Tao

1. I surveyed two people. One of them is my friend named Tao Chen who is a member in the university’s drama club and the other is my uncle who is the manager of the financial department of a company. There are some differences between their groups. The drama club is more of a social group than a secondary group. It is formed for people who love drama and acting to enjoy the activities. The financial department is a secondary group that is formed to accomplish a specific task or goal and it is…

thought to be individuals that are intelligent, cunning, and always thinking rationally to protect those beneath them. In Homer’s ancient epic, The Odyssey, and Lao Tzu’s Tao Te Ching, both authors describe the fundamental tools that create effective leaders. However, the tactics that each author choose to present are far different. The Tao Te Ching in my opinion, best describes an ideal leader, while the Odyssey sets an appalling example of how a leader should act. Now, the question may arise…

The second meditation continues Descartes search for one main concern of how he cannot be certain of anything. He has reached the conclusion of a clearer understanding of the physical world and how it comes from the use of judgement and reason, as opposed to relying solely on what ‘appears to be the case’ through perception of the senses and use of the imagination. Ultimately, then, I think the true nature of things in the external world are not revealed fully. How do I really know what is for…

He is known as the reputed author of the Tao Te Ching. He wrote the Tao te Ching to give his disciples something to remember him by. The Tao te Ching has “a rhetorical style that combines two major strategies: short, declarative and intentional contradictions” (Tzu 158). The overall argument of the Tao te Ching is that human beings constitute a small part of a larger whole which is referred to in the reading as the Tao or the way. “Humans cannot change the way, it goes on with or…

Reading the works of Machiavelli and Lao-Tzu in succession highlight how truly at opposition the messages are. Though both pieces express the desired way to govern a people, the “Tao-te Ching” speaks of peace, simplicity, and letting the universe work its will, while “The Qualities of the Prince” emphasizes the necessity for war, and the natural wickedness of men. There are no particular reasons that these two ways of thought should be in harmony, one written in the 6th century, and the other…

In China's ancient culture, there were many schools of thought, but the most important two thoughts are Ru tradition from “The Analects” and Daoist School from “Tao Te Ching”, which were created by Confucius and Laozi. Confucius promotes a hierarchical and moral society based on propriety while Laozi promotes a classless and simple social life. Although they seem to be two contradictory propositions, they both claim to go back and rebuild the lost Golden Ages through the way. Confucius…

be true. In my life, I know reality through sensory perceptions and my own experiences, learning from the teachings of others, self-reflection and expression of emotion, and intuition or “understanding without knowing” as is described in Lao-tzu’s Tao Te Ching. Using these faculties, I have structured my own version of reality with which I look at life. Most immediate in my conception of reality are the things that I experience firsthand. Because my entire worldview is framed within the bounds…

With different beliefs and practices, various religions and philosophies possess key characteristics that are significant in their cultures but are meaningless in other cultures. These distinctions result in contrasting perspectives on one’s lifestyle. Some people agree with the practices presented in Taoism, while certain individuals disagree, since its beliefs target a limited group. Taoism presents the idea of living in harmony with nature and educating the followers about the flow of life.…

In Benjamin Hoff’s The Tao of Pooh, about 10 major Taoist teachings are covered through stories using the more familiar characters and concepts of Winnie the Pooh. Of these, the lessons on the understanding of inner nature, or cottlestone pie, and the story of the stonecutter, or that sort of bear, were those which I found most similar to my own goals. Both are focused on overcoming some sort of self-imposed obstacle, whether that be social anxiety or low self-esteem. Both of these also had an…

there will be. Lao-tzu quotes "Throw away morality and justice, and people will do the right thing" (pp.207, p.8). For instance, if there were not so many laws, maybe people would not act so terribly. Lao-tzu states, "If a nation is centered in the Tao if it nourishes its own people and doesn't meddle in the affairs of others, it will be a light to all nations in the world" (pp.213, p.49). This was Machiavelli's aspirations, being only generous would result in running out of money. The way…