Page 47 - The Encyclopedia of Taoism v1_A-L

OVERVIIlW
7
an intuitive vision of the world as a unified whole, and a perception of the
value and the natural strength (*qi) of life. This is not merely a reflection of
the limitations of language, as some have claimed, but an intuitive, personal
and sometimes mystical awareness that goes beyond language, conceptual
thought, and social or moral practices and doctrines.
Based on this vision, the Daode jing and especially the Zhuangzi offer an ideal
of the human being that has deeply influenced Chinese thought. The Taoist
saint (*shengren) is before and beyond appellation and individual existence, and
possesses cosmic and nearly divine stature and powers. He is an incarnation
of the Dao and its Virtue, and dwells on the border between humanity and
the Dao.
Is Taoism philosophical? Another issue in the debate among scholars is whether
or not daojia is "philosophical." Indeed, Zhuangzi and the Taoist saint are
neither pro- nor antiphilosophical. They dwell in a open space where one
thinks without being caught up in thought, and sees in a multifaceted "per-
spectivist" way. In addition, there is a fantastic vein in the Zhuangzi that is
not philosophical and that was later developed in Taoism, particularly by the
*Shangqing school.
Daojia has also been labelled "non-purposive," "non-instrumental," and
"contemplative" (e.g., by Creel 1970, 37-48), but these definitions are inad-
equate for three reasons. First, some trends of daojiao, or so-called "religious
Taoism," are also non-purposive and contemplative. Second, concentration
on the Dao or Oneness, and renunciation of social and personal values and
activities, necessarily imply some "purposive" techniques of self-cultivation
that the daojia texts often allude to. Third, various early daojia texts refer to
political applications. The main difference between daojia and daojiao is per-
haps that daojiao primarily aims at establishing a connection with the sacred,
either as a relationship with deities and spirits or as the attainment of personal
transcendence. The question of immortality is related to this point.
The daojia dimension of Taoism is absent in several Taoist trends and texts,
and others appropriated the Daode jing without much regard for its many
possible meanings. The *Xiang'er commentary exemplifies this attitude. Nev-
ertheless, the philosophical spirit and features embraced by the term daojia
are apparent throughout most of the history of Taoism, beginning with the
*Taipingjing (Scripture of Great Peace), which may be the earliest extant dao-
jiao text. With Yin-Yang and *wuxing cosmology, the daojia has given Taoism
one of its most basic conceptual frameworks, without which no religion can
have a structured and coherent worldview.

Isabelle ROBINET
m Barrett 2000; Graham 1989, 170-234; Izutsu Toshihiko 1983, 287-486; Kirkland