great Blessings (the core purpose of life). This is an extension of the point that the relation between subject and object in cognition is not arbitrary. Human beings are created by God as knowledge (and value) seekers. As explained in New Essentials, In God s purpose of creation, Heart (love) was the motivation for creation. Therefore, the original way of cognition for human beings is, also, to cognize all things with love as the motivation. 30 Because all three of the Great Blessings are fulfilled through Four-Position Foundations with God at the origin point, it is clear that spiritual knowledge is necessarily applied in fulfilling all three blessings. In each case, spiritual knowledge of God is essential to properly orienting the other aspects of knowledge: Consequently, only when centered on God s love, will the human being understand the purpose of creation of all things and obtain true knowledge of them. 31 Extending that true knowledge to include self-knowledge, knowledge of other persons and spiritual knowledge, we come to experience comprehensive knowledge, knowing even as we are known by God and loving even as we are loved. 30 New Essentials, p New Essentials, p