Origins/Roots of the System
Beginnings / Influences
Taoism was founded in 550 B.C.E., in modern day China. There are many beliefs of Taoism that are dissimilar because it was practiced in the West and the East, where there was a language barrier. Therefore, the translation was different for many of Taoism beliefs.
Taoism was emerged from China after a long process of religious change, near the end of the Shang Dynasty. When it was first founded, it was centered on the relationship between the ruler and his ancestors. The most significant occurrence was when advanced schooling was developed during the time when social and political situations were changing, because the emperors were no longer chosen by family relationships or by blood. This event connected to Taoism because in chinese, "Tao" means the "way" or "path", which refers to a way to live and behave, especially to lead and guide others, which was the essential point of the commencement of education.
Taoism was emerged from China after a long process of religious change, near the end of the Shang Dynasty. When it was first founded, it was centered on the relationship between the ruler and his ancestors. The most significant occurrence was when advanced schooling was developed during the time when social and political situations were changing, because the emperors were no longer chosen by family relationships or by blood. This event connected to Taoism because in chinese, "Tao" means the "way" or "path", which refers to a way to live and behave, especially to lead and guide others, which was the essential point of the commencement of education.
Sacred Text
Taoism has no specific canon of scripture, however there are several books which are considered to be the main sources of faith and doctrine. Around the 3rd and 4th centuries B.C.E. during the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, writings of unknown origin were gathered to form the Tao Te Ching, which was a religious text about the Tao (the way) and De (virtue, charisma) and also the Zhuang Zi, another collection of holy texts. Both of these texts were polemical, meaning they criticized or mocked other popular views, especially the ones of Confucius, the founder of the religion Confucianism. The Tao Te Ching is a collection of 81 poems and stories which were written by the Chinese philosopher, Lao Tze. This collection of holy texts explains "the Way" and was a spiritual book on the existence of humanity. Tao Te Ching was also considered the essential guide to living, including various things to do in order to live life to the fullest. The Zhuang Zi was written by the man of the same name, Zhuang Zi. This book consists of the completion of primary beliefs of Taoism. Other than these main religious texts of Taoism, there are other texts that are engaged in the early debates about the way or the path, from a point of view identified with Taoism. These include the Liezi, a text similar to Zhuang Zi which contains a lot of the same material, and Neiye, which concerns with self-cultivation practices and lastly, the Daozang. The Daozang is referred to as the "Taoist canon" or "Treasury of Tao", and contains over 1400 texts, complied from various Taoist monks. It was formed to bring together all the teachings of Taoism into one collection of religious texts, including all the expositions and commentaries of the various masters from the original teachings.