Philosophy High School Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Philosophy High School - Essay ExampleThis is usu everyy translated as the Way. But its hard to say exactly what this means. The Tao is the ultimate creative principle of the universe. All things argon unified and connected in The Tao. Taoism is a religion of unity and opposites Yin and Yang. The principle of Yin Yang sees the world as modify with complementary forces - action and non-action, light and dark, hot and cold, and so on.3The common view of Daoism is that it encourages people to live with legal separation and calm, resting in non-action and smiling at the vicissitudes of the world. Contrary to this common view, Daoists through the ages discombobulate developed various forms of residential district and proposed numerous sets of behavioral guidelines and texts on ethical considerations. Beyond the ancient philosophers, who are well-known for the moral ratio of their teachings, religious Daoist rules cover both ethics, i.e., the personal values of the individual, and mo rality, i.e., the communal norms and social values of the organization. They range from sanctioned moral rules against killing, stealing, lying, and sexual misconduct through suggestions for altruistic regaining and models of social interaction to behavioral expand on how to bow, eat, and wash, as well as to the unfolding of universal ethics that teach people to think like the Dao itself. About eighty texts in the Daoist canon and its supplements describe such guidelines and present the ethical and communal principles of the Daoist religion. They document just to what degree Daoist realization is based on how one lives ones life in interaction with the community-family, religious group, monastery, state, and cosmos. Ethics and morality, as well as the creation of community, emerge as central in the Daoist religion.Livia Kohn, Cosmos and CommunityTaoist ethics are concerned less with doing good acts than becoming a good person who lives in harmony with all things and people.4 Tao ist ethics are inseparable from Taoist spirituality - both contain the analogous ideas. If a Taoist wants to live well they should take all their decisions in the context of the Tao, trying to see what will fit best with the internal order of things. Taoists thence always do what is required by events and their context, but they only do what is required, no more.But what is required may be a lot less than modern westbounders thinkFrom the perspective of classical Taoism, Western humanism makes the mistake of assuming that the ability to intervene in lifes events translates into a moral duty to do so.The constant and unmistakable teaching of the Tao Te Ching is that humans are indeed capable of intervening in lifes events, but the evidence of life, which humans constantly ignore, is that such intervention is destructive to all involved, and that we therefore have a moral duty to refrain from taking such actions.Russell Kirkland, Responsible non-action in a natural worldSo, in th eory at least, Taoists tend not to initiate action - but time lag for events to make action necessary - and avoid letting their own desires and compulsions push them into doing things. In practice Taoism recommends the same sorts of moral behavior to its followers as other religions. It disapproves of killing, stealing