Laozi (one of 10 Primordial Masters) had high regard for females and mothers

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The Tao of Laozi (Lao Tzi)

 

`Tao' is a Chinese word meaning `way', `way of Heaven', `Path'

or `road' or `method'. It indicates a line or principle of conduct.

There is no proper English term for `Tao'. It means the `Eternal

Being'.

 

The Founder of Taoism was Lao-Tze. Lao-Tze was born in 604 B.C. in

the village of Chu-Jhren, in Li country, belonging to the Ku province

of the State Chu. He was born under the plum tree (in Chinese `Li').

He adopted it as his surname. The hair of the head was white when he

was born. Hence he was called Lao-Tze (old boy) or philosopher, one

who is child-like even when old.

 

He was popularly called Lao-Tze. His name was Er (ear). He was called

Tan after his death. `Tan' means `long lobe'. He had peculiar long

ears. His appellation was `Po Yang' or " count of positive principle " .

He was a keeper or recorder of the secret Archives in the Royal court

of Chore. He was a State Historian.

 

Tao

 

Lao-Tze says: Tao is one. It was in the beginning. It will remain for

ever. It is impersonal, eternal, immutable, omnipresent, bodiless,

immaterial. It cannot be perceived by the senses. It is nameless. It

is indescribable.

 

It is the first cause from which all substances take their origin and

all phenomena flow. The great Tao is all-pervading. All things depend

on it for life. It is the mother of all phenomena, of heaven and

earth. It existed before the Personal God. It is the father of God.

It is the producer of God. It is the originator of heaven and earth.

It is the mother of all things.

 

You will find that there is an aroma of Indian Vedantic philosophy in

the teachings of Lao-Tze.

 

Tao is everywhere. It is in the ant. It is in the grass. It is in the

earthen-ware vessel. It is in excrement. It is in the highest place

but is not high. It is in the, lowest place, but is not low. It is in

ancient times, but itself is not ancient. It is in old age but itself

is not old. It is everywhere, but appears to be nowhere.

 

Tao is the sanctuary where all things find refuge. It is the good

man's priceless treasure. It is the guardian and saviour of him who

is not good. (Sri Swami Sivananda)

 

Laozi believed that females are the mothers of all things and all

human beings. In accordance with Dao, which generates everything,

females are those that produce all things. Without females or

mothers, there is nothing else in the world.

 

The mystery of the valley is immortal;

It is known as the Subtle Female.

The gateway of the Subtle Female

Is the source of the Heaven and Earth. (Chapter 6)

 

 

In another chapter, Laozi observed:

 

The beginning of the world

May be regarded as the Mother of the world.

To apprehend the Mother,

Know the offspring.

To know the offspring

Is to remain close to the mother,

And free from harm throughout life. (Chapter 52)

 

 

As per Daoist humanism, females, instead of males, are usually highly

regarded in his writing:

 

Know the male

Hold to the female;

Become the world's stream.

By being the world's stream

The Permanent De (or humanism) will never leave.

This is returning to Infancy. (Chapter 28)

 

 

From this perspective, it is easy to see that femininity and

mothering were highly valued by Laozi. Simply speaking, nothing in

the world is as important as women and mothers. If many philosophical

and religious ideas tend to maintain male superiority or dominance,

directly or indirectly (e.g., Confucianism; Hinduism; Christianity,

including Mormonism; Islam; Chauvinism; or Freudianism), Daoism

differs because females play a more important role in humanism than

males. This point may not have been well understood in modern

feminist research (see Laughlin & Wong, 1999). Perhaps philosophically

or religiously, Laozi could be seen as one of the first proponents of

feminism in human history.

 

Journal of Humanistic Psychology, Vol. 43 No. 1, Winter 2003 64-85