Wang Zhen was a scholar of the Tang Dynasty.
During the reign of Emperor Dezong, he served as the governor of Hanzhou and the commander of the Weisheng Army. After Emperor Xianzong ascended the throne, within seven years, he continued to govern local prefectures and remained in the position of governor.
He wrote Essays on the Essentials of Military Strategy in the Tao Te Ching, which originally consisted of two volumes (later compiled into four volumes) with a preface and a memorial. In July of the fourth year of Yuanhe (809 AD), he presented it to Emperor Xianzong, offering a new interpretation of Laozi's ideological system and arguing that Laozi (the Tao Te Ching) is a military treatise.
He stated: "Laozi did not merely satirize the feudal lords of his time; he also sought to prevent future generations from recklessly waging war. Hence, he specifically composed these five thousand words. He first expounded on the essentials of the great Dao, supreme virtue, self-cultivation, and state governance, as well as the principles of inaction and teaching without words. Only after dozens of chapters did he directly discuss military affairs. In fact, every chapter, with its profound and subtle meanings, is implicitly concerned with military matters" (Memorial on Essays on the Essentials of Military Strategy in the Tao Te Ching, see Complete Prose of the Tang Dynasty, Volume 683). His main reasons for asserting that Laozi is a military treatise are as follows:
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From the perspective of the motivation for writing, Laozi repeatedly elaborates on the virtues of emptiness, non-contention, humility, and weakness. This was intended to advise the feudal lords involved in annexation wars at that time, urging them to return to "the correct path of the masses."
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From the perspective of the book's focus, Laozi emphasizes non-contention because contention is "the source of wars and the root of chaos." Therefore, Laozi "first sought to block this source and cut off this root, which is why the scripture repeatedly emphasizes non-contention from beginning to end. If there is no contention, how can weapons and armor be raised, and how can battle formations be arrayed? Thus, the Daoist sage (referring to Laozi) earnestly warned against contention, and this has profound significance!" (Ibid.)
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From the perspective of the book's system, all of Laozi's thoughts revolve around the issue of warfare. For example, it holds that rituals are the origin of chaos, and transforming chaos into order requires both civil and military means: "The three powers (punishment, reward, and authority) are exercised together; civil and military approaches, though distinct, emerge from the same source and always work in tandem." Military preparedness cannot be abandoned, and when it is necessary to use force, one must master the art of warfare. Laozi expounds on "the profound essence of military strategy" (Ibid.).
Wang Zhen's theory that Laozi is a military treatise was unique in the study of Laozi's thought and exerted considerable influence on subsequent research on Laozi.
