Doaism Essay Example
Daoism: In the beginning In ancient China a man by the name of Lao Tzu who was in charge of the royal archives in the village of Zhou. Before his retirement from his office he wrote a book that would affect the people of China to this very day. This book was titled the Dao De Jing, and it contained all the religious ideals that Lao Tzu has deemed of great importance for living one’s life in the correct manor. This sparked the formation of the Chinese religion known as Daoism. A religion, or way of thought, that tries to teach people how to live in a way that will get them closer to the ultimate goal of Dao. This has no real meaning but loosely translates into the Way which eludes to the idea of showing people how to live their lives correctly. (Mou 210-11)
The Dao De Jing opens up with the words, “Dao called Dao is not truly Dao” (Tzu 01). This is the starting point for the concept of the Dao not really having a meaning (though it’s often translated into “the way”). For a Daoist the Dao is the unattainable for that if we all possessed the world would be at peace. This can be related to the Daoist idea of “not glorifying heroes” (Tzu 03), or not glorifying anything that we do for that matter. The Dao De Jing teaches that, “When no credit is taken. Accomplishment endures” (Tzu 02). This idea coupled with not glorifying individuals show the humility that the Dao De Jing demands of its followers. These two ideas then play into the Daoist principle of “non-action” (Tzu 03). The Dao De Jing teaches that by not doing do we actually accomplish something. When we let go of goals and stop striving to reach them do we actually do great things. Stemming from this concept comes the teaching of stepping backwards, so that we may step forward towards Dao. By stepping back we go back to the beginning of things which allows us to see, and understand things more clearly. (Tzu 07) Simplicity as well as the beauty of what nature can do are other concepts that are taken out of
The Dao De Jing opens up with the words, “Dao called Dao is not truly Dao” (Tzu 01). This is the starting point for the concept of the Dao not really having a meaning (though it’s often translated into “the way”). For a Daoist the Dao is the unattainable for that if we all possessed the world would be at peace. This can be related to the Daoist idea of “not glorifying heroes” (Tzu 03), or not glorifying anything that we do for that matter. The Dao De Jing teaches that, “When no credit is taken. Accomplishment endures” (Tzu 02). This idea coupled with not glorifying individuals show the humility that the Dao De Jing demands of its followers. These two ideas then play into the Daoist principle of “non-action” (Tzu 03). The Dao De Jing teaches that by not doing do we actually accomplish something. When we let go of goals and stop striving to reach them do we actually do great things. Stemming from this concept comes the teaching of stepping backwards, so that we may step forward towards Dao. By stepping back we go back to the beginning of things which allows us to see, and understand things more clearly. (Tzu 07) Simplicity as well as the beauty of what nature can do are other concepts that are taken out of