Lao Zi 老子

About "Lao Zi"

Extracted from
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laozi

"Laozi (Chinese: 老子; pinyin: Lǎozǐ; Wade-Giles: Laosi; also Lao Tse, Lao-Tzu, Laotze, Lao Zi, Laocius, and other variations) was a philosopher of ancient China and is a central figure in Taoism (also spelled "Daoism"). "

"Laozi is an honorific title. Lao means "venerable" or "old". Zi, or tzu, means "master". Zi was used in ancient China like a social prefix, indicating "Master", or "Sir".

"The Daodejing, often called simply the Laozi after its reputed author, describes the Dao (or Tao) as the mystical source and ideal of all existence: it is unseen, but not transcendent, immensely powerful yet supremely humble, being the root of all things."

"According to the Daodejing, humans have no special place within the Dao, being just one of its many ("ten thousand") manifestations. People have desires and free will (and thus are able to alter their own nature). Many act "unnaturally", upsetting the natural balance of the Dao."

"The Daodejing intends to lead students to a "return" to their natural state, in harmony with Dao."

Here is one of the intrepretation of Lao Zi 老子and The Daodejing 道德经:


百家讲坛 2007 05 22 --我读经典之老子：无形中的指引－孙丹林