Tao Te Ching

In the book Tzu describes “the Tao” or “the Way”, as the “larger whole” of the world that humans are a “small part” of (Austin 384). Adding on to this, he says that “humans cannot change the Way” (Austin 384). By saying this, he is basically asserting that whatever event happens in life, whether big or small, cannot be changed in any way. The Way cannot be reversed or improved. The part of the Tao Te Ching that made the most lasting impression on his readers, summarized…

Confucianism are two of the most famous philosophies that originated in China around 500 B.C.E. Lao-Tzu, translated as “the old master”, was known for having founded the philosophy of Taoism as well as being the author of the Tao Te Ching. The main concept of Taoism is the “Tao”, otherwise known as the “the way”, which pertains to the way of the universe as well as the way of humans. At the center of Confucianism was Confucius, a teacher whose teachings were recorded and compiled into several…

equivalent. The Tao Te Ching can be divided into five main parts. The Tao, Yin Yang, Wu Wei, The Sage and Te. 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…

between humans and nature. It has many profound theories for which may be difficult to understand by the common person. The most basic concept is the Tao, which is based on three approaches to te or power. The first concept is the way of ultimate reality. According to Lao Tzu in his writing, Tao Te Ching, “The Tao that can be spoken is not the true Tao” (198). The second concept is the way of the universe, which is the basic drive behind the way the world works. The last concept is the way of…

contrasting: How Lao-Tzu Refutes Ruggiero From reading “Thoughts from the Tao-te Ching”, it may first appear that both men, Lao-Tzu and Ruggiero are harmonious in their beliefs, however probing further reveals that while there is likeness, there is also a great deal of conflicting ideas. When It comes to critical thinking and how one should approach life, Ruggiero would have strong objections to Tzu's “Thoughts from the Tao-te Ching” and ultimately Lao-Tzu concepts refute those of…

belief that individuals need an organized allocation of authority to protect their wellbeing. Throughout history the forms of government have changed from Monarchies, Chieftains, to Popes/ Arch Bishops to modern Politics. Lao-Tzu’s views from the Tao-te Ching possess a thought that the people need a leader who is kind and gentle, but firm and wise, whereas Machiavelli describes in “The Prince” that a leader should strive to take complete control of power and wield is fiercely, things will turn…

Chinese Philosophy, Lao Tzu and Confucius, disagreed over various goals for man, they both advocated for humans to live tandem with nature. In The Tao-te Ching, Lao Tzu advises that the way to achieve individual tranquility was by following the “Tao” or “the path.” During man’s walk on this path he advises, “To know contentment of wealth” (The Tao-te Ching 97). In this particular snipit, he preaches that satisfaction, regardless of economic situation, is wealth. What is wealth? Lao Tzu would…

Paradoxes are known for being the world’s most frustrating statements. These irritating brain puzzles mess with a person’s sense of logic and reasoning. So why is such a thing inside the Tao Te Ching? This is to make the reader think and have to choose their own way of interpreting the Tao. One of the paradoxes in the Tao that makes a reader think is the idea of letting things go to move forward. This paradox is used to show the necessity of letting objects and ideas go to try and move ahead in…

perspectives about reality televisions is something that I believe that I can personally relate to since we are currently living in the age of technology. My favorite reading so far from A World of Ideas is the passage from Lao Tzu’s “Thoughts from the Tao-te Ching.” This passage showed a different perspective of how a respectable leader is suppose…

some debate on whether Taoism has a founder, or whether Lao Tzu was a real person (BBC 2014). Daoism is also called Taoism. It is called Daoism because it most resembles the western pronunciation of the word. They follow the sacred text called The Tao-te-ching, which is only 5,000 words. Their sacred text represents the ideology of Taoist quite nicely. It shows that The Taoist, really believe in simplicity. At one point Daoism was a top religion in China right before the Communist Revolution.…