In the year 517 B.C, a man named Laozi (Lao Tzu), a contributor of Taoism (Daoism), was born. Not a lot was known about his life, but it was known that he worked at the royal court during the Zhou dynasty. Because of the growing corruption in the palace, Laozi decided to leave, but before he left, Laozi left behind his will, widely recognized today as the Tao Te Ching. Throughout history, there has been a battle for China’s most dominant religion. The two contenders were Taoism and Confucianism.…
I agree with your assessment on the socio-economic model of today being similar to the Aryan social structure, perhaps not as a rigid but similar nonetheless. Although there are similarities, in modern day we have much more freedoms on who we associate with and who we chose to marry. The Aryan caste system was effective for what it was designed to do and keep people content with really to further inspirations. I could see some aspects of Confucius and Daoist that could be applicable in this case. Confucius teachings would be applicable for governing the people and the Way of Dao would be to keep people happy with the status quo without the desire to progress in life.…
Confucianism and Daoism: Comparing Primary Documents Based on the tenants each religious philosophy, Documents A and D represent the Confucian tradition and Documents B and C represent the Taoist tradition. Both traditions set forth major principles for living as an individual and within the community. Major topics include punishment, weapons, conflict, leading, virtue, and crime.…
Confucius’ mis-representation of the concept of chivalry portrays his lack of ethical understanding of the society around him. Certainly, Confucius’ and Lao Tzu’s ideologies have guided humanity’s roadmap since ancient history. Their long-lasting works have allowed people all over the world find the one truth that encompasses us all. The difference that promotes Lao Tzu’s teachings over Confucius, however, is the classification of people below or above us, the ultimate flaw in ethical…
The Social Hierarchy of Inborn Traits: An Analysis of Cultivation of the Self and Innate Goodness of Human beings in Confucius, Mencius, and Xunzi This comparison analysis will define the social hierarchy of the cultivation of the self and the innate goodness of human beings as a point of conjecture in the writings of Confucius, Mencius, and Xunzi. The writings of Confucius define the social hierarchy of evil as an inborn trait, which must continually be cultivated by the wisest and strongest of people. In contrast to this, Mencius feels that human beings are innately good, but they must also continue to follow the living a good life through wisdom and self-development. In a similar way, Xunzi was not unlike Confucius in believing in the innate evil in humankind, yet he followed the similar process of…
The tone of document is conciliatory. Zong Mi who wrote the fifth document is a buddhist scholar that is trying to make the case that Buddhism is not a threat to traditional Chinese social and political structures. This document has a slightly defensive tone on Buddhism. Han Yu wrote the fourth document is a leading Confucian scholar who sees Buddhism as evil, illegal, and “does not conform to our laws”. His position and his livelihood is vested in Confucianism remaining dominan.…
Thesis: Confucius as one of the most influential thinkers in Chinese history and his teaching of Confucianism have being the mainstream thinking of Chinese traditional culture for thousands of years. Most importantly, Confucius’s teachings have a profound influence on the Chinese political system. This statement, with supporting evidence that will be presented in this essay will show that Confucius’ teaching of Confucianism has being used in the Chinese government for thousands of years and it still affects the Chinese political system to this day. Short overview for the paper:…
While Greece and Rome had centered around politics and government ideas, classical China focuses on family and leadership from the gods. Folk beliefs, Confucianism, and Taoism led to classical Chinese characteristics. In early times, Chinese performed rituals to soothe the nature Gods. Ancestors were worshipped for the communication with the Gods. These beliefs strengthened the family core.…
Team paper/ Daoism-Confucianism-Jainism * My uninformed thoughts on Daoism I figured it came from an Asian/ Chinese culture. Confucianism, I had never heard of it and had no knowledge on it, same with Jainism. * Basic beliefs and teachings: Daoism/Taoism belief…
Lao-Tzu once mentioned that it is possible to understand the real Dao without leaving the house. It actually became a classical statement of Daoism. Confucianism was an attempt to release tension between a man and society, to strengthen a social-political system of China by improving it. Daoism, in its turn, worked out its own quite unique system of person’s cultural development. Confucianism was the elite doctrine of well-educated, intellectual stratum of society.…
The Tao according to Smith has three meanings, the way of ultimate reality, the way of the universe and the way of human life (Smith 198-99). The Taoists believe that the Tao is the universe therefore and the universe is the equivalence of god and that people are the equal parts of this…
EALC 275 PAPER 1 Comparison between a Confucian ruler and a Daoist ruler Donald Trump, the Republican nominee in 2016 for US president, has been addressing the radical Islamic terrorism issues in his election speech recently. According to BBC News on September 7, 2016, Donald Trump is planning to defeat the Islamic terrorists in 30 days when he comes to office in the White House. He is calling for more military weapons, more troops and planes to give IS a fast defeat. Even though it seems to be another audacious promise that Mr Trump has made, a lot of people would have to agree with him on fighting a political correct war given all these terrorist events happening around the world. One might argue that fighting the war against the Islamic…
The first reading in chapter one of our text Pursuing Happiness, edited by Mathew Parfitt and Dawn Skorczewski, presents material translated from The TaoTeChing. I studied multiple sources to find more about this ancient text, and in the paragraphs below I will discuss the meaning of Tao its self, the author behind the work, and how Taoism has grown and changed through the centuries up to present time. Taoism is a religion that originated in china approximately 2,400 years ago. The main principles of Taoism come from the Tao Te Ching which was written by a man named Lao Tzu. He was the keeper of the imperial library and he was famous across the land for his wisdom.…
Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism became a triumvirate in bronze age China and have been a backbone of Chinese culture and society since records began. The term three teachings is different interpretations but in general describes an amalgam of the premises and spiritual practices of China's three core faiths. Over time different dynasties favor different faiths. It was sometimes a matter of fashion and often a reaction against the preceding dynasties religious preferences. Sometimes politics were involved.…
The factor that sets Taoists apart from Confuscianists is the idea of rigorous rituals and a set social structure. "The difficult develops naturally from the easy And the great from the small; So the sage, by dealing with the small Achieves the great. He who finds it easy to promise finds it hard to deliver; He who takes things lightly makes things hard; The sage confronts difficulty, and so has…