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School · 600 BCE–312 CE

Daoist philosophy

Daoist philosophy is classical Chinese reflections on the Dao, cultivation, spontaneity, language, and political restraint.

Shared questions

  • How can people live well without imposing rigid categories and artificial control on the changing world?

Internal disagreements

  • Whether cultivation requires withdrawal, skillful participation, scepticism about language, or a distinctive political order.

Key texts

  • Daodejing — A layered received text whose authorship and compilation remain historically complex.