num_pages: 192
description: From the time of its earliest sages in prehistoric China Taoism has looked to the underlying Way of all things (the Tao) as a guide to thoughts and actions. For the Taoists the patterns of nature revealed the answers to their deepest spiritual questions and provided the inspiration for their unique teachings. Over the centuries Taoism has blossomed into a profound tradition with a variety of formsall united by a single core philosophy of radical simplicity and natural living. Today Taoism is most widely known through the Tao-te Ching  yet its corpus of literature is vastranging from philosophical dialogues and essays to astonishing fables legends proverbs and more. This compact collection of Taoisms greatest masterpieces introduces its most fundamental teachings and reveals the essential spirit of Tao.The Taoism Reader  Tao-te Ching : the foundational source of Taoist thought by the legendary Lao Tzu  Chuang-tzu : philosophical dialogues from one of Taoisms most famous sages  Huai-nan-tzu : teachings from the time of the Han dynasty on affairs of state natural science and Taoist psychology  Wen-tzu : records of further sayings by Lao Tzu on the art of living  Tales of Inner fables stories and jokes from the Lieh-tzu and others on the subtleties of Taoist philosophy  Sayings of Ancestor L: teachings from L Yen a seminal figure in the founding of the Complete Reality school of Taoism and master synthesizer of Chinas classic spiritual traditions
language: English
title: The Taoism Reader
publisher: Shambhala