Knowra Tao Tao Tao is the fundamental way or principle underlying the universe and its natural order in Taoist and classical Chinese thought. It is described as difficult to name and as operating through spontaneous, changing patterns.
Tao Te Ching : A foundational Chinese classic of brief poetic passages associated with Laozi and Taoist thought. Its verses give the most influential early account of Tao as ineffable and generative.
Yin and yang : A framework of interdependent complementary tendencies whose interaction describes change in Chinese cosmology. Tao is often understood as the encompassing way through which these complementary forces interact.
Confucianism : A Chinese ethical and philosophical tradition centered on cultivation, ritual, human relationships, and good government. Confucian texts also speak of a Way, but emphasize social roles and ritual more than Taoist spontaneity.
Taoist meditation : Contemplative practices in Daoist traditions aimed at quieting, refining, or harmonizing the mind and body. Meditation offers a disciplined way to cultivate attunement to Tao.
Zhuangzi : An early Chinese philosophical text exploring spontaneity, transformation, perspective, and the limits of fixed distinctions. Its stories portray living in accord with Tao through flexibility and freedom from rigid judgments.
Qi : A vital force or material energy thought in Chinese traditions to animate bodies and the cosmos. Accounts of Tao often describe its workings through the transformations of qi.
Mohism : A classical Chinese school founded by Mozi that promoted impartial care, practical benefit, and opposition to wasteful practices. Its explicit standards of benefit differ from Taoist suspicion of imposed schemes and fixed distinctions.
Taoist alchemy : Daoist practices and theories for transforming the body and spirit, including external and internal alchemy. Alchemy interprets alignment with Tao as a process of transformation and cultivation.
Laozi : A traditional Chinese sage credited with authorship of the Tao Te Ching. The text associated with Laozi made Tao central to a lasting philosophical tradition.
Taiji : The Supreme Ultimate in Chinese cosmology, associated with the differentiation of yin and yang. It provides a cosmological model for how differentiated patterns arise within an underlying order.
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