China is far from Russia, its territory is vast, its population is large and its cultural history is infinitely long and mysterious. Having united, as in the melting crucible of a medieval alchemist, the Chinese created a unique and inimitable tradition. The country of “yellow dust” was in ancient times a closed world, a world unto itself, and although China did not escape the influence of foreign theories and doctrines (for example, Buddhism), this world produced a unique science, professions and crafts unique to the Middle Kingdom . China absorbed racial and cultural systems, reworking them as if in a blast furnace, melting everything that was not Chinese into something that would forever be considered exclusively Chinese.

In the early Han era in China, a diverse palette of religious, philosophical, moral and ethical ideas was created. They are formed into philosophical schools with a complex hierarchy and a mandatory leader, whose authority is indisputable. Each school developed its own doctrinal approach to the “perfect” state, its own views on the “ideal” ruler and the best policy for the country. But there were also philosophical schools that sought only the path to personal spiritual perfection and did not interfere at all in the politics of the Chinese state. Three philosophical systems had the greatest influence on the formation of the Chinese way of life throughout history: the spiritual mysticism of Lao Tzu, the moral and ethical teachings of Confucius and the idealistic agnosticism that spread in China along with Buddhism.

In this article we will consider the concept of “Tao” - the central concept in the philosophical system of Lao Tzu. It should be borne in mind that ideas about peace, space, harmony and man began to take shape long before the advent of Taoism. They are brought to us by ancient legends, chants, descriptions of ceremonies and rituals (especially in the Tang era). Many provisions of the future Taoist system were set out in the most ancient classical books of Chinese education. The most important place among these books is given to the “Book of Changes”.

The original cosmogony states that initially there was only a single and universal substance - Qi, thought of as cosmic breath: Qi filled the Nothingness - the Emptiness. At the chthonic moment, the energy of the Void was divided into Yang - a light and warm principle and Yin - a dark and cold one. Then Yang, as a lighter substance, rose upward, Yin - sank down. The first energy formed Heaven - Tien. The second energy formed the Earth - Kun. Yang and Yin are responsible for balance in the world, the change of seasons, the harmony of the Cosmos; from them all things and phenomena in the world originate. Therefore, the ancient Chinese believed that everything was characterized by duality, a combination of two opposite principles: male and female, light and dark, cold and warm, light and heavy, etc. The measure of the presence of Yin or Yang in a particular thing determines the properties of this thing and shows its essence, meaning and role. If the measure of presence changes, then the essence of the thing changes. In Ancient China, it was believed that the boundless and indifferent Tian had its own supreme ruler, Shang Di. The emergence of this cult is directly related to the formation of Chinese statehood. Thus, just as the emperor on earth is one “son of Heaven”, always the same “Reborn Dragon”, so in Heaven there must be one ruler - this is Shang-di. Later, the Celestial Sky was filled with numerous deities and spirits, with whom the Chinese learned to “negotiate” by observing complex and varied rituals and ceremonies. These requirements corresponded to the state style, a certain way of life: a community, the members of which are related by blood ties, common economic activities, shrines, and ancestral graves.

In the fifth century BC. old knowledge no longer corresponds to changing living conditions. Troubled times have come - the era of Django (Warring States). The world has changed beyond recognition, and people have the impression that the gods and patrons have abandoned them. One of those who was ready to help people adapt to the changed reality was Lao Tzu. Information about the identity of the master is vague and debatable. We can get some information about the philosopher from the work “Shi Ji” by the famous historian Sima Qian, but they also seem unreliable. In our study, this information is not important; we only take into account that Lao Tzu was an older contemporary of Confucius and lived in the era of Dzhanguo.

When getting acquainted with the philosophical worldview of Lao Tzu, a logical question arises: where to look for the sources of his philosophical thoughts?

In the individual consciousness and mindset of the thinker;

In the historical conditions of existence of contemporary China.

Historians of philosophy believe that his reasoning can be characterized as contemplative speculation. In the treatise “Tao De Ching”, Lao Tzu, trying to penetrate into the essence of phenomena and things, will say: “there is only beauty that is ugly, good there is only evil.” How to understand this? If we reason in the spirit of late Neoplatonism, then we can see the truly beautiful only with the “eyes” of the mind, and the truly good will only be felt by our soul when it approaches the Absolute of the One and dissolves in it. Like the classic of Greek thought Plato, in Lao Tzu everything material is not genuine. This is a reflected, apparent reality - a shadow of the true world of pure eidos (ideas). The fact that existing reality is changeable is proved, according to the Neoplatonist Proclus, by the existence of an unchangeable, permanent principle, which contains true being.

The concept of “Tao” is the starting point of Lao Tzu’s entire philosophy and the foundation of his metaphysics. The concept denoted by the modern hieroglyphic sign Tao forms several semantic series. In the first - the most common meaning of Tao - path, road, orbit. The second row includes such semantic concepts as morality, ethics, justice. In the third row there are meanings: word, speak, teaching, truth and way of life. In general, the Dao hieroglyph consists of two parts: “show” - head and “zou” - go. Lao Tzu did not invent this term, but he was the first to call a supersensible being this way. The thinker placed “Tao” at the basis of his philosophical system. We cannot say what the author of the Tao De Ching explains. What is Tao. It would be more correct to say that Hokuyan unconsciously translated his perceptions of the universe into linguistic symbols. The Tao cannot be known rationally, but only exoterically. Therefore, in order to understand Tao, one must resort to mystical experience, penetrate into the nature of one’s own sensations and merge with nature, then connect with the world, and this is not rationally possible. Tao is formless, but has omnipresence, spreads both “left and right,” and behind every object, every phenomenon lies the beginning that characterizes the existence of the world. You cannot see it with your eyes; it is accessible only at the moment of exalted enlightenment. A simple man in the street, even knowing about Tao, “does not recognize him” - “when meeting him, he will not see his face.” One way or another, the meaning of Tao is so deep that there are not enough words to convey information about it. Let's try to say this: Tao is filled with eternity, and at the same time it is opposed to everything that exists. On the one hand, Tao is existence, on the other, non-existence. “Namelessness is the beginning of Heaven and Earth.” The Tao has always existed, endlessly generating itself. This is a moment of ultimate emptiness. If in the visible world things are really present, then in the void they are in the form of potential rebirths. This Void is a potential space in which there is nothing and the existence of everything is allowed. And “being arises from non-existence.” At the same time, things are hidden in the nebula of Tao. The birth of things, including actions, thoughts, characters, objects, and in general everything that exists in the world, occurs as a gradual, necessary and meaningful loss of unity: one gives birth to two, two to three, etc. If we again begin to compare this position with Greek thought, we will find similar reasoning in Pythagoras of Samos. Let's return mentally to China. We talked about the concept of Tao. But Tao is indivisible within itself, this unity seems endless in its circular motion: “In the increase of ten thousand things I see their return. There are countless things, and each one returns to its root. Returning to the root is called rest. This means returning to destiny. Returning to destiny makes it unshakable.” According to Taoism, in a circle, opposites are exhausted, they turn into each other. Where is the maximum positive (yang), the minimum negative (yin). And vice versa. This is the famous graphic symbol of Bagua. However, the knowledge that Tao is eternally hidden and disappearing - xuan does not exhaust the ideas about the essence of the concept. We can say about Tao that it is an anti-world. Intimacy, which is opposed to the external, visible form of things. Only in Tao, free from being, lies the source of life. Since Tao is pre-existence and pre-existence, it is great and intelligent. It is Tao that classifies all things, gives rise to the mosaic and brightness of the world. This formed the basis of the most important aesthetic concept in China. The world tangible through the senses is real, but behind it lies the even more real world of Tao. The world seems to fall apart into two opposites - internal and external, and the internal principle is more valuable than the external, since it is this that allows one to see the Tao. Thus, the main signs of the presence of Tao in the real world were all-pervasive non-existence, omnipotent inaction, the all-generating power of the one, the support of the transient, received from the world beyond good and evil. Subsequent Chinese philosophical tradition added little to the understanding of the Tao. Confucius transferred the mystical term to the world of real life. He argued that Tao manifests itself in the world of people only through De, the virtue inherent in man, or the ability to perfection. A person acquires his human authenticity when his spontaneous impulses, under the influence of de, take a certain form.

We have examined only a certain feature of the concept of Tao, which undoubtedly is not exhausted by this content. It was not for nothing that even contemporaries called the treatise “Tao De Ching” five thousand hieroglyphs of silence. Taoism remained a completely misunderstood elitist teaching. The story of Lao Tzu and his writings is sad, but to some extent logical. Later Taoists saw in the treatise “Tao De Ching” only the justification for their alchemical and esoteric experiments to achieve personal immortality. Confucianism, as a more practical and vital teaching, managed to gain more fans among the Chinese elite, and the Taoist teaching, deepest in its metaphysical quests, descended to the level of practice. Despite this, Taoism continues to live, remaining an integral part of the spiritual culture of China.

Currently, there appears to be a rather limited amount of literature devoted to this topic.

Taoism, which arose around the 6th-4th centuries. BC BC, developed and became the national religion of China. And if the religious aspects of Taoism could decline as it developed, then its technical, non-religious aspects are still very popular. In the West, Taoist schools are now quite well developed, Taoist dietetics and recipes are widely used, oriental martial arts are popular, although in many ways this is just a tribute to fashion, which does not have a religious and philosophical component. The current interest in Taoism lies mainly in improving one’s health, working with one’s psyche, and emancipating consciousness. The tenets of Taoism are largely controversial, but this did not prevent it from becoming the main religion of China and finding followers all over the world. As it developed, Taoism had to interact with other religious and philosophical movements, which led to the exchange of some of their positions with them.

Judaism is not just the religion of the Jewish people, but a set of laws that regulates not only the religious, ethical and ideological, but also almost all aspects of the life of adherents of this teaching. Actually, Judaism is the Law from the point of view of the Jews. In Judaism, 613 mitzvot are defined (248 commands and 365 prohibitions), which describe aspects of the life of a Jew, such as food intake, hygiene, family relationships, etc. Of these, seven rules are identified that are mandatory for all people (both Jews and goyim): prohibition of idolatry, prohibition of Blasphemy, prohibition of bloodshed, prohibition of theft, prohibition of debauchery, prohibition of cruelty to animals, command of justice in court and equality of man before the law.

Taoism arose in Zhou China almost simultaneously with the teachings of Confucius in the form of an independent philosophical doctrine. The founder of Taoist philosophy is considered to be the ancient Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu. An older contemporary of Confucius, about whom - unlike Confucius - there is no reliable information of either a historical or biographical nature in the sources, Lao Tzu is considered by modern researchers to be a legendary figure. Legends tell of his miraculous birth (his mother carried him for several decades and gave birth to him as an old man - hence his name, “Old Child,” although the same sign zi also meant the concept of “philosopher,” so his name can be translated as “Old Philosopher” ") and about his departure from China. Going west, Lao Tzu kindly agreed to leave his work, the Tao Te Ching, with the guard of the border post.

The treatise Tao Te Ching (IV-III centuries BC) sets out the foundations of Taoism and the philosophy of Lao Tzu. At the center of the doctrine is the doctrine of the great Tao, universal Law and the Absolute. Tao dominates everywhere and in everything, always and limitlessly. Nobody created him, but everything comes from him. Invisible and inaudible, inaccessible to the senses, constant and inexhaustible, nameless and formless, it gives origin, name and form to everything in the world. Even Great Heaven follows the Tao. To know the Tao, to follow it, to merge with it - this is the meaning, purpose and happiness of life. Tao manifests itself through its emanation - through de, and if Tao generates everything, then de feeds everything.

Tao indicates the primary differentiation of one into two (the initial appearance of two principles - yin and yang) .

Yin means dark (feminine), yang means light (male). They represent two types of universal forces that constitute the essence of the manifestation of the world.

Yin and yang need balance. They are inseparable and complement each other. each other, support each other. The graphic image of yin-yang is tai chi - the symbol of the great limit (depicted on the title page of the abstract).

This symbolism has penetrated into all areas of the Chinese way of life. When Taoists prepare food, they serve meat (yang) with nuts (yin), but not strong drinks (yang).

According to Tao, life is not initially cloudless. There are happy and unhappy moments that are in balance. Yin is a passive principle, and yang is activity, creative power. Their activities must alternate (process of change).

In Taoism there is no “self”, “I”. Man is a collection of interacting elements (yin, yang).

Lao Tzu's successor was Zhuang Tzu. Created the concept of "woo" — wey" (non-interference). It does not mean passivity, but natural, spontaneous action (like the behavior of a child who does not think about the consequences, an intuitive action). This concept allows a person to look at things with an open mind.

Man and the world as a whole are characterized by three types of life. energies: neck (spirit), qi (breath) and jing (vital substance) During meditation, a person strives to merge his Ego with the universe (universe), gets rid of the subjective-objective approach.

In the West, on the contrary, they believe that mystical experience leads to the loss of the personal “I”.

The Taoist concept of Feng Shui (wind and water) is the art of living in harmony with the world (using external means). The influx of positive energy - qi - is influenced by the orientation of the building on the ground and the interior.

Taoism originally arose in parallel with Confucianism. The Taoist religion had its own temples, books, and its own priests (family or monks). At their head was the high priest, the patriarch “tian-shi” (heavenly teacher). His dynasty began in the 2nd century. n. e.

If in Confucianism the worship of ancestors was accepted, then the Taoists are characterized by magical spells, rituals, and shamanism. Their afterlife was not associated with the cult of ancestors. Taoism assumes that a person has two souls: “qi” - life, inseparable from the body, and “lin” - soul, separable from the body.

After death: lin passes into “chui” (trait), if the person was not outstanding, or into shen (deity), if a famous person died. These souls need to make sacrifices.

Tao is the universal law of movement and change in the world. The real world, life are subordinated to the natural path - Tao. The philosophy of Tao is permeated with dialectics: everything comes from being and non-being; the high subjugates the low, high voices together with low ones create harmony; that which shrinks expands, that which weakens strengthens. But Lao Tzu understood this not as a struggle of opposites, but as reconciliation. Conclusions: when a person reaches the point of inaction, then there is nothing that will not be done. He who loves the people and rules them must remain inactive. Taoists condemn any desire to change anything. Knowledge is evil.

Tao, Heaven, Earth, King are great. The king is a sacred and inactive leader. State power is not needed.

For Taoism, the Tao Te Ching has never played such an exclusive role as a book of revelation as the Bible or the Koran for Christians and Muslims. Along with it, other texts of revelation were recognized, the number of which is truly difficult to determine. Some texts were as authoritative as the Tao Te Ching. In the Middle Ages, for example (from the 8th century), the Yinfu Jing, attributed to the mythological Emperor Huang Di, received this status.

In addition, the Taoists believed in the pre-existence of canonical texts in the “pre-celestial” (xian tian) Heaven. This deprived the Tao Te Ching of its chronological primacy.

In general, the current prevailing view is that the treatise was written around 300 BC. e. and has no relation to Lao Tzu (Li Eru, Lao Dan), mentioned in the Li Ji as the teacher of Confucius and described by Sima Qian. Why was the text attributed to Lao Tzu? Lao translated means elderly, venerable. This already contained some mystical secret and turned Lao Tzu into the "Eternal Old Man", the author of a mystical text.

In the II century. BC e. the tradition of commentating on Lao Tzu begins. Its classic examples are the comments of the “Old Man from the River Bank” (Heshan-gun), whom the Taoist tradition is inclined to consider as one of the phenomena of Lao Tzu (II century BC), and the philosopher of the Xuan Xue school Wang Bi (III century .).

An original feature of Taoism is the doctrine of “two Taos”: one (nameless, wuming) gives birth to Heaven and Earth, the other (named, yuming) gives rise to all things.

The monument's core doctrines became fundamental to subsequent Taoist thought. In general, the teaching of “Tao Te Ching” is characterized by traditional naturalism for Chinese philosophical thought and elements of primitive dialectics (the doctrine of mutual transformation, interdependence and mutual generation of opposites: “presence” - “absence”, “heavy” - “light”, movement” - “peace”, etc.). A significant place in the Tao Te Ching is given, as I have already said, to the category of “wu wei” (“non-action”), that is, the absence of arbitrary goal-setting activity, contrary to spontaneous self-naturalness.

According to Lao Tzu, the monarch is not only correlated with the cosmic principles of Tao, Heaven and Earth, but is even placed at their head, acting as the person par excellence

The next monument of early Taoism, which is addressed after the Tao Te Ching, is Zhuang Tzu, known since the middle of the 8th century. like the “True Canonical Book from Nanhua” (Nanhua zhen jing), the text of Zhuangzi is heterogeneous and is traditionally divided into “internal” (chap. 1-7), “external” (chap. 8-22) and “mixed” (chap. 23). -33 ch.) chapters. Even less is known reliably about the personality of Zhuang Tzu than about Lao Tzu.

In the Chuang Tzu, more closely than in the Lao Tzu, Tao approaches absence - non-existence (wu), the highest form of which is the “absence of absence itself” (wu). Hence the famous thesis of “Zhuang Tzu” that “Tao embodies things, but is not a thing.” In “Zhuang Tzu” the spiritualized concept of immortality is clearly presented, which is in opposition to both the “mundane” goals of worldly immortality-longevity (or recognizing it as goals for people of a lower level), and to a rigid fixation of the adept’s behavior, contrary to the norms of “self-naturalness” and “carefree wandering”

The fact that the ancient Taoists did not even think that a dream generated by consciousness could be an analogy of the waking world, also generated by the power of consciousness, once again confirms the correctness of A.I. Kobzev’s thesis about the absence of developed idealistic schools in ancient China. Only in the Middle Ages, under the influence of Buddhism, the author of “Guan Yin-tzu” (VIII-XII centuries) likened the dream world created by thought (“si cheng zhi”) to the waking world, the ideal character of which is also allowed. The peculiarity of the solution of “Zhuang Tzu” to the “sleep-wakefulness” problem is once again. highlights the sharp differences between the Chinese worldview and the Indian one: the naturalism of the first and the ontologized (in Brahmanism) psychologism of the second.

"Lao Tzu" and "Zhuang Tzu" are the first most important "roots" of the Taoist tradition, the first and most important, but not the only ones

The beginning of the next period is marked by the text currently known as the Book of Great Equality (Taiping Jing).

Firstly, the teaching of the Taiping Jing as a whole is not at all connected with the heresy of the “Yellow Turbans” who crushed the Han (their teaching of the Taiping Dao), but with the orthodoxy of the “Heavenly Masters”, whose teaching the text anticipated. Secondly, the ideas that prepared the beginning of the institutionalization of Taoism by Zhang Daoling and his descendants already in the 1st century were in the air; in the Taiping Jing the figure of the “Heavenly Mentor” appears, but still in the form of a heavenly deity communicating his revelations.

Its formation is associated with the myth of a new coming (“xin chu”). “Lao Tzu” in 145 and his revelation of the new world order to his “viceroy” on earth, Zhang Daoling. According to this teaching, the universe is governed by three pneumas (“san qi”) - “Intimate” (“xuan”), “Primordial” (“yuan”) and “Primordial” (“shi”), which give rise to Heaven, Earth and Water.

Children entered the community at the age of seven. They signed a contract that specified mentors, heavenly divine patrons, who supposedly could be called by prayers or visualization.

Children after this initiation were called “newcomers to the register” (“lu sheng”), and they had to fulfill 5 commandments: “do not kill, do not steal, do not commit adultery, do not drink wine and do not lie.” They were forbidden to pray to other deities and worship their ancestors.

The next stage of initiation (also for children) is associated with receiving the “Register of Ten Generals,” which marks an increase in the ability to create “patrons” from the pneuma of one’s body and implies an increase in the number of commandments observed.

If a person wants to become a clergyman, then he undergoes another initiation and becomes a “mentor” (“shi”) and an “official” (“guan”), obliged to follow 180 commandments, some of which involve caring for the environment.

Adults undergo the third initiation, acquiring a register with the names of 75 generals, and the registers are different for men and women. The female registry is called “Higher Spiritual Powers” ​​(“shang lin”), and the male registry is called “Highest Immortals” (“shang xian”). At marriage, both registries are combined, making up the powers of 150 spirits, which is the highest level of initiation for the laity.

In general, the utopia of the “Heavenly Masters” was aimed at achieving salvation, understood in a purely religious sense, which allowed the “Way of True Unity” movement to become the first Taoist church, an institutionalized Taoist direction.

The doctrine of immortality underwent changes as it developed, arose in Taoism due to:

the underdevelopment of the doctrine of spiritual immortality in ancient China;


prerequisites for belief in human immortality through the infinite extension of life.


Taoist philosophy arose during a period of crisis of archaic religion and the mythological thinking that fed it.


After death, kings became servants of the Heavenly Supreme Emperor; ordinary people were denied immortality. Later, Tzu-chan (Tso-zhuang) wrote about the immortality of both aristocrats and ordinary people.


The classical view on the existence of souls: “hun” (intelligent soul) is responsible for life activity and “po” (animal soul) is mentality. Hun (there are 3 of them) after death turn into “shen” (spirit), exist like that, then dissolve in the heavenly pneuma. “Po” ​​turn into a demon, a ghost (“gui”), then go to the underworld to the yellow springs. The body is the only thread that binds souls together. In this form, “qi” entered Taoism. To make the spirit immortal, you need to make the body immortal.


Religious Taoism is inseparable from the culture of traditional China and its characteristics. Taoism gradually spread to Japan, Korea, Vietnam, and Cambodia. But in Vietnam there were only elements of Taoism in non-Taoist cults; there was no Taoist clergy there. There were Taoist monasteries in Cambodia, but they did not have Taoist deities. In Japan, doctrines of immortality, alchemy, and gymnastics were adopted. But not a single Taoist priest came to this country, not a single temple was built.


The universal potential of Taoism remained unrealized. The reasons for this were the organizational amorphousness and looseness of Taoism. In addition, Taoists refrained from preaching.


Taoism is one of the national religions of China. If Confucianism is more of an ethical and political teaching, then Taoism is the national religion itself.


The Taoist idea of ​​perfect government developed in parallel with Confucianism. Belief in the mandate of heaven (“tian shi”) for a virtuous monarch was an organic part of religious Taoism (“tian shi” is a sage who performs the functions of a monarch during the interregnum, “guo shi” is an adviser endowed with a mandate of heaven, a legitimate ruler). Taoism and Confucianism were not always opposites.


Taoism often absorbed numerous Confucian ideas; many socio-political views were a Taoist-Confucian synthesis. “Heavenly mentors” enjoyed the right to determine the patron god (“cheng Huang”) for any Chinese city. Many Confucians wrote the texts of Taoist liturgies for the benefit of the imperial family.


D. Legg, L. Wheeler wrote that Taoism of the VI-IV centuries. BC e. began with the philosophy of Lao Tzu, developed with Chuang Tzu, and declined with Le Tzu. By the time of the Later Han (I-II centuries AD) it had completely degenerated, turning into a mixture of superstition, alchemy, magic and witchcraft.


The question arose: what is religion, what is philosophy? Legg recognized the purity of only the Tao Te Ching (without superstitions or religion). But on the other hand, it is strange that philosophy degenerates into a religion with a theology of a very low level, whereas usually religion, when developing, contains a theoretical foundation in the form of rigid dogma and speculation, often bordering on religious philosophy. Religion and philosophy are different but often interacting forms. Ignoring the role of mythology and religion in ancient Taoist philosophy was not of a scientific nature.


A. Maspero is the first scientist to abandon the opposition between early and late Taoism. He pointed out that religious practice, traditionally considered late Taoist, actually preceded the philosophy of Lao Tzu and Zhuang Tzu. On the other hand, all monuments of philosophical Taoism are permeated with indications of the existence of Taoist religious practice and methods of acquiring the Tao.


For Maspero, Taoism is a personal religion, in contrast to communal forms of religion that say nothing about salvation (for example, Confucianism). The origins of Taoism lie in immemorial antiquity, and the schools “Lao Tzu” and “Zhuang Tzu” are not the original Taoism, but only currents or directions in the general flow of the emerging Taoist tradition, a school with a philosophical tendency.


An interesting justification for the commonality of early Taoist and late Taoist concepts was given by V. Needham. He showed that the search for immortality does not contradict such fundamental Taoist concepts as “wu-wei” (“inaction”) and “zi ran” (“self-naturalness”). If “wu wei” is non-resistance to nature, then the search for immortality can be considered as using nature itself to achieve perfection.


Many late Taoist concepts go back to ancient times. For example, revered in the 6th century. the deity “Tian Huang” (“Heavenly August One”) goes back to Zhou Li, where he acts as the embodiment of heavenly will (“Tian Zhi”), dispensing rewards and punishments.


Attempts to contrast early and late Taoism are logically incompatible, since religion in general cannot be adequately presented as a logically ordered system of consistent positions. In both early and late Taoism, interest in the problem of salvation was equally intense (N. J. Girardot). He created a diagram of the formation of Taoism from its origins to the emergence of organized movements during the Later Han:


The period of ancient proto-Taoist religious beliefs of the shamanic type, the formation of religious practice and the spontaneous formation of ideological models (IV-III centuries BC)


The period of rationalization of the worldview. Summarizing a philosophical basis and recording it in writing in texts. The emergence of the schools “Lao Tzu”, “Zhuang Tzu”, natural philosophy, “yin-yang”, systems for gaining immortality and meditative contemplation.


Bringing together different schools and directions, inclusion of new trends. Formation of a holistic Taoist worldview.


The first organized Taoist movements and schools: orthodox and heretical.


In the future, Taoism will be understood as the national Chinese religion, which has its own specifics and differs both from other organized religions that have become widespread in China, and from folk beliefs and cults, with which it is, however, closely connected, which arose in the middle of the 1st millennium BC n. e. based on religious beliefs of the shamanic type and finally formed in the first centuries of our era.


It is difficult to escape the impression that the concept of Tao in many ways, down to minor details, resembles the Indo-Aryan concept of the great Brahman, the faceless Absolute, repeatedly recorded in the Upanishads, the faceless Absolute, the emanation of which created the visible phenomenal world and to merge with which (to escape from the phenomenal world) was the goal of the ancient Indian philosophers, brahmins, hermits and ascetics. If we add to this that the highest goal of the ancient Chinese Taoist philosophers was to get away from the passions and vanity of life to the primitiveness of the past, to simplicity and naturalness, that it was among the Taoists that there were the first ascetic hermits in ancient China, whose asceticism he himself spoke with respect Confucius, the similarity will seem even more obvious and mysterious. How can we explain it? This question is not easy to answer. It is difficult to talk about direct borrowing, because there is no documentary basis for this, except perhaps the legend of Lao Tzu’s journey to the west. But this legend does not explain, but only confuses the problem: Lao Tzu could not bring to India a philosophy with which they were familiar no less than half a millennium before his birth. One can only assume that the very fact of travel shows that even at that distant time they were not impossible and that, therefore, not only from China to the west, but also from the west (including from India) people could move to China and their ideas.


In its concrete practical activities, Taoism in China, however, bore little resemblance to the practice of Brahmanism. On Chinese soil, rationalism overcame any mysticism, forcing it to go to the side, to hide in corners, where only it could be preserved. This happened with Taoism. Although the Taoist treatise “Zhuang Tzu” (IV-III centuries BC) said that life and death are relative concepts, the emphasis was clearly placed on life, on how it should be organized. The mystical biases in this treatise, expressed, in particular, in references to fantastic longevity (800, 1200 years) and even immortality, which righteous hermits who approached Tao can achieve, played an important role in the transformation of philosophical Taoism into religious Taoism.


2. JUDAISM


Judaism , religion of the Jewish people. The word "Judaism" comes from the Greek ioudaismos, introduced into use by Greek-speaking Jews ca. 100 BC to distinguish their religion from the Greek. It goes back to the name of the fourth son of Jacob - Judah (Yehuda), whose descendants, together with the descendants of Benjamin, formed the southern - Judah - kingdom with its capital in Jerusalem. After the fall of the northern kingdom of Israel and the dispersion of the tribes that inhabited it, the people of Judah (later known as “Yehudim,” “Judeans,” or “Jews”) became the main bearer of Jewish culture and remained so even after the destruction of their state.


Judaism as a religion is the most important element of Jewish civilization. Thanks to the consciousness of its religious chosenness and the special destiny of its people, Jewry was able to survive in conditions when
it has more than once lost its national-political identity.


Judaism involves faith in one God and the real impact of this faith on life. But Judaism is not only an ethical system; it includes religious, historical, ritual and national elements. Moral behavior is not self-sufficient; it must be combined with the belief that virtue “glorifies the one God.”


The primary basis for the core beliefs and practices of Judaism is the history of the Jewish people. Even borrowing ancient holidays or rituals from the developed cultures of Canaan and Babylonia, Judaism changed their main meaning, complementing and then displacing the natural interpretation of history. For example, Passover (Jewish Passover), originally a holiday of the spring harvest, became a holiday of liberation from Egyptian slavery. The ancient custom of circumcision, which originally existed among other peoples as a rite marking the boy's entry into puberty, was transformed into an act performed at the birth of a boy and symbolizing the introduction of the child into the covenant (union-agreement) that God entered into with Abraham.


The conclusion to which in the 19th century. Some (mostly Christian) historians of religions came to the conclusion that Jewish history gave rise to two different religions, namely the religion of Israel before Ezra (c. 444 BC) and then Judaism, which was considered erroneous by many. The evolution of Judaism is continuous, and like other religions, Judaism has changed and developed, freeing itself from many old elements and adopting new principles and norms in accordance with changing conditions. Despite the increasing role of legal elements in Judaism after the Babylonian exile, the religion remained essentially the same as in the pre-exilic period, and any significant doctrine of post-exilic Judaism can be traced back to earlier teachings. Judaism after the captivity, without retreating from the universalism of the previous prophets, raised their universalism to new heights in the works of Second Isaiah, the books of Ruth, Jonah, Psalms, the so-called. wisdom literature and compiled by the Pharisees Halacha And Agade.


The beliefs, ethics, customs, and social aspects of Judaism are set forth in the Torah, which broadly includes the Oral and Written Law, as well as the entire body of teachings of the Jewish people. In a narrow sense, the term “Torah” refers to the Pentateuch of Moses. According to traditional Jewish views, the Torah, both written and oral, was given by God directly to the children of Israel at Mount Sinai or through Moses. For traditional or Orthodox Jewry, the authority of Revelation is indisputable. Adherents of liberal or Reform Judaism do not believe that the Torah came from Revelation. They recognize that the Torah contains truth, and that the Torah is inspired and reliable to the extent that it is consistent with reason and experience. Since Revelation is given gradually and is not limited by any framework, the truth can be found not only in Jewish sources, but also in nature, science and the teachings of all peoples.


Jewish dogma does not contain dogmas, the acceptance of which would ensure salvation for a Jew. Judaism attaches much more importance to behavior than to religion, and in matters of doctrine it provides a certain freedom. There are, however, certain fundamental principles that all Jews share.


Jews believe in the reality of God, in his uniqueness, and express this belief in the daily recitation of the Shema prayer: “Hear, O Israel. The Lord is our God, the Lord is one.” God is spirit, an absolute being who calls himself “I Am That I Am.” God is the Creator of all things at all times, he is a continuously thinking Mind and a constantly acting Force, he is universal, he rules the whole world, unique, like himself. God established not only natural law, but also moral laws. God, who gives eternal life, is all-good, most holy, just. He is the master of history. He is both transcendental and immanent. God is a helper and friend to people, the father of all humanity. He is the liberator of people and nations; he is a savior who helps people get rid of ignorance, sins and vices - pride, selfishness, hatred and lust. But salvation is not achieved only through the actions of God; man is required to assist in this. God does not recognize the evil principle or the power of evil in the universe. God himself is the creator of both light and darkness. Evil is an incomprehensible mystery, and man accepts it as a challenge that must be answered, fighting evil wherever it is found in the world. In the fight against evil, the Jew is supported by his faith in God.


Judaism maintains that man is created “in the image and likeness of God.” He is not just a living instrument of God. No one can stand between God and man, and there is no need for anyone's mediation or intercession. Therefore, Jews reject the idea of ​​atonement, believing that everyone is responsible directly to God. Although man is bound by the cause-and-effect laws of the universe, as well as by social and political conditions, he still has free will to make moral choices.


Man should not serve God for reward, yet God will reward righteousness in this life or in the Hereafter. Judaism recognizes the immortality of the human soul, but there are disagreements among adherents of different movements regarding the resurrection from the dead. Orthodox Judaism believes that it will happen with the coming of the Messiah; reformists completely reject this idea. There are several interpretations of heavenly paradise, where the righteous are blissful, and hell (gehenna), where sinners are punished. The Bible is silent about this, but later literature contains a wide range of ideas about heaven and hell.


Jews believe in the chosenness of Israel (the Jewish people, but not the Jewish state): God, out of all the nations of the world, chose the Jewish people so that they, having accepted Revelation, would play a central role in the drama of the salvation of mankind. According to modern views, Israel should be considered not “chosen”, but “chosen,” suggesting that she, having concluded an alliance-contract with God, herself had to make the final choice whether to accept the word of God and whether to become “a torch for the nations.” The separateness of the Jews and Israel's devotion to the Law are seen as necessary to preserve the purity and strength of the people, which are required for the fulfillment of its mission.


Jews believe in their mission - to establish the truth of the divine Law, by preaching and by their example to teach this Law to humanity. This is how divine truth will triumph on earth, and humanity will emerge from the state in which it now finds itself. A new world order awaits the human race, the Kingdom of God, where the divine Law will ultimately be established; in it all people will find peace, justice and the realization of their highest aspirations. The Kingdom of God will be founded on earth, and not in another world, and this will be realized in the messianic era. There are different opinions regarding the nature of the messianic era. Orthodox believe that the Messiah (“anointed one”) from the line of David will appear and help establish the Kingdom of God. Adherents of Reform Judaism disagree and believe that the prophets spoke of a messianic era, which people can hasten by acting justly and mercifully, loving their neighbors, and living modest and godly lives.


Judaism believes that all people, regardless of religion or nationality, are equally children of God. They are equally dear to God, have equal rights to justice and mercy from their neighbors. Judaism also believes that the presence of Jewish blood (on the paternal side) does not matter in determining one's Jewishness (according to rabbinic law, anyone who is born of a Jewish mother or converts to Judaism is considered a Jew). Anyone who accepts the Jewish faith becomes a “child of Abraham” and a “son of Israel.”


For a Jew, Judaism is the true faith, but other religions are not necessarily false. It is believed that a non-Jew does not need to become a Jew in order to gain salvation, for “the righteous of all nations will have their inheritance in the world to come.” To do this, the non-Jew is only required to fulfill the commandments of the sons of Noah, namely: 1) renounce idolatry; 2) abstain from incest and adultery; 3) do not shed blood; 4) do not take the name of God in vain; 5) do not create injustice and lawlessness; 6) do not steal; 7) do not cut off parts from a living animal.


The attitude of Judaism towards Jesus of Nazareth, the interpretation of whose death, proposed by St. Paul, became the basis of Christianity, expressed by Moses Maimonides. Paying tribute to the Nazarene, Maimonides considered him the one “who prepared the way for the Messiah King.” However, the refusal of Judaism to recognize Christianity is dictated not only by the conviction that Jesus was not the Messiah, but by the inability to accept some of the provisions introduced into the teaching of Jesus by St. Pavel. They are listed by M. Steinberg in the book Basics of Judaism: the statement that the flesh is sinful and must be mortified; the idea of ​​original sin and the curse from it that lies on every person before his birth; the idea of ​​Jesus not as a man, but as God in the flesh; the conviction that people can be saved through atonement, and it is the only way of salvation, and that the death of Jesus is God’s sacrifice of his only son, and only by faith in him can one be saved; refusal to comply with the requirements of the Law; the belief that Jesus, risen from the dead, awaits in heaven the hour of his Second Coming to earth to judge mankind and establish the Kingdom of God; the teaching that he who sincerely believes in all these things will certainly be saved, and that he who rejects them is doomed, no matter how virtuous he may be.


CONCLUSION


The religion arose about 40-50 thousand years ago, during the Upper Paleolithic era. Observing and comprehending the world around him and himself in it, man realized that he was surrounded by an ordered universe, subject to the so-called laws of nature. People cannot change these laws or establish others. The best minds at all times have struggled with the attempt to unravel the mystery and meaning of life on earth, to find that force that reveals its presence in the world through the connection of things and phenomena. Man has come up with thousands of names for this power, but their essence is one - God.


We live at the beginning of the third millennium, and all six billion living on earth believe. Some believe in God, others believe that he does not exist. Therefore, religion is one of the most important things in a person’s life, his life position, ethical and moral rule, norm and custom by which he lives (acts, thinks, feels).


Religion (from the Latin religo - to bind, tie, braid) is a dogmatic ritual system that reflects the ideological positions of a certain community of people. Religion means the deep nature of a person and is a form of his self-affirmation, i.e. the result and cause of a person’s work on himself, his self-restraint from everything that interferes with the existence of his “I”.


Religions are different from each other - each has its own gods, holy books, rituals, holy places and temples, as well as numerous rules by which believers must live. What is considered a sin in one religion may be considered a virtue in another. Each religion has a special worldview and cult. Indeed, if you remove from each religion what distinguishes it from others, then what remains is the essence, the “core,” which is almost the same for all religions.


All religions have principles similar to the commandments of the New Testament, i.e. instructions “thou shalt not kill,” “thou shalt not steal,” etc. So, for example, in the Hindu and Buddhist traditions, the principle “thou shalt not kill” corresponds to ahimsa (non-harm to all living beings in thoughts, words, or actions), and the principle “thou shalt not steal” corresponds to asteya (absence of desire to own other people’s property). .


The similarity of basic religious morals and functions of religion leads to the fact that many philosophers, theosophists and religious scholars begin to talk about a single world ethics, represented to one degree or another in the moral code of each religion.


BIBLIOGRAPHY


1. Arinin E.I. Religious Studies. M., 2006.
   

   Zubov A.B. History of religions. M., 2002.
   

   Zyabiyako A.P. Religious Studies. M., 2003.
   

   Pushnova Yu.B. History of world religions. M., 2005.
   

   Yablokov N.I. Religious studies. M., 2004.
   

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MINISTRY OF INTERNAL AFFAIRS OF RUSSIA

FEDERAL STATE EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION

HIGHER PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION "EAST SIBERIAN INSTITUTE

MINISTRY OF INTERNAL AFFAIRS OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION"

in philosophy

on the topic “Philosophy of Taoism”

Completed by: 1st year FPD cadet

police private

Prosvirnin A.O.

Checked:

Irkutsk

Introduction

1. What is Taoism?

2. Philosophers of Taoism

3. Basic concepts of Taoism

Conclusion

Bibliography

Introduction

The dawn of philosophy in China begins in the 6th century BC. this period is called the “period of a hundred schools.” All these schools can be grouped into 6 main directions. Among these 6, Confucianism and Taoism are distinguished.

Confucianism got its name from China's first philosopher, Confucius (Kung Fu Tzu), who created a theory of government based on observance of rules of conduct and virtue. By virtue he understood a sense of duty, responsibility, restraint, moral education, and by rules of behavior - ethical standards. Governance based on virtue is the same as governing based on philanthropy. Philanthropy according to Confucius involves the development of the following 5 qualities:

Respectfulness,

Generosity,

Truthfulness,

Sharpness,

Grace.

Confucius distinguishes and differentiates the concepts of benefit and duty. He has a special understanding of the people as an objective natural element, and if it leaves a stable state, then it will be impossible to tame it. The people must be made rich, well-fed, and then re-educated. The people should be valued higher than the managers. You can remove the commander of three armies if the people want it. Thus, Confucius offers the path of the golden mean in order to soften contradictions and prevent aggravations.

His entire philosophy was expounded by his students (he ran a private school and taught there) in the work “Conversations and Judgments.” Thus, one of the main ideas Confucius gave to the world was the idea of ​​balance. His philosophy is ethical.

The Taoists developed a different approach to the development of the state. The founder of Taoism is Lao Tzu, and he outlined his ideas in the work “Lao Te Ching”. Lao Tzu believed that one should govern not with the help of ethics and not with the help of laws. He said that the ethical principle undermines the confidence of the people and leads them to unrest. Confucius believed that society should be structured like a family, when the younger ones obey the elders, and the children obey their parents. But in this case, according to Lao Tzu, the punishment will be unequal. The second principle (lack of laws) increases the number of thieves and robbers. He said that the reasons for the difficulty of management lie in knowledge and desires. Management should be built on the principle of non-action. This principle logically follows from his ideas about the world as a whole from his understanding of society and man.

The principle of non-action lies in non-interference in the existence of the laws of development and functioning of any object and being, because every thing has its own path. A person, regardless of his status, cannot interfere in the objective course of things, and if he wants to change something or influence society, then he must do it within himself.

Taoist philosophy is a dialectical philosophy. Firstly, the presence of opposites in things is recognized, and secondly, the mutual transformation of opposites is recognized. Lao Tzu feared and especially warned against the mutual transformation of opposites. And he also advocated maintaining balance, against effort, i.e. for activities that do not violate the harmony of the world, its unity and universal harmony between society, nature and people and for maintaining a person’s peace of mind.

1. What is Taoism?

This question has long attracted the attention of Chinese researchers, but it is very difficult to give a short and clear answer to it, since “Taoism” is a very multidimensional and polysemantic concept.

In some sources, Taoism is called a philosophy, in others - a religion, in others - a philosophy that gradually transformed into a religion, and in fourths it is said that Taoism is not a philosophy, not a religion, but an art.

Taoism is a Chinese philosophical and religious movement, which is one of the main “three teachings”. It represents an alternative to Confucianism, from a philosophical point of view, and Buddhism, from a religious point of view. “Anthology of Taoist Philosophy.” Comp. V. V. Malyavin, B. B. Vinogradsky. M., “Partnership”, 1994..

The first mention of Taoism as an integral ideological formation appeared in the 2nd century. BC. It was called the “school of the Way and Grace” and consisted of the fundamental theories of the treatise “The Canon of the Way and Grace”. Subsequently, the name of the teaching “school of the Way and grace” was shortened to “school of the Way” (Tao Jia), which has survived to this day.

Taoism is based on the mystical and shamanic cults of the Chu kingdom of Southern China, the doctrine of immortality and magical practices of the Qi kingdom, and the philosophical tradition of Northern China. The founders of Taoism are considered to be the Yellow Emperor Huangdi and the sage Lao Tzu. The main treatises are the Tao Te Ching and Zhuang Tzu.

The term “Tao” (path), which formed the basis of this philosophical and religious movement, turns out to be much broader than all the specifics of Taoism. It can be quite compared to the Confucian term “zhu”. Many people confuse Taoism with Neo-Confucianism, which is fully explained by the presence of the same roots in these philosophical teachings. The fact is that early Confucianism could well have been called nothing other than the “teaching of Tao” (Tao shu, Tao jiao, Dao xue). On the other hand, adherents of Taoism could be included in the category of zhu. These interactions between the two movements gave rise to the fact that the term “adept of Tao” is applicable to Taoists, Confucians, and even Buddhists.

But Taoist mystical-individualistic naturalism is fundamentally different from the ethical sociocentrism of other leading worldview systems of ancient China. The period of flourishing and formation of the “hundred schools” was the starting point for the research of many scientists. He even made them think about the peripheral origins of Taoism (some argued that Taoism originated in India). Not without Brahman and Logos, which supposedly served as a kind of prototype of the Tao. This view is contradicted by the point of view that speaks of Taoism as a clear expression of the Chinese spirit itself. This is precisely what many Russian scientists adhere to, led by the leading researcher of Taoism E.A. Torchinov. They are inclined to believe that Taoism is the most developed form of national religion. E. Torchinov. “Taoism. Experience of historical and religious description." St. Petersburg: Andreev and sons, 2nd updated edition: St. Petersburg: Lan, 1998.

The theme of transformation, creative metamorphoses of existence is the central theme of Taoist thought. For Taoists, neither form nor the formless is real. Or, as the Taoist books say, “emptiness cannot overcome ten thousand things.” The true reality for Taoists is transformation itself. Taoists think in terms of not entities or ideas, but relationships, functions, influences. For them, there is “nothing” in the world, but the connections between things themselves are undoubtedly real. There may be no truth at all. But the metaphor of truth, countless glimpses of reality definitely exist.

So, the Taoist picture of the world is an infinitely complex, truly chaotic pattern of phenomena, where there is no one privileged image, one “only true” idea. As Chuang Tzu wrote: “The whole darkness of things is like a spread net, and the beginning is nowhere to be found.” “Anthology of Taoist Philosophy.” Comp. V. V. Malyavin, B. B. Vinogradsky. M., “Partnership”, 1994.

Just as China itself (then the kingdom of Zhou) was divided, starting from the middle of the 1st millennium BC, into many separate kingdoms at war with each other, its culture also presented a picture of significant diversity; There were several types of cultures, only later fused in the great all-Chinese synthesis.

The cultures of the north and south of China differed most from each other. If the north, which gave rise to Confucianism, is characterized by attention to ethical issues and ritual, a rational desire for a rational rethinking of the archaic foundations of civilization, then in the south the element of mythopoetic thinking dominated, and the ecstasy of shamanic cults flourished. And Taoism, which apparently matured in the bosom of the southern tradition, nevertheless combined the exalted archaism of the south and the rationality of the north. The first gave him content, the second endowed him with form, providing the philosophical method she created for mastering reality to express vague and unconscious creative potentials. Without the southern tradition, Taoism would not have become Taoism; without the northern one, it would not have been able to speak about itself in the language of great culture and literary education.

The founder of Taoism is traditionally considered to be Lao Tzu, who according to legend lived at the turn of the 6th-5th centuries BC. and before leaving China forever for the West, he left with the head of the border outpost Yin Xi a statement of his teachings called “Tao Te Ching”.

In the “Tao Te Ching” we are talking about the single origin of all things - a single substance and at the same time a world pattern - Tao. This concept gave its name to Taoism (Tao Jiao).

In addition to Lao Tzu, one cannot help but mention another Taoist thinker, Zhuang Tzu (IV-III centuries BC), the author of a treatise named after him, in which there are many paradoxes, parables, eccentric images, reinterpreted in the spirit of Taoist philosophy and literature.

For the Zhuangzi worldview, the concept of “equalization of existence” (qi wu), according to which the world is a kind of absolute unity, was of great importance. There is no place for clear boundaries between things, everything is fused with each other, everything is present in everything. In this world there are no absolute values, nothing in itself is either beautiful or ugly, large or small, but everything exists only in relation to something else and in the closest internal connection and interdependence.

For traditional Chinese philosophy, belief in the immortality of the soul specifically was uncharacteristic. Only the single psychophysical integrity of a living being was recognized as real. The spirit itself was understood quite naturalistically: as a refined material and energy substance (qi). After the death of the body, this “qi” dissipated in nature. In addition, Taoism inherited from shamanism the doctrine of the plurality of souls - animals (po) and thinking (hun). The body was the only thread connecting them together. The death of the body led to separation and death of souls. Therefore, already in ancient times, great importance was attached to means of extending physical life, and longevity (show) became one of the most important values ​​of Chinese culture.

However, Taoism was not satisfied with the ideal of a simple physical, even infinite, extension of life. A true Taoist immortal (xian), in the process of moving along the path of immortality, radically transformed and transformed his body, which, according to Taoist teaching, acquired supernatural powers and abilities: the ability to fly through the air, become invisible, be in several places at the same time, and even compress time. But the main transformation in the process of practicing Taoist meditation is spiritual: the immortal fully felt and experienced the Taoist picture of the world, realizing the ideal of unity (oneness) with all that exists and with Tao as the mysterious fundamental principle of the world.

The path to immortality according to Taoist teachings involved practicing complex methods of special psychophysical training, much like Indian yoga. It seemed to involve two aspects: improvement of the spirit and improvement of the body. The first consisted of practicing meditation, contemplating the Tao and the unity of the world, unity with the Tao. Various complex visualizations of deities were also used, symbolizing special states of consciousness and types of vital energy.

The second consisted of specific gymnastic (Dao Yin) and breathing (Xing Qi) exercises, sexual practice to maintain the body’s energy balance, and alchemy. It was alchemy that was considered the highest path to achieving immortality. S. I. Samygin, V. N. Nechiporenko, I. N. Polonskaya. “Religious studies: sociology and psychology of religion.” Rostov-on-Don, “Phoenix”, 1996.

Alchemy was divided by Taoists into two types - external (wei dan) and internal (nei dan). Of these, only the first was alchemy in the proper sense of the word. It involved the creation in an alchemical retort of a working model of the cosmos, in which the elixir of immortality matures under the influence of fire. The main difference between Chinese alchemy and European alchemy is its initial close connection with medicine: in Chinese alchemy even gold was “manufactured” as an elixir of immortality. Taoist alchemists accumulated the most valuable empirical material in the field of chemistry and medicine, which significantly enriched traditional Chinese pharmacology.

By the 10th century “external” alchemy declined and was replaced by “internal” alchemy. It was alchemy only in name, since it was nothing more than an ordered set of complex psychophysical exercises aimed at transforming the consciousness of the adept and changing a number of his psychophysiological parameters. However, she borrowed from alchemy itself its terminology, ways of describing the practice, making the names of minerals and substances symbols of psychophysical processes and their structures.

The followers of “internal” alchemy proceeded from the position of complete similarity between the microcosm and the macrocosm, the human body and the universe. And since the human body contains everything that exists in space, then there is no need to create a model of it in crucibles and retorts: the body itself is a similar model. Consequently, it is possible to create a new immortal body from the substances, juices and energies of one’s own body. Particular attention in the practice of “internal” alchemy was paid to the management of energies flowing, according to its theory, through special “channels” (jing) of the body, and accumulating in special reservoirs (dan tien, ind. chakras). Energy management was achieved through concentration of consciousness and visualization (qi gong). Like “external” alchemy, “internal” alchemy has also collected very rich material for Chinese medicine.

Taoism is sometimes called the national religion of China, but this definition is not entirely correct. Firstly, Taoism spread among some other peoples living in the neighborhood of the Chinese. Secondly, the Taoists not only did not preach their religion in society, but, on the contrary, carefully hid their secrets from the uninitiated and did not even allow the laity to attend the most important prayer services. In addition, Taoism has always been divided into many independent sects, where the “art of Tao” was passed on from teacher to student in secret from outsiders.

Nevertheless, Taoism, without exaggeration, can be called a genuine phenomenon of Chinese culture, because it ensured continuity between the elite wisdom of the Tao and the beliefs of the common people, the principles of internal improvement and the entire way of life of the Chinese. While serving their prayer services, the Taoists did not actually worship the spirits, but rather drew them into the boundless harmony of the Great Emptiness. At the same time, the very existence of deities, as well as the entire world of forms, which is the “transformed body” of Tao, remained absolutely necessary for the Taoists.

2. Philosophers of Taoism

philosophy China Taoism teaching

Probably the main feature of Taoist thought is that it is a thought, in all its manifestations, addressed to the origins of things: the origin of times hidden in the immemorial depths of history; the source of consciousness, forever eluding the light of reason, the source of all our mental movements, hidden in the bottomless thickness of life. And the Taoists are so faithful to their search for the true, absolute Source of existence that they did not even set a limit to it in the form of any metaphysical principle, prime mover, “primary matter,” first principle, etc. After all, the source of being, if it is truly real, cannot be either a chronological boundary, or a “given” experience, or a mental abstraction for the simple reason that such a beginning introduces a limitation into the world and, in the end, itself turns out to be conditional, invented, inanimate. The thought of the Taoists is about the Beginning, which itself is without beginning; about the source, which is, rather, the free flow of life itself and which, eternally deviating from its own essence, eternally returns to itself. “Tao and Taoism in China.” M., Publishing House of the Institute of Oriental Studies, 1982.

Their inheritance is the thought of Tao: the Path of all paths, unchanging variability. It seems that they come into the world only to leave, and thereby return to earthly existence. “Real people of antiquity did not know what it was to enjoy life and turn away from death, they were not proud of being born and did not resist leaving the world. Detachment they came, detachment they left, without searching for the beginning, without rushing in thought to the end, rejoicing in what was given to them, and selflessly returning to their nature. Their mind is immersed in oblivion, their appearance is impassive, their forehead is majestic. Cool as autumn and warm as spring, they followed the flow of the seasons in their feelings. They lived in boundless harmony with the world, and no one knew where their limit was set...” (“Zhuang Tzu”, chapter “Dazongshi”).

The main teacher of Taoism is Lao Tzu, the Old Child, whose name was Li Er. He was “born of himself,” and from himself he unfolded the whole world, and he himself appeared to the world 72 times. But he is also a man who lived a long and inconspicuous life. Legend portrays him as the custodian of the royal archives, an older contemporary of Confucius. Lao Tzu met with the future founder of Confucianism, but reacted coolly to Confucius’s belief in the effectiveness of moral preaching, which is probably quite natural for a connoisseur of human history. Having completely lost faith in people, he mounted a buffalo and went somewhere to the West, but never returned. And as a farewell, at the request of the head of the border post through which he left China, Lao Tzu left a small book “of five thousand words” for his descendants. This work, usually called the Treatise on the Path and Potency (Tao Te Ching), became the main canon of Taoism.

Next to Lao Tzu in the ranks of the prophets of Tao is the philosopher Zhuang Zhou, also known as Zhuang Tzu, who was undoubtedly a real historical figure and, moreover, one of the most charming thinkers of ancient China. Zhuangzi lived in the last decades of the 4th century. BC. - the heyday of free thought and intense rivalry between various philosophical schools. Chuang Tzu was a great scholar, but he preferred to stay away from the court's scholarly debaters. For many years he held the modest position of caretaker of the plantation, and then retired and lived out the rest of his days in his native village. Before his death, he asked his students not to burden themselves with the funeral of their teacher, but to throw his body in an open field, because the whole world would become his grave. A modest, unassuming life and a far from heroic, even almost shameful death, in the eyes of Chuang Tzu himself, clearly did not detract from his true dignity. After all, a true Taoist, in the words of Lao Tzu, “comes out into the light, mingling with the dust, in the bustle of everyday life he keeps the secret of eternity, in the polyphony of the Earth he comprehends the silence of Heaven.”

Prophets of Tao exist in order to transform their existence into an inescapable Presence. They are as impossible as they are inevitable, like the very beginning of “thought about Tao.” Their appearance is not a fact of chronology or personal fate. It marks, rather, the awakening of thought to its unthinkable source, which is the very fullness of creative life.

So, the tradition of Tao is strange, outsiders. It is not for nothing that Lao Tzu received the nickname “dark teacher” already in ancient times. And Chuang Tzu himself called his writings “ridiculous and insane speeches.” Taoists explain themselves in paradoxes, vague maxims and extravagant parables. Some researchers are trying to discern this or that “philosophical system” in this. Others see the Taoists as heirs of “mythopoetic” thinking. Still others believe that the entire heritage is almost a deliberate hoax, hiding the true teaching of the Tao.

The true impulse of speaking about Tao is the very life of consciousness, constantly rushing beyond its own boundaries, every moment renewing its connection with the creative element of life. This consciousness is aware that it is irreducible to neither experience nor knowledge and therefore lives in eternal “(self) oblivion.” But it itself penetrates life, creating a new, spiritualized body of the world and a new, rational nature. This consciousness coincides with the fullness of existence. It gives the highest joy of being, but it itself does not remind us of itself, just as we do not feel our own body while it is healthy and strong. Or, as Chuang Tzu said, “When the sandal fits, the foot is forgotten.” A. E. Lukyanov. “The Origins of Tao: the Ancient Chinese World.” M., “Insan”, 1992.

But why exactly aphorisms? Why eccentric parables and anecdotes? For several reasons. Firstly, an aphorism, a parable or an anecdote is paradoxical in its own way, like the nature of the “source of things” in Taoism. Secondly, these verbal genres do not establish universal abstract truths, but turn out to be true in special cases and thereby affirm the exceptional, unique qualities of life, which are precisely what we experience in the creative act. Thirdly, an aphorism or a parable successfully blurs the line between true and false, figurative and literal meanings. Thus, the speech of the Taoists, at first glance confused and shocking, turns out to be an accurate verbal copy of the Great Way as the deep rhythm of life. It is not for nothing that ancient commentators on the Taoist canons often repeated that “all words come from Tao.”

In essence, there is nothing arbitrary in the sayings of Taoists. They imprinted wisdom, which was the result of a long journey of self-knowledge of the spirit. We have before us the language of tradition, where not just what is smart is valued, but above all what is durable. Thinking about Tao is something you can always live with. And therefore something deeply personal. The speech of a Taoist is a series of secret insights that illuminate the path of the heart. Its true prototype is the life of the body, the world of bodily intuition. Taoist wisdom is “knowledge of the seeds of things and the germs of events.” Lao Tzu recognizes himself as an “unborn baby.” Chuang Tzu encourages his readers to “become what we were before we were born.”

The books of Lao Tzu and Zhuang Tzu were originally composed of fragments in which individual insights and observations of the ascetics of Tao were recorded. The superlogical nature of Taoist wisdom reflected the detachment of Taoist schools from any public norms. The focus of the wisdom of Tao on a narrow circle of initiates and the “inner,” inexplicably intimate understanding were also a sign of Taoism as a spiritual tradition that taught its adherents “to reproduce the experience of self-knowledge, to renew the presence of the one who returns to the world when we are absent from it.” A. E. Lukyanov. “Lao Tzu and the philosophy of early Taoism.” M., Publishing House of the Institute of Friendship of Peoples, 1991.

It was not knowledge or even creativity, but the ability to “live your life to the fullest” that constituted the goal of Taoist asceticism. With a spontaneity worthy of a great tradition, Taoism asserted that the wise man knows nothing and can do nothing, but only nourishes himself, assimilating the universal harmony of life with his whole body.

The various properties of Tao as an absolute being are conveniently covered in Taoist literature by the concept of “emptiness” (xu) or “void-absent” (xu wu), “eternally absent” (sei wu). In the philosophy of Tao, emptiness acts as a prototype of the ultimate integrity and completeness of being. Emptiness is the prototype of the existential gap that reveals all forms, and the pause that forms the rhythm. Finally, emptiness is an omnipresent environment and even the driving force of transformations: emptiness, in order to be itself to the end, must itself “empty itself” and as a result become “complete fullness.”

Reality in Taoism is ultimately self-transubstantiation, in which each thing becomes what it is, reaching the limit of its existence, undergoing metamorphosis. In the event of self-transubstantiation, a person becomes truly human precisely because he finds in it his co-existence with all that exists. And the more transient and insignificant a person appears when placed before the world’s Everything, the more majestic he is in his involvement in the Unified Movement of the world, this eventfulness of all events, the universal dance of things. His self-loss is indistinguishable from self-realization.

The world, in the view of Taoists, is an abyss of mutual reflections, “wonderful meetings” of incommensurable forces, and the principle of its existence is expressed in the image of “Heavenly scales”, equalizing the incomparable. Reality for a Taoist is Chaos as countless orders, an endless wealth of diversity.

The Taoist sage imitates emptiness and chaos and therefore “has no place to be within himself.” He does not commit arbitrary actions, but only flawlessly follows every spontaneous movement. His consciousness is “a mirror that contains all images, but does not hold them.”

An unborn child already has complete knowledge of life. He understands before he learns to understand. The Taoist tradition requires us to recognize that any misunderstanding is actually a misunderstanding. And if, as the Taoists believe, we “already know” at any moment, then to think and designate means only to draw boundaries in the vast field of eventfulness, the space of omnipresent ultimacy, to limit the limitation - to write “white on white.” In such a letter, everything is subject to the law of economy of expression: the smaller the sphere of presented meaning, the sphere of “understood and understandable,” the more space will be freed up for meaning as the openness of being, everything unknown and wonderful in life. The Taoist tradition is a school of self-restraint that serves to liberate all that exists. A real sacrament is not something deliberately hidden. It exists where the more obvious, the more hidden, the more understandable, the more incomprehensible. The sacrament is not a subject of “positive philosophy.” The Taoists did not strive to create their own “system of thought.” They are masters of “internal doing”, who sought in individual actions not completeness, but endless effectiveness. However, what in nature makes all actions possible? Nothing short of peace. The Taoist practices non-action. His “art of Tao,” as Chuang Tzu writes, “is above ordinary skill.” Since the Taoist sage “walks with his heart at the beginning of things,” he is not just a master, but always also the Lord of the world, determining the place of each thing in the world order.

3. Basic concepts of Taoism

The hieroglyph dao consists of two parts: show - “head” and zou - “go”, so the main meaning of this hieroglyph is “road”, but later this hieroglyph acquired a figurative meaning - “path” (“approach”, “method”, “regularity”, “principle”, “function”, “teaching”, “theory”, “truth”, “absolute”). Logos and Brahman are often recognized as equivalents of Tao.

In the “Tao Te Ching” we are talking about the single origin of all things - a single substance and at the same time a world pattern - Tao.

Tao is the central philosophical concept of Taoism, and it should be noted that it can be mistakenly treated as an ordinary concept. After all, before any person hears about Tao, he has some concepts in his mind, so it seems that it costs nothing to replenish their sum with the same concept of Tao. But as the concept of Tao is a procedural category, it cannot be learned, like a physical formula or multiplication table. According to Lao Tzu, “The Tao that can be expressed in words is not the permanent Tao... one can only enter into the Tao and master it.” Lao Tzu believed that Tao is a permanent Tao, the essence of which cannot be expressed in words. It has no appearance, does not make sounds, does not have a form, and “you look at it, but do not see it, listen to it, but do not hear it, catch it, but cannot catch it” (“Tao Te Ching, Zhang 14). In a word, Tao is “emptiness” or “non-existence” (shi). “History of Chinese Philosophy.” M., “Progress”, 1989.

The word “Tao” itself is not at all the exclusive property of Taoism. It belongs to all Chinese thought, and every philosopher of ancient China saw in it the designation of truth, or, more precisely, the deepest truth and the righteous path of life. All Chinese sages are adherents of Tao. And although this concept gave the name to Taoism (Tao Jiao), there is nothing actually Taoist about it. This is one of the most important categories of all Chinese culture. Only its interpretation by Taoism is specific. If in Confucianism Tao is the path of moral improvement and governance based on ethical standards, then in Taoism Tao is cosmologized, acquiring the meaning of the highest first principle, world substance, the source of being of all things.

The Taoist lives by what is alive forever - the capital of the spirit. Taoism is, first of all, a justification of tradition. The truth of Tao is what is given before we know ourselves, and it is what will be passed on from us to future generations after we pass on.

What is this? The “classics” of the Taoist tradition give an apparently vague, but in fact very precise answer: everything that exists “by itself” (zi ran), that is not generated by human reasoning and concern, that does not bear the stamp of effort, tension, violence.

The wisdom of a follower of Tao is not knowledge or art, but a certain ability “not to obscure the great peace of being with vain activities.” Taoism thus embodies the very core of Eastern thought, which has always demanded that man achieve the fullness of his being through self-abrogation, to manifest the depth of reluctance that conceals the most spiritual desire. Therefore, Taoism is not a philosophy in the classical sense of the word, since it is not interested in definitions of concepts, logical proofs and other procedures of pure speculation. Nor is it the religion of a transcendent God who demands faith and obedience from his worshipers. Finally, it cannot be reduced to art, skill, or practice in the proper sense of the word, because the wisdom of Tao does not affirm the need to do anything. Rather, Taoism is the “way of integral existence,” in which speculation and action, spirit and matter, consciousness and life are collected in a free, boundless, chaotic unity (yi xu). Such unity, like most of the basic concepts of Taoism, is completely paradoxical, and therefore Taoist teachers fall silent when asked to explain it. As it is said in the Tao Te Ching, the main canon of Taoism: “He who knows does not speak, and he who speaks does not know.” And in another place: “When a low man hears about Tao, he laughs. If he didn’t laugh, it wouldn’t be Tao.” Taoist sages do not prove or preach anything. They don't even teach any particular way of life. Their goal is to give the right life orientation, to point the way to the center of life experience - eternally absent and omnipresent.

Not being in the strict sense, as already mentioned, either a philosophy or a religion, Taoism combines the features of both. According to the teachings of the Taoists, only the great Tao truly exists - the eternal, infinite, inconceivable, without “image, taste or smell,” not created by anyone, it is “its own trunk, its own root,” embracing and containing everything that exists. Taoists call him the “highest Teacher”, “heavenly ancestor”, “mother of the world” or “creator of things”, but they do not expect him to have a specific interest in their personal fate or the fate of the Universe, for in the world everything happens “by itself”, every a moment of time and every particle of existence are completely self-sufficient.

This means that Tao itself is not, in essence, the principle of the universe. Tao, it is stated in Taoist literature, “cannot even control itself,” it “possesses without owning.” Tao is constantly changing, “losing itself in the world of the finite and transitory.” But there is nothing more constant than impermanence” - Tao will remain in its self-transformation forever.

Hence the important place occupied in Taoism by the doctrine of cosmogenesis - the creation of all things. Taoists teach that the world arose from the primordial Chaos, which they also call the Unified Breath (yi qi), the Primordial Breath (yuan qi) or the Great Emptiness (tai xu). The creation of the world is the result of a spontaneous division of the primary integrity of Chaos. At first, Chaos, or the Single Breath, was divided into two polar principles: male, light, active - Yang and female, dark, passive - Yin; from the “two principles”, “four images” emerged, corresponding to the four cardinal directions; “four images” gave birth to “eight limits” of the universe, etc. This scheme is recorded in the ancient Chinese canon “I Ching” (“Book of Changes”), which contains a set of graphic symbols of the world Tao process common to the entire Chinese tradition. A. E. Lukyanov. “Tao. Book of Changes.” M., “Insan”, 1993.

The world, according to the Taoists, is the “transformed One,” the fruit of the metamorphosis of Tao. In this regard, the Taoist tradition also spoke about the transformation of the first man, which was considered the semi-legendary founder of Taoism and the supreme deity of the Taoist religion, Lao Tzu. The world for Taoists is the “transformed body” (xya shen) of Lao Tzu. This means that there is a deep internal connection between the human heart and the body of the eternal Tao. Man and the world in Taoism are indissoluble and interchangeable.

The “Tao Te Ching” speaks of two aspects of Tao: the named (Tao itself) and the unnamed, which generates things and “nourishes” them. The latter is called De - Grace, the Good Power of the Path. The whole world turns out to be a manifestation, an unfolding of the Tao, a Path embodied in existence. Each thing, reaching the limit of its maturity, again returns to the depths of the First Principle of Tao. However, a person can leave this Path, retreat from it, violating the pristine simplicity of the naturalness of both his being and the entire Universe. This is manifested in a commitment to multi-knowledge and in the creation of sophisticated social institutions. Therefore, the Tao Te Ching calls for a return to the original nature, simplification and naturalness. And this call is expressed primarily in the concept of “non-action” (wu wei). However, it does not mean inaction or passivity. By “wu wei” we mean the renunciation of violating one’s own nature and the nature of all things, the renunciation of subjective goal-setting activity that is not in accordance with nature, based solely on egoistic interest, and in general the removal of any isolating subjectivity in the name of inclusion in a single flow of being.

Lao Tzu, taking Tao as the highest category of his philosophy, considered it not only as a universal law, but also as the source of the formation of the world. Researcher A.E. Lukyanov calls Tao “cosmic DNA.” A. E. Lukyanov. “Tao.. Book of Changes.” M., “Insan”, 1993.

Simply put, the entire external world was considered as a certain number of signs. The creator of these signs is a substance that is not comprehended by the senses and is outside of time and space. This substance is called “Tao”. Tao is unlimited. It exists in every moment and in every thing. Tao gave birth to Heaven and Earth, gave birth to emperors and kings, gave birth to all principles. It gave birth to itself.

“Tao is characterized by aspiration and sincerity. It is in a state of inaction and without form. The Tao can be preached, but it cannot be touched. Tao can be comprehended, but it cannot be seen. The Tao is the root and foundation of oneself. It exists from eternity to Heaven and Earth from ancient times. It spiritualizes spirits and spiritualizes the ruler, gives birth to Heaven and Earth. It is above the Great Limit, but is not high; under the Six Limits, but is not deep; It is born before Heaven and Earth, but does not exist for a long time; it extends from ancient times, but is not old” (“Tao Te Jing”, Zhang 16). “Tao is that which makes the darkness of things such, that by which the darkness of things is formed, that which determines the darkness of principles” (“Zhuang Tzu”, chapter “Tian Zifan”).

If such a Tao exists, then one should learn from it and honor it as a teacher. This is the “Great Revered Teacher.” Chuang Tzu wrote about him: “Oh, my teacher! You give all things their properties, but do not consider this a manifestation of justice; you provide benefits to all generations, but do not consider this a manifestation of humanity; you have existed since ancient times, but are not old; you cover the Sky and support the Earth, you outline all forms, but you do not consider this a manifestation of mastery.” Learning from Tao and merging with it into one whole - this, from the point of view of Zhuang Tzu, is the meaning of human life: “You can free yourself from grief, anxiety, melancholy, and even from life and death. We must throw away all differences and dissolve in the world. Tao is me, and for this reason everything that exists is me. Tao is inexhaustible and limitless, it is neither born nor dies, and therefore I am also inexhaustible and limitless, neither born nor die. Before death I exist, and after death I also exist. Will you say that I died? After all, I'm not dying. And fire does not burn me, and I do not drown in water. I turn to ashes and yet I exist. I turn into the foot of a butterfly, into the liver of a mouse, but still I exist. How free I am, how durable, how great!... All different signs are my signs, and all differences are discarded. All things with strange and unusual characteristics - everything merged together. Everything is Tao, everything is me. This means that “Heaven and Earth are born with me, and all things are unity.” (“Zhuangzi”, chapter “Qiulun”).

A person who has realized this is a “man who possesses the Tao.” Chuang Tzu states that “such a person does not despise people, does not engage in self-praise, referring to his merits, does not engage in deception; having missed an opportunity, he does not repent; having an opportunity, does not lose his head; having risen to a high place, he is not afraid; falling into water, it does not get wet; having fallen into a fiery pit, he does not feel the heat... Such a person sleeps and does not dream, is not sad when waking up, eats anything and has deep breathing. Such a person does not cling to life and is not afraid of death, neither life nor death matters to him, he freely comes, freely leaves, gets something - good, loses something - is not upset.... This is... ... and there is that balanced state when the spirit is not separated from the substance and everything corresponds to its nature” (“Zhuang Tzu”, chapter “Dazongshi”) “Culturology: the history of world culture”. Ed. A. N. Markova. M., “UNITY”, 1995.

The leading Taoist concepts include the principles of Zi Ran (self-naturalness, spontaneity) and Wu Wei (non-action). The first of these literally means “that which in itself (zi) is what it is (zhan).” In this case, we are talking about the fact that Tao is absolutely free, does not depend on anything else and follows only its own nature. From this follows the principle of following the Tao, i.e. behavior consistent in the microcosm with the Tao (nature) of man, and in the macrocosm with the Tao of the Universe. A sage should not, based on his own subjectively limited desires and preferences, oppose the nature of the things and phenomena around him. On the contrary, he must “follow things” (shun wu). All things are equal to each other, therefore a true sage is free from partiality and bias: he looks equally at the noble and the slave, connects with eternity and the Universe and does not grieve about either life or death, understanding their naturalness and inevitability.

On the other hand, a sage can, using his understanding of the nature of a particular thing, put it at his service, as if “swimming with the flow in the right direction.” Comprehension of the nature of things and consistency with it allows “the soft to defeat the hard” and “the weak to overcome the strong.” The principles of Zi Ran and Wu Wei have become important sources of the methodological and ideological foundations of the Chinese system of psychophysical training, which is also used in martial arts.

Any action that contradicts Tao means a waste of energy and leads to failure and death. The Universe cannot be brought into order artificially; to establish harmony and order in it, it is necessary to give freedom to its innate qualities. Accordingly, a wise ruler, following the Tao, does nothing to rule the country, and then it prospers, being in peace and harmony.

Another very important concept for Taoism is the category of “qi”. By qi we mean the original primordial substance, from which everything that exists, as it were, consists. As qi thickens and becomes coarser, it becomes a substance, and as it becomes refined, it becomes a spirit. In the intermediate state, qi is vital energy and force dissolved in nature and absorbed by a person through breathing. This vital force also circulates through special channels (jing) in the human body. Its accumulation and proper circulation in the body is one of the most important tasks of Taoist breathing and gymnastic exercises that underlie various systems of qi gong (working with qi).

The original qi (yuan qi) is simple and non-qualitative, but in the process of generating the Universe it is, as it were, polarized and differentiated. The two most important cosmological states of a single qi are yin and yang (yin-qi and yang-qi) - i.e. feminine, peace, cold, dark, soft, on the one hand, and masculine, movement, hot, light, hard, on the other. These two states are in absolute harmony and mutual transition. The idea of ​​harmony of these complementary and mutually rooted opposites was enshrined in Taoism in the concept of “Tai Chi” (“Great Limit”).

There is an opinion that the concept of Tao in many ways, down to minor details, resembles the Indo-Aryan concept of the great Brahman, the faceless Absolute, repeatedly recorded in the Upanishads, which created the visible phenomenal world, merging with which (escape from the phenomenal world) was the goal of ancient Indian philosophers, brahmans, hermits and ascetics. If we add to this that the highest goal of the ancient Chinese Taoist philosophers was to get away from the passions and vanity of life to the primitiveness of the past, to simplicity and naturalness, that it was among the Taoists that there were the first ascetic hermits in Ancient China, whose asceticism he himself spoke with respect Confucius, the similarity will seem even more obvious and mysterious.

Conclusion

China is home to one of the oldest and most complex civilizations in the world. Its history goes back about 5 thousand years. But time continues to change space, customs, cultures, religions.

Modern China is a country of enormous economic potential. The past two decades have greatly changed the traditional life of the Chinese. We are witnessing the rapid development of the space and nuclear industries, petrochemicals and electronics, intensive construction, rapid economic recovery and growth in prosperity. The respectful attitude of the Chinese towards their culture is surprising. When allowing any innovation into mass consumption, they always evaluate how the life of the population will improve and how this will affect centuries-old traditions. And in the traditions of the Celestial Empire - to find harmony with the world, spend time in conversations and meditation, improve in the practices of various teachers and masters. After all, they not only develop themselves, but also export their culture to other countries.

The legends and myths of China are full of amazing stories about people who achieved immortality as a result of self-improvement according to Taoist practices. The "Eight Immortal Saints" (Ba Xian) described in ancient Chinese texts, belonging to the Taoist pantheon, were real individuals. Each of them has their own story and their own path to immortality. Having become saints, they were freed from worldly feelings and passions, received eternal life and now live according to heavenly laws. Here are their names. S. I. Samygin, V. N. Nechiporenko, I. N. Polonskaya. “Religious studies: sociology and psychology of religion.” Rostov-on-Don, “Phoenix”, 1996.

Zhong Liquan, the head of the Eight Immortals, possessed the secret of making the elixir of life and the powder of reincarnation.

Li Tieguai is considered the patron saint of magicians, wizards, and sorcerers.

Zhang Guolao - of all the eight immortals, he is the oldest in years and the most prudent. He lived as a hermit in the mountains and wandered all his life. He always rode a donkey backwards, traveling several tens of thousands of miles a day. When the immortal stopped anywhere, he folded the donkey as if it were cut out of paper and placed it in a bamboo vessel. And when it was necessary to go further, he splashed water from his mouth onto the folded figure, and the donkey came to life again. Zhang Guolao patronized marital happiness and the birth of children.

Lan Caihe - this immortal is considered the patron saint of musicians and is depicted with a flute in his hands.

Cao Guojiu is known as a member of the ruling clan during the Song Dynasty. Depicted with castanets and a jade tablet giving the right to enter the imperial court. Patron of actors and mimes.

Since childhood, Lu Dongbin was developed beyond his years and could memorize up to ten thousand words daily.

He Xiangu is the only woman among the eight. Even in early childhood, she met Lü Dongbin, who, foreseeing the girl’s future, gave her the peach of immortality. She ate only half of it and since then has had almost no need for earthly food. In the drawings, He Xiangu is depicted as an unusually beautiful girl with a lotus flower in one hand, and in the other she holds a wide wicker basket, sometimes filled with flowers. He Xiangu patronized households and predicted people's fortunes.

Han Xiangzi was the nephew of the famous Han Yu, a scientist and minister who lived during the Tang Dynasty.

The sacred Chinese mountains have always been considered the gateway to the world of blessed celestials. In Taoist traditions, mountains are viewed not only as a connection with heaven or with celestial beings, but as living beings that not only form knowledge, create and generate energy, but also represent certain stages of knowledge and perform specific tasks. For example, Taishan, or Jade Mountain, gives an understanding of the entire structure of development, transformation, crystallization and energy generation, which a person can cognize by transforming this energy 9 times.

The most valuable thing is the art of learning. Everything else is just a consequence. The process of building up or acquiring new qualities requires constant replenishment of one’s own resources and constant work on oneself. Therefore, the secrets of Taoist practices are revealed only to those who are determined.

Taoism is not for lazy people, but for people who are ready for action. He allows mistakes, branches, even unnecessary directions, but does not accept inaction until the moment when action becomes natural, natural and then it is considered as inaction. But this is inaction in relation to an action that was not necessary, but in reality creates a build-up, an algorithm, a progression... That is. there is no goal here, no desire to achieve anything other than relying on one thing, which gives rise to the second. Continuous process of action.

It’s hard to call Taoists lazy when, having overcome more than 7,200 steps, they rise to a height of 1,545 m. Mount Taishan, located in Shandong province, is traditionally considered the habitat of Taoist saints and immortals. Not only is it one of the Five Sacred Mountains of Taoism, but it has great cultural and historical significance both for China and for the whole world - the mountain is included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. At least once in their life, every Chinese should climb this mountain, preferably on foot, although nowadays there is also a lift. “History of religion. Lectures given at SPSU.” St. Petersburg, “Lan”, 1997.

Steep stone steps, intense humidity and heat, a staircase leading into the clouds, as if to the origins of all times and beginnings - this is the path for those who are not satisfied with the conventions of civilizations and morality, who are looking for the truly great and eternal, to contain the whole world. and touch the origins of everything that happens.

The civilization of old China is already a thing of the past. But her wisdom, which has absorbed the experience of spiritual quest and asceticism of hundreds of generations, has not died and cannot die. Taoism, as a part and perhaps the most important part of this wisdom, has not lost its vitality today. The precepts of the ancient Taoists are addressed to everyone who wants to understand the mystery of the origins of everything that happens, who is not satisfied with the conventions of civilizations, morality, and ideologies, but is looking for the truly great and eternal, who has the courage to abandon petty acquisitions in order to embrace the whole world.

Bibliography

1. “Anthology of Taoist philosophy.” Comp. V. V. Malyavin, B. B. Vinogradsky. M., “Partnership”, 1994.

2. “History of Chinese philosophy.” M., “Progress”, 1989.

3. “History of religion. Lectures given at St. Petersburg State University” St. Petersburg, “Lan”, 1997.

4. “Tao and Taoism in China.” M., Publishing House of the Institute of Oriental Studies, 1982.

5. S. I. Samygin, V. N. Nechiporenko, I. N. Polonskaya. “Religious studies: sociology and psychology of religion.” Rostov-on-Don, “Phoenix”, 1996.

6. “Chinese philosophy.” Encyclopedic reference book. M., “Thought”, 1994.

7. A. E. Lukyanov. “The Origins of Tao: the Ancient Chinese World.” M., “Insan”, 1992.

8. A. E. Lukyanov. “Lao Tzu and the philosophy of early Taoism.” M., Publishing House of the Institute of Friendship of Peoples, 1991.

9. A. E. Lukyanov. “Tao. Book of Changes.” M., “Insan”, 1993.

10. “Culturology: history of world culture.” Ed. A. N. Markova. M., “UNITY”, 1995.

11. E. Torchinov. “Taoism. Experience of historical and religious description.” St. Petersburg: Andreev and sons, 2nd updated edition: St. Petersburg: Lan, 1998.

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Introduction

Taoism: history of origin and development

Lao Tzu: myth or reality?

Tao of Lao Tzu: the world of the Tao Te Ching

Taoism as a way of life

Conclusion

Bibliography

Introduction

The formation of the main directions of Chinese philosophy occurred at a turning point in the ancient history of China. The country split into a number of opposing kingdoms, waging long, grueling and mostly unproductive wars. This era was called Zhanguo() - Warring Kingdoms or Warring States (453 – 221 BC). As a result of bloody strife, seven powerful kingdoms emerged: Chu (where, according to legend, Lao Tzu was born), Qi, Zhao, Han, Wei, Yang and Qin.
The advent of iron disrupted the harmony of social relations, allowing people who did not have nobility to become rich by cultivating new lands, as a result of which the so-called “strong houses” grew. It seemed that the “golden age” of Chinese statehood was left behind, turmoil and chaos were coming to the country, and the great sages of antiquity Yao, Shun, Huang Di(), capable of returning China to the fold of universal harmony. The country resembled a mentally ill person rushing about in fruitless attempts to find peace of mind.
This is how the formation of the main schools of philosophical and social thought in China took place. At that moment they received such a charge of amazing energy that they were able to cover all areas of social and spiritual life for several thousand years to come. How to regulate the state, how to bring the country into harmony with Heaven - the highest active-indicating principle of the world? How to make the people submissive and eliminate unrest? Maybe it’s worth turning to “high antiquity,” when the people adhered to the most important moral concepts left by the great sages and connecting every person with the highest sacred forces of the universe? This is how the thought of Confucianism is formed, the founder of which was a man named Kung Tzu(), known to us in Western transcription as Confucius. First of all, he believed, everything must be put in its place, or “the names must be corrected,” when “the ruler will be the ruler, the father will be the father, the son will be the son.” This could be done through adherence to strict moral and ethical principles, summarized by the concept of ritual - whether(), for example, humanity, justice, duty, filial piety, care for younger ones.
Confucianism acted not as a religion, but as a type of rationalistic social philosophy. The ruler followed Heaven, which gave him its Good power - Dae(), and the ruler transmitted this power to his subjects. Thus, the state lived like a single family; it is no coincidence that there was a saying: “The entire Celestial Empire is one family.” The family served as the ideal symbolic form of any community in China: the state, the philosophical school, the relationship between officials and the people.
Another philosopher Mo Tzu(), saw the solution to all problems in the awareness of “universal love,” and this love is the only “desire” of Heaven. The Mohists called Confucian humanity “separate love” (beai) and compared it with selfishness, contrasting this with “love for all people” (zhou ai ren). They suggested living “in straw huts and walking in linen clothes,” but not everything from the tradition should be chosen, but only the good, in order to follow it. The source of knowledge was practical activity - “taking as examples the facts that the masses of people saw or heard.” Thus, all knowledge was supposed to have practical value, and its mystical source, which the Taoists spoke about, was not discussed - it seemed unnecessary.
In such a situation, Taoist ideas begin to form. Their development took different paths. On the one hand, schools of mystical-occult Taoism arose, for example in the Maoshan Mountains and near the city of Luoyang, which in the 2nd - 3rd centuries. developed the theory of achieving immortality through taking “immortality pills” and breathing exercises. On the other hand, in the 2nd century. in China, a powerful uprising of the “Yellow Turbans” was raised, led by a Taoist mystic, the leader of the sect Udoumidao() Zhang Lu is the grandson of the founder of religious Taoism, Zhang Daolin.
At the same time, schools of philosophical and mystical persuasion, often involved in state affairs, are gaining special development. This is, in particular, the doctrine called Huang Lao(), - the school of Huang Di and Lao Tzu, which believed that the original spiritual experience of penetration into Tao was bequeathed by the legendary founder of the Chinese nation, the “Yellow Emperor” Huang Di. She placed the main emphasis on awareness of the naturalness in a person’s life, on how he should follow the natural course of things, seeing the original natural properties in himself and thereby comprehending his destiny. An absolute parallelism of earthly and heavenly, cosmic and human reigned here.
And here what a number of researchers call “natural law” comes to the fore. It is his preaching that is carried out on the pages of the Tao Te Ching. In purely terminological terms, this concept could be designated as “Dao” (Way), and as “Tian Dao” (Way of Heaven), and as “Zizhan” (naturalness). The last word can also be translated by a somewhat awkward, but nevertheless quite accurately expressing its content, term - “self-sameness,” “absolute correspondence and following oneself.” The Huang-Lao school spoke of the absolute and indissoluble similarity of all parts of the universe, including the identity of Tao, Heaven and man in their internal natural properties, as a result of which a special “mutuality” or “interdependence” arises ( F–). “Man follows the Earth. Earth follows Heaven. Heaven follows Tao. Tao is natural” (“Tao Te Ching”, §25).
According to the same natural law, what we call the moral and ethical foundations of people is formed, while no moral standards can be invented by man himself, which the Taoists accused the Confucians of.
The state should also be governed not by codes invented by a person, even a very wise one, but by “natural law,” which is the same for both heavenly and earthly affairs, therefore complex laws and prohibitions seem not only to be an unnecessary embellishment, but can lead the state to collapse. There is only one path possible here - unconditional adherence to the natural law of Tao.
Complex philosophies existed in parallel with purely occult practices, numerous folk beliefs, and the Confucian understanding of the Tao as a moral law that man must follow. So the fates of the idea of ​​Tao were very different.

Taoism: history of origin and development

The Chinese ethnic group is one of the most ancient existing on Earth today. It has a unique set of qualities developed over many millennia of development. Moreover, these qualities were formed under the great influence of original esoteric methods of improving the body, vital energy, mind and consciousness.
Prerequisites for the emergence Taoism(,) were rooted in the religious ideas of antiquity. It is possible that its origins are connected with the shamanic beliefs of the kingdom of Chu (Yangtze River basin) and the teachings of magicians (fangshi) of the northeastern kingdoms of Qi and Yan of the Zhanguo period ("Warring States", V - III centuries BC; see . Introduction). In the IV – III centuries. BC e. as a result of philosophical reflection on the ideas spontaneously formed in the previous era, a doctrine arises, the supporters of which are listed in the historiographical work of the 2nd - 1st centuries. BC e. to the “school of Tao and Te” (Daode Jia –). This teaching is presented in such monuments as the treatise "Tao Te Ching" attributed to the semi-legendary sage Lao Tzu and the treatise " Chuang Tzu" (), which sets out the views of the outstanding philosopher of the 4th - 3rd centuries BC. Zhuang Zhou(). However, the authors of these texts did not yet identify themselves with any particular philosophical school. This can be considered as evidence that the emergence of the “teaching of Tao and Te” did not yet mean the emergence of an integral ideological system. Among other major thinkers of antiquity, the founders of the philosophy of Taoism include Le Yukou() and prone to eclecticism Liu Anya ().
Taoism as a religious and philosophical system was formed at the turn of the century. e. as a result of synthesis Lao [-zi ] – Zhuang [-zi ] teachings(Lao Zhuang xue pai –); doctrines of natural philosophers ( Yinyang Jia(); the concept of "spirit" as the ultimate expression of the process of change described in the Zhou Yi; beliefs of shamans and magicians; ideas about “immortal saints” (xian, shen xian). Taoists believe that their teaching dates back to ancient times, when its secrets were revealed to the mythical “Yellow Emperor” (Huang Di). Chinese traditions and legends tell about 9 “first ancestors” who appeared at the origins of Chinese civilization one after another and brought knowledge, crafts, writing, music, etc. to the people. One of them was the first ancestor Huang Di, the emperor who was avatdra"om (). Huang Di brought the highest spiritual Truth and a holistic system of human improvement. This system included a theoretical aspect that described the process of creation of the world by God (Tao) and revealed the purpose of human life - the development of one’s consciousness, ending with the achievement of Divine Perfection and merging with the Tao. In practice, this goal was achieved, among other things, with the help of a multi-stage system of psychophysical training, where techniques were used that are better known in Sanskrit terms - prändyama (), mantra (), mudrd (), dsana() And dhyäna(). Great importance was also attached to ethics, that is, the development of “right feeling and right action.”
This initial multifaceted information given by Huang Di was the source of the concepts of many schools. The differences between them came from the ultimate goal of the efforts of their adherents - improvement of the body, “vital energy” or consciousness. Depending on the purpose, various physical or psychophysical techniques were used, and the development of ethics and intelligence was stimulated to varying degrees.
But, as usually happens, the simplest, “external” part of the holistic Huang Di system has become widespread. Over time, it transformed into martial arts techniques, on the one hand, and into shamanism, magic and myth-making, on the other. The “inner” - esoteric - part of the teachings of Huang Di was used by very few schools of Taoist yoga, which set as their goal the development of the consciousness of adherents up to the achievement of Divine Perfection. The Taoist tradition considers Huang Di to be the founder of Taoism. Therefore, one of his early directions was called the teachings of Huang [-di] - Lao [-tzu].
Over the centuries, the esoteric schools of ancient Taoism became more and more closed, and their number decreased. However, the thread of tradition was not broken.
On the contrary, "external" schools became a natural component of Chinese life. In those of them where magic dominated, the worship of the souls of ancestors was clearly manifested.
In schools of a higher level, starting from the Shan-Yin era (XVIII - XII centuries BC), the worship of “Heaven” was established, but in the meaning not of a place or direction, but of the “First Principle and First Cause of all things”, i.e. i.e. God.
In the middle of an era Zhou() the treatise “Tao Te Ching” appeared, the author of which is considered to be Lao Tzu. Thus, the thread of the ancient teaching, stretching through millennia, received a new impetus with the advent of the Tao Te Ching.
The period that followed the appearance of the Tao Te Ching from the 6th to the 3rd centuries. BC e. is called the era of “the rivalry of all (or a hundred) schools,” since almost simultaneously such directions as Taoism, Confucianism, Mohism, schools of legalists, sophists, followers of the teachings of the yin yang forces, etc. were formed.
All these schools used, in a more or less distorted form, fragments of the teachings of Huang Di, which had survived to that time in the most ancient literary monuments, such as " Zhou and" () or "Nei-ching", "Yinfu-ching" and others, the authors of which, according to tradition, are considered to be Huang Di and other "first ancestors".
In the II century. the deification of Lao Tzu occurs, which is now called Lao-jun ("Lord Lao") and is considered as the "incarnation" or "body of Tao" (Tao Zhi Shen, Tao Zhi Ti, Tao Zhi Xing). The emergence of developed Taoism was marked by the beginning of the process of its organizational formation. In the II century. the first institutionalized Taoist direction appears - Tianshi [dao] ("[Way of] Heavenly Masters"), other names - Zhengyi [dao] ("[Way of] True Unity"), Udoumi [dao] ("[Way of] Five Measures of Rice" ). Its first patriarch (“Heavenly Mentor”) is considered to be Zhang Daoling (1st – 2nd centuries), who allegedly received a revelation from the deified Lao Tzu and the right to be his viceroy on earth. The title of "Heavenly Mentor" has been inherited in the Zhang family to this day. In the 4th century. two Taoist directions arise - Maoshan (toponym), or Shangqing School() And Lingbao School(). They sought to combine the symbolic ritualism of the “Heavenly Masters” with the occult-alchemical tradition of Southern Chinese Taoism and paid considerable attention to the techniques of meditative contemplation. In general, the northern directions of Taoism (Zhengyi [Tao] and others) gravitated towards communalist forms, actively influencing believers, while southern Taoism was more elitist, aimed at self-improvement.
In the 7th – 8th centuries. under the influence of Buddhism, the institution of Taoist monasticism and monasteries appeared, and in the religious practice of Taoism, psychotechnical methods (meditation) began to prevail, with the main attention being paid to methods of internal self-improvement. This trend leads to the appearance in the 12th century. in Northern China of new Taoist schools, the most important of which is Quanzhen [jiao] () - up to the present time is the leading Taoist direction. This school is characterized by the requirement of mandatory acceptance of monasticism for the clergy (Tao Shi). By the 12th century. The formation of the Taoist pantheon is completed. At its center is the “Triad of the Pure” ( San Qing–), or “Heavenly Venerables” (Tian Zun) - personifications of aspects of the Tao, as well as deities - its emanations, corresponding to the successive stages of the cosmogonic process, considered by the Taoists as the “self-unfolding” of the Tao. In the Middle Ages, during the formation of Chinese religious syncretism, Taoism became one of the components of the ideological complex San Jiao() along with Confucianism and Buddhism. In the XIII – XVII centuries. There is an active interaction between the northern and southern directions of Taoism, syncretic schools based on Taoist “inner” alchemy appear ( Xian Xue–). He actively drew material for his religious concepts and pantheon from folk beliefs, at the same time exerting a huge influence on them: for example, the “doctrine of immortality” appears there in the form of the cult of longevity, and the doctrine of Tao as the source of life - in the form of the cult of large families, wealth, etc.
The most prominent representatives of medieval Taoist thought were Ge Hong (4th century), Wang Xuanlan (7th century), Li Quan (8th century), Tan Qiao (Tan Jingsheng, 10th century), Zhang Boduan (11th century). The Confucian-educated intellectual elite often showed interest in the philosophy of Taoism, abstracting it from its religious context. The attention to it was most intense in the 3rd – 4th centuries, after the fall of the Han dynasty and a certain discrediting of its official ideology - Confucianism. Having adopted some essential elements of the philosophy and cult practice of Buddhism (certain methods of psychotechnics, religious symbols, rituals, sutras and organization), Taoism, in turn, contributed to its adaptation to Chinese soil, providing it with a terminological apparatus for translating Buddhist concepts from Sanskrit and philosophical concepts that facilitated presentation of Buddhist teachings in forms familiar to the Chinese. Taoism, like Buddhism, influenced the formation and development neo-Confucianism, who subjected a number of Taoist concepts and philosophical doctrines to ethical interpretation.
Taoism had a strong and constant influence on literature, art and other aspects of Chinese culture, and on the development of traditional forms of scientific knowledge in medieval China. In particular, the study of Taoist alchemy contributed to the accumulation of rich empirical material in the field of chemistry. The influence of Taoism affected traditional medicine in the field of both theory (the doctrine of the similarity of the human body and the Universe, views on the functioning and structure of the body) and practice (acupuncture, pharmacology). At the same time, the elements of scientific knowledge were closely related to the religious-mystical doctrine and outside of it did not attract the interest of its adherents.
In the 7th century Taoism penetrated into Korea - the state of Goguryeo, whose kings at one time supported the doctrine of the “three religions”. In Japan, in a structural and functional sense, the place of Taoism was occupied by Shintoism, but elements of the Taoist cult of the “immortals” remained there until the 17th century, and the methods of Taoist psychophysiotechnics were used in medicine and Buddhist meditative practice. A Taoist influence on the symbolism of Shintoism and the attributes of imperial power cannot be ruled out.
Throughout its history, Taoism at times enjoyed the patronage of the authorities - during the Qin dynasty (221 - 207 BC), Early (Western) Han (206 BC - 8 AD), during the Southern and Northern dynasties (420 - 589), during the Tang (618 - 907) and Northern Song (960 - 1127) eras, but was sometimes persecuted - during the Mongol Yuan Dynasty (1271 - 1368) and the Manchu Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911). In the PRC there is an Association of Followers of Taoism, which was headed in 1980 by Li Yunhan, a clergyman of the Quanzhen [Jiao] school. Taoism is popular in Taiwan and Hong Kong (Hong Kong), as well as among Chinese communities in exile.

What is Taoism?

This question has long attracted the attention of Chinese researchers, but it is very difficult to give a short and clear answer to it, since “Taoism” is a very multidimensional and polysemantic concept.

In some sources, Taoism is called a philosophy, in others - a religion, in others - a philosophy that gradually transformed into a religion, and in fourths it is said that Taoism is not a philosophy, not a religion, but an art.

Taoism is a Chinese philosophical and religious movement, which is one of the main “three teachings”. It represents an alternative to Confucianism, from a philosophical point of view, and Buddhism, from a religious point of view. “Anthology of Taoist Philosophy.” Comp. V. V. Malyavin, B. B. Vinogradsky. M., “Partnership”, 1994..

The first mention of Taoism as an integral ideological formation appeared in the 2nd century. BC. It was called the “school of the Way and Grace” and consisted of the fundamental theories of the treatise “The Canon of the Way and Grace”. Subsequently, the name of the teaching “school of the Way and grace” was shortened to “school of the Way” (Tao Jia), which has survived to this day.

Taoism is based on the mystical and shamanic cults of the Chu kingdom of Southern China, the doctrine of immortality and magical practices of the Qi kingdom, and the philosophical tradition of Northern China. The founders of Taoism are considered to be the Yellow Emperor Huangdi and the sage Lao Tzu. The main treatises are the Tao Te Ching and Zhuang Tzu.

The term “Tao” (path), which formed the basis of this philosophical and religious movement, turns out to be much broader than all the specifics of Taoism. It can be quite compared to the Confucian term “zhu”. Many people confuse Taoism with Neo-Confucianism, which is fully explained by the presence of the same roots in these philosophical teachings. The fact is that early Confucianism could well have been called nothing other than the “teaching of Tao” (Tao shu, Tao jiao, Dao xue). On the other hand, adherents of Taoism could be included in the category of zhu. These interactions between the two movements gave rise to the fact that the term “adept of Tao” is applicable to Taoists, Confucians, and even Buddhists.

But Taoist mystical-individualistic naturalism is fundamentally different from the ethical sociocentrism of other leading worldview systems of ancient China. The period of flourishing and formation of the “hundred schools” was the starting point for the research of many scientists. He even made them think about the peripheral origins of Taoism (some argued that Taoism originated in India). Not without Brahman and Logos, which supposedly served as a kind of prototype of the Tao. This view is contradicted by the point of view that speaks of Taoism as a clear expression of the Chinese spirit itself. This is precisely what many Russian scientists adhere to, led by the leading researcher of Taoism E.A. Torchinov. They are inclined to believe that Taoism is the most developed form of national religion. E. Torchinov. “Taoism. Experience of historical and religious description." St. Petersburg: Andreev and sons, 2nd updated edition: St. Petersburg: Lan, 1998.

The theme of transformation, creative metamorphoses of existence is the central theme of Taoist thought. For Taoists, neither form nor the formless is real. Or, as the Taoist books say, “emptiness cannot overcome ten thousand things.” The true reality for Taoists is transformation itself. Taoists think in terms of not entities or ideas, but relationships, functions, influences. For them, there is “nothing” in the world, but the connections between things themselves are undoubtedly real. There may be no truth at all. But the metaphor of truth, countless glimpses of reality definitely exist.

So, the Taoist picture of the world is an infinitely complex, truly chaotic pattern of phenomena, where there is no one privileged image, one “only true” idea. As Chuang Tzu wrote: “The whole darkness of things is like a spread net, and the beginning is nowhere to be found.” “Anthology of Taoist Philosophy.” Comp. V. V. Malyavin, B. B. Vinogradsky. M., “Partnership”, 1994.

Just as China itself (then the kingdom of Zhou) was divided, starting from the middle of the 1st millennium BC, into many separate kingdoms at war with each other, its culture also presented a picture of significant diversity; There were several types of cultures, only later fused in the great all-Chinese synthesis.

The cultures of the north and south of China differed most from each other. If the north, which gave rise to Confucianism, is characterized by attention to ethical issues and ritual, a rational desire for a rational rethinking of the archaic foundations of civilization, then in the south the element of mythopoetic thinking dominated, and the ecstasy of shamanic cults flourished. And Taoism, which apparently matured in the bosom of the southern tradition, nevertheless combined the exalted archaism of the south and the rationality of the north. The first gave him content, the second endowed him with form, providing the philosophical method she created for mastering reality to express vague and unconscious creative potentials. Without the southern tradition, Taoism would not have become Taoism; without the northern one, it would not have been able to speak about itself in the language of great culture and literary education.

The founder of Taoism is traditionally considered to be Lao Tzu, who according to legend lived at the turn of the 6th-5th centuries BC. and before leaving China forever for the West, he left with the head of the border outpost Yin Xi a statement of his teachings called “Tao Te Ching”.

In the “Tao Te Ching” we are talking about the single origin of all things - a single substance and at the same time a world pattern - Tao. This concept gave its name to Taoism (Tao Jiao).

In addition to Lao Tzu, one cannot help but mention another Taoist thinker, Zhuang Tzu (IV-III centuries BC), the author of a treatise named after him, in which there are many paradoxes, parables, eccentric images, reinterpreted in the spirit of Taoist philosophy and literature.

For the Zhuangzi worldview, the concept of “equalization of existence” (qi wu), according to which the world is a kind of absolute unity, was of great importance. There is no place for clear boundaries between things, everything is fused with each other, everything is present in everything. In this world there are no absolute values, nothing in itself is either beautiful or ugly, large or small, but everything exists only in relation to something else and in the closest internal connection and interdependence.

For traditional Chinese philosophy, belief in the immortality of the soul specifically was uncharacteristic. Only the single psychophysical integrity of a living being was recognized as real. The spirit itself was understood quite naturalistically: as a refined material and energy substance (qi). After the death of the body, this “qi” dissipated in nature. In addition, Taoism inherited from shamanism the doctrine of the plurality of souls - animals (po) and thinking (hun). The body was the only thread connecting them together. The death of the body led to separation and death of souls. Therefore, already in ancient times, great importance was attached to means of extending physical life, and longevity (show) became one of the most important values ​​of Chinese culture.

However, Taoism was not satisfied with the ideal of a simple physical, even infinite, extension of life. A true Taoist immortal (xian), in the process of moving along the path of immortality, radically transformed and transformed his body, which, according to Taoist teaching, acquired supernatural powers and abilities: the ability to fly through the air, become invisible, be in several places at the same time, and even compress time. But the main transformation in the process of practicing Taoist meditation is spiritual: the immortal fully felt and experienced the Taoist picture of the world, realizing the ideal of unity (oneness) with all that exists and with Tao as the mysterious fundamental principle of the world.

The path to immortality according to Taoist teachings involved practicing complex methods of special psychophysical training, much like Indian yoga. It seemed to involve two aspects: improvement of the spirit and improvement of the body. The first consisted of practicing meditation, contemplating the Tao and the unity of the world, unity with the Tao. Various complex visualizations of deities were also used, symbolizing special states of consciousness and types of vital energy.

The second consisted of specific gymnastic (Dao Yin) and breathing (Xing Qi) exercises, sexual practice to maintain the body’s energy balance, and alchemy. It was alchemy that was considered the highest path to achieving immortality. S. I. Samygin, V. N. Nechiporenko, I. N. Polonskaya. “Religious studies: sociology and psychology of religion.” Rostov-on-Don, “Phoenix”, 1996.

Alchemy was divided by Taoists into two types - external (wei dan) and internal (nei dan). Of these, only the first was alchemy in the proper sense of the word. It involved the creation in an alchemical retort of a working model of the cosmos, in which the elixir of immortality matures under the influence of fire. The main difference between Chinese alchemy and European alchemy is its initial close connection with medicine: in Chinese alchemy even gold was “manufactured” as an elixir of immortality. Taoist alchemists accumulated the most valuable empirical material in the field of chemistry and medicine, which significantly enriched traditional Chinese pharmacology.

By the 10th century “external” alchemy declined and was replaced by “internal” alchemy. It was alchemy only in name, since it was nothing more than an ordered set of complex psychophysical exercises aimed at transforming the consciousness of the adept and changing a number of his psychophysiological parameters. However, she borrowed from alchemy itself its terminology, ways of describing the practice, making the names of minerals and substances symbols of psychophysical processes and their structures.

The followers of “internal” alchemy proceeded from the position of complete similarity between the microcosm and the macrocosm, the human body and the universe. And since the human body contains everything that exists in space, then there is no need to create a model of it in crucibles and retorts: the body itself is a similar model. Consequently, it is possible to create a new immortal body from the substances, juices and energies of one’s own body. Particular attention in the practice of “internal” alchemy was paid to the management of energies flowing, according to its theory, through special “channels” (jing) of the body, and accumulating in special reservoirs (dan tien, ind. chakras). Energy management was achieved through concentration of consciousness and visualization (qi gong). Like “external” alchemy, “internal” alchemy has also collected very rich material for Chinese medicine.

Taoism is sometimes called the national religion of China, but this definition is not entirely correct. Firstly, Taoism spread among some other peoples living in the neighborhood of the Chinese. Secondly, the Taoists not only did not preach their religion in society, but, on the contrary, carefully hid their secrets from the uninitiated and did not even allow the laity to attend the most important prayer services. In addition, Taoism has always been divided into many independent sects, where the “art of Tao” was passed on from teacher to student in secret from outsiders.

Nevertheless, Taoism, without exaggeration, can be called a genuine phenomenon of Chinese culture, because it ensured continuity between the elite wisdom of the Tao and the beliefs of the common people, the principles of internal improvement and the entire way of life of the Chinese. While serving their prayer services, the Taoists did not actually worship the spirits, but rather drew them into the boundless harmony of the Great Emptiness. At the same time, the very existence of deities, as well as the entire world of forms, which is the “transformed body” of Tao, remained absolutely necessary for the Taoists.