Taoist Texts
The Daode jing 道德經 (Book of the Way and its Virtue), a short work consisting of aphorisms attributed to Laozi (the Old Master), is the main early Taoist text. These selections are concerned with the Saint and his state of “non-doing” (wuwei).
Read selections from this text →Deemed to be one of the masterpieces of Chinese literature, the Zhuangzi 莊子 (Book of Master Zhuang) differs from the Daode jing from the point of view of its formal features, and mainly consists of stories, anecdotes, and reflections. But in spite of differences of form and emphasis, the two texts present the same view of the Dao and its relation to the world.
Read selections from this text →The Huainan zi 淮南子 (Book of the Master of Huainan) was compiled in 139 BCE under the editorship of Liu An, the prince of the southern kingdom of Huainan. A vast work containing twenty-one chapters (or twenty-eight, in some editions), it stands out as a work of synthesis of different traditions.
Read selections from this text →With the Huangting jing (Book of the Yellow Court), the Laozi zhongjing 老子中經 (Central Book of Laozi) is the main early text devoted to meditation practices on the inner gods.
Read selections from this text →Ge Hong’s Baopu zi neipian 抱朴子內篇 (Inner Chapters of the Book of the Master Who Embraces Simplicity), completed around 320 CE, provides a personal but extended overview of several Chinese religious traditions.
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