Auguson Smith Taoism
The Tao that can be told of is not the eternal Tao;
The name that can be named is not the eternal name.
The nameless is the origin of Heaven and Earth;
The Named is the mother of all things.
So opens the Tao-Te Ching, an ancient Chinese text whose subject is Tao, or the inexpressible rhythm of the universe and driving force behind all of nature. The term is also used to describe a human life which meshes with this most fundamental and immanent force; the most common English translation is, perhaps deceptively simply, “way”. The text is written rather cryptically and consists of many paradoxes which suggest, among other things, a rejection of self-assertiveness, preference for naturalness or simplicity, and the relativity of all values.
Given …show more content…
A prominent example is to be found in Huston Smith’s massively popular The World’s Religions. Though he is careful throughout his research in teasing out the central themes and doctrines of the world’s foremost religious systems beyond the nuance of their individual sects, Smith’s chapter on Taoism strikes me as rather uncharitable. In a very uncharacteristic manner, he all but dismisses Taoist frameworks as merely superstitious. I find this attitude surprising given that the principles of a Taoist metaphysic as defined above are to be found both in modern Western philosophy and science. This is evidenced by the strong parallels which can be drawn to the metaphysics of Kant and Taoism’s compatibility with advancements in quantum mechanics and theoretical physics. In considering the key components of these ideas, arguably among the most significant intellectual advances in the recent Western tradition, the East-West dichotomy of thought invoked by many authors is weakened and pause should be given to those who would implicitly adhere to
The name that can be named is not the eternal name.
The nameless is the origin of Heaven and Earth;
The Named is the mother of all things.
So opens the Tao-Te Ching, an ancient Chinese text whose subject is Tao, or the inexpressible rhythm of the universe and driving force behind all of nature. The term is also used to describe a human life which meshes with this most fundamental and immanent force; the most common English translation is, perhaps deceptively simply, “way”. The text is written rather cryptically and consists of many paradoxes which suggest, among other things, a rejection of self-assertiveness, preference for naturalness or simplicity, and the relativity of all values.
Given …show more content…
A prominent example is to be found in Huston Smith’s massively popular The World’s Religions. Though he is careful throughout his research in teasing out the central themes and doctrines of the world’s foremost religious systems beyond the nuance of their individual sects, Smith’s chapter on Taoism strikes me as rather uncharitable. In a very uncharacteristic manner, he all but dismisses Taoist frameworks as merely superstitious. I find this attitude surprising given that the principles of a Taoist metaphysic as defined above are to be found both in modern Western philosophy and science. This is evidenced by the strong parallels which can be drawn to the metaphysics of Kant and Taoism’s compatibility with advancements in quantum mechanics and theoretical physics. In considering the key components of these ideas, arguably among the most significant intellectual advances in the recent Western tradition, the East-West dichotomy of thought invoked by many authors is weakened and pause should be given to those who would implicitly adhere to