Taoism1
Throughout history, Taoism has been one of the most influentialreligions of Eastern culture. This is certainly one of the most uniqueof all religions. Many Taoists, in fact, do not even consider it areligion; and in many ways it is not. Taoists make no claim that theTao exists.1 That is what essentially separates Taoism from the rest ofthe world religions: there is no heated debate or battle over Taoistdoctrine; there have been no crusades to spread the religion. The veryessence of Taoism is quite the opposite. Taoism's uniqueness andopen-endedness have allowed the religion to flourish almost undisturbedand unchanged for over two thousand years. The founder of Taoism was a man named Lao Tzu, who lived around theyear 604 B.C.E. According to Chinese legend, Lao Tzu was an archivistin the imperial library at Lo Yang was known for his knowledge, althoughhe never taught.2 When Lao Tzu left his position at the library, hewent to the Chinese province of Chou. At the border, however, he wasstopped and forced to write down his teachings. During this time, hewrote the Tao Te Ching, the major scripture of Taoism.3 After Lao Tzu's death, a man named Yang Chu (440-366 B.C.E.) took up
Hecreated a dynasty of high priests who manipulated Taoism to support asuperstitious doctrine of magic and mysticism. 40 Becauseof this, many Taoists believed that the essences relating to theirrespective phases nourished the organs of the body; this supposedly ledto longevity. Little isknown of its founder or its origins, and it has no clear doctrine ormethod of worship. " Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. 46 The religion has guided countlessindividuals through life and toward union with the Tao. 37 The closestlasting action in Taoism to rituals is the idea of wu-hsing. when they were mentioned in the Hsi tz'u, an appendix to the IChing. The sixth holds that the Tao isfelt in passiveness, not in activity.
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