When reading the ancient Taoist works, it is easy to conflate Lao-Tzu’s doctrines with minimalism. The same applies to the stories written by Yang-Tzu and Chuang-Tzu. One gets a clear impression that happiness requires discarding the unnecessary, and focusing exclusively on the essentials.
However, such an impression is false. Taoism does not call for renouncing success and wealth, retiring from the world and leading a humdrum existence. Nor does it prescribe giving up our dreams, ambitions and projects.
Why do many people associate Taoism and minimalism? In their eyes, Lao-Tzu was a Chinese precursor of the asceticism practised by medieval monks in Europe. They view Taoism as a picturesque doctrine of self-denial, self-effacement and strict poverty.
I attribute this philosophical confusion to the fact that Lao-Tzu became well-known in Europe only in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century, when historical and philosophical thought was still dominated by Christians.
Asceticism
It is no wonder that they categorized Taoism as an early but imperfect version of medieval mysticism and asceticism. If we follow their logic, Lao-Tzu had embraced minimalism because he had arrived at the same conclusions as medieval thinkers.
I contest their interpretation because of the large doctrinal divergences between Taoism and ascetic Christianity. At first sight, they share a common attitude, but when we look at the details, each represents a different world.
Bernard de Clairvaux (1090-1153) preached and embodied a lifestyle of poverty and prayer. In four decades, he founded seventy monasteries and attracted several thousand young men to join his monastic order.
In his eloquent sermons, Bernard advocated for a lifestyle of self-denial and sacrifice to earn recompenses in heaven. His choice for a life of deprivation was based on his interpretation of the Gospels; he expected to enjoy his reward after death, not during his lifetime.
The Taoist conception is diametrically opposed to Bernard’s asceticism. Chapter 19 of the Tao Te Ching recommends us to embrace a simple, modest lifestyle, but it does so for practical reasons.
Simplicity
Lao-Tzu, Yang-Tzu and Chuang-Tzu regard simplicity and modesty as means to attain a better life on earth, not in heaven. Ancient Taoist literature explains in great detail the advantages of a simple, modest lifestyle, and shows that those advantages are worth the effort.
Simplicity enables us to concentrate on the essential factors that sustain happiness. I mean health, skill development, love, friendship, and self-reliance. Pretence and braggadocio can be enjoyable for a while, but can turn us into targets for criminals.
A modest lifestyle enables us to reduce costs, save money, achieve financial security and eliminate preoccupations about our future. Lao-Tzu had nothing against wealth accumulation, provided that it’s done discreetely and for a sensible purpose.
Minimalism entails discomfort, which Bernard de Clairvaux categorized as a virtue. Medieval monks were supposed to lead an uncomfortable, harsh existence, hoping that God would pay them back after death.
Without supernatural expectations, they wouldn’t have gone to live in a monastery, sleeping in a communal room, eating a frugal diet, and wearing the same clothes throughout the year. I do not know of any Taoist willing to embrace such a harsh life for the sake of a reward in heaven.
Tangible benefits
The Taoist conception of minimalism is purely practical. In the stories of Chuang-Tzu, we see that modesty and simplicity help us avoid lots of problems in life. We can deflect envy and malfeasance simply because criminals don’t want to waste time on targets that look deprived.
Chuang-Tzu’s story of the small, malformed tree points out the benefits of invisibility. The seemingly useless tree lived a long time unmolested and happy, while large, beautiful trees had quickly attracted the attention of woodcutters and suffered consequences. Their life had ended much too early.
Even Taoist hermits seem to have adopted a lonely lifestyle for practical reasons in periods of social unrest. They regarded it as too dangerous, due to war and famine, to live in a town or village, and that’s why they decided to retire to the mountains.
In contrast to the followers of Bernard de Clairvaux, Taoists are willing to change their lifestyle from one minute to the next if the circumstances change. Taoist hermits were willing to go back to civilization as soon as the security risk had diminished.
Their choice for minimalism had been temporary and based on tangible benefits, not permanent and abstract. Their simple, modest lifestyle was meant to achieve a precise goal: survival during dire times and risk avoidance.
Their choice was based on a cost-and-benefit analysis done with a cool head. Their lifestyle preferences remained valid as long as the circumstances remained the same. If those changed, then it was time to review the decision.
In 1146, Bernard de Clairvaux made an enthusiastic speech in support of the second Crusade; he called for gathering a vast army for reconquering middle-eastern territories. Such an idea would be unthinkable for Taoists, and shows the philosophical differences between medieval asceticism and Taoism; the latter looks for a smooth, enjoyable, peaceful existence on this earth.
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