John Vespasian

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    Taoist wisdom for personal growth

    I can summarise Taoist wisdom for personal growth in five words: Take the safe, enlightened path. I do not mean that we should fear everything, become paranoiacs, and hide under our bed. I just mean that Taoists prefer to cultivate their skills daily and expand their reach slowly, operating from their strengths. Lao-Tzu presents this…

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    Lao-Tzu’s biography

    There is only one thing we know for sure about Lao-Tzu: that the anecdotes about his life are very cool. They are in fact so cool that they seem borderline incredible. Nonetheless, they are worth retelling because they mirror his insights, and those possess crucial importance. Lao-Tzu lived in China in the 6th century BC…

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    Who founded Taoism and why

    When confronted with adversity, people react in accordance with their ideas. Sound, consistent ideas enable individuals to solve problems quickly and regain the lost ground. In contrast, confusion and contradictions are bound to make things worse. Lao-Tzu (6th century BC), a contemporary of Confucius, is credited with having initiated the body of thought that we…

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    The Taoist prescription for work-life balance

    Denying reality seems like a full-time job for many people. If they are confronted with problems, they will try to play them down and pretend that everything is fine. If the problems grow, no solution will be attempted, hoping that things will return to normal all by themselves. Finally, when the problems become overwhelming, it…

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    Taoism and work-life balance

    While millions of people today struggle to balance out their work and private lives, Taoist do it automatically and without effort. How is this possible? The Taoist work-life balance does not come from applying strict time controls, but from a unique sense for priorities. Diogenes Laertius (third century AD) tells us in his book “Lives…

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    Smoothness and the Taoist lifestyle

    The word “worry” cannot accurately describe the emotional reaction of being confronted to a wide variety of threats, risks, and problems. In daily life, modern individuals face problems that their ancestors could not even imagine. No wonder that, confronted with stress and preoccupations, people look in awe at ancient Taoist masters and their insights about…

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    Taoism as a way of life

    What’s the key trait that distinguishes Taoists from everyone else? What makes the Taoist way of life different from that of Christians, Buddhists, Marxists, and the followers of other sets of ideas? Chuang-Tzu viewed autonomy as a key trait of Taoism. I’ve a preference for using modern terms such as self-reliance, self-sufficiency, and balanced thinking.…

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    How Taoist meditation works

    I have never known anyone who has improved his life by sitting on the ground for hours, lighting candles, chanting some mantras, and engaging in so-called meditation. In saying that, I do not mean that I am against meditating. I am just saying that we should do it effectively, so that we can draw real…

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    Pacifism as essential to Taoism

    Martial arts movies love to quote Taoist texts to give the impression of wisdom. The viewer gets the idea that kung-fu and karate fighters are thoughtful souls, who carefully assess the ethics of every situation, and who will not engage in combat unless they are totally sure of being in the right. I wish that…

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    The reason for the paradoxes in Taoism

    Western thought is based on the logical principles identified by Aristotle (384-322 BC). We routinely look for connections between premises, so that we can draw definite conclusions. If we cannot reach certainty, we assume that we lack information, and that we need to keep gathering data. The problem with Aristotelian logic is that, if it…

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