Taoism, pronounced Daoism, is an indigenous religion that has a philosophical structure. It has traditionally shaped Chinese life for more than 2,000 years. It all began with a man who believed in harmony within an individual. His name was Lao Tzu. Lao Tzu was born around 604 BC and within Taoism he is seen as a shadowy figure because not much is known about him. His name Lao Tzu can be translated as "The Old Man", "The Old Man" or "The Grand Old Master". Legend says that he was conceived by a shooting star, carried in his mother's womb for eighty-two years and was born as a white-haired wise old man. Although the legend may be fiction, he existed and created this religion based on his beliefs found in the "Taoism Te Ching", the basic text of the religion, which can be translated as "The Way and Its Power". It has been said that Lao Tzu only retreated for three days and returned with the basic text. Taoism has three schools which are Taoist yoga, philosophical Taoism and religious Taoism. The choice of a school depends on a person's position towards the power of the Tao. Lao Tzu never preached, nor organized, nor promoted. Nonetheless, he advocated for people to seek greater personal solitude, but above all to be humble and live a simple life. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The meaning of Tao is the “way” or “path,” but it has many different associations. In Taoism, Tao means one of three things: ultimate reality, the way of the universe, and the way to human life. Each of these different meanings has a temple where they can practice what they believe is the power of the Tao. The first approach to power is that of effective power, called Philosophical Taoism. They studied texts associated with the names of Lao Tzu, Chuang, and Tao Te Ching (The Way and Its Power). Taoists wanted to repair life but not being as involved as Confucianism was in this period. Taoists wanted to perfect life by practicing Wu Wei, which means inaction but in Taoism it means pure effectiveness, in other words letting nature take its course. The second approach to power is vicarious power, known as Religious Taoism believes in faith healing, it can import or release emergencies just as faith itself does, including faith in oneself. This practice is believed to send energy to them and heal them. Finally, the increased power approach is Taoist Yoga. Also known as Taoist "adepts", the main goal of this temple is to feel ch'i, which means life energy. Taoists used it to explain the power of the Tao they felt flowing through them, or if the power was not flowing through them. To experience ch'i to the fullest, Taoists have worked on three different things: matter which can be practiced by eating things to see if ch'i can be increased from a nutritional point of view, movement is shown by practicing yoga and their minds the way they would do it is through meditating. Not only did China have one form of Taoism, but three. No matter how different each is from the other, they have some of the same beliefs - because ultimately Taoism is Taoism just in different forms. Despite the three Taoisms appearing completely different, the three have some of the same beliefs when it comes to their religion. Lao Tzu once said that the best way to describe the Tao was through a natural element, water. In the book The Natural Way of Lao Tzu by Wing-Tsit Chan; there was a poem that states “The best (man) is like water. The water is good; it benefits all things and does not compete with them. He lives in the (humble) places that everyone disdains. Here you arebecause it is so close to the Tao. [The best way] in one's abode loves the earth. In his heart he loves what is deep. In his associations he loves humanity. In his words, he loves faithfulness. The government loves order. In business management, he loves competence. In his activities he loves timeliness. It is because it does not belong to him that he is blameless." What the poem says is that Taoists reject all forms of self-affirmation and competition, not only towards people but also towards nature. The natural element water adapts wherever it is and seeks its course. With this in mind, Taoism has the same concept: practice "Wu Wei", it is simplicity and freedom. Rather than trying to make sense of things, Taoism embraces the way things are, simply being. Life is not meant for competing with each other or even having too much self-confidence. Life is meant to be enjoyed, it is meant to help other people in need, it is not meant to worship one or more gods. Our purpose is to enjoy nature and be at peace with ourselves. Because in this life we ​​choose humanity, we choose humanity, to live a humble and simple life. In each of the approaches to the power of the Tao, one is intended to help each individual heal in whatever “way” or “path” the person has chosen to practice. Nature must be helped. In Huston Smith's book The World's Religions, a second poem states: “Those who would take the earth and shape it to their will. Never, I noticed, does he succeed. The earth is like a vessel so sacred that the simple approach of the profane becomes vain. And when they stretch out their fingers it's gone." In the eyes of a Taoist, nature should be a friend, not something you can dominate. It's something we need to appreciate because humanity is as much a part of nature's beauty as weeds in a patch of grass. Why build extravagant temples, when nature is the greatest gift of all. Taoist temples cannot be distinguished from where they are located, the temple blends into the mountains or behind the trees. We don't feel the need to distinguish ourselves from the greatest of all. If God existed and created the earth, he would want to take care of his creation as much as possible. But since Taoism does not believe in a God like the Abrahamic religions do; Taoism believes that God is an energy around the universe. If we take care of the earth, the earth will take care of us. A new beauty would conquer the world, the air would be cleaner, the skies would be brighter, and it would be possible to live a humble and peaceful life. That way, we would not only put aside our differences, but we would take care of each other when we are sick or in poverty, out of the goodness of our hearts, not because we think it would make us a good person. The identity of opposites is like yin and yang. Taoism is linked to the infamous traditional Chinese yin/yang symbol, known throughout the world to balance each other, no matter how different they may be from each other. It can range from good/bad, active/passive, positive/negative, summer/winter, and male/female. Despite the differences, all examples complement each other, complement each other. Let's just say that good existed and evil did not: we would never know the true beauty of good in the world. Without the difficult moments, the good moments would feel empty, we might just truly appreciate them. If people weren't different, more religions would never have been created. No matter how different each religion is, it has somehow made people want to become a better version of themselves. This is why Lao Tzu never wanted to walk for 45 years like the young Buddha did. He didn't feel the need to prove anything. This can also be seen as a yin and yang relationship because although.