How to understand Laozi’s Tao
What is the so-called Tao that was advocated by Laozi, a central figure in Taoism and philosopher of ancient China? For years it has remained a tricky question. As regulated in the first chapter of Daodejing, a Chinese classic text of Taoism, Tao could never be defined by any words. Word-expressed Tao is considered fake and definition is the breach of its essence. Real Tao is, by contrast, often referred to as “the nameless”, since neither it nor its principles can ever be adequately expressed in words.
Tao, although inexplicable, truly exists. In order to make Tao understandable to the public, Laozi interpreted his method in his five-thousand-word classic text, Daodejing.
Ways to Understand Tao
What on earth is Tao? Laozi insisted that it was nameless and indefinable, but describable. Every chapter of Daodejing describes Tao from different aspects. Laozi gave a picture of Tao instead of giving a definition. There are previous examples that when a certain object is temporarily unable to be defined, people will study and try to understand it while attempting to find ways to depict it. Take the physical terminology “force” as an example. Some people think that so far there is no proper definition of it. In text books it is described as “interaction between objects”. Same as “force”, Tao is introduced through the enlightening of description of everyday life in Daodejing. Tao, in this way, becomes the Tao of life, something that will definitely perish without the element of “l(fā)ife”. Tao according to Zhuangzi is even more mysterious. However, he was also aware that the only way to approach Tao was through daily trivialities.
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Zhuangzi, Buddha and Wang Yangming, all made good use of figurative language, but the first one who started this mode of expression was Laozi. Laozi said: “Upper class scholars live in ease and comfort everyday so that they have no idea what the lives of common people are like. On hearing the word Tao they take its literal meaning, carrying it out as soon as possible for the sake of immediate outcome. Scholars from middle class backgrounds, after hearing Tao, due to a smattering of knowledge of both upper and lower level management, tend to be at a loss about what to do. However, Scholars from the lower class cannot help laughing at it because they know so well the daily trivialities from which Tao generated.” Tao embodies the tangible and concrete. Without understanding this, Tao can never be executed.
Many people interpret Tao as disciplines, rules, which is utterly wrong. From the depiction of Tao we figure out that Tao is the most powerful vitality in the world, just as “mother” and “baby” are. In other words, Tao plays the role of “creator” and at the same time is its “outcome”. With the capability of self-renewing, Tao can be self-producing and self-developing. In the first chapter of Daodejing, the words beginning and mother (or origin) are mentioned. “Beginning” refers to the baby phase. “Mother” is the root, the origin of life. Therefore, at the very start of Daodejing, the integration of creator and outcome has been presented. “Self” is the core value of Tao, where its great vitality lies.
Tao, the most Primitive Internal Driving Force
Universally, the greatest driving force comes from internal impetus. In the physics department of Fudan University, there used to be a student who fell behind in academic work but was very good at abrading glass. Rather than restraining the student, the teacher encouraged him to fully develop his talents. After graduation he participated in the abrasion of the most advanced astronomical telescope in China. The flame in his mind was kindled. There is no such thing as universal genius. Everyone has his merits. “The task of school is to help bring students’ talents into full play.” One of the reasons why universities such as Peking University enroll mavericks who are talented in only a certain field is because all of them succeeded by having a strong internal impetus, which is, according to Laozi, the most powerful vatality.
Tao, Never Be Rigid or Still
In order to worship God, grass-made horses and goats are used as sacrifices. And to please God, sacrifices should be consistently offered to God. Discarding the used sacrifices randomly would be seen as “not benevolent”. Within the infinite universe, everything in the world plays as the grass-made sacrifice. Tao exists in the continuous process of taking and dumping tangible objects, by dint of a certain object for an instant until it is replaced by a new one. The governance of a country goes the same way. Some measures seem to be reasonable and profitable for the time being but new measures must be carried out as circumstances change. Some people are reluctant to change but for the sake of the interest for more people as a whole, short-run interest of those minorities has to be sacrificed. The world itself is like a big bellow, air going in and out. Nothing remains in it, giving it the capability to contain more.
Tao, with Inexhaustible Power
Laozi told us that to govern the country, one has to learn how to rely more on factors beyond his own. The moment that he does not need to depend on any of his own power, he reaches the state which Laozi called “action through inaction”. Governance has to be in accordance with factors in the whole world. Pushing one’s own will by force is not the path leading to success. “A good warrior does not win by waving his weapon. A wise strategist doesn’t confront his enemy directly. A man good at personnel selection treats people humbly.” Through these examples Laozi emphasizes one shouldn’t always have to contend against others. However, it doesn’t mean that one should never contend for things, rather it is wiser for one to succeed by taking advantage of the other’s strength. The method of leveraging competitor’s strength to hit back has been widely practiced in Chinese Taijiquan.
The Broadest Embrace of Tao
Tao, with the broadest embrace, contains everything. The greatness of Tao is not merely the broadness in terms of space, but the broadness in terms of philosophy. In a word, what Laozi pursued is the containing of everything. At the same time everything is in harmony with each other. This philosophy later evolved into the Confucian middle way, which can be described as a win-win situation. “All things on the earth grow simultaneously in their own realm, never disturbing others. Numerous microcosmic objects are like countless streams, converging into turbulent waters of macro-principles. Prosperity of the world lies in the subsistence, development and interdependence of all existence.”
The interpretation of Laozi’s Tao no longer focuses on its negative and compromising aspects. Laozi penetrated with his wisdom that Tao universally exists, so does the vitality, the most powerful force in the world. When reading Daodejing, we should seek for ways to inspire the vitality, between human and nature, among groups and even among different nationalities, cultures and religions.
