Anthony, I know Thais drop subject and sometimes even object all the time, but I thought it was just because they, like Westerners, are lazy.
For example, I could ask you: Are you hungry?, or I could just ask by saying: Hungry? (with a rising tone). That's just laziness, or being casual in your speech. I do think language does reveal the different values of culture. For example in Thai there are only 3 tenses: past, present and future; whereas there are many, many adjectives and pronouns that are used to specifically identify the speaker's relationship with the one addressed. In English there are many (27?) verb tenses and very few special pronouns. This I think shows that Westerner's value time more than Asians; whereas Asians put more importance on personal relationships than time. ...Bill! From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of ED Sent: Saturday, November 13, 2010 9:53 AM To: [email protected] Subject: [Zen] Re: FW: Quote from St. Thomas Aquinas The Geography of Thought: How Culture Colors the Way the Mind ... --- In [email protected], Anthony Wu <wu...@...> wrote: > > ED, > > That is not the way it is. It is too complicated to explain, but the oriental way is different from occidental. The former is synthetic, while the latter analytical. So you need subjects, objects, predicates, adverbials and other nonsense to try to complete your analysis. In other words, the westerners are more discriminating (in general). > > Anthony > Anthony, > I think the reason is that Zen Masters use the Tantric principle that one should behave in ways as if one already possesses that which one aspires to attain; in this case, to possess a non-dualistic mind that does not discriminate between subject and object. > --ED > > ED, > > > > Many oriental sentences are without subjects or objects. Bill is completely adjusted to Thailand, and the zen way. They are very grammatical here. > > > > Anthony > > Bill, > > Nice succinct answer. > > And, question: Your zen-like statement in ungrammatical, without subject or object. Is this a zen tradition of speaking, with a view to training the mind out of its customary dualistic mode of experiencing reality? > > Thank you, ED > > Mayka and Ed, > > > > Or perhaps Bill! would say: 'No effort, no judgment, no grasping, no > > pushing-away, no concepts - Just THIS! > > > > ...Bill! __________ Information from ESET NOD32 Antivirus, version of virus signature database 5616 (20101112) __________ The message was checked by ESET NOD32 Antivirus. http://www.eset.com __________ Information from ESET NOD32 Antivirus, version of virus signature database 5616 (20101112) __________ The message was checked by ESET NOD32 Antivirus. http://www.eset.com __________ Information from ESET NOD32 Antivirus, version of virus signature database 5616 (20101112) __________ The message was checked by ESET NOD32 Antivirus. http://www.eset.com ------------------------------------ Current Book Discussion: any Zen book that you recently have read or are reading! Talk about it today!Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Zen_Forum/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Zen_Forum/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: [email protected] [email protected] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [email protected] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
