More handpicked essays just for you.
Buddhism confucianism and taoism comparison
Comparative analysis of Taoism and Confucianism
Basic principles of confucianism essay
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Confucianism and Taoism have both elements of philosophy and religion. In some ways they seem to be polar opposites yet in many other ways they follow the same path. On the surface they represent differing methods of thinking about the world around us and impose distinct behavioral codes of conduct. Especially in the East, however, many people incorporate elements of both religions in their daily lives believing the two perform together in harmony. Confucianism and Taoism both began in the sixth century based on the teachings of a master, Confucius, whose Chinese name K’ung Fu-tzu (Kung the master) was Latinized to Confucius and Li-poh-yang, whose was later called Lao-tzu (Old Master or Old Boy), the master of Taoism. Confucianism has …show more content…
Taoism has less of an earthly focus and places “harmony with the Tao” as the ultimate reality, forming the universe and everything around us. Taoism looks inward to improve the individual. Taoism is also a religion or philosophy that revolves around a single master, and relies heavily on the direct writings of Lao Tzu, the founder. The “Tao Te Ching” is the main text in poem form. These readings guide a practitioner to contemplate himself and the universal energy using the following four themes as described in the textbook Religions of the World. 1. The basic unity behind the universe is a mysterious and indefinable force called the Tao. 2. Life is the greatest of all possessions. 3. Life is to be lived simply. 4. Pomp and glory are to be despised. The reward, improved social order, is gained not only in this life but mainly the life …show more content…
I like parts of each but not the whole of each, this could be a motivating factor to create a new religion. So far, there are parts of each religion that are very clear to me and seem to answer some of my questions about life. As of yet, I have not found one to be the whole answer I am looking for. What I like about both Confucianism and Taoism is the philosophy of self-reliance. I struggle with the concept that something that happens is the will of God. Why would a god want to inflict human suffering? What would motivate a god to provide true happiness to some but not to
Tao-te Ching (in English pronounced “dow deh jing”) is believed to be written by Lao-tzu (6th century B.C). However, it is not for certain that he wrote the book. Lao-tzu is translated as “Old Master”. He was born in the state of Ch’u in China. It’s been said that he worked in the court of the Chou dynasty. The day that he was leaving the court to start his own life, the keeper of the gate urged him to write his thoughts as a book. Lao-tzu’s work mostly illustrates Taoism –a religion founded by Chang Tao-ling A.D. 150. His main purpose in this piece is practicing peace, simplicity, naturalness, and humility. Lao-tzu believes that people are overloaded with temporal objects in this world. He recommends his readers to let go of everything and always keep the balance in anything. In my opinion, Lao-tzu would more likely dislike our government and the way that people live nowadays. The reason is because majority of the people are attached to secular things. To paraphrase the famous, people have materialistic characteristics in today’s world which is completely against Lao-tzu’s view.
Philosophy is a complicated subject. Since the beginning of human existence, many tried to come up with theories about life, happiness, reality and knowledge. From philosophical ideas different beliefs sprung, and existence of different religions followed. Every theory raised by a philosopher attracted different followers. In today's modern society aside from major religions, there are thousands of others that suggest that their explanations to universal questions are the only accurate ones, and all of these religions seek to gain more followers to join their "way". One of these religions is the religion/philosophy of Taoism. Taoism has it roots in China, where the founder of Taoism Lao-Tse was searching for a way that would avoid the constant feudal warfare and other conflicts that disrupted his society during his lifetime. The result was his book: Tao-te-Ching. Lao-Tse described Taoism as a path or a way which one must follow in order to reach inner serenity and peace. In order to reach these inner goals one must live in harmony with nature and natural process that creates the balance in the universe.
As one of the greatest founding novels of Taoism, Book of Chuang Tzu serves to strengthen Lao Tzu 's arguments in Tao Te Ching and lays the foundation for Taoism 's place in Chinese philosophy. Because Confucianism and Taoism are two competing philosophy schools that share more outstanding differences than similarities, the followers of both schools often refute and evaluate the ideals of the opposite school. However, the constant appearance of Confucius as the main character in more than twenty chapters in Book of Chuang Tzu not only surprises the readers, but also calls for deep analysis of the roles played Confucius in order to understand the true meaning of this ancient literature. While Chuang Tzu criticizes many of the Confucian ideas
During the Warring States period China was going through chaos. The teachings of Confucianism and Daoism were welcomed by society to bring order, stability and liberate people from the misery and oppression. The rulers were greedy and desirous of political power and their own agendas; however they were looking for a new way to unite their people. It is often said that Confucianism and Daoism are the yang and yin, respectively, of Chinese religion. That is, they are not rivals so much as complementary traditions, working together to produce an overall balance in the lives of the Chinese. This is not true because the two religious philosophies were different from one another. Confucius believed that the traditions and virtues that were studied and taught in the old days by the Ancients was the best way to organize society (trickle-down approach). Also followers of Confucius believed in education, a moral force and human goodness to advance and progress within society. Daoism on the other hand relies on human nature and a balance of good and evil (Yin-Yang) to bring about social order. It neglects education, virtue and cultural norms because it is said that people are born faultless.
Taoism is the first major philosophical and religious tradition explored by Peter Marshall, in his book Nature's Web. Marshall calls Taoism "the way of nature," emphasizing that this is the ideal religion from the perspective of ecological sensibility. Passivity is a key element of Taoist thought, and is a repeated concept in the primary Taoist text, the Tao Te Ching. The concept of passivity stresses that the wise person will not attempt to cause change in his world, but will rather be receptive to and allow natural changes to happen, as is the way of nature. Other Taoist principles concerning government, society, life, and death branch off from this concept. Marshall considers this religion to be a necessary foundation for an ecologically sound world and way of life, which is why he makes it the foundation of his book. However, Marshall's views may not be entirely realistic when we consider the practicality of the philosophy to our modern ecological crisis.
While possessing similar goals, Confucianism and Daoism texts have conflicting information on how to achieve these goals. Confucianism and Daoism have some similarities such as the belief that “human fulfillment lay in harmonizing our thinking and behavior with the Way (dao)” and a refinement of the self to gain an objective (Adler, Chinese Religious Traditions, 15). Both traditions recognize that we can do better as humans. While there are similarities between these religious traditions, their written teachings have very different instruction on how to achieve the Dao. Confucianism encourages the notion of ru, which is “evoking a commitment to learning, refinement, cultural accomplishments, and the practice of rites and
Taoism and Confucianism are two major Chinese philosophies. I say that they are philosophies because religions tend to worship deities and Taoism and Confucianism don’t seems to worshiping anything. To some they appear to be different, even clashing but to me, they seem very much alike but they come at it from different points of view. Both philosophies strive to reach harmony but in to very different ways. I do believe the reason they can co-exist is because they see Tao from two different ways.
Taoism and Buddhism were born in the same century. Siddhartha reached enlightenment in approximately 535 B.C. and Lao Tzu’s teachings were recorded around 500 B.C. There are many similarities in the basics of these two religions. Some of the similarities can be seen clearly when examining the three meaning of Tao.
At the same time Confucius’ teachings were spreading through China, another religion was also having its beginning. In contrast to the humanistic, ethical teachings of Confucius, the mystical, enigmatic beliefs of Daoism appeared. Daoism can be viewed as a philosophy about nature and human life, described in ancient texts like the Dao De Jing, written by Lao Zi, and the writings of Zhuang Zi. Others see it as a religious tradition that emerged around the second century C.E. whose importance has lasted into the twentieth century (“Taoism” n.p.). A concept that has been accepted in Confucianism, as well as philosophical and religious Daoism, is that of the yin and yang.
The term torah means instruction and offers a way of life for those who follow it.The Judaism celebrate the life, they help repair the world. The Jews love God with all their heart.The holidays of the Judaism are Rosh hasharan that consist in no work on this day. The Judaismbelieve only in one God, they await his coming.Taoism is an ancient tradition of philosophy, ethical and religious belief that is deeply rooted inChinese customs and worldview. The Taoism has 20 million followers. The founder of Taoism isLao Tzu the most important thing about the Tao is how it works in the world, and how humanbeings relate to it. Taoism is about the Tao, the Tao is the ultimate creative principle of theuniverse. All things are unified and connected in the
The basic beliefs and concepts of Confucianism are similar to Taoism in the sense that they want peace and good behavior. The Buddhists, on the other hand, strictly have the purpose to reach Nirvana and follow the four noble truths. The overall goal of Confucian is different than Buddhism and Taoism because the overall goal of the Confucius is to find their peaceful and harmonious place in life, while the two others have no overall goal. The goal of the individual believer is similar in Confucianism and Buddhism because they each follow a certain behavior and want to be in harmony with nature. The Tao just have to follow the life according to the Tao.
Another difference is Confucianism is based off of respect for others and their superiors, and Confucians are to follow a code of conduct with social harmony as a goal. On the other hand, Taoism is based on the contemplation of life and followers are to seek balance in their lives through following the path or Tao. Even though they have similar views, the differences they each possess, such as with virtues, beliefs in self-improvement and cultivation, and methodology of learning and following philosophies, are another major factor in what sets them apart. Despite both their similarities and differences, both Confucianism and Taoism have developed into the modern age where they have hundreds of thousands of devoted followers that believe in their faith.
There are four reasons why Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism can coexist so peacefully. First of all, these three religions are compatible with the traditional Chinese culture. Secondly, adherents of these faiths believe that it is impossible to describe the Dao adequately using the vocabulary of only one language; therefore, they have no problem incorporating the language of the other faiths to describe more adequately the Dao. Thirdly, this combination of religions help them create a better society, and lastly, harmonizing these religions is much better than searching for the differences among them.
Reading through these materials, both differ in a most significant manner. Taoism talks more about exploring one's mind; an essence. The ability to trust, be less judgmental, isolate conflict or anger in any relationship, and kindness to oneself. Whereas Confucianism speaks of being responsible, acquire good leadership skills, respect higher bodies such as the government, obligation to cultural identity and to live a better life.
Lao-Tze founded Taoism around 550 BC. The goal in Taoism is achieve Inner harmony, pea...