Who is the founder of Taoism?

Laozi, whose surname is Li, given name Er, courtesy name Boyang, posthumous title Dan, was born in Ku County (now Luyi County) of Chu State. He lived between about 571 BC and 471 BC, and served as the guardian of Tibet in the Zhou Dynasty. In his later years, he lived in the state of Chen, and later left the country to give lectures in Qin, but his whereabouts were missing.

The only writings left by Laozi are "Five Thousand Wen", namely "Laozi", also called "Tao Te Ching". It is a philosophical work written by Laozi in verse. It is the main classic of Taoism and the direct material for studying Laozi's philosophical thoughts. "Laozi" has been translated and published by Russia, Japan, Germany, Britain and other countries as a wonder in ancient philosophy, and is deeply loved by readers from all over the world.

1. Laozi and "Laozi's Tao Te Ching"

Laozi is a philosopher in ancient my country. He is the founder of the Taoist school and the earliest great philosopher with simple dialectics in China and the world.

My life story is very unclear. Sima Qian wrote a biography of him in "Historical Records", but it was very simple. We only know that his surname is Li, his given name is Er, and his courtesy name is Dan. He was a native of Ku County, Chu State (now Luyi County, Henan Province). Some people also say that he is from Chen Guoxiang. Ku County and Hexiang are a place that originally belonged to the State of Chen. Later, the State of Chu sent troops to destroy Chen, and it became a place of the State of Chu. Later people called him Lao Tzu. "Lao" means old and virtuous, and "子" is a good name for men in ancient times. Probably anyone who is knowledgeable and virtuous can get this title.

I served as the historian of the Zhou Dynasty. Later, due to the decline of the Zhou Dynasty, Laozi left Hangu Pass in the west, not knowing where he ended up. It is said that when Laozi left the customs, he rode a green ox to the west of the desert in northwest my country.

When Laozi passed through Hangu Pass, Yinxi, the commander of the pass, knew that he was about to disappear and asked Laozi to write a book. So Lao Tzu wrote five thousand words, which is his only work "Lao Tzu".

The dates of Lao Tzu’s birth and death are no longer known. Historians have done a lot of research and had a lot of debates, but there is still no consensus on when exactly Lao Tzu was born. It is said that Confucius once asked Laozi for advice, so some people estimate that Laozi should be older than Confucius. Confucius was born in the 21st year of King Ling of Zhou (551 BC), and Laozi was born in the early years of King Ling of Zhou (around 570 BC). However, some scholars believe that the legend that Confucius consulted Laozi is unreliable. According to Laozi's thoughts and doctrines, Laozi is later than Confucius and probably lived in the Warring States Period.

Most of Laozi's thoughts and ideas are preserved in his book "Laozi". "Laozi" has eighty-one chapters, divided into two parts. One chapter has only more than 5,000 words. Later people also called it "Laozi's Tao Te Ching" because this book talks about the issues of morality and morality. In addition, some people call it "The Five Thousand Words of the Tao Te Ching" and "The Five Thousand Words of Laozi".

The book "Laozi" has many annotations made by later generations. The most popular ones are Hanhe Shang Gongzhu, Wei Wangbi's Zhu and "Laozi Original Meaning" by Wei Yuan of the Qing Dynasty.

Since we know too little about Laozi’s life and history, was the book "Laozi" written by Laozi himself, or is the relationship between Laozi and the book "Laozi" not very close? There is also debate on this issue. At present, the academic community has not reached a complete consensus. However, more people are more inclined to say that Laozi was a person before Confucius. The book "Laozi" we see now was not written by Laozi himself, but the main ideas in it belong to Laozi. It was written no later than the middle of the Warring States Period.

We know that pre-Qin classics were rarely written by one person. Instead, they were continuously supplemented and developed by people from various schools, and it took many years to become a fixed book. For example, it took at least five hundred years, or even longer, from the formation of the book "I Ching" to the writing of today's "I Ching".

The book "Laozi" is very short and difficult to understand. Although it has been updated and supplemented by later generations, the main ideas in it are still Laozi's original ideas. Now we will use the book "Laozi" to understand Laozi's philosophy, political thoughts and his status and influence in Chinese history.

2. Denial of the Emperor of Heaven and the Thought of "Tao"

Laozi was the earliest philosopher in ancient China to deny the Emperor of Heaven.

The ancient Chinese believed that everything in the universe was ruled by gods. The highest god is Tian, ​​or the Emperor of Heaven. The Emperor of Heaven has a will, has knowledge, and can be happy or angry. When it likes, it brings blessings to people; when it gets angry, disasters come. The Emperor of Heaven has the greatest authority. He rules over everything in the universe and everyone. It is not only the ruler of heaven, but also the ruler of the earth and the human world. The emperors of the human world are also subject to its jurisdiction. Therefore, everyone is in awe of the Emperor of Heaven. This concept began to undergo some changes in the Spring and Autumn Period.

Chinese society during the Spring and Autumn Period experienced significant changes in all aspects of politics, economy, culture and ideology. The power of the old hereditary aristocracy gradually declined, and the emerging landowning class began to grow. During this period, there were continuous wars among the princes. The continuous large military expenditures and the luxurious life of the nobles increased the burden on the people, aroused the people's resentment and anger, and broke out the people's resistance. This drastic class change and the reality of struggle made some relatively clear-headed rulers at that time gradually realize the power of the people and realize that just using explosive force to suppress them was not enough. Therefore, we have to pay attention to the intentions of the people. Some advanced thinkers have doubts about the power of the Emperor of Heaven to rule the people, and believe that the Emperor of Heaven must also consider the demands of the people. The absolute authority of the Emperor of Heaven began to waver. Lao Tzu was an earlier thinker who consciously and explicitly denied the Emperor of Heaven from a philosophical perspective.

Lao Tzu said: "The heaven and the earth are unkind and regard all things as stupid dogs." The meaning of this sentence is: Heaven and earth are ruthless. Heaven and earth treat all things just like humans treat dogs made of grass for sacrifice. After using them, they abandon them. There is no love or hatred. The meaning of this comparison is that the growth and operation of all things is not controlled by God's will.

Laozi’s denial of the Emperor’s control over all things is closely related to the natural science knowledge that people recognized during the Spring and Autumn Period. According to records, historians at that time already knew the cycle of winter and summer solstice. He also discovered the law of Jupiter's twelve-year cycle, and established the chronological system of twelve years as one day. At the beginning of the seventh century BC, the calculation of the first lunar month had been generally accurate. All these make people realize that the sky also has its own certain laws of operation and cannot act at will. Therefore, the concept of heaven gradually has scientific significance in people's minds.

Therefore, Laozi’s theory of denying that the Emperor of Heaven is the supreme authority did not arise out of thin air, but was based on its social and historical conditions and the development of natural science knowledge.

After Laozi denied the existence of the Emperor of Heaven, he proposed a "Tao" as the origin of all things in the world. Laozi said that Tao was "preceded by Emperor Xiang", and that Emperor was the most powerful god consistently passed down in ancient times. However, in Laozi's view, Tao existed before Emperor. Lao Tzu made many explanations for the Tao he proposed. He said: This Tao is not an ordinary or general truth, but the origin of heaven and earth and the foundation of all things. It existed before the growth of all things in the world. It exists forever and is constantly moving among all things in the world. All things in the world are produced from it. It is the mother of the universe. Without it, there would be no universe.

Lao Tzu also said that Tao is a chaotic thing that cannot see shape, hear sound, or grasp. When you meet it, you can't see in front of it; when you follow it, you can't see behind it. What a mystery this is! However, it is a very common thing that exists everywhere.

Zhuangzi, a famous philosopher who inherited Laozi’s teachings, once told a fable. The story goes like this:

A man named Dongguozi asked Zhuangzi: "Where is the Tao you often talk about?"

Zhuangzi replied : "Tao exists everywhere."

"Where is it? Please tell me clearly." Dongguozi asked again.

"In the bodies of mole crickets and ants". Zhuangzi said.

"Why is it so low?"

"In the millet and tares."

"Why is it even more low-level?"

"Inside the tiles."

"Isn't it getting lower and lower?"

"Inside the toilet."

Dong Guozi listened When Zhuangzi said "in the urine and urine", he felt that the more he answered, the more he could not answer, so he stopped asking.

Zhuangzi said to Dongguozi: "You want me to tell you clearly where the Tao is. I can only show you that the Tao exists in every place by speaking in a lower tone. Why are you unhappy? ? "

This story shows that everything in the world, from the universe to the earth, to crickets and clay pots, all contain Tao. Therefore, Tao exists everywhere. It does not rely on people's subjective will and exists objectively. Zhuangzi deliberately described Tao in such a low light in order to break everyone's mysterious concept of Tao.

3. "Governing by doing nothing" and "a small country with few people"

The book "Laozi" puts forward political ideas on how to govern the country and describes what Laozi pursues and longs for. A picture of an ideal world.

How to govern the country? Lao Tzu believes that it is best to take the approach of doing nothing. What is the ideal world that Lao Tzu admires and yearns for? It is a primitive society with a small country and few people.

In the book "Laozi", the idea of ​​inaction is implemented everywhere. Inaction means doing nothing. Lao Tzu believes that the ideal ruler should govern the country by allowing the people to live a free life without interfering with them. The purpose of governing the country can be achieved by doing nothing and letting things develop naturally.

In Lao Tzu’s view, nothingness is the most useful thing. Isn’t the Tao itself empty and invisible? Its effect is so great. For example, a wheel cannot rotate without the round hole in the middle. The teacups, porcelain bowls and other utensils we use cannot contain anything if there is no empty space. If there is no space at the door, no one can go in or out. How can a house be inhabited if there is no room? Therefore Lao Tzu said that nothingness and emptiness are useful. When we deal with things, doing nothing is to make a difference. This is what "doing nothing but doing nothing" means. If everyone lives and behaves according to the principle of inaction, and the country is governed according to the principle of inaction, then everything will be handled well.

Lao Tzu said that the more prohibitions there are in the world, the more people will fall into poverty. The more civilian weapons there are, the more the country falls into chaos. The more sophisticated people's technology is, the more abnormal things they cause. The more clear the laws are, the more thieves will happen. Lao Tzu opposes the use of punishment, etiquette, and wisdom to govern the country. He opposed heavy taxes, strong military, industry and commerce, knowledge and culture. It is believed that these are violations of the principle of governing by doing nothing.

Lao Tzu has repeatedly told rulers that if they violate the principle of governing by doing nothing, it will cause chaos among the people and make it impossible to maintain and consolidate their rule. It is best for rulers to do nothing and let the people think that there is only one government. In fact, it is the same whether there is a government or not. In this way, the people will naturally obey, naturally become simple, and naturally become rich. The ideal monarch is just a leader of the people. Although his status is above the people, the people will not feel that he is a burden or threat.

Lao Tzu advocates fooling the people again. He believed that a wise ruler should govern the people by weakening their aspirations and making them ignorant. Let the people have enough to eat, have strong muscles and bones, be able to work well, and live a life without knowledge, desire, or ambition. Laozi said that the more ignorant the people are, the more beneficial it is to the rulers. The policy of obscuring the people adopted by the ruling class in later generations was inspired by Laozi.

Lao Tzu praised primitive simplicity and honesty. He cherished the ancient primitive society and believed that material progress and cultural development destroyed the simplicity and simplicity of the people and brought suffering to them. Therefore, he said that only by abandoning wisdom can the people benefit a hundredfold. Only by abandoning culture and knowledge can we be free from worries.

Laozi denounced the hypocrisy of so-called benevolence and righteousness in class society, and the negative consequences of wisdom and knowledge used for fraud. This is a progressive factor in Laozi's thought. However, Lao Tzu opposes all cultures indiscriminately and attributes the disasters and sufferings that the unreasonable system of class society brings to the people as being caused by knowledge and culture. This is of course very wrong.

Lao Tzu's ideal society is: "A small country with few people. Even if there are hundreds of weapons, they will not be used, and the people will die again and not move far away. Although there are boats and carriages, there is nothing to take advantage of. Even though there are armored soldiers, There is nothing to say. Let the people re-knot their ropes and use them. They enjoy their food, enjoy their homes, and enjoy their customs. Neighbors look at each other and hear the sounds of chickens and dogs. When the people grow old, they do not interact with each other. "

The translation of this passage into modern language is as follows:

"The territory is not large and the people are sparse. Even if there are many tools, they will not use them with their lives. Even if there are boats and cars, there is no place to ride them. Even if there are weapons and equipment, there is no need to use the ancient method of knotting to remember things. Satisfied with simple customs and living habits, neighboring countries can see each other, and the crows of cocks and dogs can be heard, but the people do not interact with each other until they die. "

This is the kind of society that I admire and yearn for. It is an ancient primitive society, which will naturally never appear again. To a certain extent, Laozi's fantasy reflects the people's urgent desire for quiet rest and relief from exploitation during the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, when wars were frequent, life was turbulent, and the ruling class exploited the people cruelly. However, the ideal of a small country with few people goes against the laws of social and historical development. I hope that many small, divided and independent countries will emerge. In each small country, the people will live a backward primitive life. Isn't this contrary to the unity of the country and the growing material culture? Therefore we can say that it is a conservative and backward thought.

4. The glorious dialectics

The essence of Laozi’s theory is his dialectical thought.

Laozi observed the development and changes of all things in the world, and observed the mutual relationships between opposites such as growth and change, survival and destruction, new and old, blessing and misfortune in social history and politics. Discovered some dialectical laws within things.

Lao Tzu once said a very famous saying: "Misfortune lies where blessings depend, and blessing lies where misfortune lies." This sentence was often quoted by later generations. That is to say, disaster is the prerequisite for happiness, and blessing contains factors of disaster, which are not eternal. Good things and bad things can be transformed into each other. Under certain conditions, blessings can turn into disasters, and misfortunes can also turn into blessings.

There was a book called "Huainanzi" in the Han Dynasty. Many of the contents of this book were written based on Laozi's thoughts. Among them is a story of "a blessing in disguise", which vividly illustrates the principle of "misfortune lies on the back of good fortune, and good fortune lies on the back of misfortune".

The story goes like this:

Once upon a time there was a man who lived not far from the fortress. One day, one of his horses suddenly escaped outside the wall. The neighbors felt sorry for him, but his father said: "How do you know this will not be a good thing?"

A few months later, the horse came back and brought A Hun horse. The neighbors came to celebrate again, and his father said, "How do you know this won't turn out to be a bad thing?"

There was a good horse at home, and he was a horse-riding person, but he fell off the horse. Broken foot bone. The neighbors came to express condolences, and his father said, "How do you know this will not be a good thing?"

A year later, the Huns invaded in large numbers, and most of the young and middle-aged people nearby died in the war. However, he was unable to go to war because of his lameness, and he and his father saved their lives.

This is the origin of the idiom "a blessing in disguise" that people often say later.

The good and bad things mentioned in this story are measured from the perspective of the narrow interests of individuals and families. However, it reflects the preliminary speculation by ancient Chinese people and ancient thinkers from their actual life experience that good things and bad things can transform into each other.

The principle of "Misfortune lies on the back of good fortune, and good fortune lies on the back of misfortune" shows that Laozi does not regard both sides of opposites as dead and solid things, but as vivid and capable things. Something that changes.

In the book "Laozi", many places also profoundly demonstrate the principle that opposites complement each other and the extremes of things must reverse. Things develop in contradiction. Lao Tzu said: Being and non-being are complementary to each other, difficulty and ease are complementary to each other, long and short appear only when compared with each other, different sounds produce harmony, and front and back are opposed to each other and have order.

The extremes of things must be reversed: Things transition to their opposite aspects in the process of change, and at a certain time they become completely opposite. Lao Tzu said: Change in the opposite direction is the movement of Tao. This change is not due to other external reasons, but because the thing itself contains its opposite. Based on this principle, Lao Tzu summed up a set of experiences in political struggle. Lao Tzu has repeatedly warned rulers that they must get rid of those extreme, extravagant and excessive measures, which will bring the problem to the other extreme, and as a result, the world will be ruined and the world will be lost.

A wise ruler is able to maintain his positive position and not develop in the opposite direction. How to do it? It is to put yourself in a weak position and put the other party in a strong position. If you are extremely strong, you will transform into its opposite and fail. This principle is called weakness defeating strength. In order to prove the principle that the weak is stronger than the strong, I gave many examples. He said: There is nothing softer than water in the world, and no strong force can defeat it. Another example: People are weak when they are alive, but they become hard when they die. All plants and trees are soft when alive, but become withered when dead. Therefore, strong things should belong to the category of death, and weak things should belong to the category of survival. When an army is strong, it will be destroyed; when a tree is strong, it will be destroyed. It is better to be weak than to be strong.

According to legend, there is a story: My husband Chang Cong was ill, and I went to visit him. Chang Cong opened his mouth to Lao Tzu and asked:

"Look, do I still have any teeth?"

"No more." Lao Tzu replied.

"Is the tongue still there?"

"Yes."

"Do you understand?" Chang Cong asked.

"Sir, what you mean is: the hard part has fallen off long ago, but the soft part is still there. Is that right?" I replied.

"You are right."

This story also illustrates the principle that softness can defeat strength.

Laozi also initially realized that the accumulation of quantity can lead to qualitative changes. He said that a huge tree that hugs each other is born from a tiny sprout; a nine-story platform is built from a pile of soil; a journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step. Therefore, Lao Tzu also warned rulers that when things are stable, their stability is easy to maintain. When things are fragile, they dissolve easily. When things are still subtle, they are easily scattered. Get things done before they happen, sort things out before they get messed up.

Laozi discovered and understood the contradictions of things more widely and profoundly than the average ancient philosophers. However, on the other hand, we should also see that Laozi's dialectical thinking is incomplete, spontaneous, and simple. There is also a metaphysical point of view in Laozi's thought. For example, Lao Tzu often views the world from a static point of view. His ideal country is one that is forever isolated and has no development or change. Although Lao Tzu acknowledges the movement of nature, this movement is just a repeated cycle. Another example is that Laozi discovered the law of mutual transformation of strong and weak situations. Although this was a glorious contribution in Laozi's dialectics, he regarded the weak's victory over the strong as an absolute law and failed to realize that the mutual transformation of strong and weak situations is not unconditional, but It's conditional. In addition, although there are contradictory concepts in Laozi's dialectics, it lacks the idea of ​​active struggle. The spirit of Laozi's teachings is not to develop contradictions, resolve them, and move forward, but to prevent development, maintain the status quo, or even go backwards. But despite this, we can still say that before Marxist materialist dialectics was introduced into China, Lao Tzu was indeed a great philosopher with dialectical thinking among ancient philosophers.

5. Influence on later generations

Because Laozi put forward the doctrine of Tao, later people called Laozi's philosophical school Taoism.

Lao Tzu is the founder of Taoism. By the time of Zhuangzi, Taoist thought had developed greatly. When later generations talked about Taoism, Laozi and Zhuangzi were often mentioned together.

Taoism plays a very important role in the history of our country. It had a great influence on the development of thoughts in my country's feudal society. The book "Laozi" was a book that intellectuals in China's feudal era liked to read.

The influence of Taoist thought, from a philosophical perspective, the metaphysics of the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, and the Neo-Confucianism of the Song Dynasty are closely related to Taoist thought.

Philosophers in ancient my country studied many issues in life, such as attitude towards life and moral cultivation. They paid great attention to these issues. However, relatively little attention has been paid to issues such as the formation of the universe and the development of nature. Laozi's theory of Tao proposed a relatively systematic view of the universe for the first time and had a great influence on subsequent philosophers.

In terms of politics, the Huang-Lao theory in the early Han Dynasty advocated the policy of recuperation and recuperation, which was a political theory with Laozi's thought of governing by doing nothing as its main content. The feudal ruling classes of the past dynasties often used the magic of controlling their subjects explained by Laozi to strengthen their power and consolidate their rule.

Another thing to talk about is the relationship between Laozi and Taoism.

Taoism is the only indigenous religion in my country. It was founded by Zhang Daoling at the end of the Han Dynasty. This religion is a mixture of witchcraft, gods, ghosts, yin and yang and the five elements. It specializes in superstitions such as immortality and drawing talismans to drive away ghosts. After the founding of Taoism, Laozi was respected as the founder.

Since Taoism was founded by Zhang Daoling, why should we respect Laozi as the founder? There is a certain reason for this.

Lao Tzu's life story was lost very early on, so even Sima Qian of the Han Dynasty was unclear about Lao Tzu's records. There were probably many legends about Lao Tzu at that time. For example, it was said that he lived for more than two hundred years because of his Taoism. His knowledge was so profound that great scholars like Confucius would ask him for advice, etc. So during the Han Dynasty, People admire Lao Tzu very much.

During the Qin and Han dynasties, belief in immortals was very popular. According to legend, Qin Shihuang once sent 500 boys and 500 virgins overseas to search for elixirs. Around the early years of the Han Dynasty, Lao Tzu was also associated with gods. Later, Lao Tzu was exaggerated more and more, and he became a living god. After the founding of Taoism, in order to attract the attention and belief of the masses, they revered this living god as their ancestor and respectfully called him "Tai Shang Laojun". The book "Laozi" became a scripture recited by Taoist priests.

Taoism and Taoism are different. One is a philosophical sect, the other is a religion, and they are unrelated. Because of Lao Tzu, some people confuse Taoism with Taoism, but in fact they are not the same thing.

6. Conclusion

Lao Tzu is a great philosopher in ancient my country.

Laozi denies the existence of the Emperor of Heaven, breaks the lofty status of the Emperor of Heaven, proposes Tao as the origin of all things in the world, and regards the growth, movement and destruction of all things in the world as the function of nature and has nothing to do with it. God’s will governs. This kind of thinking was of great progressive significance at the time.

In terms of political thought, Laozi advocates governing by doing nothing. His ideal world is a primitive society of small countries and few people in ancient times.

Laozi observed the changes in opposites such as the new and the old, success and failure, survival and death in the world, all things and social history, and put forward many dialectical ideas, which radiated from the history of ancient Chinese philosophy. An extremely brilliant spark of thought, it is a historical legacy that we should cherish and be proud of.

Laozi’s position in the history of Chinese thought is very important. He was the founder of the Taoist school, and his teachings had a great influence on the politics and thought of China's feudal society.