Writing

Taoism is one of the most famous religions in China. It is seen as a religion that emphasizes Tao, which loosely translates to the way. Taoism is based on the works of Lao Tzu and teaches political philosophy aimed at keeping things civil and peaceful. I believe that the teachings of Lao emphasize more on a peaceful government with minimal interference from the government towards the people. Tao is seen as a guide to peace, and Lao Tzu shows this when he says, "when a country is in harmony with the Tao, the factories make trucks and tractors. When a country goes counter to the Tao, warheads are stockpiled outside the cities." This shows that the way of Tao is a way of peace and insists on peace between the government and the people. The way of Tao also insists that the development of society requires minimal invasion of the government. Lao does not teach the absence of government, but its moderation. In his teachings, Lao says, "For governing a country well, there is nothing better than moderation." He then goes on to say, "Governing a large country is like frying a small fish, you spoil it by too much poking." The teachings of Lao emphasize moderated involvement of government. The discussion of Lao-Tzu's understanding of politics will be discussed in detail.

Lao Tzu is known to be a famous Chinese philosopher who lived in the sixth century and is believed that his work is embraced by the anti-authoritarian movement which influences leadership like the ancient Tao Te Ching. The thoughts from the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu are written to address the early beginning of the religion of Taoism and how the rulers can apply the same. Throughout the entire piece of work, it is evident that the use of poetic verses by Lao Tzu is used to represent his ideas in a way the reader can easily be persuaded to think of the ideas as valid. Indeed, the aspect of authority and leadership requires a responsible government through responsible rulers and ensuring individuals' needs are well maintained. Lao-tzu hence reflects how rulers are expected to be careful in maintaining a happy citizenry. He also assures that the success of any leadership team or government is dependent on good relations between the people themselves and the government. Comment by Lee Ware: great Comment by Lee Ware: good Comment by Lee Ware: good

Lao-Tzu has hence insisted that ‘one should not hold anything back and should hence surrender to what is.’ Through such a statement, Lao-Tzu had indeed encouraged the master to surrender their present moments with an ability to identify what is within their control and what is not. Hereby, the master well acknowledges that death will always be the outcome and therefore no reason to become fearful of it. Instead, the master is expected to surrender to it. Tzu, therefore, believes that if masters receive love from their people, they will be regarded as the best rulers in time. This is because leaders gain experience and strength to go forward (Jeng et al,18). Additionally, loving all citizens entails allowing a specific ruler to do other favourite things for his or her citizens. Comment by Lee Ware: good

Another famous quotation by Lao-Tzu is that ‘there exists no greater illusion than fear or there is no greater wrongdoing that one preparing to defend themselves. The igneous concept used by Lao-Tzu is important even in everyday life by asserting that we all face fears daily, it may affect our lives for many of us and even the way we think and do things onwards. Fear is always triggered by the lack of trust in others and being naturally afraid of what we are not aware of while expecting to tackle. Further in his work, Lao-Tzu in his work insists on the significance of the master not going to sleep while holding a grudge. Comment by Lee Ware: good analysis

Lao-Tzu makes use of symbolism in his Thoughts from the Tao-te Ching and continues to address the issue of people addressing their mistakes through how they judge others and by self-examination. He, therefore, uses the example of the master when he identifies his mistakes. What however can be done best is the Master admitting his mistakes, he or she does not also get offended when others point out his mistakes, instead, he or she is expected to treat those who correct them as generous teachers. The master, therefore, makes use of his faulty experiences to act as opportunities that might bring in future changes and self-awareness (Zhang and Kovalenko, 114). This shows how modern society should be. Sometimes, corrections might seem negative and offensive but what matters is how one interprets them correctly since they are directly related to one’s emotional state. Choosing to extract the positive notes and taking them well to change faults into opportunities is key which modern society should encourage more often. This is because it depends on how the society will be governed, leaders can be corrected as they correct one another towards reaching one goal and success. Comment by Lee Ware: this a good start, but needs to be drawn out—a large portion of this essay is supposed to be focused on your thoughts about how a society should be governed, instead your focus is mostly on analysis of the text.

Additionally, the structure of Lao Tzu's writing is very essential this is because it tries to tie back the main ideas present in the chapter. With the use of poetic verses, the concepts are well brought out. Hence, the form of writing is very simple and direct such that as readers we can easily reflect meanings and concepts themselves. The poetic verses used might seem simple to the eye but have deeper meanings that bring out a better understanding of what Lao-Tzu wishes to teach. One of the verses used in the context is ‘Practice not doing, and indeed everything else will fall into place. With the simple sentence, we can understand what Lao-Tzu implies in the modern world and reflect in each of our lives (Gao and Wu, 89). This can simply let things slide in their nature and be free from interruption. Leaders can always reinforce the understanding of their people by simply giving them freedom and settling for the needs of the people rather than what leaders wish or are greedy for. Comment by Lee Ware:

The ability to stop trying to control things and letting off fixed plans among other concepts and letting the world govern itself. The message tries to impact the need for people to attempt to learn patience and avoid fraud and intermingling wrongly with others aiming to succeed by themselves. Consequently, the teachings tend to impose leadership styles and efforts needed to access mentorship-needed skills and success in relationships between leaders and their people.

In conclusion, the Thoughts from The Tao Te Ching focuses more on Taoism philosophy which is founded on three pillars patience, compassion, and simplicity. Lao Tzu insists that the tree principles are vital in any relationship and main to be our greatest treasures. The three principles are represented in the simple actions and thoughts that Lao Tzu further emphasizes to reflect meanings and impact the modern world today. The Tao Te Ching poem guides the world today by cultivating the most important treasures of life. Many of the quotes are used to express concepts that affect humans and how best things can be done. Therefore, Lao-Tzu stated the significance of each aspect and uses real-life examples that can be predicted and understood to determine how relationships are held. Masters and leadership roles are well extended to the concerned individuals to extend the importance of life and how people should relate to each other. Simplicity and materialism are more represented as much as they may seem meaningless to others, it is an important aspect that Lao Tzu in his Thoughts from the Tao Te Ching. Comment by Lee Ware: I am not sure where this is coming from? What do you mean by materialism and how does it connect to your essay or the three pillars?

Gao, Chen, Xiatong Li, and Peiyun Wu. "Linguistic Patterns in English Versions of Tao Te Ching Reflect British Politics from 19th to 20th Century." 2021 International Conference on Education, Language and Art (ICELA 2021). Atlantis Press, 2022.

Jeng, Chuan-Shin, et al. "On Lao Tzu’s Ethics as the Inspiration and Practice of Education for Sustainable Development." Sustainability 14.14 (2022): 8313.

Zhang, Yixian, and Alexander Kovalenko. "Interpretation of Poetry by J. Brodsky in the Context of the Philosophy Tao Te Ching." Proceedings of the 2019 International Conference on Pedagogy, Communication and Sociology (ICPCS 2019). 2019.