Tao Te Ching has been misunderstood by some people. How to read Lao Zi now?

There are probably two reasons why Tao Te Ching was misunderstood. On the one hand, it is because of the long time, which makes "? Tao Te Ching? It was destroyed and lost in the process of circulation, so that future generations could not fully understand it? Lao tze? The essence of thought. On the other hand, it is because the way of thinking of the ancients is different from that of modern people. It leads to the differences in characters, chapters and sentences of the ancients and the misunderstanding of the original intention of the ancients by modern people.

It is difficult for modern people to understand the Tao Te Ching mainly for the above two reasons, so can the Tao Te Ching be understood? How do modern people understand the Tao Te Ching? On this issue, the ancients discussed less, and today people also have different opinions. Here, I only talk about my personal views.

To understand the Tao Te Ching, we must first understand the background of the Tao Te Ching and the way of thinking of the ancients. According to legend, Tao Te Ching was written more than 2000 years ago at the end of the Spring and Autumn Period, when a man named Lao Zi? Saint? What you did. At the end of the Spring and Autumn Period, various princes disputed, the country was in turmoil, the people were displaced, and the people lived in dire straits. Lao Tzu witnessed the present situation and felt it personally, although he was unable to change it after many twists and turns. Second best, seeking the way to save the country and the people gave birth to Laozi's thought of "small country with few people" and "governing by doing nothing"

In order to seek the avenue, in order to seek the truth from all things in the world, "as good as water?" Water is the goodness of all things, and there is no dispute. "It is difficult to complement each other", "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, a nine-story platform begins with the foundation of the earth, and a folded tree is born in the distance" and so on. How hard to understand! The most difficult thing to understand is "Tao" itself, "things are mixed and natural", "Tao is a thing, only looking but not looking" and "Tao is the origin of all things in the world". Everything is born in Tao, becomes in Tao and dies in Tao. Everything has an endless path of life and death. But "Tao" itself is intangible, and it is difficult to describe "seeing without seeing, listening without hearing" in words. What should people do after they know Tao? "Man should be a teacher in the earth, the earth should be a teacher in the sky, the sky should be a teacher in the Tao, and the Tao should be a teacher in nature", that is, man should follow the natural way of heaven and earth to be a man. How to imitate the natural way? "Everything in heaven and earth is heartless? A straw dogs? The saints are ruthless and regard the people as grass dogs. " Follow the example of non-interference between heaven and earth and dominate everything, let everything develop naturally, so as to achieve the wonderful work of doing nothing and doing nothing. "

Judging from the contents of Tao Te Ching, it is undoubtedly dialectical thinking in terms of modern concepts that "bending is complete, waste is straight, and depression is surplus", "emphasizing the foundation, being quiet is impetuous" and "knowing that a man is guarding his daughter, knowing that he is white and black, and knowing that he is honored and ashamed". Applying Tao to reality is a pragmatic idea, not an empty truth. Its "giving wisdom to the people, benefiting a hundred times, giving righteousness to the people, filial piety to the people, and taking advantage of thieves" embodies the advantages of governing the people by Tao.

There have been three different versions of Tao Te Ching in its circulation, one is a river book with Taoist collection as the main part, and the other is the most widely circulated version. Wang Wei? Edition, another version is the silk book Laozi unearthed from Mawangdui Han Tomb in Changsha in modern times. Some people say that the Tao Te Ching has been misread, which is also one of the reasons. I don't think so. Tao, from the highest to the deepest to the subtle, seems out of reach, but it is everywhere. It is said that people use it unconsciously every day. As far as many versions of Tao Te Ching are concerned, this is also the result of Tao. Some people say that the Tao Te Ching is difficult to understand and the truth is difficult to understand. The truth is beyond the words, and the Tao is in my heart. Why do you want to ask outside?

The Tao Te Ching begins by saying, "Tao can be named extraordinary Tao or extraordinary Tao." It is clear that "Tao" cannot be said, nor is it a permanent title. If you say it, it is no longer a Tao with a fixed title. In that case, why stick to words, sentences and chapters? The true meaning cannot be expressed in words. Everyone has his own understanding of Tao, and the depth of understanding at different levels is different. I don't understand it now because I'm not good enough. I'll be fine when I make some corrections. Why force it? It is not enough for a staff sergeant to be cautious when he hears words, but for a corporal to laugh when he hears words. "Tao" is easy to understand, understand, do and obtain. Nowadays, people indulge in sensuality instead of practicing understanding, which is far from Tao. What's more, it is irreversible to study it as a philosophical strategy. The deeper the study, the deeper the study.