Lao Tzu's 'Tao Te Ching': Chapter Eight

This concept of not doing anything to achieve something explains the dual nature of the Tao. Certain examples such as “Don’t give honors to the worthy, protect people from ambition” and “Don’t value scarce things, protect people from envy” very subtly explains how to avoid major issues like people exploiting power and jealousy by simply tending to very small and often neglected aspect like not praising the worthy to fuel his/her ego and not valuing the precious in order to avoid jealousy. At times, the book questions the very structure of the civilized world. Lao Tzu says, “Eliminate cleverness, forget profit and there’ll be less thieves and rogues”. Such an assertion suggests that if there is no money, there will be no thieves or corruption. When put in the above fashion, the assertion does make sense. Hence, Taoists believe that non-action when applied with wisdom leads to action in routine life. On the contrary, some would argue that the idea of inaction is just not feasible in a real world scenario rendering “action through inaction” nothing more than an abstract

‘The way’ is cluttered with constant imagery of contradictory views which are both compelling and insightful, through which we are taken on a journey, our final destination being the true meaning of life. In a world where we are all yearning for the meaning for life, true harmony and real balance it is no surprise that the Tao Te Ching is a very haunting piece of literature that holds the reader in an almost trans like state of mind as it attempts to portray the way to accomplish the above.

As humans we tend to see the success of a person’s accomplishments rather than how it all began, the struggles that person had to experience to get to where they are in the end. What this quote means is that happiness may appear like happiness to a person on the outside looking in, but in reality you do not have a general idea of what that person had to go through for their happiness. The quote is saying we want happiness, stability, passion, and contentment, but no one wants to struggle and live through misery to get there. The success in the end is dull, but the suffrage and challenges are far more

Hsun Tzu's philosophy is built from the idea that human beings are by nature inherently evil, and the good they produce will only come through their conscious activity. Hsun Tzu believes that if man follows his nature and indulges in his natural desires, without transforming himself by conscious activity he is doomed to fall victim to his evil nature. "Any man who follows his nature will inevitably become involved in wrangling and strife, will violate the forms and rules of society, and will end as a criminal." Despite the pessimistic tone of Hsun Tzu's message he does propose conscious activity as a solution to man's evil. This paper will examine Hsun Tzu's perspective in light of both Mencius

The philosophy of Lao-tzu through the Tao Te Ching  lie in natural, balance, merge, integration of nature and human, as well as all creature’s relations. Lao-tzu thinks man and nature create each other in the “Tao”. Man cultivates himself as cultivating the nature. Man and nature are united in essence. Therefore, Lao-tzu states that “They both do no harm to one another, So virtue merges and returns” in

“The whole world recognizes the beautiful as the beautiful, yet this is only the ugly; the whole world recognizes the good as the good, yet this is only the bad.” (Norton) Some people in history thought this statement makes perfect sense; however, it is gibberish to me. How are the beautiful actually ugly, and good mean bad? My only thought process goes back to people having different values of life. My best cliché for this is “One man’s trash is another’s treasure.”

I understand this passage to mean that by embracing the mystery (and not fearing it) one can learn to live a life not controlled by fear and to enjoy every confusion. Lao Tzu writes within another chapter about how to live with fear, “They were careful as someone crossing an iced-over stream. Alert as a warrior in enemy territory. Fluid as melting ice. Shapable as a block of wood. Receptive as a valley. Clear as a glass of water” (Chapter 15, Mitchell). This chapter helps to explain the balance of both fear and curiosity that is needed to reach ones true potential. If one is centered on the Tao, then one doesn’t need

Throughout history, it can be argued that at the core of the majority of successful societies has stood an effective allocation of leadership. Accordingly, in their respective works “The Tao-te Ching” and “The Prince”, Lao-Tzu and Machiavelli have sought to reach a more complete understanding of this relationship. The theme of political leaders and their intricate relationship with society indeed manifests itself within both texts, however, both Lao-Tzu and Machiavelli approach this issue from almost entirely opposite positions. Lao-Tzu appears to focus the majority of his attention on letting problems or situations take their course and allowing good to prevail. On the

“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength while loving someone deeply gives you courage” (Lao Tzu). Lao Tzu is a Chinese philosopher who lived in the sixth century B.C and his work has embraced by both various anti-authoritarian movements. This quote interacts with the ancient text “Tao Te Chin” because they both describe love have a strength and that strength allows the leader to encounter challenges. Tzu believed if masters are the love by his people is the best ruler because the leader gain strength from the people love and loving all the citizens in the state allows the ruler to do favorable things for them. Government vicious qualities are better than the virtuous qualities because the nefarious character of a ruler strictly

Tao Te Ching of Lao-Tzu is a book with many chapters in it showing the two different sides to basically everything. To break it down, Tao means “path” or “way”, Te means “to get”, and Ching means “great book”. So the Tao was the force that controlled the universe and appreciated the way, to find balance between opposites. The book, Tao Te Ching has been said to been written by a Laozi—an old master—and has been said that the true author (or authors’) name has been lost. In the chapters between the book it tells how to live a life of integrity and of greatness per say. It also has contradictions or paradoxes which allows us to see the both perspectives of each side. It shows us that there are always two sides to everything. Tao Te Ching

Now happiness, more than anything else, seems complete without qualification. For we always choose it because of itself, never because of something else. Honor, pleasure, understanding, and every virtue

Who is Lao Tzu? What is the purpose of Tao Te Ching? Why did Lao Tzu write Tao Te Ching? “Lao Tzu was a Chinese philosopher credited with founding the philosophical system of Taoism…He is thought to have lived in the 6th century BEC” (Mark). Lao Tzu’s philosophy of non-action has a great impact on future generations, because it can make the country become peaceful. Tao Te Ching was primarily writing to the rulers and the emperors of that time, he wants all the countries and subsidiary countries in China can coexist together peacefully, hoping that there will be no more wars. The poetic style of Tao Te Ching makes it universal, because it teaches people how to think and to behave well in an manner that can be acceptable and understandable

The Taoist philosophy followed an interesting circle. On one hand, that Taoists rejected the regulation of life and society and preached instead to turn away from it to a solitary meditation of nature. On the other hand, they believed that by doing this one could ultimately have power enough to harness the whole universe. That by doing "nothing" one could accomplish "everything".

When the early Christians had to keep their faith against the persecutions of the Roman Empire, they had -- obviously -- a visible enemy. Once their religion was legalized and established, however, they had new questions to ask concerning who they were, what could hurt their souls and their way of life. Some of them, at least, concluded that the materialism of the dominant Roman way of life was a non-agressive, but equally corrosive force that would destroy them -- not physically, but spiritually. These Fourth Century Christians, men and women, then left their societies and withdrew into the desert to be able to find true "paradise," not in a safe, secure niche in society, but in their relationship with

Finally in the chapter, Chuang Tzu introduces a concept that translates as the Transformation of Things.[7] The concept is illustrated through the story of Chuang Chou dreaming he were a butterfly. This concept of a questionable reality is fascinating and mysterious and it gives an idea of where Chuang Tzu was coming from with his abstract descriptions and ideas. It seems common among many translations of the second chapter that Discussions on making all things equal bears the message that there is no right or wrong in the teachings of Chang Tzu as it is repeated several times. To go even further one