Tao Teh Ching: A Short Meditation on Its Title and Its Importance

An Introduction to an 81-Part Series

The semi-legendary founder of Taoism Lao Tzu mounted a water buffalo at the end of his life and rode off to the western boundary of China. There, legend tells us, a farmer recognized him and asked him to write down his philosophy of life.

The result: The Tao Teh Ching, a book filled with thoughts (or non-thoughts) about trying (or not trying) to live in the Tao: a perfect accompaniment to his act of turning his back on the world by mounting that water buffalo in the first place.

Eastern Thought Arguably Respects the Right Hemisphere’s Primacy

Iain McGilchrist says Eastern thought has avoided the left hemisphere bias ushered in by Plato and his emphasis on Forms, which led to an undue emphasis on abstraction and permanence (left hemisphere properties) and a neglect of tacit knowledge and change/flow.

I think McGilchrist is unduly harsh on Plato, but no matter: he’s correct that Eastern thought didn’t evolve (or devolve, if you like) like Western.

Eastern thought remained fluid, embraced paradox, and valued laughter (a thing that erupts when your logical (left hemispheric) thoughts are yanked out of their…