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Laozi

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Laozi's names
Chinese name: 老子
Pinyin: Lǎozǐ
Wade-Giles: Lao Tzu
Other spellings: Lao Tse, Laotse,
Lao Tze, Laotze
Actual name: Lǐ Ěr
Courtesy name: Bó Yáng
Posthumous name: Dān
File:Lao zi.PNG
Laozi leaves China on his water buffalo.

Laozi (Chinese: 老子, Pinyin:Lǎozǐ; also transliterated as Lao Tzu, Lao Tse, Laotze, and in others) is a major figure in Chinese philosophy whose historical existence is still being debated. According to Chinese traditional legend, he lived in the 6th century BCE. Laozi was credited by writing the seminal of Taoist work, named Tao Te Ching, and he was recognized as the founder of Taoism.

His life

Little is known about Laozi's life. His historical existence is still being strongly debated, as is his authorship of the Daode Jing . Laozi became an important culture hero to subsequent generations of Chinese people. legendary said he was born in Ku Prefecture of the state of Chǔ ,which today is known as Lùyì County of Henan province, in the later years of Spring and Autumn Period. Some legends said that he was born in white hair and had spent eight or eighty years in his mother's womb, which gave an explanation for his title, which were both read as "the old master" and "the old child".

According to the legend and the biography included in Sima Qian's work, Laozi was an older contemporary of Confucius and worked as an archivist in the Imperial Library of the Zhou Dynasty(1122 - 256 BC). Confucius intentionally or accidentally met him in Zhou, near the location of modern Luoyang, where Confucius was going to browse the library scrolls. According to this story, Confucius, over the following months, discussed ritual and propriety, cornerstones of Confucianism, with Laozi. The latter strongly opposed what he felt to be hollow practices. Taoist legend claims that these discussions proved more educational for Confucius than the contents of the libraries.

Laozi quit his work, perhaps because of the Zhou Dynasty was under chaos. Some claimed that he travelled to the west with his water buffalo through the state of Qin and disappeared to the vast desert. When Laozi arrived to the Hangu Custom, one of the officers named Yixi, convinced Laozi to leave his philosophy in writing before heading to the desert. That was the only occurence. where Laozi left his philosophy in writing else in spoken method, as were also in the cases like Jesus, the Buddha, and Confucius (whose Analects were compiled by his disciples). Laozi's response to the officer's request was the Tao Te Ching. The image of Laozi exists today in scrolls and paintings, depicting him as a bald elderly man with a vary length of black or white beard and riding on a water buffalo.

Some of the controversies about Laozi are:

  • The discussion with Confucius might have been fabricated by Taoists to make their school of philosophy sound more superior to Confucianism.
  • The actual author(s) of the Tao Te Ching might have created a fictitious character so the origin of the text would look more mysterious, thus making it easier to be popularized.
  • Arguments about "Laozi" was a pseudonym of "Dan", Prefect of the Grand Scribes; or of an old man from Lai, a prefecture in the state of Qí; or of some other historical persons.
  • It is also believed that the Tao Te Ching was written as a guideline for emperors as how to rule their empire in a more natural way; "Ruling by not ruling". This can be found in the numerous referings in the Tao Te Ching which stated: "Not exalting man of worth, prevents people from competing" and "Not putting high value on rare goods, prevents people from being bandit" and "Human hunger is the result of overtaxation. For this reason, there is hunger".
Laozi, from Myths and Legends of China, 1922 by E. T. C. Werner

Taoism

Laozi's work, the Tao Te Ching, is one of the most significant treatises in Chinese philosophy. It is Laozi's magnum opus, covering large areas of philosophy from individual spirituality and inter-personal dynamics to political techniques.

Laozi developed the concept of "Tao", often translated as "the Way", and widened its meaning to an inherent order or property of the universe: "The way Nature is". He highlighted the concept of Wei wuwei, or "action without action". This does not mean that one should hang around and do nothing, but that one should avoid explicit intentions, strong wills or proactive actions; one would arrive to his real efficiency by following the movement of spontaneously. Actions should be taken in accordance with "Tao" are easier and more productive than actively attempting to counter it. Laozi believed that violence should be avoided as possible, and that the victory of military victory rather to be mourning; due to the necessity of force against another livinghood; than an occasion of triumphant celebrations.

Similarily to the arguments fowarded by Plato in the Republic on various form of governing; Laozi said that the codification of laws and rules into the society created difficulty and complexity in managing or governing.

As with most other ancient Chinese philosophers, his way of explaining his ideas often uses paradox, analogy, appropriation of ancient sayings, repetition, symmetry, rhyme, and rhythm. The writings attributed to him were poetical and dense. They served as a starting point for cosmological or introspective meditations. Many of the aesthetic theories of Chinese art are widely grounded in his ideas and those of his most famous follower Zhuang Zi.

Some people found that the closest parallel to Taoist philosophy in the west is the Traditionalist School, specifically the works of Ananda Coomaraswamy and Rene Guenon.

Influences

Laozi's most famous follower, Zhuang Zi, wrote a book that had a great deal of influence on Chinese Literati, through the ideas of individualism, freedom, carefreeness, and, even if the author never speaks about it, art, which may well be the cornerstone of Chinese aesthetic.

Addresses

The name "Laozi" is an honorific. Lao means "venerable" or "old". Zi or Tsu translates literally as "boy", but it was also a term for a rank of nobleman equivalent to viscount, as well as a term of respect attached to the names of revered masters. Thus, "Laozi" can be translated roughly as "the old master".

Laozi's personal name may have been Li Er, his courtesy name may have been Boyang, and also Dan,, which means "Mysterious" too.

There are a few Laozi is also known as:

  • Laodan
  • Great Lord
    • Li The Great Lord
    • Lao The Great Lord
  • Laozi The Lord of Tao

In the Li Tang Dynasty, in order to create a connection to Laozi as the ancestor of the imperial family, he was honoured as The Emperor of Xuanyuan , meaning "Profoundly Elementary;" with a temple name of Shengzu, meaning "Saintly/Sagely Progenitor".

External links

The Tao Te Ching

Bibliography

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