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Explore Laozi, the mysterious founder of Taoism, and the profound concepts of the Tao Te Ching. Learn about the three meanings of Tao, the different Taoist approaches to power, and the essence of Philosophical, Vitalizing, and Religious Taoism.
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Taoism Comparative Religions
Founder • ____________– born about 604 B.C.E. • Met Confucius who labeled Lao a _______________ • Enigmatic • Larger than life • Mysterious • Lao supposedly became upset with the attitudes of the people and climbed on a _________________ and headed west
On this westward journey he was stopped and was asked to write down his ________________________ • Three days he wrote • He produced the Tao Te Ching – The Way and Its Power (aka the __________) • Most scholars don’t believe Lao himself wrote the whole thing • They do agree that _____ man’s thoughts inspired the whole thing
Three Meanings of Tao • Tao is the way of ultimate reality • Too vast for reason to __________________ • It is the womb from which all _______ springs and to which it returns • Tao is the way of the universe • The norm • The rhythm • The driving power of ______________ • It is spirit instead of matter • It can’t be _____________________ • The more it’s drawn upon, the more it flows • Tao is the way of __________________________ • It meshes with the Tao of the universe
Three Approaches to Power and the Taoisms that follow • ___________________________Taoism • ___________________________ Taoism • ___________________________ Taoism • All three of the above are different, but seek to maximize the Tao’s meaning of ________ • Summarizing the three together: • P.T. begins with interest in how life’s normal allotment of ______ can best be used. This leads to how ch’i can be ________ (V.T.). Finally, gathering the ________ energy of Tao is handled in R.T. • See these three as currents in a common _______
Philosophical Taoism • ___________________ • Self-help oriented • Teachers are really ______________ training students in what they should understand • An attitude to _______________ • Has the most to say to the world • Called “School Taoism” in _______________ • Lao Tzu • Chuang Tzu • Tao Te Ching
________________________ is sought • P. T. want knowledge that empowers (aka wisdom) • P.T. want to live in a way that _____________ energy by not expending it in useless ways • Avoid ______________ and _________________ • Center on _______________ – pure effectiveness • Main objective is to align one’s daily life to the Tao • Ride its boundless tide and delight in its flow • Find Creative Quietude – the balance between supreme _____________ and supreme _____________
Vitalizing Taoism • Called Taoist Adepts • Wanted to increase the Tao at their disposal • Center on ____________ – vital energy (breath) • Main objective is to remove _____________ that reduce the flow of ch’i • _________________ is the life force and these Taoists love life!
Concentrate on three things to maximize ch’i • _______________ • _______________ • _______________ • Ch’i is taken in it’s matter forms (liquid, gas, solid) through movements like t’ai-chi chuan. The mind increases ch’i through meditation. • The meditation resembles ___________ • “To the mind that is ___________, the whole universe surrenders.”
Religious Taoism • Religious Taoism __________________the shamans, psychics, faith healers, and soothsayers of the day. • Taoist church was founded in the ________ century C.E. • The Taoist priesthood made cosmic life-power available for _____________________ • The church and it’s line of succession continues today in ______________
Natural Elements • _________ impressed the Taoists the most. • Unobtrusive • Adaptive • Assumes the ________ of its containers • Seeks out the __________ places • __________ what is hard and brittle • __________ canyons from granite • Erodes hills • Wisdom of water (wuwei) • “Muddy water let stand still will ____________”
Humility • Taoists value ________________. They honor • Hunchbacks • Cripples • They point out the value of • __________________ • __________________ • __________________
Naturalism • Taoists believe nature should not be ________ and abused, any more than _______________ should be • Nature should be ___________________, not conquered. • Humans are at their best when they are in harmony with their ______________ • Man is often seen as climbing with their bundles, riding a buffalo, or poling a boat • The human self with its journey • The hill to climb • The burden to carry • But surrounded by the beauty of __________________
Identity with Opposites • Yin/yang • Polar opposites • Day – _____________ • ____________ – death • Male – ____________ • On cannot _________ without the other • The two meet, mesh, but remain _______________
Chinese Character • Chinese Character is best represented by the two poles of Confucianism and Taoism