Laozi

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For the book also knownas Laozi, see Tao Te Ching.

Laozi (also Lao-Tzu /＆#712;la＆#650;＆#712;dz＆#652;/ or Lao-Tze, Chinese: 老子; pinyin: Lǎozǐ, lit. "Old Master") was anancient Chinese philosopher and writer. He is known as the reputedauthor of the Tao Te Ching andthe founder of philosophical Taoism, and as a deity inreligious Taoism and traditionalChinese religions. Although a legendary figure,he is usually dated to around the 6th century BC and reckoned acontemporary of Confucius, but some historians contend that heactually lived during the Warring States period of the 5th or 4th century BC. Acentral figure in Chinese culture, Laozi is claimed by both theemperors of the Tang dynasty andmodern people of the Li surname as a founder of their lineage. Laozi'swork has been embraced by various anti-authoritarian movements aswell as Chinese Legalism.

Names

In traditional accounts, Laozi's personal name is usually given as Li Er (李耳, Old *R＆#601;＆#660; N＆#601;＆#660;, Mod. Lǐ ＆#282;r)and his courtesy name as Boyang(trad. 伯陽, simp. 伯阳, Old *P＆#740;rak-lang, Mod. Bóyáng).A prominent posthumous name was Li Dan (李聃, Lǐ Dān).

Laozi itself is an honorific title: 老 (Old *r＆#740;u＆#660;,"old, venerable")and 子 (Old *ts＆#601;′, "master").It is usually pronounced /＆#716;la＆#650;＆#712;dz＆#652;/ in English. It has been romanized numerous ways, sometimes leading toconfusion. The most common present form is Laozi or Lǎozǐ, basedon the Hanyu Pinyin systemadopted by Mainland China in 1958 and Taiwan in2009. Duringthe 20th century, Lao-tzu was more common, basedon the formerly prevalent Wade–Giles system.In the 19th century, the title was usually romanized as Lao-tse. Other forms include the variantsLao-tze and Lao-tsu.

As a religious figure, he isworshipped under the name "Supreme Old Lord" (太上老君, Tàishàng Lǎojūn) and as one of the "Three Pure Ones". During the Tang, he wasgranted the title "Supremely Mysterious and Primordial Emperor" (太上玄元皇帝, TáishāngXuānyuán Huángdì).

Historical views

In the mid-twentieth century, aconsensus emerged among scholars that the historicity ofthe person known as Laozi is doubtful and that the Tao Te Ching was "a compilation of Taoistsayings by many hands." Alan Watts urgedmore caution, holding that this view was part of an academic fashion forskepticism about historical spiritual and religious figures and stating thatnot enough would be known for years – or possibly ever – to make a firmjudgment.

The earliest certain reference to thepresent figure of Laozi is found in the 1st-century BCE Records ofthe Grand Historian collectedby the historian Sima Qian fromearlier accounts. In one account, Laozi was said to be a contemporary of Confucius duringthe 6th or 5th century BCE. Hissurname was Li and his personal name was Er or Dan.He was an official in the imperial archives and wrote a book in two partsbefore departing to the west. In another, Laozi was a different contemporary ofConfucius titled Lao Laizi (老莱子) andwrote a book in 15 parts. In a third, he was the court astrologer Lao Dan wholived during the 4th-century BCE reign of Duke Xian of Qin. The oldest text of the Tao Te Ching so far recovered was written on bamboo slips anddates to the late 4th century BCE.

According to traditional accounts,Laozi was a scholar who worked as the Keeper of the Archives for the royalcourt of Zhou. This reportedly allowed him broad access tothe works of the Yellow Emperor and other classics of the time. Thestories assert that Laozi never opened a formal school but nonethelessattracted a large number of students and loyal disciples. There are manyvariations of a story retelling his encounter with Confucius, most famously inthe Zhuangzi.

He was sometimes held to have come from the village of Chu Jen in Chu. In accounts where Laozi married, he wassaid to have had a son named Zong who became a celebrated soldier. Many clansof the Li family trace their descent to Laozi, includingthe emperors of the Tang dynasty. Thisfamily was known as the Longxi Li lineage (隴西李氏).According to the Simpkinses, while many (if not all) of these lineages arequestionable, they provide a testament to Laozi's impact on Chinese culture.

The third story in Sima Qian statesthat Laozi grew weary of the moral decay of life in Chengzhou andnoted the kingdom's decline. He ventured west to live as a hermit in theunsettled frontier at the age of 80. At the western gate of the city (orkingdom), he was recognized by the guard Yinxi.The sentry asked the old master to record his wisdom for the good of thecountry before he would be permitted to pass. The text Laozi wrote was said tobe the Tao Te Ching,although the present version of the text includes additions from later periods.In some versions of the tale, the sentry was so touched by the work that hebecame a disciple and left with Laozi, never to be seen again. In others, the "Old Master"journeyed all the way to Indiaand was the teacher of Siddartha Gautama, the Buddha. Others claim he was the Buddha himself.

A seventh-century work, the Sandong Zhunang ("Pearly Bag of the ThreeCaverns"), embellished the relationship between Laozi and Yinxi. Laozipretended to be a farmer when reaching the western gate, but was recognized byYinxi, who asked to be taught by the great master. Laozi was not satisfied bysimply being noticed by the guard and demanded an explanation. Yinxi expressedhis deep desire to find the Tao and explained that his long study of astrologyallowed him to recognize Laozi's approach. Yinxi was accepted by Laozi as adisciple. This is considered an exemplary interaction between Daoist master anddisciple, reflecting the testing a seeker must undergo before being accepted. Awould-be adherent is expected to prove his determination and talent, clearlyexpressing his wishes and showing that he had made progress on his own towardsrealizing the Tao.

The PearlyBag of the Three Caverns continuesthe parallel of an adherent's quest. Yinxi received his ordination when Laozitransmitted the Daodejing, along with other texts andprecepts, just as Taoist adherents receive a number of methods, teachings andscriptures at ordination. This is only an initial ordination and Yinxi stillneeded an additional period to perfect his virtue, thus Laozi gave him threeyears to perfect his Dao. Yinxi gave himself over to a full-time devotionallife. After the appointed time, Yinxi again demonstrates determination andperfect trust, sending out a black sheep to market as the agreed sign. Heeventually meets again with Laozi, who announces that Yinxi's immortal name islisted in the heavens and calls down a heavenly procession to clothe Yinxi inthe garb of immortals. The story continues that Laozi bestowed a number oftitles upon Yinxi and took him on a journey throughout the universe, even intothe nine heavens. After this fantastic journey, the two sages set out towestern lands of the barbarians. The training period, reuniting and travelsrepresent the attainment of the highest religious rank in medieval Taoismcalled "Preceptor of the Three Caverns". In this legend, Laozi is theperfect Daoist master and Yinxi is the ideal Taoist student. Laozi is presentedas the Tao personified, giving his teaching to humanity for their salvation.Yinxi follows the formal sequence of preparation, testing, training andattainment.

The story of Laozi has taken onstrong religious overtones since the Han dynasty. As Taoism took root, Laozi wasworshipped as a god. Belief in the revelation of the Tao from the divine Laoziresulted in the formation of the Way of theCelestial Master, the first organized religious Taoist sect. Inlater mature Taoist tradition, Laozi came to be seen as a personification ofthe Tao. He is said to have undergone numerous "transformations" andtaken on various guises in various incarnations throughout history to initiatethe faithful in the Way. Religious Taoism often holds that the "OldMaster" did not disappear after writing the Tao Te Ching but rather spent his life travelingand revealing the Tao.

Taoist myths statethat Laozi was conceived when his mother gazed upon a falling star. Hesupposedly remained in her womb for 62 years before being born while his motherwas leaning against a plum tree. (The Chinese surname Li shares its character with"plum".) Laozi was said to have emerged as a grown man with a fullgrey beard and long earlobes, both symbols of wisdom and long life. Other myths claim that he was reborn 13times after his first life during the days of Fuxi.In his last incarnation as Laozi, he lived nine hundred and ninety years andspent his life traveling to reveal theTao.

Tao Te Ching

See also: Tao Te Ching, Tao,and Wu wei

Laozi is traditionally regarded as the author of the Daodejing (Tao Te Ching), though the identity ofits author(s) and/or compiler(s) has been debated throughout history. It is one of the most significant treatisesin Chinese cosmogony. As with most other ancient Chinesephilosophers, Laozi often explains his ideas by way of paradox, analogy,appropriation of ancient sayings, repetition, symmetry, rhyme, and rhythm. Infact, the whole book can be read as an analogy – the ruler is the awareness, orself, in meditation and the myriad creatures or empire is the experience of thebody, senses and desires.

The TaoTe Ching, often called simply Laozi after its reputed author, describesthe Dao (or Tao) as the source and ideal of all existence: it is unseen, butnot transcendent, immensely powerful yet supremely humble, being the root ofall things. People have desires and free will (and thus are able to alter theirown nature). Many act "unnaturally", upsetting the natural balance ofthe Dao. The Daodejing intends to lead students to a "return"to their natural state, in harmony with Dao. Language and conventional wisdom are critically assessed. Taoism viewsthem as inherently biased and artificial, widely using paradoxes to sharpen thepoint.

Livia Kohn provides an example of howLaozi encouraged a change in approach, or return to "nature", ratherthan action. Technology may bring about a false sense of progress. The answerprovided by Laozi is not the rejection of technology, but instead seeking thecalm state of wu wei, free from desires. This relates to many statements byLaozi encouraging rulers to keep their people in "ignorance", or "simple-minded".Some scholars insist this explanation ignores the religious context, and othersquestion it as an apologetic ofthe philosophical coherence of the text. It would not be unusual politicaladvice if Laozi literally intended to tell rulers to keep their peopleignorant. However, some terms in the text, such as "valley spirit" (gushen)and "soul" (po), bear a metaphysical context and cannot beeasily reconciled with a purely ethical reading of the work.

Wu wei (無爲), literally "non-action" or "not acting", is a centralconcept of the Daodejing.The concept of wu wei is multifaceted, and reflected in thewords' multiple meanings, even in English translation; it can mean "notdoing anything", "not forcing", "not acting" in thetheatrical sense, "creating nothingness", "actingspontaneously", and "flowing with the moment."

It is a concept used to explain ziran (自然),or harmony with the Dao. It includes the concepts that ＆#118alue distinctions areideological and seeing ambition of all sorts as originating from the samesource. Laozi used the term broadly with simplicity and humility askey virtues, often in contrast to selfish action. On a political level, itmeans avoiding such circumstances as war, harsh laws and heavy taxes. SomeTaoists see a connection between wu wei and esoteric practices,such as zuowang "sittingin oblivion" (emptying the mind of bodily awareness and thought) found inthe Zhuangzi.

Some of Laozi's famous sayingsinclude:

"When goodness is lost, it isreplaced by morality."

"Without Darkness, there can beno Light."

"The usefulness of a pot comesfrom its emptiness."

"The best people are like water,which benefits all things and does not compete with them. It stays in lowlyplaces that others reject. This is why it is so similar to the Way."

"When people see some things asbeautiful, other things become ugly. When people see some things as good, otherthings become bad."

"Try to change it and you willruin it. Try to hold it and you will lose it."

"Those who know do not say.Those who say do not know."

"When you realize there isnothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you."

"Nature does not hurry, yeteverything is accomplished."

"A good traveler has no fixedplans, and is not intent on arriving."

"Music in the soul can be heardby the universe."

"A journey of a thousand milesstarts under one's feet."

"The more that laws andregulations are given prominence, the more thieves and robbers there willbe."

—Laozi, Tao Te Ching

Taoism

See also: Taoism

Laozi is traditionally regarded asthe founder of Taoism, intimately connected with the Daodejing and "primordial" (or"original") Taoism. Popular ("religious") Taoism typicallypresents the Jade Emperor asthe official head deity.Intellectual ("elite") Taoists, such as the CelestialMasters sect, usually present Laozi (Laojun, "LordLao") and the Three Pure Ones at the top of the pantheon of deities.

Influence

Potential officials throughout Chinese history drew onthe authority of non-Confucian sages, especially Laozi and Zhuangzi, to deny serving any ruler at anytime. Zhuangzi, Laozi's most famous follower intraditional accounts, had a great deal of influence on Chinese literati and culture.

Political theoristsinfluenced by Laozi have advocated humility in leadership and a restrainedapproach to statecraft, either for ethical and pacifist reasons, or fortactical ends. In a different context, various anti-authoritarian movementshave embraced the Laozi teachings on the power of the weak.

Left-libertarians have been highly influenced by Laozi.In his 1937 book Nationalism andCulture, the anarcho-syndicalist writer and activist Rudolf Rocker praised Laozi's "gentlewisdom" and understanding of the opposition between political power andthe cultural activities of the people and community. In his 1910 article for the Encyclopedia Britannica, Peter Kropotkin also noted that Laozi was among theearliest exponents of essentiallyanarchist concepts. More recently, anarchists such as John P.Clark and Ursula K. Le Guin have written about the conjunctionbetween anarchism and Taoism in various ways, highlighting the teachings ofLaozi in particular. Inher rendition of the Tao Te Ching, Le Guin writes that Laozi "does not seepolitical power as magic. He sees rightful power as earned and wrongful poweras usurped... He sees sacrifice of self or others as a corruption of power, andpower as available to anyone who follows the Way. No wonder anarchists andTaoists make good friends."

The right-libertarian economist Murray Rothbard suggested that Laozi was the first libertarian, likening Laozi's ideas on government to F.A. Hayek's theory of spontaneous order.James A. Dorn agreed,writing that Laozi, like many 18th century liberals, "argued thatminimizing the role of government and letting individuals develop spontaneouslywould best achieve social and economic harmony." Similarly, the Cato Institute's David Boaz includespassages from the Daodejing in his 1997 book The Libertarian Reader. Philosopher Roderick Long, however, argues thatlibertarian themes in Taoist thought are actually borrowed from earlier Confucian writers.