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The search for knowledge in the West and East

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The search for knowledge in the West today is based very much on the scientific method and on rational inquiry, and this is often contrasted with the way of knowing in Eastern mysticism. Indeed, even in the West there is a strong contrast made between scientific inquiry and the knowledge of faith and revelation. Taoism is one Eastern philosophy which has elements that mirror certain findings of modern physics and so which brings into question the supremacy of the Western way of knowing. This has been indicated recently by an analysis offered by writer Fritjof Capra, but others as well have noted the parallels between Eastern and Western thought in terms of results if not method. Taoism might thus be viewed in a new light as a source of insight that would be valuable in the West as in the East.

Taoism is a Chinese doctrine that made up for the lack of attention given religion by Confucius. Perfection is achieved by the mystic who is able to see the greater truth. Perfection means the loss of self in the trace state that allows conjunction between the individual and the universal. The one to which this perfection aspires is Tao, or the total spontaneity of all things. Te is the virtue or morality of the Confucians, and for the Taoist this is the tao inherent in anything. It is the object's power. Tao is the way and te is its power, and these are the fundamental conceptions of Taoism:

The adept therefore opposes institutions, moral laws and government as human

. . .
om what we see with colliding bodies in the mid-level space in which we live. An analysis of ancient texts shows that Taoist philosophers perceived the world in a way that offers similar insights. For them, the void and boundless state which prevailed before the world was created and from which the universe was formed was known as Wu-Chi, or the ultimate nothingness. In this early state, while it is said there is nothing, there is certainly something, though unformed. It cannot be comprehended rationally, and its existence is only implied. It has form and yet is unformed. Ancient Chinese philosophers called it the phenomenon of nothingness, or "thing of none." Everything in the universe, including yin and yang, evolves continually from this unperceivable source. When something arises from this nothing, the nothing no longer exists and the state of Tai-Chi begins. Tai-Chi is the source of yin and yang. This philosophical structure applies to human relationships and behavior as well as to the creation of the universe: The relationship between a person and a piano is Wu-Chi if the person has no intention to play it. When the person starts to play the piano or has the intention to play, the relationship becomes Tai-Chi.
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 2080
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page)

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