Te Rauparaha

This story comes from Zen Buddhism in the form of a koan which according to Merriam-Webster dictionary means “A paradox to be meditated upon that is used to train Zen Buddhist monks to abandon ultimate dependence on reason and to force them into gaining sudden intuitive enlightenment.” In other words; “to help us become more comfortable with the reality of mystery, that not everything has an answer”; as mentioned in class. There were a number of questions that came to mind when I read this simple

Greed is the selfish desire for something. An example is in “The Mermaid and the Woodcutter”, by Aesop, and “Head Tree ”. An analysis of both men show they are driven with greed since they only wanted to receive something, even if they do not deserve it. The woodcutter’s brother from “The Mermaid and the Woodcutter”, desires to become wealthy. He hears a story from his brother how he lost his axe in the water, and a mermaid gave him better axes along with his. After hearing this the woodcutter’s

Philosophy in China flourished during the tumultuous time of the Warring Period and, as a result, new ideas emerged. One school of thought, teaching inaction and balance, became known as Taoism. In the Tao Te Ching, a master, someone who follows the Tao, holds many virtues such as humility and discipline. A master of the Tao should live in a state of complete balance and practice “not-doing.” Because of its infinite complexities, the human language cannot completely define the Tao. Lao, knowing this

What does “struggle” mean to the average person? It may mean writing a trying essay, preparing for a job interview, or even something as simple as riding a bike. However, in “The Embassy of Cambodia,” Zadie Smith shows readers the real meaning of struggle through the main character, an unpaid housemaid by the name of Fatou. There are many protruding themes in the story, but the most prevalent moral of the story is, no matter how many times the big guy may knock one down, they must always get up,

Leadership in Thoughts from the Tao-te-Ching and The Qualities of a Prince Lao-Tzu’s “Thoughts from the Tao-te Ching” and Machiavelli’s “The Qualities of a Prince” both have the ultimate goal of making better leaders. The tactics that each writer chooses to present as a guide for the leader are almost opposite of each other. Today’s American government would benefit from a combination of the two extreme ideas. Lao-Tzu’s laissez-faire attitude towards the economy, as well as his small scale

society. Ethics is not feelings, religion, science, or following the law and cultural norm. Ethics is, however, a set of moral behaviors that tell us what is right and wrong in different situations. Through writings such as The Apology by Plato and Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu we are can more clearly get a picture of what it means to be ethical and how to respond to ethical dilemmas. In Plato’s The Apology, Socrates supports the fairness and justice ethical approach by recognizing that all equals must

creation, the purity and profundity of the art is lost in “bearing witness to its own validity.” The goal, thus, is to have the experience of satori each time the act of painting or sculpting occurs, and letting it do the art. Te Taoist tradition also supports this as, from the Tao Te Ching, “a good artist lets his intuition / lead him wherever it wants,” (Lao Tzu 27). Now, it is still important to know the various techniques associated with the art form in particular. For only if a craft knowledge is

You admire the chocolate bar in your hand, mulling over the years of memories it inspires. You love everything about this bar, from its infallible solidity to the sleek silver letters spelling out H-E-R-S-H-E-Y-S across its wrapper. In your eyes, a company that creates such wonderful products can do no wrong. But you might think differently if you knew what went into the making of your chocolate bar. As producers of more than half the world’s cocoa beans, the Western African countries of Ghana and

life should be emptied of such trivialities in order to make room for what is natural; simplicity should be embraced in order for the truth of the universe to be revealed and what follows is clarity and peace rather than self-containment. In the Tao Te Ching, Lao Tsu describes an eternal Way of life that is unperceivable, but is everywhere and consists of everything. It is the natural order of the universe, and it is eternally present. In order to be one with the Tao, one must learn to flow with life

According to Daoists, the Dao De Jing, written by Laozi, serves as a manual on how to operate in life. “Dao De Jing” translates to “The Book on the ‘Way’ and its Virtues” (Daoism 1, p. 4). This classic Chinese piece of philosophical literature was written during the Warring States Period in China, a time of political instability. The majority of the Dao De Jing provides ideas to strengthen the nation and bring it to peace, reflecting ideas that revolve around a chaotic kingdom. One of