Taoism Essay, Research Paper

Taoism was first thought of by Lao Tzu. He thought that if you seek order and

harmony and observe that nothing in nature strives for fame, power, and wisdom.

Tao means "The way" or the universal force that guides all things. The

philosophy of Lao Tzu came to be known as Taoism. Chinese people who learned the

philosophy left society and lived closer to nature (Krieger, Reynolds, Neill,

88). The sign of the yin yang is a very common symbol in Taoism. Yin is the dark

side of life. Yang is the light side of life. Without each other life would be

unbalanced and unable to survive. Some of the great masters of yin yang and

Taoism are Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu. The hexagrams around the yin yang represent

the forces of life that interact with each other (Dithrich). Taoists believe in

the universe as being alive. They believe in the primal chi. The chi is the

pivotal energy and living soul of the universe (Huang, 214). Many masters of

Taoism, believe in worldly problems rather than political, "Their concerns

were other-worldly. They sought self- awareness and self-cultivation in the

transcendental?" (Parrinder,327). Taoist people believe that Tao, also

meaning oneness, is the mother of all things. This philosophy influenced poets

and artists. Taoism is simple and is close to nature. They believe that events

in life should take their natural course and not be touched or stopped (Farah,

Flickema, Hantula, Johnson, 77-80). Taoism is a religion still practiced in

China. Other cultures believe in a form of Taoism too. It is a naturalistic

religion that will be practiced for years to come.