Difference Between Daoism And Confucianism

Worldly religions were always something that I was too intimidated to delve into- some seemed too sacred to some to touch upon, and others are so grand and diverse the sheer size of the culture made me nervous. Chinese religion was especially difficult for me to talk about before this unit, as I feared that I would misrepresent its themes and essence. The concepts of Daoism and Confucianism and what was different between the two was never clear to me despite having grown up in China, but after a unit of study on it, I find myself being able to distinguish not only the two religions, but also other groups such as Mohists and Legalists, and seeing connections between the way I live and these religious concepts and thought. The three elements
In Daoism, the Yin Yang concept suggests the idea that opposites are needed in order for harmony to exist. In other words, we all need balance in our lives. The symbol is made up of two equal portions of white black: the black portion is not greater than the white, and the white portion is not greater than the black - they are equally important. Yin/Yang rejects all sharp dichotomies by representing the principle of natural and complementary forces that do not make sense on their own, and therefore must depend on one another. We may take a look at the famous analogy of day and night: day and night are usually seen as opposites, just as black and white are. However, they are both extremely necessary for the survival of the world. After all, without day, there would be no light to allow growth...the world would starve. Meanwhile, without night, there would be no rest from the beating sun, causing the world to wilt away. Fortunately, the opposites dark and light exist together in a perfect balance that keeps our world from devastation. Another example of the principle of natural and complementary 'forces'
Wu Wei literally means non-doing, or 'doing nothing'. It is commonly misinterpreted as laziness...why would Lao Zi advocate this kind of characteristic? Well, Wuwei is actually built upon the working of nature. In Daoist perspective, there is nothing that exists in this Universe that is more powerful than the working nature itself. All things, from something as mundane as taking a morning jog to something as sacred as life and death, are manifested from nature. Wu Wei asks that you do not do anything to interfere with nature in order to do something, arguing that doing nothing is doing something. Something to note is that Wu Wei does not mean entirely to do nothing at all, as it states to “do what is required, cut down on the superfluous”1. Only do what is necessary, and once those factors are fulfilled, leave the matter be to nature. For example, if you wanted to grow a plant, give it sunlight, water, and fertilizer, but step back after that once the conditions of the growing plant are established. Otherwise, interference will do more harm than good. This theory applies to everything in Daoism. Thus, Daoism opposes any formal education, rituals, and participation in social and political institutions as they see these things as artificial structures that interfere with the natural way of life, and will disrupt the peace and harmony that would come through inaction.2 This was an especially interesting