Category: Philosophy
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Chinese history and Taoism
I would love to believe that, when the circumstances call for creative solutions, those will appear; and that, when the issues grow threatening, countermeasures will be developed; and that every problem will be followed by repeated attempts at sorting it out, until one eventually succeeds. Unfortunately, this is not always the case in history. It…
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Taoist spirituality compared to Socrates
We do not have the exact birth and death dates for Lao-Tzu, but according to the tradition, he lived a couple of generations earlier than Socrates (469-399 BC). The philosophical ideas of Socrates partially overlap with those of Lao-Tzu. I find it particularly interesting to compare their views on the spiritual aspects of philosophy. Taoism…
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The true nature of Taoist spirituality
Some people abhor organized religion because they find its rituals empty and its promises questionable. They don’t want to join any church because they dislike being told what to do and how to pursue happiness. Nonetheless, they feel a certain need for spirituality, or at the very least, a need for philosophy. Taoists perform rituals,…
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Taoist spirituality compared to religion
It is extremely easy to compare Taoism to religion. In fact, I can do it in just two sentences. In the first sentence, I’ll explain the key commonality between Taoism and religion; and in the second sentence, I will point out what keeps them apart. First, the commonality between Taoism and religion is that both…
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The Taoist Yin and Yang in daily life
It often happens that people speak about bringing their lives in balance because, apparently, they are getting too much of A, and not getting enough of B, whatever it is. When they say that they are getting too much of something, they usually mean that they are not doing enough in that area, or that…
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Critique of the Taoist Yin and Yang
I wish that we could all attain happiness by simply bringing the Yin and Yang into balance. The Yin and Yang doctrine is easy enough to apply. Even determinedly unprincipled people are able to make a list of dichotomies in each situation and find some kind of balance. Unfortunately, such an approach does not work.…
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The Yin and Yang balance in Taoism
Lao-Tzu didn’t come up with the yin and yang concepts and he would have been appalled at seeing yin-and-yang logos on a martial arts attire. Yang-Tzu would have dismissed the logo as an oversimplification, and Chuang-Tzu would have written a story about people who mistake a logo for deep philosophy. Ancient Taoism provides important insights…
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Taoism simple wisdom quotes
If I said that philosophy as a whole can be summarised in a few quotes, Aristotle (384-322 BC) might turn in his grave and damn my name for eternity. Fair enough. I won’t maintain that a philosophical system can be compressed into a few quotes, but if those are well chosen, two important benefits will…
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Western culture needs more Taoists
I will not chew my readers’ ears by recounting the maladies of Western culture. The seriousness of the situation is known to everyone reading newspapers or watching the news. To make things worse, the cultural demise is accompanied by economic woes. Some commentators say that the situation gets worse each day. Others say that it…
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Living as a Taoist in Western culture
There are many Taoists around us, I mean, Taoists living in Western culture. However, they are, for the most part, invisible to the untrained eye. They don’t propagandize their philosophy. They do not proselytise or engage in debates. They do not wear special clothes, signs or distinctions. Taoists remain invisible because they put into practice…
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Recent Posts
- The cost of Taoist harmony
- Taoist harmony in the middle of chaos
- The hidden balance in Taoism
- Taoist views on balance and harmony
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