Taking From The Writings Of David Chow And Richard Spangler
Taoist Contribution
to Kung Fu
From the tumultuous uprooting and the dead-white ashes of warfare of
the Spring and Autumn Period followed by the Warring States Era, there
blossomed some of the brightest and liveliest schools of philosophy known
to mankind. "Death and disorder abound,'' the Book of Odes explains.
"The talk of the people is bad since no one assuages their grief," They
sought wisdom for the correct conduct of human affairs and a moral cure
for the evils of society. This longing for philosophy led emperors to person
ally patronize learned scholars and profoundly thoughtful advisers. Their
reasoned guidelines were preserved on bamboo parchment. These inscrip-
tions may have been the first oriental flourishes of the pen attempting to
overpower the finely honed sword of devastation.
The greatest of all Chinese philosophers to arise out of the centuries of
revolutionary instability and excessive treachery was the imposing figure of
Confucius (K'ung Fu-tzu, c. 551-479 B.c.). In the intellectually deep
wake of Confucianism, more philosophical concepts were formulated
through what came to be known as the "Hundred Schools of Thought."
(The Chinese "Hundred" may be defined as "many" in Western terms.)
The most influential, after the Confucians, were the Taoists, who directed
their teachings toward the individual search for a higher form of physical
and mental existence. Since Taoism (pronounced Dowism), despite its
matter-of-fact practical aspects, has been called "the most enigmatic of all
Chinese philosophies," it might be helpful to compare it with the more rec-
ognized and better understood Confucianism. Beauson Tseng, a contem-
porary C'hinese philosopher, has summed up the main difference in these
tcmms: "if the Ways of Heaven of Nature (the Tao) be likened to an
ocean, the fellow who exerts himself and makes wise use of his knowledge
of hydrodynamics to swim in a beeline to his chosen destination--is a
Confucianist. The other fellow. who holds that the most ideal spot for him is
where the winds: and currents will of themselves carry him to--is a Taoist.
The more man lets science have free play, the more science can be made to
serve Inan. Tao behaves much in the same way as science." While most of
the other philosophical schools, including the Confucians and Legalists,
were promulgated for sociopolitical problem-solving through regulations
and laws, the anarchistic Taoists advocated that "The more restrictions
and prohibitions there are in the law books, the more thieves and bandits
there will be."
Troubled Taoist thinkers felt it best to transcend earthly suffering by
withdrawing from the ill-conceived man-made "civilization" and join or
rejoin the natural forces of life. They were convinced that this could be ac-
complished by living absolutely detached from organized society as con-
templative hermits deeply secluded in the wilderness of the mountains and
forests. Unlike Buddhist tenets, Taoism does not promise emancipating
nirvana or entry to the Pure Land of Bliss at the end of spiritual pursuit.
Neither does it offer salvation that delivers men from misery after death.
On the contrary, the Taoists treasure life because to them living is su-
premely sweet and enjoyable after being secured by nature's rhythms.
The approximate literal translation of the "Tao" is the "Way" or "Path,"
although, according to the Taoist classic literary work Tao Te Ching (pro-
nounced Dow Duh Jing), its meaning is inexpressible in words, "The Tao
that can be named is not the everlasting Tao." The eighty-one "flowers"
(beautiful chapters) of the Tao Te Ching (meaning "The Way and Its
Power") are attributed to Lao Tzu, the traditional father of Taoism in the
fourth century s.c. Ssu-ma Ch'ien contends in his monumental work of
history that the mysterious sage was a native of Lu I County in Honan
Province. He lived approximately a hundred years (c.? 580-480 B.c.).
"Since he had the appearance of an old man in his youth, Lao Tzu ('Old
Master') became his sobriquet. His true name was Li Erh. He served ably
in the Chou court as the guardian of the imperial library. However, he
began to lament over the constant corruption surrounding him. Confronted
with abysmal living conditions, compounded by the decline of Chou, Lao
Tzu decided to leave his native land and pursue virtue in a more congenial
atmosphere. As he was about to pass through the final mountain pass, the
gatekeeper, Yin Hsi, recognized him as a renowned philosopher and asked
him,'Oh, Master, before you retreat from the world, would you kindly
write down your way of living for me?' Lao Tzu consented and wrote his
Tao Te Ching, his entire philosophy compressed into some five thousand
pithy ideographs. The great mystic then left the Middle Kingdom (China)
and traveled to the west on a water buffalo. He was never seen again."
'
Whether this tale is accurate or whether this profound little book was
compiled by Taoist thinkers over the span of some centuries is not essen-
tially a problem. Authorship is not that important. It is the philosophical
content that matters. What is relevant is the fact that the aphoristic Tao Te
Ching has exerted a tremendous influence not only in China but the rest of
the world. It continues to do so. There are over forty versions of it in Eng-
lish with at least seven hundred commentaries in Chinese. However, in
strict fairness it must be said that certain Taoist ideas were considered long
before the appearance of Lao Tzu. If we examine the ~ Ching (Ee Jing),
known as the Book of Changes in English, we will discover many Taoist
concepts. In this classic book of divination, dating perhaps as far back as
the sixteenth century before Christ, we see the first mention of Tao and
Yin and Yang, dealing with the duality of nature: "Yin and Yang, together
they are called Tao." Therefore, we may safely deduce that Lao Tzu did
not originate his entire philosophy. He absorbed what he felt to be the best
thoughts of his country's intellectual heritage, distilled them, added to
them and founded the first organized school of Taoism.
In its early phases there was no worship of supernatural deities. To the
philosophical Taoist, the ontological elements of all universal beings and
even the universe itself are combined into Tao. They existed before the
universe was born. Tao has no limits. Its existence is eternal. Tao is not a
supernatural force. It is the ultimate principle of the universe. Tao is the
prime element from which everything is created in nature. If this sounds
puzzling and abstract in the Western sense, it must be understood that
from the Chinese scientific standpoint Tao stands on solid ground with its
explanation of the mysterious existence of the universe. Tao is composed
of two forces represented by Yin and Yang. Yin is characterized as the
negative force of darkness, coldness and emptiness. Yang stands for the
positive energy which produces light, warmth and fullness. These alter
forces are indestructible and inexhaustible. They contradict as
'We have translated this quotation directly from Ssu-ma Ch'ien's biography of Lao
Tzu in Records of the Grand Historian, which some scholars treat as the official biog-
raphy of the Taoist sage. But it must be said that many modern historians assert
that Lao Tzu is at best a mythical figure or if he did actually exist there are no
proper records to prove it conclusively.
well as complement each other. This "eternal duality" may be explained further
as the primordial paired potencies that regulate the universe.
"The myriad of things carry Yin and embrace Yang."
Tao Te Ching."
"Te," or "the Power," is the manifestation of Tao in substantiality or
corporeity, the most important element in any existence, created by the in-
teraction of Yin and Yang. This means that every object or substance
possesses positive and negative elements within itself. Therefore, we can
understand the opposing forces of life: Birth begets death, rise includes
fall, day expects night, hardness opposes softness, male-female, resist-
yield, hot-cold, wet-dry, motion-stillness, push-pull, coarse-smooth, contrac-
tion-expansion; that which condenses will disperse; that which disperses
will condense. Herein lies a major East-West difference in philosophical
attitudes. The Westerner, g la Shakespeare's Hamlrt, would say, "To be
or not to be? That is the question." The Taoist sage, on the other hand,
would say, "To be and not to be. That is the answer!" Yin-Yang opposites
unite. This is the Taoist law of nature. To really be vitally alive, to truly
feel life's offerings, is to know the highs and lows, the exhilaration of the
mountaintop and the descent to the valley, and to accept and enjoy not one
but both. Life's highs are most invigorating; there is also fertileness to be
found in the lowest valley. The phenomena of materiality originated from
the antithetical forces of Yin and Yang. Any effort aimed at altering this
natural law would be futile.
MORE TO COME AS TIME PERMITS
CLICK HERE TO RETURN TO MY LINKS
CLICK HERE TO RETURN TO MY UECHI PAGE
