(Post by Dan T)
“How do Daoists deal with political and other kinds of threats?”
Germaine asked me that question over on another side of the world. I told him that’s a hard question and I’d put some thought into it.
So here we go. I’m usually very fond of quoting Zhuangzi. But for this one, I ended up sticking with Tao Te Ching. I quote extensively here, with brief commentary of my own. The translation is by Gia-fu Feng and Jane English.
Daoism is decidedly anti-tyranny:
Leading yet not dominating,
This is the Primal Virtue.
(Tao Te Ching, 10)
Whenever you advise a ruler in the way of Tao,
Counsel him not to use force to conquer the universe.
For this would only cause resistance.
Thorn bushes spring up wherever the army has passed.
(Tao Te Ching, 30)
Good weapons are instruments of fear; all creatures hate them.
Therefore followers of Tao never use them.
(Tao Te Ching, 31)
When a truly kind man does something, he leaves nothing undone.
When a just man does something, he leaves a great deal to be done.
When a disciplinarian does something and no one responds,
He rolls up his sleeves in an attempt to enforce order.
(Tao Te Ching, 38)
And like Christianity in its earliest forms, it doesn’t aspire to political power:
The highest good is like water.
Water gives life to the ten thousand things and does not strive.
It flows in places men reject and so is like the Tao.
(Tao Te Ching, 8)
It doesn’t advocate active resistance to tyranny. It counsels a more counter-intuitive path:
Yield and overcome;
Bend and be straight;
Empty and be full;
Wear out and be new;
(Tao Te Ching, 22)
The softest thing in the universe
Overcomes the hardest thing in the universe.
That without substance can enter where there is no room.
Hence I know the value of non-action.
(Tao Te Ching, 43)
But I don’t think there’s a promise that these tactics can magically defeat tyranny. In one sense, there’s a confidence that tyranny will defeat itself:
Whatever is contrary to Tao will not last long.
(Tao Te Ching, 55)
Force is followed by loss of strength.
This is not the way of Tao.
That which goes against the Tao comes to an early end.
(Tao Te Ching, 30)
And yet we know through experience that tyranny is actually pretty durable, especially on the time scale in which we as individuals live our lives. And that more often than not, when one form of tyranny collapses or is overthrown, it is just replaced by another tyranny. IMO, Daoism does not offer a solution to that problem. Rather, it offers an attitude toward unsolvable problems–basically, stoic acceptance:
The universe is sacred.
You cannot improve it.
If you try to change it, you will ruin it.
If you try to hold it, you will lose it.
(Tao Te Ching, 29)
There is no greater sin than desire,
No greater curse than discontent,
No greater misfortune than wanting something for oneself.
Therefore he who knows that enough is enough will always have enough.
(Tao Te Ching, 46)
The world is ruled by letting things take their course.
It cannot be ruled by interfering.
(Tao Te Ching, 48)
Accept disgrace willingly.
Accept misfortune as the human condition.
What do you mean by “Accept disgrace willingly”?
Accept being unimportant.
Do not be concerned with loss or gain.
This is called “accepting disgrace willingly.”
What do you mean by “Accept misfortune as the human condition”?
Misfortune comes from having a body.
Without a body, how could there be misfortune?
Surrender yourself humbly; then you can be trusted to care for all things.
Love the world as your own self, then you can truly care for all things.
(Tao Te Ching, 13)
So in one sense, Daoism offers a political programme. But I can’t say it offers a means to achieve that programme, at least on a timescale any individual is likely to find useful. Instead, it offers a shift in perspective: Politics won’t save us. Likely nothing will save us. Maybe there’s nothing to be saved from. Maybe the problem is our expectations, and not that the world doesn’t meet them. Maybe we might as well drop everything and orient ourselves toward that which is nourishing and sustaining and eternal. It won’t change anything, but it could change everything.
Postscript: None of this means a Daoist can’t be politically active. But I don’t think the default position would involve anticipating notable political success.