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Taoism
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Taoism Philosophical Taoism and Religious Taoism Philosophical Taoism Laozi (Lao Tzu)- name means “old master” or “old child”; born from vaginal conception; he was born old; he took a job in Loyang for many years but soon grew tired of it and left his post, carried by an ox, traveled to the far west of China; at the border he was recognized as an esteemed scholar and was prohibited from crossing the border until he had written down his teachings; the result was Tao Te Ching; after the book was finished, he left China never to be seen again Tao Te Ching- a short book of about five thousand Chinese characters; the great classic book of Taoism, accepted by most Taoists as a central scripture and one of the world’s greatest books; title “the classical book about the Way and its power”; there are 81 short chapters; it is probably the work of many authors; the book is repetitive and lacks clarity; more like a book of poetry; it is thought to have a political purpose or be a religious guide; its meaning depends on whose interpreting it Tao- we cannot really put into words exactly what the Tao is; it is nameless meaning it is not any individual thing that has a name (door, tree, bird, person, etc…); the Tao can not be named because it has no form; but it can be experienced and followed by every individual thing that has a name; the Tao Te Ching says that the Tao is the origin of everything and that all individual things are “manifestations of the Tao”; the Tau is the origin of nature, but it is not G-d because it does not have personality; it neither cares about human beings nor dislikes them, it only produces them; it can be called the rhythm of nature; to experience the Tao we must leave behind our desires for individual things, a concept that runs counter to everyday concerns (i.e.
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