Zoom: https://umac.zoom.us/j/91408400893 Abstract Scholars have often pointed out that (especially for the Daodejing) the notion of wuwei (non-action) begins as an idea designed to inform a certain model of non-interventionist governance. It is at the same time a guidance for the personal development of the ruler, so that the political and the personal are not necessarily separate levels of meaning, i.e., the right rulership of the Daoist sage requires a process of self-cultivation. In the later history of Daoist philosophies, including contemporary applications, wu-wei has been applied as a philosophy of personal development in its own right. Although most scholars note that a literalist reading of wu-wei as non-action is untenable, there is nonetheless a prevailing view that the Daoist […]

Zoom: https://umac.zoom.us/j/94665357070 Abstract The age-old tradition of Daoist philosophy continues to challenge our ability to properly recognize its unique positions, insights, and worldview. One contemporary source of this challenge derives from the excavated editions of the Daodejing, namely the Guodian Laozi and the Mawangdui Laozi, which have compelled us reconsider two terms that are foundationally planted at the heart of Daoist philosophy: heng 恒 and chang 常, both of which are commonly taken to signify “constancy/ permanence/ eternity.” The work of two eminent scholars in the field, Chen Ligui and James Wang Qingjie, have demonstrated that these two terms separately had very different ancient meanings, and that their uses in Laozi’s Daodejing fully embodied them. These findings demonstrate that the […]