LAO TZU

“Do the difficult things while they are easy and do the great things while they are
small. A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.”

Lao Tzu was an ancient Chinese philosopher and poet, well-known for
penning the book Tao Te Ching. He was the founder of philosophy of Taoism, a
religious and ethical custom of ancient China. He is largely respected as a religious
deity in various traditional Chinese religious schools of thought. He is also believed
by some to be an older contemporary of the famous philosopher Confucius.

Lao Tzu’s journey began as he set foot towards the western border of China,
currently Tibet. He was saddened by what he saw around him: men being diverted
away from nature and the goodness it brings. A guard he met on the border asked
Lao to write down his teachings as he went. This is when he wrote the famous Tao
Te Ching, a 5,000-character account of his thoughts and philosophical ideas.
 Like various ancient Chinese philosophers, Lao Tzu made use of rhyme and
rhythm, paradoxes and interesting analogies to get his point across in Tao Te Ching.
In reality, the entire book can be considered as one great analogy.

The ‘Tao Te Ching’, literally meaning ‘The Way and Its Power’ presents the
idea of ‘Tao’ as being the end all and be all of existence. It is extremely powerful,
yet down to earth. It is the source of all being in the world. The book intends to
guide people on how to return to the laws and ways of nature to maintain the
balance of the Tao.

Tzu is also the father of the Taoist philosophy. Taoism, along with Buddhism
and Confucianism, is the pillar of ancient Chinese thought. It is not only a customary
philosophy, but it has also taken the shape of a properly organized religion. Though
the two elements of religion and philosophy are separate, they are profoundly
connected. Lao Tzu’s teachings have encompassed the depths of both.

Taoism focuses on leading life according to ‘Tao’ or ‘the path’. It encapsulates

moral, ethical and religious Chinese customs. Tao is a concept not exclusive to
Taoism; it is also found in various other Chinese philosophies. In Taoism however,
it plays a major role. As per Taoism, Tao is deep and overwhelming; it is the all-
encompassing. It is both the cause and the effect of every existing thing in the
world.

Lao Tzu’s philosophy was a simple one. He was against putting effort and
striving, as he thought struggle is not only futile but also hinders productivity. In his
theory of ‘wu-wei’, he advises to simply do nothing. By this he means not to go
against the forces of nature, wait for the gush of events nature brings to you and
dive right in. He advised not to struggle to change the natural order of things, but
to bring spontaneity to one’s actions as one holds on to the nature’s way of life.
Followers of Taoism believe that striving for nothing will never lead them to failure.
The one who has never failed is always successful, thus becoming powerful.

By understanding this principle, Taoist debates against Confucianism and its

endeavors at domination and standardization of all aspects of life, and strives for a
lone, deep meditation among nature. Taoists believed that through contemplation,
nature will grant them the keys unlocking the powers of the universe. The logic of
‘doing nothing and achieving everything’ reached the rulers and affected the way
the kings treated the masses. Thus, in a subtle way, Taoism took shape of a political
philosophy.

Daoism advises us to look to trees as case studies in graceful endurance. They

are constantly tormented by the elements, and yet because they are an ideal
mixture of the supple and the resilient, they respond without some of our
customary rigidity and defensiveness and therefore survive and thrive in ways we
often don’t. Trees are an image of patience too, for they sit out long days and nights
without complaint, adjusting themselves to the slow shift of the seasons – showing
no ill-temper in a storm, no desire to wander from their spot for an impetuous
journey; they are content to keep their many slender fingers deep in the clammy
soil, meters from their central stems and far from the tallest leaves which hold the
rain water in their palms.

Lao Tzu liked to compare different parts of nature to different virtues. He

said, “The best people are like water, which benefits all things and does not
compete with them. It stays in lowly places that others reject. This is why it is so
similar to the Way or Dao.” Each part of nature can remind us of a quality we admire
and should cultivate ourselves—the strength of the mountains, the resilience of
trees, the cheerfulness of flowers.

In Lao Tzu’s eyes, most of what is wrong with us stems from our failure to
live ‘in accordance with nature’. Our envy, our rage, our manic ambition, our
frustrated sense of entitlement, all of it stems from our failure to live as nature
suggests we should. Of course, ‘nature’ has many moods and one can see in it
almost anything one likes depending on one’s perspective. But when Lao Tzu refers
to nature, he is thinking of some very particular aspects of the natural world; he
focuses in on a range of attitudes he sees in it which, if we manifested them more
regularly in our own lives, would help us find serenity and fulfilment.

Lao Tzu’s works have continued to influence individuals and anti-

authoritarian campaigns around the world. Belonging to the sixth century, Lao Tzu,
a title given to the great philosopher meaning ‘Old Teacher’, taught the world the
importance of the ways of nature and how embracing the principle of doing nothing
can help achieve everything.