In ancient China, people simply thought that everything in the world originated from the primitive state of chaos, and the gradual differentiation of the primitive world led to the formation of various things and phenomena. The cosmology of Laozi's philosophy is to elevate the simple concept of our ancestors to a theory. In many places in Laozi's Tao Te Ching, it is clearly stated that "Tao" is the foundation of creating all things in the world. ?

Laozi's cosmology of Tao points out that Tao is the total source of all life, and Tao has the eternal power to nourish all things without being nourished. Although it is still in the stage of "origin theory", it is a qualitative leap compared with "creationism" and has a higher level of philosophical abstract thinking than "five elements theory", which can be said to mark the highest level of human understanding of the world at that time. ?

Second, the ontology of Tao?

The question to be answered by philosophical ontology is "Why" or "Why" in China's traditional philosophy. Laozi thinks that this "why" is "Tao", and everything loses its foundation without "Tao". Laozi's "Tao" is not only the origin of all things in the world, but also the essence and foundation of the logical existence of the world. ?

Laozi said that "Tao is the foundation of all things" (Chapter 62 of Tao Te Ching), and thought that Tao is the center of all existence, and it does not depend on anything else, and everything else depends on it.

Laozi said, "Those who get it, the sky is clear, the land is peaceful, the gods are full of spirits, the valley is profitable, and everything is alive. The Marquis thinks that the world is right."

Laozi believes that "Tao" itself is a kind of mixed existence, which does not belong to either side of contradiction and opposition, and all contradictory sides are formed from this. For example, Yin and Yang are born in Tao, and heaven and earth are born in Tao. "Tao" itself is a homogeneous existence, and there is no difference, but all the differences arise from it, such as the size of things and the life and death of people, which are all derived from "Tao"; "Tao" itself is an abstract existence without any stipulation, but the stipulation of everything comes from it.

Third, the axiology of Tao?

"Tao" in Laozi's philosophy is not only the origin of all things and the noumenon of the objective world, but also the source of value and the highest value measure of the world where people live. It is not only the object of human knowledge, but also the object of belief. Laozi's "Tao" is not only an objective truth, but also the highest realm of life, so it should be respected.

Laozi said: "Man should be everywhere, the land should follow the sky, the sky should follow the Tao, and the Tao should be natural" (Chapter 25 of the Tao Te Ching). It means that "benevolence" adopts the method of "heaven" and requires "benevolence" to be as natural, quiet and nurturing as "heaven" ?

The ancient ancestors of China generally believed that heaven and earth had a way, society had a way, and that human life was the right way to conform to the Tao, while deviating from the Tao was the evil way. Therefore, they always advocated seeking the Tao in various ways, brimming with optimism and perseverance. Laozi's "Tao" axiology is the theoretical explanation of this thought. ?

Fourth, Tao's theory of self-cultivation?

Taoism advocated double cultivation of form and spirit, and later it was promoted to double cultivation of life through the development of Taoist inner alchemy school. This cultivation includes two aspects.

One is to cultivate the spirit or nature, that is, to overcome hypocrisy, restore the simplicity of nature, transcend emotional desires and improve the spiritual realm. The concrete methods put forward by Laozi are "less selfish desires", "quietism", "sharing weal and woe" and "kindness and thrift".

The second is to repair the shape or life, that is, to simplify health care. Taoism attaches great importance to the way of health preservation, and regards maintaining the healthy development of life as the top priority of self-cultivation.

Extended data:

Historical evaluation:

Confucius commented on Laozi: "Birds, I know they can fly; Fish, I know it can swim; Beast, I know it can walk. Pedestrians can be useless, swimmers can be nylon, and fliers can be clumsy. As for the dragon, I don't know, it took the wind and cloud to heaven. I met Lao Tzu today, and he is still evil! "

Kant commented on Laozi in this way: "The goodness advocated by Laozi lies in nothingness, and this kind of preaching takes nothingness as goodness, that is, a kind of consciousness that melts into the abyss of godhood by merging with godhead and destroying personality." "Spinoza's pantheism and approachability are related to China's Laozi thought."

Hu Shi commented on Laozi: "Laozi's greatest contribution lies in transcending heaven and earth and not assuming a' Tao'."

Introduction to Laozi:

Lao Tzu's surname is Li Minger, and his first name is Bo Yang, or Bo Yang. At the end of the Spring and Autumn Period, Chen (later Chu) was born in the Spring and Autumn Period of Zhou Dynasty. China was an ancient thinker, philosopher, writer and historian, the founder and main representative of Taoist school.

Laozi is a world cultural celebrity, one of the world's 100 historical celebrities, and is also called Laozi and Zhuangzi with Zhuangzi. In Taoism, Laozi is regarded as the ancestor of Taoism and called "the old gentleman on the throne". In the Tang Dynasty, Laozi was regarded as the ancestor of Li.

Laozi's extant works include Tao Te Ching (also known as Laozi), which is one of the most widely circulated works in the world. In 1980s, according to the statistics of UNESCO, among the world famous cultural works, the Bible was translated into foreign languages and published with the largest circulation, followed by the Tao Te Ching.

Laozi's thought has a far-reaching influence on the development of China's philosophy, and its ideological core is simple dialectics. Politically, Laozi advocates the rule of inaction and the teaching of words. Politically, Lao Tzu pays attention to the truth that extremes meet. In terms of self-cultivation, Laozi is the ancestor of Taoist double cultivation, paying attention to modest and upright practice and not competing with others.

Baidu Encyclopedia-Laozi (founder of Taoism)