What is Taoist Philosophy? 道教哲学

Taoist philosophy is the theoretical foundation of Taoist theology, evolving itself from the Daoist philosophies of Laozi, Zhuangzi, Yang Zhu and Liezi that emerged in the pre-Qin period.

What is Taoist Philosophy? 

Laozi’s Daoist philosophy gave rise to the Yang Zhu school’s ideas of cherishing the self, valuing life and nurturing longevity. Zhuangzi’s theory of Qi, together with Liezi’s doctrine of "nothingness", gradually merged into the Huang-Lao learning of the Han Dynasty. Since the Eastern Han Dynasty, Huang-Lao learning has inherited the categories such as The Dao, "non-being" and "the one" from Laozi, as well as the cultivation methods like "embracing the one", "guarding the one", "mental fasting" and "sitting in oblivion" from the Lao-Zhuang school, evolving into the study of health preservation. By the late Han Dynasty, it was further religiousized into the Huang-Lao Dao.

Thus, Taoist philosophy is essentially the esoteric and religious transformation of the Daoist Huang-Lao learning. Daoist philosophy was first transformed into a practical philosophy that can be imitated, cultivated and experienced. For example, Internal Alchemy simulates the return of essence, Qi and spirit to The Dao within the human body, regarding The Dao as a comprehensible category; external alchemy simulates the time reversal process of cosmic creation in the alchemy furnace, with the golden elixir being a condensed, materialized form of The Dao. Taoist philosophy is also the religious or deified transformation of Daoist philosophy: it evolved The Dao into a personal deity (Yuanshi Tianzun) and Laozi into Lord Lao Zi, integrating Daoism and Daoist thoughts into the elements of theological belief.

Taoist philosophy is also a kind of natural philosophy. It embodies The Dao in practice and unites the cultivation of life with the comprehension of The Dao, conducting in-depth exploration and explanation of the mysteries of nature and the human body. Among Taoist scriptures, in addition to the works of Laozi, Zhuangzi and Liezi, texts such as The Yellow Emperor’s Secret Talisman Classic, The Plain Book, The Transformation Book, The Pearl of Mystery Record, The Scripture of Great Peace and Baopuzi all contain rich philosophical contents. A group of Taoist philosophers also emerged, including Yan Zun, Ge Hong, Tao Hongjing, Sima Chengzhen, Tan Qiao and Wu Yun. The Chongxuan masters of the Tang Dynasty and the theorists of Internal Alchemy on mind and nature also belong to the schools of Taoist philosophy.