Taoism is a philosophical and religious tradition. Taoism was several times nominated as state religion in the historey of China. It was suppressed in the first decades of the communist era but continued to be practised in Taiwan. Taoisim is also called Daoism. The term
Tao means
the way,
the path or
the principle.Tao is difficult to explain. It is believed that everything is connected and unified with
Tao.
Tao
Tao can be be interpreted as road, channel, path, doctrine, or line. According to the tradition, Tao is indescribable. It refers to something nameless, natural, eternal and spontaneous. It has variously been denoted as the
flow of the universe",
a
conceptually necessary ontological ground,
or a demonstration of nature.
The Tao also is something that individuals can find immanent in themselves.
Wu-wei
Taoist philosophy proposes that the universe works harmoniously
according to its own ways. When someone exerts their will against the
world, they disrupt that harmony. Taoism does not identify one's will as
the root problem. Rather, it asserts that one must place their will in
harmony with the natural universe. Thus, a potentially harmful interference is to be avoided, and in this way, goals can be achieved effortlessly.
Naturalness
The primordial state. The one an individual must identify with. To attain naturalness, one has to free oneself from selfishness and desire, and appreciate simplicity.
The Three Trasures
The
Three Treasures (also called
Three Jewels)
are basic virtues in Taoism comprising Compassion, Moderation, and
Humility. They are also translated as kindness, simplicity (or the
absence of excess), and modesty.
Yin and Yang
Yin and Yang describe how seemingly opposite or contrary forces, such as action and non-action, light and dark, hot and
cold, and so on, are interconnected and interdependent in the natural world; and, how they give rise to each other as they interrelate to one another.
