Buddhism and Taoism: a Comparison of Beliefs, Theories, and Practices

Taoism is an ancient Chinese religion dating back to the sixth century. The basic foundation of Taoism is a life philosophy and method

Currently, Taoism is present throughout the world, although in very small numbers. However, it is predominant in China and Taiwan, being one of the five religions recognized by the People's Republic of China and having millions of followers in Taiwan, where it can be practiced freely. Moving on, modern Taoism had two main groups, those groups being the Southern Taoists, which are primarily in Taiwan and South China, and the Northern Taoists, which are located throughout mainland China with its headquarters being at the White Cloud Abbey in Beijing. Now, there are many differences between Northern Taoism and Southern Taoism, such as the fact that Southern Taoism is much more liturgical, meaning that they worship publicly, than Northern Taoism, which frowns down upon such practices. Furthermore, Northern Taoism has a much stronger emphasis on moral and spiritual disciple than Southern Taoism. Overall, it is vital to know of Taoism’s presence in the modern world in order to acknowledge how it grew and matured throughout the

Chinese culture is also greatly embedded in religious and philosophical beliefs. The way a relationship is developed between and individual and the society differs according to various beliefs. In China, two common philosophical and religious ideas are Confucianism and Taoism. Confucianism

In order to become a virtuous person an individual must become one with the Tao, an example of a good life is found in Chuang Tzu – Basic writings, “If you do good, stay away from fame. If you do evil, stay away from punishments. Follow the middle; go by what is constant, and you can stay in one piece, keep yourself alive, look after your parents, and live out your years.” (Section three, p46). In order to become one with the Tao and individual must understand the Way and example of the Way “…For this reason, whether you point to a little stalk or a great pillar, a leper or the beautiful Hsi-shih, things ribald and shady or things grotesque and strange, the Way makes them all into one.” (Section two, p. 36) The Way is having the ability to consider all things one. Looking at the creatures of the world without bias and treating everything and everyone as equal. In order to follow the Way one must gain enlightenment, to gain enlightenment one must heavy focus on meditation. Taoists believe that time is cyclical, not linear as many in the West believe, therefore time repeats itself, has no beginning and no end. Tao is considered to be the first cause of the universe, and is the force that

Confucianism and Taoism have contrasting views on both religion and politics. However, they stem from a similar goal and have similar beliefs. Confucianism is mainly centered around virtue and ethics as a means to an ordered society and believes that an ordered society is what people should strive for. Taoism, on the other hand, focuses on the individual life in relation to the Tao, or "way of nature." Both are considered philosophies and not religions and acknowledge a path that a person should follow in life. However, they take opposing views not only on religion and politics, but also on the person's responsibilities.

Immortality does not mean living forever in the present physical body. In Taoism, death is just the final step in achieving complete unity with the universe when Taoist draws closer and closer to nature throughout their life. Taoism has a goal to raise the immortal practise to a higher level which is spiritual immortality. To attain it, people have to transform all their qi into primordial qi and proceed to refine it to subtler levels. This finer qi will eventually turn into pure spirit, with which practitioners increasingly identify to become transcendent spirit-people. To achieve this, intensive meditation and trance training as well as more radical forms of diet and other longevity practices are needed. Immortality implies the overcoming of the natural tendencies of the body and its transformation into a different kind of qi-constellation. It is a bypassing of death so that the end of the body has no impact on the continuation of the spirit-person. In addition, practitioners attain super-sensory powers and eventually gain residence in wondrous otherworldly paradises (Kohn 2005).

Buddhism and Taoism both originated and influenced most the Asian area. They are not just religions but a way of living life with philosophic principles. They are both seeking equality and moral existence. Buddhism have several branches just like the Hinayana, Mahayana, Esoteric, Pure Land, and the Zen Buddhism. Taoism can also be divided into a few. The main ones are the Southern and Northern Taoism. Taoism got many principles borrowed from the Buddhist one they influenced each other through their history. Taoism in the beginning was rather a mixture of mythology, folk, and philosophy teachings. With the arrival of Buddhism, it was forced to renew and reorganize itself. Both of the religion does their practices in monasteries, temples and shrines and also both of them use statues and pictures expressing their beliefs.

China’s religion is very diverse. One of the first religions is Confucianism. The creator was

At the core of any nation’s culture are its religious beliefs. In China there are the “Three Jewels” Confucianism, Daoism, and Buddhism, as described in Lopez (1996). There are small numbers of people practicing other religions such as Christianity and Islam, but these are the three dominant beliefs of the region. While they are separate in content, they have coexisted for several thousand years. Lopez (1996) goes on to say, “Historical precedent and popular parlance attest to the importance of this threefold division for understanding Chinese culture…Buddhism is the sun, Daoism the moon, and Confucianism the five planets…suggesting that although they remain separate, they also coexist as equally indispensable phenomena of the natural world.” Each belief system stands alone, and at the same time needs the other(s).

Have you ever heard of Taoist Writings? Taoist Writings were initially created to provide guidance to wise rulers or those who wished to live wisely. Through the poem, Tao Te Ching, I learned that the culture centuries ago believed that life happens to you and nothing you do can change it. Therefore, they preferred to sit back and accept their fate.

In Chinese history, there were three main philosophies: Confucianism, Taoism, and Legalism. These beliefs helped shape Chinese culture as well as Chinese history. Not only did people believe in these ideas, but the three helped to govern the mighty Chinese dynasties. These dynasties all provided an impact to each doctrine; the philosophy that had the greatest impact was legalism because it ended the Warring States Period, provided structure, and strengthened agriculture, and the military of China. Although Confucianism, Taoism and Legalism had a few things in common and at times tried to resolve the same problem, they were very different from each other in their beliefs, character, and ways of life.

As for the early Chinese, the fact that Taoist philosophy dictates the all beings are inherently good and come from the Tao, we are all part of the Tao and all our actions and inaction affect all other beings and thus all beings should align with the Tao and thus, by virtue of Wu wei (no action) act in strict accord with the Tao in it's infinity De (power; virtue; integrity) we become complete and are enlightened. IF you substitute Buddha mind or Dharma for Tao, you have a fair definition of Buddhist philosophy as well. So, it's hard to argue that the two do not share similar understandings.

The religions, Confucianism and Taoism, both originate from indigenous Chinese beliefs and practices. Although they come from the same area in the world, they have several differences alongside their similarities. Additionally, they both are influenced by the Tao; however, they have different meanings behind the concept. Taoism can be summed up as appreciating all that is natural; whereas Confucianism is ideal society model created through a lifetime of relationship dedication. Neither of these religions worship a “god,” but they do have their own unique form of worship. The likenesses and differences of Confucianism and Taoism can be found in their beliefs and concepts of self-cultivation, texts, and society and nature.

Both Buddhism, Taoism, and Hinduism in religious context compare through origin, philosophy, and their social structures including their outlook on women. These three religious show south east Asian roots, cultural beliefs, and social conflicts and solutions.

When first deciding to write my term paper on Taoism I thought it would be just another religion. In my research I found so many different translations that my head started spinning. There are really no known facts about the founder of Taoism, Lao Tsu, except that he was possibly a contemporary of Confucius. He was searching for a way that would avoid the constant feudal warfare and other conflicts that disrupted society during his lifetime. (Religious Tolerance, 2007) Since there are many aspects to Taoism in this paper I will do my best to explain what Taoism is and also explain some of its main concepts.