The development of pre-Qin Taoist thought

The development context of Pre-Qin Taoist thought is as follows:

Taoist thought refers to the general name of the thoughts with Laozi’s thought as its lineage. The pre-Qin period can be roughly divided into Laozi, Zhuangzi and their descendants. three phases.

Pre-Qin Taoism was founded by Laozi and reached its peak with Zhuangzi. We are used to using Laozi and Zhuangzi as synonyms for Taoism. However, as far as pre-Qin Taoism is concerned, besides Laozi and Zhuangzi, there were some other famous representatives at that time. Characters, with their different ideological characteristics, form a rather unique Taoist school in Taoism.

It can be said that the pre-Qin Dynasty was a period of great development of Taoism. It led many figures and various schools and became a grand view. It formed a prominent school that competed with Confucianism, Mohism, and Legalism, and exerted a profound influence on ancient Chinese culture. Development has had a huge impact.

Taoism was formed through a process of continuous development on the basis of Laozi’s thoughts. Laozi is undoubtedly the founder of the school. People are accustomed to calling the Taoist school during the period of Laozi’s founding as the Laozi School.

As for Laozi, most modern scholars believe that he was later than Confucius. Later, due to the decline of the Zhou royal family, he left and became anonymous from then on, so Sima Qian called him a hidden gentleman. Laozi's thoughts are concentrated in the book "Laozi".

Similarly, according to Sima Qian, I left the palace and arrived at a pass. The officer guarding the pass admired him very much and said to him, you are going to live in seclusion. I ask you to write down your thoughts and knowledge. Come down before it is lost. So Lao Tzu wrote two chapters, about 5,000 words, and called Bai Li the "Tao Te Ching".

This is the most popular book. In 1973, editions A and B of the silk book "Laozi" were unearthed from the Mawangdui Han Tomb in Changsha. Contrary to the Tongxing edition, the De Jing is at the top and the Dao Jing is at the bottom.