The Agora: Dedicated to Ancient Ideals
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Essays |
My life is limited but knowledge is unlimited,
Chasing unlimited knowledge with limited life is exhausting.
Chuang-Tze
Tao (or Dao) can be described as the Way or the Path. It is the flow of the universe--the force behind the natural order. Tao is seen as the influence which keeps the universe ordered and in balance. Nature is seen as demonstrating the Tao, therefore Taoism is seen as being associated with nature.
Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom. Mastering
others is strength; mastering yourself is true power.
Lao-Tzu
Taoist theory focuses on doctrines of non-action, spontaneity, humanism, relativism, and emptiness. If Tao is the Way, then Te or virtue is its active expression. To practice Tao is to strive for proper attitude, morality, and lifestyle. Non-action, or more precisely action without doing is the central tenet of Taosim. This non-action can be compared to water, which follows the path of least resistance and in the process wears away mountains.
The journey of a thousand miles begins with a step.
Lao-Tzu
As an ethical course, Taoism has three planks--compassion, moderation, and humility--these are known as the three treasures. These are at the core of all Taoist teaching.
The works below have never been seen as original, they are seen as re-workings of ancient ideas which are manifest in nature. To live in harmony we must model nature and adopt the natural way. The Taoist sages were often artisans, to be skillful and creative they had to maintain an inner calm and concentration while setting aside those things which interfere with calm such as money, fame, and praise. The three treasures were seen as a way to reach this inner calm.
Humans model themselves on earth, Earth on heaven,
Heaven on the Way, And the way on that which is naturally so.
Lao-Tzu
Two of the classic thinkers of this period are represented here:
At birth a person is soft and yielding, and at death stiff
and hard. All beings, the grass, the trees: alive, soft and yielding; dead,
stiff and hard. Therefore the hard and inflexible are friends to death. The
soft and yielding are friends of life. An unyielding army is destroyed. An
unbending tree breaks. The hard must humble itself or be otherwise humbled.
The soft will ultimately ascend.
Lao-Tzu
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