Taoism in the Modern World
The Tao Te Ching is the second most revised book in the world; the bible is the only one that has been revised more. It was written sometime between the sixth and the third century BC when china descended into chaos of rival kingdoms. It was supposedly written by Lao Tan, a possible mythical figure, who has said to have lived till he was 160 to 200 years old, but some believe that he is still alive and is wonder out in the woods.
Ever since I began reading about Taoism I have change my point of view about life. “Not seeing desirable things prevents confusion of the heart”(Tao). This line in itself has taught me to not look at life as objects but to look at it as a gift. People today have lost touch with what is really important about living. No one goes around smiling anymore. I can remember as a child seeing people smile all the time, maybe that was because I was young and did not see a lot of people. I believe that if people would start to read Taoism and try to understand it than people maybe happy to be alive. This paper is going to focus mainly on ways that the average person can use Taoism to better his or her life.
Even as children we base our life on material things. Our parents buy us toys to make us happy, give us candy to make us smile, and turn on the television to keep us occupied. If a child grow up with out any of these things, would that child be any lesser of a person. The child that grows up with out all this would probably grow up to become a very creative person. The child that grows up with no toys and no television would have had to create his own toys and his own stories.
The Tao can be used every day if people would try to use it. Many people treasure t...
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... up and my pen ran out of ink. I feel that the Tao help me write this paper. One quote that helped me was, “Men knowing the way of life do without acting”(The Way of Life 63). I feel that with the Tao I can accomplish anything. If I do not try to succeed at something than I will. If I do not try to write a paper than my thoughts will come to me and I will be able to write a good paper. I will also treat other people with a more respect than I did before. I will do this just by not saying anything at all. “Those who talk do not know”(Tao 56). The Tao can help everyone only if they let the Tao into their lives.
Works Cited Page
Tsu, Lao. Tao Te Ching. Vintage Books Edition, August 1989.
Bynner, Witter. The Way of Life. The John Day Company, New
York: 1944.
Carus, Paul. The Canon of Reason and Virtue. The Open Court Publishing Company, La Salle, Illinois: 1954
“Wisdom, Happiness, and Courage are not waiting somewhere out beyond sight at the end of a straight line; they are part of a continuous cycle that begins right here. They are not only the ending but the beginning as well” (Hoff 137). In Tao of Pooh, Benjamin Hoff explains the fundamentals of Taoism through the cute characters of Winnie the Pooh. Each character’s action helps explains how Taoism works and affects our everyday lives.
Tao-te Ching (in English pronounced “dow deh jing”) is believed to be written by Lao-tzu (6th century B.C). However, it is not for certain that he wrote the book. Lao-tzu is translated as “Old Master”. He was born in the state of Ch’u in China. It’s been said that he worked in the court of the Chou dynasty. The day that he was leaving the court to start his own life, the keeper of the gate urged him to write his thoughts as a book. Lao-tzu’s work mostly illustrates Taoism –a religion founded by Chang Tao-ling A.D. 150. His main purpose in this piece is practicing peace, simplicity, naturalness, and humility. Lao-tzu believes that people are overloaded with temporal objects in this world. He recommends his readers to let go of everything and always keep the balance in anything. In my opinion, Lao-tzu would more likely dislike our government and the way that people live nowadays. The reason is because majority of the people are attached to secular things. To paraphrase the famous, people have materialistic characteristics in today’s world which is completely against Lao-tzu’s view.
In Benjamin Hoff’s the Tao of Pooh, he carefully explains through the story of Winnie the Pooh what it means to be a Taoist. The theme of the one’s own happiness appears multiple times throughout the book. Illustrated through Winnie the Pooh and his friends, but explained by Hoff, comes the Taoist idea that happiness can be reached by any person. The idea sounds simple and appealing, but Taoism claims that whether or not a person reaches happiness rests in one’s own power. Consequently, since one has power to reach happiness and bliss, one’s Self creates obstacles that can prevent the Self from accomplishing the goal of happiness such as knowledge and limitations.
their every day lives. In this novel each major principle of Taoism is followed by an explanation made though a humorous story staring Winnie-the-Pooh and his friends.
"Main Concepts of Taoism: Yin and Yang." Taoism and the Taoist Arts. April 2002. http://www.taoistarts.net/main.html#yin LeGuin, Ursula K. The Lathe of Heaven. New York, NY: Harper Collins Publishers Inc., 2000.
Taoism was developed by Lao Tzu. Lao Tzu describes the Tao—translated as “Way”—as “one, natural, and eternal” (Lao Tzu pg.474). The Tao is life’s and nature’s course. The Tao consist of bonding energies, known as yin, and expanding energies, known as yang. Yin and yang are opposite forces, but each need one another to exist or make sense. For example, life needs death, the moon needs the sun, and compassion needs suffering. The
As one of the greatest founding novels of Taoism, Book of Chuang Tzu serves to strengthen Lao Tzu 's arguments in Tao Te Ching and lays the foundation for Taoism 's place in Chinese philosophy. Because Confucianism and Taoism are two competing philosophy schools that share more outstanding differences than similarities, the followers of both schools often refute and evaluate the ideals of the opposite school. However, the constant appearance of Confucius as the main character in more than twenty chapters in Book of Chuang Tzu not only surprises the readers, but also calls for deep analysis of the roles played Confucius in order to understand the true meaning of this ancient literature. While Chuang Tzu criticizes many of the Confucian ideas
Keep sharpening your knife, and it will blunt." A Taoist is not someone who is
The next major influence on the Taoist belief was Chang Tzu. To him, Tzu’s writings defined the truth of life. He went on to write f...
This is important, for humans are urged by Taoist thought to place themselves below all else, especially the world, but also other people. The wise person will put another person's needs before their own.
Boltz, William G. Lao tzu Tao te ching. In Early Chinese Texts: A Bibliographical Guide, edited by Michael Loewe. Berkeley: University of California, 1993.
Lao Tsu. The Tao Te Ching. Translated by Gia-Fu Feng and Jane English. Vintage Books, 1989.
In its second sense, Tao means "the way of the universe." Tao is something that goes through all beings, all of the earth. It is everywhere, all the time. It is something that flows through everything. This flowing idea links with the idea in Buddhism that Nirvana can be reached by anyone, as long as one is devoted enough and has lost all attachments.Thirdly, one life must be a certain way to work with the Tao: Tao also refers to "the way of human life" as it "meshes" with the universal Tao in its second sense.
Taoism, known as “The Way,” can be categorized as both a Chinese philosophy and a religion. Taoists believe in accepting and yielding to the ways of life, complementing nature and being by internalizing their goals rather than worshipping a god externally. Taoism, in its metaphysical and philosophical nature, is much like Confucianism, but the ideal interests of the two religions are contrasting. Confucianism was formulated during a time of war and relies heavily upon a moral and political system that fashioned society and the Chinese empire, while Taoism correlates to a time of peace and honors spiritual and metaphysical preoccupation (Taoism 2).
Lao-Tze founded Taoism around 550 BC. The goal in Taoism is achieve Inner harmony, pea...