THE WORLD'S MOST POPULAR BELIEFS, DOCTRINES AND RELIGIONS
10. TAOISM (DAOISM)
Main books of Taoism: The Tao Te Ching.
Estimated year of creation: AD 200
Headquarters / Capital in the world: Beijing.
Number of faithful around the world: 12 million (it reached more than 100 million).
God or Prophet of Taoism: Lao-tzu, founder of Taoism, is the only one revered and considered as a god by religious Taoists.
Main symbol of Taoism: The Ying-Yang.
Basic principles of Taoism:
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The Tao (the way) is omnipotent, it is found everywhere.
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Only he who is freed from earthly passions can see and feel it.
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The non-personal exaltation.
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The wise man prefers non-action and remains silent.
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If passions are not flaunted, there will be no temptations.
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Matter is dispassionate about things, creatures and anything existing on earth and in the sky.
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He is above all the material that exists.
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Heaven and earth are enduring, they were created by the Tao and exist for him.
Short description of Taoism.
Tao (or Dao): way of life, doctrine, deity or way. There are several attributes that are given to this mysterious term. What we do know is that it is the center of Taoist ethics and spirituality.
The main book that brings together all the teachings of Taoism is the Dào Dé Jing and is believed to have been written by Lao-Tzu , a contemporary of Gautama and Confucius, and with later contributions by Zhuangzi.
Specifying an exact number of followers of Taoism is a difficult task. The amounts can vary from 300 to 500 million practically . What is certain is that most are in China.
Taoism is an ancient tradition of Chinese philosophy and religion which is deeply rooted in customs and in the way of seeing the world. Taoism is also known by the name of Daoism, which is a more accurate way of representing the sound of the Chinese word. Taoism is based on the Tao, a word that means path and that forms the supreme reality and the cosmological and ontological principle of all things that surround us. The Tao is the last principle of the creation of the universe. All things are unified and connected in the Tao.
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