Daodejing
Classic text of Chinese philosophy. Written between the 6th and 3rd
centuries BC, it was originally named Laozi after its traditional
author but the mystery of its true authorship so far remains
unresolved. The Daodejing promotes a way of life intended
to bring harmony and tranquility to a troubled kingdom. It
encourages passivity, interpreted as foregoing any unnatural action
which would impair the Tao from resolving things naturally. It was
used as a handbook by rulers who were encouraged to impose no
restrictions or prohibitions on their subjects. The
Daodejing's influence has permeated to this day, affecting
all schools of Chinese philosophy and religion that it
preceded.
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Zhuangzi
The book of Zhuangzi named after its author
is also known as Nan hua zhen jing (True Classic of
Southern (Cultural) Florescence) since Emperor Xuanzong of the
Tang Dynasty conferred this honorific title upon it in 742 AD to
reference Zhuangzi's southern Chinese origins. The book is a
composite of different writings and tradition indicates that
Zhuangzi penned the first seven chapters (the "inner chapters") and
that his disciples and related thinkers added the others (the
"outer" and "miscellaneous" chapters).
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Liezi
The Liezi tome first surfaces during the former Han
Dynasty, with editor Liu Xiang commenting that he rearranged Liezi
into eight chapters. A surviving bibliography from the time notes
that since Zhuangzi quotes Liezi. From this, it can be assumed that
the latter predated the former. Following this, a three-century gap
exists before Liezi is again mentioned in a commentary by
Zhang Zhan during the Jin Dynasty, where Zhang claims his copy of
Liezi came to him from his grandfather. All subsequent
copies of the Liezi volume were based on Zhang's.
Liezi was elevated to the rank of Taoist classic, during
the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, rounding out the trilogy
formed with the Daodejing and Zhuangzi. The
Liezi was then honorifically entitled the Chong Xu Zhen
Jing. It is widely considered the major Taoist work with the most
thorough practical mindset, as opposed to the philosophical
writings of The Daodejing and the poetic narrative of
Zhuangzi.
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Daozang
Daozang, or Taoist Canon, is a
compendium of close to 5,000 individual texts dating back to in 400
AD, dating after core texts such as the Daodejing and
Zhuangzi. Taoist monks of the era united them into one
tome to facilitate the teachings of Taoism, while collating all the
commentaries and expositions written by masters of
Daodejing and Zhuangzi teachings. The
Daozang is sub-divided into the Three Grottoes, mirroring
the Buddhist Tripitaka. These three divisions were inspired by
principal Taoist focus in southern China namely; meditation,
ritual, and exorcism.
(China.org.cn April 20, 2007)
