Laozi
Laozi
Laozi was a philosopher of ancient China, best known as the author of the Tao Te Ching
;often simply referred to as Laozi.His association with the Tao Te Ching has led him to
be traditionally considered the founder of philosophical Taoism;pronounced as
Daoism. He is also revered as a deity in most religious forms of Taoist philosophy,
which often refers to Laozi as "One of the Three Pure Ones".
Laozi is an honorific title. Lao means "venerable" or "old", such as modern Mandarin
laosh "teacher". Zi , Wade-Giles transliteration tzu, in this context is typically translated
"master". Zi was used in ancient China as an honorific suffix, indicating "Master", or "Sir". In
popular biographies, Laozi's given name was Er, his surname was Li and his was Boyang. Dan
is a posthumous name given to Laozi, and he is sometimes referred to as Li Dan.
According to popular traditional biographies, he worked as the Keeper of the Archives for the royal court of Zhou. This reportedly allowed him broad access to the works of the Yellow
Emperor and other classics of the time. The stories assert that Laozi never opened a formal
school, but he nonetheless attracted a large number of students and loyal disciples. There are
numerous variations of a story about Confucius consulting Laozi about rituals and the story is
related in Zhuangzi. Though the author of Zhuangzi may have invented both the story and the
character of Laozi.
Popular legends tell of his conception when his mother gazed upon a falling star, how he
stayed in the womb for 62 years, and was born when his mother leaned against a plum tree. He
accordingly emerged a grown man with a full grey beard and long earlobes, which are a symbol
of wisdom and long life In other versions he was reborn in some thirteen incarnations
since the days of Fuxi; in his last incarnation as Laozi he lived to nine hundred and ninety years,
and spent his life
Laozi was a philosopher of ancient China, best known as the author of the Tao Te Ching
;often simply referred to as Laozi.His association with the Tao Te Ching has led him to
be traditionally considered the founder of philosophical Taoism;pronounced as
Daoism. He is also revered as a deity in most religious forms of Taoist philosophy,
which often refers to Laozi as "One of the Three Pure Ones".
Laozi is an honorific title. Lao means "venerable" or "old", such as modern Mandarin
laosh "teacher". Zi , Wade-Giles transliteration tzu, in this context is typically translated
"master". Zi was used in ancient China as an honorific suffix, indicating "Master", or "Sir". In
popular biographies, Laozi's given name was Er, his surname was Li and his was Boyang. Dan
is a posthumous name given to Laozi, and he is sometimes referred to as Li Dan.
According to popular traditional biographies, he worked as the Keeper of the Archives for the royal court of Zhou. This reportedly allowed him broad access to the works of the Yellow
Emperor and other classics of the time. The stories assert that Laozi never opened a formal
school, but he nonetheless attracted a large number of students and loyal disciples. There are
numerous variations of a story about Confucius consulting Laozi about rituals and the story is
related in Zhuangzi. Though the author of Zhuangzi may have invented both the story and the
character of Laozi.
Popular legends tell of his conception when his mother gazed upon a falling star, how he
stayed in the womb for 62 years, and was born when his mother leaned against a plum tree. He
accordingly emerged a grown man with a full grey beard and long earlobes, which are a symbol
of wisdom and long life In other versions he was reborn in some thirteen incarnations
since the days of Fuxi; in his last incarnation as Laozi he lived to nine hundred and ninety years,
and spent his life