The Art of No Debate

In this episode of Enlightenment Today I will explore the Eastern resistance to debating, especially in countries such as Japan. Avoiding debate is another hallmark of Eastern thought that a lot of Westerners find hard to comprehend. In the West we are almost encouraged to debate so we can come to a conclusion on a matter. This way of thinking is incorrectly believed to be universal. Westerners often think that the way they think is the same for everyone else. This is a clumsy way of viewing the world. Both East and West cognitively evolved differently which influenced their social structures, philosophies, religions, language, and basic world view. In the West debate was a natural byproduct of analytical thinking and individualism. While in the East, avoiding debate was a natural byproduct of holistic thinking and collectivism.