Interpretation of Laozi

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Interpretation of Laozi Laozi, also known as Dao De Ching, is the first with comprehensive philosophical system in the history of Chinese philosophy. According to legend, it was written by Lao Dan, a native of the state of Chu in the Spring and Autumn Period. The book, a record of Lao Dan’s words on his philosophy, consists of 81 chapters. It systematically expounds Laozi’s word outlook, political outlook and epistemology. Laozi often explains his ideas by way of paradox, analogy, appropriation of ancient sayings, repetition, symmetry, rhyme, and rhythm. In fact, the whole book can be read as an analogy – the ruler is the awareness, or self, in meditation and the myriad creatures or empire is the experience of the body, senses and desires. Passages such as "Block the openings, shut the doors" and "the sage who does nothing never ruins anything" refer to sitting in meditation. "Keep the people ignorant" means do not pay attention to the senses and thoughts. The philosophy of Laozi is first about the universe, then human life and next, politics. Dao as the metaphysical core derive from the perspicacious generalization from human life, society, politics to ontology, while De is the revelation and expansion of Dao, the application of Dao to give guidance to social, political and human life. First, Laozi entertains that Dao is the basic category of the universe that is independent of all other things, that it is constantly changing, and that it moves in cycles; then the origin of the universe and myriad things comes from Dao. Not only does it create everything, but takes good care of them and promote the emergence of blossoms and increase yield of plants. Meanwhile, Dao also refers to the concrete laws. The two most outstanding laws are: unity of opposites and return to root. In the way of Laozi’s thinking, things are all mutually changeable. Only by

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