history of taoism
There is a dispute on the origins of Taoism. One theory is the earliest known Taoist text may be the work of a minister of the ruler of the Shang-Yin dynasty in the eighteenth century B.C. The other theory is that it was began by the mentor of the father of the Chou dynasty in the twelfth century. What is known is that, Li Erh (6th century BCE) who is better known as Lao Tzu (the Old Master), was the author of one of the most influential texts of Taoism, the Tao Te Ching. Lao Tzu, a contemporary of Confucius, was the keeper of the imperial library, but in his old age he disappeared to the west, leaving behind him the Tao Te Ching (Book of Tao and Virtue). From this book, which is only about five-thousand words in length, Taoism gained it's name. Taoism believes "Tao", or the way, to be the mystical, mysterious, and "ultimate principle underlying form, substance, being, and change". Tao encompasses everything. It can be used to understand the human body, the universe and nature. The logic of Taoism encompasses the Yin and Yang forces, which represent all opposites. These two forces are complementary elements of all systems that thrive in an interdependent network and result in the harmony or balan . . .
the Tao Te Ching was established as the sourcebook of practical wisdom in the imperial court. The Chuang Tzu was preferred by more mystical Taoist. It is an anthology of ancient sayings, poetry and philosophies. Hsuan tsung then had copies made and sent to Taoist temples. The San tung was eventually lost during the Li Shan and Shih Ssu-ming revolts. T'ang Hsuan-tsung, who believed he was a descendantof the sage Lao Tzu, began a search to retrieve all of the Taoist texts throughout the empire. The two main classics of Taoism are the Tao Te Ching and the Chuang-Tzu. The goal of Taoism is to perfect the mastery of human nature and life in three areas. They are well-being, social harmony and accelerated evolution of consciousness Taoism puts a great deal of value on human life. He felt weapons were tools of destruction and any decent person would loathe them. The bulk of the text consists of fables and monologues illustrating the teachings of the Tao Te Ching. towards the end of the Spring and Autumn period when order in China was disintegrating. Again in 990 AD, during the Sung dynasty, Sung T'ai tsung issued a decree calling for the collection of Taoist text. It is believed to have been written around 500 B.
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