World Religions RL. Vol. 4. Biographies.pdf

World Religions

Biographies

World Religions

Biographies

VOLUME 2

Michael J. O’Neal and J. Sydney Jones

Neil Schlager and Jayne Weisblatt, Editors

Laozi

BORN: c. 604 BCE Chu, China

Chinese philosopher

‘‘The Dao that can be told is not the eternal Dao; / The

name that can be named is not the eternal name. / The Nameless

is the origin of Heaven and Earth.’’

L aozi (also spelled Lao Tzu or Lao-tzu) is the founder of the philo-

sophical system called Daoism (Taoism), one of the three primary

religions of China. The other two are Confucianism and Buddhism. Lit-

tle is known about Laozi, who lived during the sixth century BCE . In fact,

many historians claim that he was actually a mythical character or a mix-

ture of several individuals. Nevertheless, Laozi is traditionally given credit

for writing the primary text of Daoism, the Dao De Jing (also Tao Te

Ching), often translated as ‘‘The Book of the Way and Its Virtue.’’ This

text teaches that one needs to copy the simplicity and calm of nature

and attempt to harmonize one’s life with the Dao (Tao), the eternal path

of the universe, often referred to as the Way.

Historical and mythical Laozi

There are several sources of information about Laozi. The one most

biographies begin with is the Shiji (Shih-chi), or Records of the Historian,

Laozi.

HULTON ARCHIVE/

GETTY IMAGES.

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Laozi

written by the Han dynasty court historian, Sima Qian (Ssu-ma Ch’ien).

Many question the accuracy of Sima Qian’s information, however, as his

book was written several centuries after Laozi’s death. According to Sima

Qian, Laozi was born around 604 BCE in a small village in the state of

Chu, which is the modern-day Chinese province of Henan (Honan).

His original surname, or family name, was supposedly Li, and his given

name was Er, but he was also sometimes called Dan (Tan). Li Er or

Li Dan later became known as a great thinker and was given the honor-

ary title of Laozi, meaning ‘‘old man’’ or ‘‘old master.’’ Sima Qian’s source

for this information appears to have been a tutor for the imperial house-

hold whose family name was Li and who traced his ancestry back to

Laozi.

At this point, myth and legend attempt to fill in some of the histor-

ical gaps. Laozi was said to have had a miraculous birth. In one story his

mother was reported to have carried him in her womb for sixty-two

years. In another story, it was seventy-two (a magical number in Chinese

folk belief ). One legend claims Laozi’s mother gave birth to him while

leaning against a plum tree, and at birth he was already white-haired

and wise. The baby’s first words supposedly referred to his origins: He

declared that he would take his family name from the word for plum

(li in Chinese) and then add the given name of the word for ear (er, or

erh), because his ears were already very large, like those of all wise men.

Sima Qian noted that Laozi traveled to the capital city of the Zhou

(Chou) Dynasty (1025–250 BCE ), Luoyang (Loyang), which was estab-

lished in 770 BCE . In the city he became the keeper of archival records

at the court of the Zhou. In addition to compiling historical documents,

he also made astrological calculations and cared for the sacred books of

Chinese thought. Due to this most historians assume that Laozi was

familiar with all of China’s past religious traditions. Laozi married while

in Luoyang, and he and his wife had a son named Tsung. Laozi’s repu-

tation as a wise man began to spread, and people from all parts of China

soon sought his guidance.

Tradition holds that Laozi once met with another great Chinese phi-

losopher, Confucius (c. 551–c. 479 BCE ; see entry). This was recorded by

Sima Qian and also in the Zhuangzi, another important early Daoist text.

According to these sources, Laozi and Confucius met twice. At the

end of their second interview, Laozi dismissed the younger philosopher

with words that questioned all of his beliefs in family, social order, ritual,

and education. As Sima Qian noted, Laozi supposedly told Confucius,

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World Religions: Biographies

Laozi

A seventeenth century Chinese

painting shows four men of

various ages studying a scroll

with the yin-yang symbol

on it. This symbol represents

the harmony that is central

to the Daoist religion. THE

ART ARCHIVE/BRITISH

MUSEUM.

‘‘The man who is intelligent and clear-sighted will soon die, for his

criticisms of others are just; the man who is learned and discerning

risks his life, for he exposes others’ faults. The man who is a son no longer

belongs to himself; the man who is a subject no longer belongs to himself.’’

Confucius reportedly later said to his own students that he knew how

to trap a wild animal and how to net a fish, but Laozi was a dragon, and

he did not know how to catch or understand a dragon. Several other

World Religions: Biographies

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