Essay On Taoism

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Daoism, also known as Taoism, is one of the major religions of China. The main belief is the learning and practice of "The Way" (Dao), which is the ultimate truth of the universe.The Dao has several meanings. It is the basis of all living things, it governs nature, and is a method that people want to live by. The Dao is everlasting, without beginning or end. Since it has no beginning, it is therefore the oldest thing in the universe. The Dao is neither good nor bad, and is the source of all things.The Dao has no desires, and creates the universe, but does not dominate or regulate it. This idea of no manipulation by the Dao is an example of wu-wei. Wu-wei is one of the central tenets of Taoism and literally means the act of non-being / not action.This does not mean that people are lazy and passive as people might think. This means acting on instinct, and to go with your gut and to not over-think someone's actions and words, basically it means to just go with the flow. To act through wu-wei you shouldn’t think about what actions you are going to take and the consequences and outcome of those actions, you just let your actions control you, you don’t control your actions. The most useful action is one that is not conscious. De is the Taoist concept of virtue. It can be described as a way to live in unity with the Dao and it emerges from one's own inner nature. All things acquire De and it is De that guide the productions of the Dao. Our De appears as we follow the path of the Dao. Daoists see no greatness in violence because of their high respect for peace and their value of all human beings, even those who are their adversaries. Daoists believe that we need to fight only when absolutely necessary, and even then with a heavy heart. ...

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... confiscated, and priests and nuns were forced to return to lay life. Taoism permited particularly severe measures, since it was considered weird, irregular superstitions that were harmful to humans. Recently, there have been some efforts to restore the practice of Taoist religion. In 1956, the Chinese Taoist Association was formed, and has received official authorization in 1957. It was destroyed during the Cultural Revolution under Mao, but restored in 1980. The headquarters of the Association are at Baiyun guan. Baiyun guan now serves as a training center for all the Taoist sects, and is able to grant ordinations in any of the traditions. Since this religion had a downfall when the Ch'ing dynasty ended in 1911 and later, war wiped out most of the heritages that supported Daoism. Right now there are 20 million followers, of which 30,000 live in North America.

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