Monism: Definition, Varieties, Monistic Philosophers & UPSC Notes

Monism is the philosophy that everything in reality can be reduced to one thing. This perspective is the contrary of what dualism presents as a reality being boiled down to two things: good and evil, light and darkness, body and soul, etc. However, in spite of being the opposite notions, the meanings of monism and dualism may be used only once. Whereas in monism there is emphasis on a single thing, in dualism, there is emphasis on two separate things. The two terms of dualism can be broken down to form a single entity of monism once comprehended. Monism ascribes unity or singleness to a thought. The monist believes that the one precedes its parts and therefore considers the world to be fundamental. For instance, one circle always precedes the two semicircles that form the entire circle. 

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Monism relevance within UPSC Sociology can be explained by the fact that it has been used to describe the theories of social reality and the behaviour of human beings using an integrated identity. It is an advocate of sociological ideologies that emphasise the entire society as an interdependent entity, which shapes issues such as social integration, functionalism and cultural cohesion. In paper I, monism helps in making sense of the theoretical approach, particularly in explicating the character of social reality. In Indian Sociology (paper II), monistic thought is related to other Indian philosophical cultures such as Advaita Vedanta. It assists in contextualising the thought of social sciences in the particular Indian cultural situation. Among the aspirants of UPSC, knowledge of monism enhances clarity of ideas and reinforces the analytical answers to theory-type questions. Join the UPSC coaching today and boost your preparation. 

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What is Monism?

Monism refers to the philosophical views concerning the belief that reality consists of a single entity or being, which is the ground of existence. It believes that all the things in the world, like the mind, the matter or the spirit, are absolutely the same. Monism denies the theory of dualism (mind and body are separate) and pluralism (of substances). It provides a coherent perception of the world in both Indian and Western philosophy and aids in the description of being, mind, and the interrelationship of life and social recognition.

The philosophers who assume the oneness or unification of reality are termed monists,s or the philosophy is termed monism. It lacks a good historical antecedent, and this makes it a conceptual label. Philosophers have long been attempting to comprehend diversity and the way of unification of everything. People were even drawn into this spirit of oneness to the extent that some of them rejected the plurality of things. 

Monism is the attitude that does not belong to a specific association that shows it. It does not have a particular representation of any kind. Nevertheless, it also remains a significant perspective on different teachings. With this diversified application of monism, the real meaning is also impeded in no wise. It continues to be grounded upon its real meaning, i.e., oneness. Monists think that existence is founded only upon one supreme type of being. It means that the individual is composed of the body only or the mind only.

Monism has never been proved to be a fallacious belief. There are slots that the complete can be in front of them. According to such a theory, there are derived (parts) and the antecedent (whole). Whether parts exist or not is not the historical debate; it is a matter of which is prior. We shall get a sense of the monastic attitude, conceived as follows: the world is plural, but the plurality here is a frail dependency of a cohesive unity. It does not look at the worth of the specifics as compared to the entirety. This is the reason why it has not been widely adopted in the religious and philosophical issues in the Asian and Western parts of the world. 

Monism is considered in three forms:

• Physicalism or materialism. Under this, there is only physical matter. Physical matter can be used to derive all intellectual things
• Idealism or phenomenalism. This form of monism is the contrary of physicalism
• In this doctrine, however, there is a third substance that can reduce both the body and the mind.

Varieties of Monism

There are a number of monisms depending on different perspectives held by other philosophers. In oneness, it is upon the oneness on which they all agree, but differences as to what they are aiming at and how they count into it.

• In order to be different, all existing things must have a source in priority monism.
• True to existence monism, anything can take into account solely one issue, the universe, whose parts could be arbitrarily and artificially segregated into a number of parts.
• In property monism, all properties are of the same kind (all are only physical properties)
• With partial monism, however many realms of being there are, there is still one substance in each of them.
• In accordance with substance monism, there is only one thing that all things can be explained by, although this thing may have many possible compositions, as in the case of mind and matter.
• This is because, according to dual-aspect monism, both mental and physical experiences are merely two sides of the same coin, so to speak.
• Neutral monism is the view that the fundamental nature of reality is always neutral.
• Attributive monism is the supposition that no matter how many substances there may be, they are all of one ultimate nature.

Monism and Hinduism

Monism has always been put down close to mysticism because there are similar experiences within these two schools of thought. Hinduism and Christianity have some of the best mystics in the world. They have not only stressed the god experience of oneness but also the oneness of people to god. God is assumed to be absolute, and all people are irrelevant. The immediate first philosophy in the Hindu religion is Advaita-Vedanta. Advaita is non-dual, and this is the contradiction of duality. According to this philosophy, there is no mind, body, soul, death, or birth. Existence has its ultimate truth, and we can exist consciously only in our dreams. On this account, he who has known the Absolute passes as Absolute. This type of philosophy is very close to monism. Numerous other philosophies oppose monism and do not think that there is a need to put the accent on focusing on "Oneness".

Monistic Philosophers

Monist philosophies are grouped into periods which include primitive, medieval and contemporary. In monism, the reality is the perception of the Single God Divine. Also, the fact that a single substance was the philosophy of Sephardic Jew Baruch Spinoza (17th century). The most prevailing philosophy in the West is the philosophy of the Absolute by the German idealist G. W. F. Hegel (19th century). Many philosophers of the Western world have developed and propagated the paradigm of the Absolute in the twentieth century. Spinoza was a highly famous philosopher who thought that everything could be assumed to be one. Yet he also believed that the one consists of a significant number of attributes, of only one of which we are conscious, namely, the mind and the body. It has been time and again believed in monism, but at the same time, not failing to attach importance to the existence of the particulars. Nevertheless, pluralism is overlooked by the ontological Monists.

Conclusion

Monism holds that everything in reality is one single substance or principle, either physical, mental or spiritual. It denies both pluralism and dualism because the fact that the world is diverse is an illusion or a revelation of a single entity. Whether it is the ancient Indian philosophies, such as the Advaita Vedanta, or the contemporary science implications, monism can be seen as a coherent worldview that enhances solidarity and interdependence. It simplifies the perception of reality, stating that everything is an expression of a single entity. Monism, therefore, presents people with the global design of life and enables one to view beyond the boundaries and realise unity in everything.

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