Useful Nothingness Thirty spokes share one hub. It is just the space between them that makes a cart function as a cart. Knead clay to make a vessel and you find within it the space that makes a vessel a vessel. Within a house built with doors and windows you will find the space that makes a house function as a house. Hence the substance can provide a condition under which usefulness is found, but nothingness is the usefulness itself. Useful means being of service, or serving some purpose. Without nothingness, the empty spaces, an item such as a wheel on a cart would not work properly. The purpose of a cart is to transport items or people from Place A to Place B. It does so by being propelled on four evenly proportioned wheels. These …show more content…
If something lacks a purpose or role, then it is neither functional nor useful. When building a house, a carpenter would not carve a solid block of wood attach a roof and call it a functional house. There is no door, no windows, no way to enter the house and take advantage of the shelter it could provide, that it is made for. A solid block lacks the functionality of shelter, warmth, and protection from possible dangers. But a block with empty spaces, a door, a window, a room, can shelter you from a storm, keep you warm and dry, and could help you escape from an approaching …show more content…
It helps balance out the good and the bad in your life. The Taoist government sits back almost as if it has no rule and lets things unfold, but at the same time it still regulates everyone to help keep them balanced. They do this because if there was too much government or too little government there would be chaos. This ties to Yin and Yang. You need to know how to balance out your Yin and Yang. Yin is a receptive, feminine, dark, passive force. Yin is the darker element and corresponds with the night. It is usually symbolized by water or earth, while Yang is symbolized by Fire or wind. Yang is a creative, masculine, bright, active force. It is considered the sunny place and is the brighter of the elements and corresponds with the day. Yin and Yang are described as two primal opposing principles that are complementary at the same time. They are found in all objects and processes in the universe. Most forces in nature can be seen as having Yin and Yang states, which are usually in movement rather than held in absolute stasis. While in Western culture there is a view of “good and bad” meaning there is a preference to being good. Being a good person, a good citizen, and not sinning. In Chinese philosophy the division of “good and bad” doesn’t have a preference or moral superiority to either side. In Chinese philosophy, “good and bad,” Yin and Yang are linked in cyclical processes rather than progress. But in Taoism, Yin is often valued above Yang. But
Structural Functionalism states that everything in society serves a purpose, whether it is positive or negative. Structuralists look
Yin and Yang is a Chinese philosophy. Yin and Yang connects to Taoism, because it symbolizes balance between opposing sides. It is made of two principles. Yin, the predominately black side,
In order to become a virtuous person an individual must become one with the Tao, an example of a good life is found in Chuang Tzu – Basic writings, “If you do good, stay away from fame. If you do evil, stay away from punishments. Follow the middle; go by what is constant, and you can stay in one piece, keep yourself alive, look after your parents, and live out your years.” (Section three, p46). In order to become one with the Tao and individual must understand the Way and example of the Way “…For this reason, whether you point to a little stalk or a great pillar, a leper or the beautiful Hsi-shih, things ribald and shady or things grotesque and strange, the Way makes them all into one.” (Section two, p. 36) The Way is having the ability to consider all things one. Looking at the creatures of the world without bias and treating everything and everyone as equal. In order to follow the Way one must gain enlightenment, to gain enlightenment one must heavy focus on meditation. Taoists believe that time is cyclical, not linear as many in the West believe, therefore time repeats itself, has no beginning and no end. Tao is considered to be the first cause of the universe, and is the force that
In Chinese culture, health and illness concentrates on the balance between body, mind, and spirit, expressed as Yin Yang. It symbolizes the idea that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. There is a belief in part of the Chinese culture, that a physical illness is caused by an imbalance of Yin Yang.
Unlike the Confucians, who actively tried to change the political system, Taoists pursue wuwei (nonaction) in living. According to the Tao Te Ching, by not acting one is not doing any harm which is the result of surrendering to the Tao. By doing such, one no longer has a corrupt nature and is moral and perfect human. If a person is in harmony with the Tao they are also in harmony with all
Daoism is a daily guide to living so a person can experience the most of their own self. Daoism teaches the follower to look inside and to gain knowledge through self-exploration and to connect with our inner nature. The yin and yang shows the complementary sides of objects and nature, even the human body. The Taoist Sanctuary of San Diego states, “All is Tao. All opposites are in actuality part of one whole, giving rise to one another. Neither is
Yin and Yang is an ancient Chinese philosophy that shows the perfect balance between two things. The yin and yang sign is considered an energy which keeps the concept flowing. It is two
While the ideals of Taoism are fun and if you make them a life style they can be a life style but I don’t understand how you maintain this mind-set. That could be because deep down everyone that’s not completely at peace with themselves in one form or another is a Bisy Backson. Whether they try to avoid it or not it comes back in forms of problems, or annoyance or whatever. When those nuisances come back into someone’s life they will probably will not turn to those values but begins with tasks between tasks between tasks in order to avoid their
The Yin Yang sign is a common symbol used by the chinese to advertise or show that there is good in the bad, bad in the good. Usually the dark side is referenced to a male and the clear side is referenced to a female. Archetypes are used to describe who people are in life. William Blake uses similar archetype like the Yin Yang symbol in the poems he wrote.
The most important contribution to the importance of the repetition of history in China is the belief in the opposing powers of Yin and Yang. Yin and Yang is a concept based on Taoist beliefs. The foundation of Confucianism is Taoist teachings. In the context of government, it represents the rise and fall of empires in Chinese history. In Taoism, the Yin and Yang describes the opposite forces in the natural world such as life and death.
The Tao Te Ching can be helpful to all, and the reading of it may be enlightening. Reading the Tao can give much insight on the challenges and dangers that humans must face in this world, how a person should live his life, the dangers of a powerful ruler, how the state should rule, how citizens should serve the state, and the messages or forewarnings for us today.
Tao Te Ching of Lao-Tzu is a book with many chapters in it showing the two different sides to basically everything. To break it down, Tao means “path” or “way”, Te means “to get”, and Ching means “great book”. So the Tao was the force that controlled the universe and appreciated the way, to find balance between opposites. The book, Tao Te Ching has been said to been written by a Laozi—an old master—and has been said that the true author (or authors’) name has been lost. In the chapters between the book it tells how to live a life of integrity and of greatness per say. It also has contradictions or paradoxes which allows us to see the both perspectives of each side. It shows us that there are always two sides to everything. Tao Te Ching
The main focus of Tao Te Ching is non-action. For example, people do not need regulation and laws. According to Taoism, all human beings are naturally good but the laws and regulations have altered people’s belief
Zero was such a difficult concept to develop because Greek influences became an issue in the West involving numbers. Although in the East zero had an easier time developing. Nothingness is what the world came from and to attain nothingness became a goal of the people in the East. This void was actually considered a good thing and Hinduism actually created a goddess for the people to associate with nothingness. Aditi is the name of the Hindu goddess that was mentioned. She is the power of the void that creates the holy space to make room for the new creations. It was not surprising when India became the first place to treat zero as a number.
When relating the power of myth to Taoism, one the greatest belief is found in the first cause of the universe. Tao is said to be the first cause of the universe. The force that produces the universe is what flow through all life. Tao is what a person needs to live harmoniously with nature. If anyone follows this religion, one must nurture the Ch’I, which is the air, and the breath that has been given to him or her.