THE TAOISM PART

The Indian scholar and teacher Bodhidharma is credited with founding the Ch'an school of Buddhism in China in the 6th century A.D. This came at a time when Buddhism had already claimed an imperial convert, the Emperor Wu Ti of the Liang dynasty. Buddhism was rapidly becoming accepted by the Chinese population as a simplified version of Taoism. As it happened Buddhism and Taoism shared many philosophical similarities making Chinese acclimation to the new religion much easier. And the more dogmatic ways in which Buddhism was practiced helped it to get the fast track on becoming the predominant religion in China. The Ch'an sect was a blend of Buddhism and Taoism. The word "ch'an" is the Chinese attempt at the Sanskrit word "dhyana," meaning meditation, as is the Japanese word "zen."

But now what exactly is this Taoism that Buddhism merged with? Chinese thinkers wanted to account for the apparent harmony and order in nature. They developed the concept of the Tao. The harmony and orderliness of heaven and earth were, they said, the result of the cosmic energy of the Tao, which literally means "a way" or "a road." Sometimes it denotes the "channel" of a river. In general the Tao means "the-way-to-go," the "natural way."

The Tao is conceived to be eternal. Taoists concluded that the way in which the universe runs must have existed before the universe itself did. They believed that this way of nature's functioning is a way of perfection, a pre-established pattern into which all things ought to fall if they are to be in their proper place and do their proper work. The Tao is emphatically a way of harmony, integration, and cooperation. Its natural tendency is toward peace, prosperity, and health. This would quickly become evident were it not for perverse human beings who refuse to adjust themselves to it. In fact, if the Tao were ever to be followed everywhere, heaven, humankind, and earth would form a single, harmonious unit, every part cooperating toward universal well-being.

Central to Taoism is "wu-wei." This has been translated variously as "inaction, quietism, non-aggression," but it more accurately means non-interference. It means not getting in the way of things. The culprit is the human ego and its analytical mind which sees as its purpose the control and manipulation of the world, which is like creating a dam in a river that is flowing naturally on its way. This is an important understanding in Ch'an. The controlling self and mind are the trouble.

The two names most often associated with Taoism are Lao-tzu and Chuang-tzu. Lao-tzu, who may have been several people who used that name to write under, was the apparent author of the TAO TE CHING or TREATISE OF THE TAO AND ITS POWER. In lines that were at times obscure and cryptic, he laid out his view of things whereupon he completely vanished. Chuang-tzu, who most certainly did exist solely as himself, went on to popularized Lao-tzu's teachings when he produced thirty-three essays, most of which were by his own hand. Among his views were that yin and yang, springing from the Tao, produce each other, influence each other, and destroy each other in a never ceasing process, much as Buddhism states in its "mutually arising opposites."

Neither Lao-tzu nor Chuang-tzu could have foreseen the decline of Taoism over time. It so happened that the people who had been attracted to the thoughtfulness of Taoism became discouraged by it, turning finally to magic and potions in what turned into Taoism the cult. Some found in the contemporary Confucianism a more direct and practical help, and adopted it. Those drawn to the meditative aspect of Taoism found the same and more in the spreading Buddhism.