This thesis explores the possibility of finding an authentic Western pre-ethical beginning of practice in Martin Heidegger's later works on "poetic language" and "meditative thinking", by way of comparison with the practices articulated in the works of the 13th Century Zen Buddhist philosopher, Dogen. While many who make similar East/West comparisons conclude that there are no such beginnings possible in Western phenomenology in general or in Heidegger's work specifically, I attempt to articulate an alternative comparative logic and evaluatory framework that does not shut down questioning with regards to practical resources in Heidegger's philosophy, precisely where I argue the question should be opening up. This logic, which overcomes the limitations of the metaphysics of presence, "representationalism" and "correspondence", allows us to see how Heidegger has in fact initiated a practice in the West that neither corresponds to nor represents Eastern practices yet, in "responding" to a similar source from which Eastern practices arose, provides the possibility of an authentic pre-ethical beginning to practical philosophy in the West.
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