Despite similarities in lifestyle, there are large differences between Taoist and Christian ethics. Although the lifestyle of medieval Christian saints reminds me of Lao-Tzu, their beliefs rest on asymmetrical premises. Taoist and Christian ethics are as similar to each other as a cat is similar to a tiger. When cats and tigers are well-fed and…

At first sight, Taoism and Christianity seem close to each other. They both favour modesty, moderation, benevolence and peacefulness. Furthermore, they both revere nature. Lao-Tzu’s conception of the Tao is not far away from the conception held by Christians that regard nature as a reflection of the divine. However, the similarities between Taoism and Christianity…

I would not try to learn about Taoism by just memorizing a few quotes; the underlying principles are much more important than the quotes, and it does not really matter if it was Lao-Tzu, Yang-Tzu or Chuang-Tzu who formulated the principle. To make things worse, Taoist quotes can prove misleading. If Lao-Tzu’s quotes are placed…

I pay no attention to people who speak about achieving self-mastery through meditation because I find them impractical. In real life, it takes an enormous amount of practice to learn any valuable skill. Do you think that we can achieve self-mastery just by sitting on the floor, lighting candles, and meditating? Taoism is an extremely…

In contrast to other philosophies, Taoism represents more a mentality than an array of prescriptions. The Tao Te Ching will not tell us what to do in a specific situation, but gives us a solid framework for finding solutions. It does not tell us which goals to pursue, but helps us discern if we are…