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Thinker · TH-0012

Laozi

Legendary sage traditionally credited with the Daodejing and described by the historian Sima Qian as an archivist at the Zhou court. Modern scholars generally…

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老子

Also known as Lao Tzu, Lao-tse, Li Er, Lao Dan

traditionally 6th century BCE (historicity uncertain) · State of Chu, Zhou court at Luoyang

Traditions: Chinese

Schools: Daoism

Legendary sage traditionally credited with the Daodejing and described by the historian Sima Qian as an archivist at the Zhou court. Modern scholars generally see the Daodejing as a layered text that took shape over time, with the earliest known manuscripts dating from around 300 BCE.

Key ideas

  • The Dao as the nameless source and way of all things
  • Wu wei: effortless, non-coercive action
  • The strength of softness, emptiness and yielding
  • Distrust of rigid rules, ambition and contrived virtue

Major works

  • Daodejing (Tao Te Ching), traditionally attributed
  • Guodian bamboo-slip and Mawangdui silk manuscripts of the Daodejing (c. 300 BCE and 2nd century BCE)

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