Daoism and the Way of Life

Global History and Geography I Name: ______

E. Napp Date: ______

Daoism is a philosophy or way of life that may have been started by a man named Lao Tzu who lived around the time of Confucius. Dao means the "way" or the "path". According to the traditional story, Lao Tzu worked as a librarian in the emperor's library. Lao Tzu believed that the way to happiness was for people to learn to live naturally. Instead of trying to get things done the hard way, people should take the time to figure out the natural way to do things, and then everything would get done more simply.

The Yin and Yang is an important principle in Daoism. The principle of Yin Yang sees the world as filled with complementary forces - action and non-action, light and dark, hot and cold, and so on. Another important principle is that human beings are an integral part of the universe and should be in harmony with nature.

Unfortunately, human beings do not always live in harmony with nature. Thus, the ills of the world are produced. The only true solution, in the Daoist view, must begin with the individual’s conscious desire to live in harmony with nature. Wise individuals, then, seek to fulfill their potential harmony with the Dao by a quiet and sensitive contemplation of the natural tendency in things, making their life like a smooth-flowing river, clear and undisturbed in its movement. They try always to do only as much as their natural impulse requires, never straining for further achievement. They relate to other people in a spirit of natural kindness, tolerance, and humility, never striving to dominate them. Daoists who become leaders leave their people free, so each one can fulfill his or her individual nature.

Questions:

1-Who was Lao Tzu and what did he believe? ______

2-What is the Yin Yang? ______

3-How can Daoist live in harmony with nature? ______

4-Describe Daoist leaders. ______

Legalism was a third Chinese philosophy (Confucianism, Daoism, and Legalism). Legalists believed that all human beings were selfish and greedy. Han Feizi, an important legalist,believed that humans were made good by state laws and harsh punishments. He believed that the only way to check human selfishness was to reward actions that benefitedthe state and punish all actions that harmed the state. The government benefited the people bycontrolling individual selfishness. Since even the emperor could not be counted on to behave in the interests of the people, that was, since even the emperor was selfish, it was necessary that the laws be supreme over even the emperor. Ideally, if the laws were written well enough and enforced aggressively, there was no need of individual leadership, for the laws alone were sufficient to govern a state.

Questions:

1-What is Legalism? ______

2-Who was Han Feizi and what did he believe? ______

3-Why were well-written laws necessary? ______

4-Do you believe that people will only behave if they are rewarded for good actions and severely punished for wrongdoing? Explain your answer. ______

Primary Source: Legalism

“Now take a young fellow who is a bad character. His parents may get angry at him, but he never makes any change. The villagers may reprove him, but he is not moved. His teachers and elders may admonish him, but he never reforms. The love of his parents, the efforts of the villagers, and the wisdom of his teachers and elders - all the three excellent disciplines are applied to him, and yet not even a hair on his shins is altered. It is only after the district magistrate sends out his soldiers and in the name of the law searches for wicked individuals that the young man becomes afraid and changes his ways and alters his deeds. So while the love of parents is not sufficient to discipline the children, the severe penalties of the district magistrate are. This is because men became naturally spoiled by love, but are submissive to authority.

“That being so, rewards should be rich and certain so that people will be attracted by them; punishments should be severe and definite so that the people will fear them; and laws should be uniform and steadfast so that the people will be familiar with them. Consequently, the sovereign should show no wavering in bestowing rewards and grant no pardon in administering punishments.”

Questions:

1-What actions encourage the young man to change? ______

2-Why do these actions work according to Legalists? ______

3-Why are rewards as necessary as punishments according to Legalists? ______

Daoist Primary Source:

Hui Shi said to Chuang Tzu, "I have a large tree. Its trunk is too gnarled; its branches are too twisted for use. If you stood it on the road, no carpenter would pay any attention to it. Now, your talk is similarly useless.”

Chuang Tzu replied, "Now you have a large tree but fret over its uselessness. Why not plant it in Nothing At All town or Vast Nothing wilds? Then you could roam about doing nothing by its side or sleep beneath it. Axes will never shorten its life and nothing will ever harm it. If you are of no use at all, who will make trouble for you?"

Explain the meaning of this Daoist story:

______

Taoism and Shintoism are similar in that both religions stress

  1. adhering to the five Confucian relationships
  2. following the Eightfold Path
  3. developing harmony between humans and nature
  4. believing in one God

Word Bank: Legalism, Daoism, Confucianism, Karma, Reincarnation, Cultural Diffusion, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity