1. Week 3 Ancient China: the Tao Te Ching LAO TZU

2. The Tao Te Ching was written by Lao Tzu – who was he
The Tao Te Ching was written by Lao Tzu – who was he? What was his book about?
Why talk about it in a course on “old” wars vs. “new” wars?

4. Lao Tzu lived at about the same time as Thucydides at the other side of the world, i.e.,
in ancient China rather than ancient Greece . he is famous as the author of the Chinese classic, the Tao Te Ching, the oldest copy of which dates back to the last part of the 4th century BC . it is very short: about 5,000 characters, in 81 sections, without punctuation . despite its brevity it is one of the greatest of the works of world literature

5. According to legend Lao Tzu was “Old Long-ears”, the keeper of the Zhou imperial archives; when he
was 80 years old he set out for Tibet; at the border one of the guards asked him to write down his Teachings so for three days he did: . this is a good story but it is probably just that - a good story . in fact we do not know who Lao Tzu was or even if there was someone by that name . nor do we know what “Taoism” really means

7. In addition, many of the ideas in the Tao Te Ching are ambiguous and many of the nuances get
“lost in translation”; this said: . so profound is this book it has been translated into Western languages over 250 times (mostly English, German and French) . only the Bible has been translated more often . some translations are popular; others scholarly; all try and solve the problems the text poses

8. Comparisons of various translations can be found at:.
. these are only a few of those available, plus
. in my experience translations like these tell us
as much about the translators as they do about
the text
. my personal favorite is the one by an
American poet, Witter Bynner, The Way of
Life, 1944 (see also the translation by the
Taoist poet Mervyn Peake)

9. As an example, here is Bynner’s Verse 49 (p.76):
“I find good people good, And I find bad people good If I am good enough; I trust men of their word, And I trust liars If I am true enough; I feel the heart-beats of others Above my own If I am enough of a father, Enough of a son.”

10. Also Bynner’s version of Verse 17 (p. 46):
“A leader is best When people barely know that he exists, Not so good when people obey and acclaim him, Worst when they despise him. ‘Fail to honor people, They fail to honor you’; But of a good leader, who talks little, When his work is done, his aim fulfilled, They will all say, ‘We did this ourselves.’”

11. And his version of Verse 39 (p. 69):
“ … save for the people, a leader shall die: Always the low carry the high On a root for growing by … If rim and spoke and hub were not, Where would be the chariot? Who will prefer the jingle of jade pendants if He once has heard stone growing in a cliff!”

12. As well as his version of Verse 40 (p. 70):
“Life on its way returns into the mist, Its quickness is its quietness again: Existence of this world of things and men Renews their never needing to exist”

15. Why talk about Lao Tzu in this course?
. first we need to find out what he says about the
politico-strategic dimension to world affairs,
which is where we find most (but not all) talk
about the waging of wars?
. in this regard he seems to endorse “globalism”,
since he seems to assume that people are good
. he talks, that is, about our basic “simplicity and
purity”
. this suggests he sees the world in a “hail-fellow-
well-met” way

16. Ames, The Art of Rulership, 1994, p.7)
. when “Taoism” was first articulated, however, the key issue was how to survive in the face
of “murderously competing powers” (see
Ames, The Art of Rulership, 1994, p.7)
.. this sounds like “realism” since it suggests
system-level protection is simply not
available, however
.. Lao Tzu also shows a preference for small,
self-sufficient polities behaving
cooperatively rather than competitively
- this sounds like early “internationalism”

17. There is a prior question, however, and that is: “what is Taoism”. , i
There is a prior question, however, and that is: “what is Taoism”?, i.e., what does it mean to
promote and protect the Tao as a feature of any kind of world affairs? . this is not easy to say and Lao Tzu admits this: “Existence is beyond the power of words To define … In the beginning of heaven and earth there were no words … From wonder into wonder Existence opens” (Bynner, op. cit.,Vse 1, p.31)

18. .. n.b. in ancient Chinese, tao (with a small “t”)
. we face at the outset, in other words, the problem of describing a “fluid whole” that
defies any attempt to label it (Graham, Disputers
of the Tao, 1989, 219)
.. n.b. in ancient Chinese, tao (with a small “t”)
refers to a road or a path while Tao (with a
big “T”) is much harder to define since it
seems to mean “the way the universe works”
(Waley, The Way and Its Power, 1934, 30)

20. .. others call the Tao “the eternal order of the
cosmos and at the same time … its course”
(Weber, The Religion of China, 1951, 181)
.. the “inherent order that pervades … all being”
(Loewe, The Pride that was China, 1990, 91)
.. the “still undivided stuff” that is “nameless”
(Graham, op. cit., 221), and
.. “the Great Clod” (Creel, What is Taoism?
1970, 33)

22. account, i.e., one that does not describe world
. definitions of this sort do not, of course, provide a logical account of world affairs
. they do, however, provide an analogical
account, i.e., one that does not describe world
affairs in scientific terms but rather intuits them
(as phenomenologists do) in emotivist terms
e.g., in the form of maxims (Graham, op. cit., )
.. n.b. this is to subjectify not objectify and as
such it provides understanding not available
to more rationalistic analysts

25. to help state leaders and the like order
. such definitions also promote “creative quietism”, (c.f. “vacant inaction” or “passive contemplation”)
.. to modern rationalists reply: is this going
to help state leaders and the like order
world affairs more effectively than Enlightenment
pessimism, opportunism or optimism can, i.e.,
is a world of war, exploitation, destitution, and
environmental neglect, one best met with either
“meditative poise” or with “passionate
engagement” (or “detached commitment”)?

28. that of detached individuals); will it give them
.. to this Lao Tzu replies: is objectifying such issues going to do any more than limit
leaders to their basic experience (which is
that of detached individuals); will it give them
an antidote to the distortions involved; will it
help compensate for these limits and distortions?
.. consider war: we can either analyze it rationally
and try to resolve it that way, or we can cultivate
meditative watchfulness and try to resolve it
that way; which makes more sense?

30. listen for a voice that will say ‘be more silent’”)
. it would certainly be foolish to deal with war in the world by getting leaders and others to do
Taoist-style meditation (e.g., to “sit quietly and
listen for a voice that will say ‘be more silent’”)
.. few would do it and those who did would be
afraid of being attacked by those who did not
. it might not be foolish, though, to heed the advice
Lao Tzu provides as a result of his meditations,
since he drew for this on the wells of wordless
wisdom that underpin our day-to-day awareness

32. understanding of Nature … beyond … society”
. his meditations tell Lao Tzu that “to do … [is] to be” and the best way to “be” is to try and order the
world by gaining “greater knowledge and
understanding of Nature … beyond … society”
.. he promotes as a consequence an active form
of pacifism
- war does not pay, he says; it does not get
the results those who wage it intend to get
- it also has unintended consequences, like
laying waste good land

34. . he says, therefore, that:
. where war cannot be avoided, Lao Tzu says, it should be waged reluctantly, and if it is won,
the victory should not be seen as a triumph
. he says, therefore, that:
.. a ruler should oppose every resort to force
because it is likely to rebound; and
.. “…[w]here armies are, thorns and brambles
grow”; and
.. “[a] host that has slain men … [should be]
received with rites of mourning”

35. . to confirm this key conclusion he says that:
. finally he says: “Show me a man of violence that came to a good end, and I will take him for
my teacher”
. to confirm this key conclusion he says that:
“The greatest conqueror wins without joining
issue … This is called the power that comes
from not contending … [I]t is the way of
Heaven not to strive but none the less to
conquer” (Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching, trans.
Authur Waley,1997)
. C.f. Sun Tzu, who we look at next week

37. . in offering such advice, does Lao Tzu contradict himself?
. Creel thinks so, drawing attention to the
difference between Lao Tzu wanting to have a
political impact and at the same time wanting to
practice contemplation (Creel, op.cit., 45)
. Ames says there is no such dichotomy since
Lao Tzu’s ideas are part of his idea of the
universe, and the way politics works are part
of the universe too (Ames, op.cit., 218 fn.23)

38. . in offering such advice is Lao Tzu merely being impractical, then?
. he is certainly critiqued (and was from the very
beginning) as someone
.. naïve and primitivist, and who
.. totally repudiates human culture (Ames,
op.cit, 219 fin. 34)
. why, these critics say, should an active form of
pacifism be any more natural than any other
policy?

39. . Lao Tzu’s followers say this misses the point
. the active pacifism he promotes, they say, is a
particular form of wu-wei (i.e. “no unnatural
action”)
. he does not seek to be practical or impractical
(Chan, The Great Asian Religions, 1969, 150)
. he does not seek to impose preconceptions
. he seeks instead to use “subtler methods of
persuasion” where things take “their own course”

40. floppy; “not-stiff” has another meaning, though,
. Wu-wei is not easy to understand, e.g., when we are standing stiff and we are told to relax we
tend to imagine the opposite of stiff and go
floppy; “not-stiff” has another meaning, though,
for which there is no precise English equivalent:
flexible, supple, lithe, (com)pliant, elastic, or
plastic; these are all part of this other meaning
. by wu-wei “Taoism” refers to this other meaning
and not the floppy one

41. “Wu-wei …”

42. to be more inactive; this is the same as thinking
. likewise, when someone is being too activist in their state-making and is advised to be more
pacifist, we tend to think they are being asked
to be more inactive; this is the same as thinking
the word “relax” means “floppy”, which in this
case is likely to be disastrous since an “inactive”
leader would probably not resist either domestic
or foreign enemies for long
.. in practice, though, being more pacifist could
mean more intervention (albeit of a more
subtle, that is, “not-stiff” kind)

43. “unnatural” and an “natural” one might be
. even if we think we understand wu-wei we still have not said what an “unnatural action” is
and what the difference might be between a
“unnatural” and an “natural” one might be
. Lao Tzu says the answer to this question comes
from meditation rather than analysis, i.e., by
meditating it is possible to understand that
natural action means rule through te, which is
“quiet, virtuous power”
. how would this stop an armed enemy or traitors?

44. . on the one hand modernists see the idea that it could ever do so as irrational - even ridiculous
. on the other Lao Tzu thinks there is no “reason” to expect that te (“quiet, virtuous power”), gained and used the Taoist way, would not work; indeed, he thinks there is every “reason” to expect it will work (hence the Tao Te Ching)

45. . What, then, is “natural action”?
. firstly, Lao Tzu thinks it is what happens
when we act in a free and spontaneous way

46. “… free and spontaneous way”

47. . secondly, Lao Tzu thinks that “natural actions” are those that are
.. caring (not indifferent)
.. humble (not proud)
.. frugal (not profligate)
.. yielding (not assertive)
.. wise (not learned)
.. most likely to take from those who have too
much (and give to those without enough)
.. most likely to spare lives (not take them) …

48. “… caring (not indifferent)”

49. “… humble (not proud)”

50. “… frugal (not profligate)”

51. “… yielding (not assertive)”

52. “… wise (not learned)”

53. “… taking from those who have too much (and giving to those without enough”)

54. “... sparing lives (not taking them)”

55. … in addition, Lao Tzu thinks, “natural actions”
.. leave people alone (rather than interfere
with them, e.g., by trying to teach them
too much so they become confused)
.. are timely, dealing with issues while
still small (rather than waiting until they
become too big)
.. teach “being content”, self-understanding,
and self-control (rather than dissatisfaction,
lack of awareness, and lack of inhibition) …

56. “… dealing with issues while small (rather than waiting until they become too big)”, e.g. F.A.S.T.

57. … “natural actions”, Lao Tzu says, also
.. do not foster fame, riches, ritual or the the overt use of power (they are used to keep the state’s “sharpest weapons” where none can see them) .. do not portray such weapons as “lovely” (they depict them as ugly instead) .. oppose all conquest by force of arms (they do not promote it) .. know the male (and the female both) …

58. “… keeping the state’s ‘sharpest weapons’ where none can see them”

59. “… knowing the male (and the female too)”

60. … “natural actions”, Lao Tze says, are finally those that
.. do not oppress ordinary people (instead, they
seek to better people’s welfare, while seeing
and hearing as they do)
.. do not stimulate the desire for products that are
hard to get (they do not advertise)
.. do not legislate kindness or morality (they are
helpful and childlike instead, while still valuing
profound thoughts, gentle friendships, true
words, good government, due regulation, and
effective deeds)

61. “… not advertising”

62. “… not legislating … morality”

63. “… gentle friendships”

64. “… good government”

65. .. what is a “profound thought”? .. what is “good government”?
. now: there are many undefined universals built in to Lao Tzu’s approach, for example:
.. what is “wisdom”?
.. what is “kindness”?
.. what is a “true word”?
.. what is a “profound thought”?
.. what is “good government”?
.. what is an “effective” deed?
.. what does knowing the “male” and the
“female” involve?

66. .. the defender prevails by yielding and
. this said, wu wei can be seen at work in the practice of a martial art like tai chi chuan
.. here the power of an opponent is returned or
“re-directed”
.. the defender prevails by yielding and
neutralizing the offender rather than by
using countervailing force

67. “tai chi chuan …”

68. . this said: it is one thing to “re-direct” a punch to the face or a kick to the stomach; it is quite
another to “re-direct” an invading army . yet the techniques of all guerrilla war - rural or urban - are basically those of wu wei . we will look at this later in the course . at this point it is simply worth noting how this is one way in which “old” forms of war are manifest in “new” contexts

69. “guerrilla war …”

70. . In brief: guerrillas avoid wars of position; they
do not like to risk face-to-face fighting for fear
of defeat
. they prefer to undermine their enemy and to
wait for the right moment to apply direct force
. Lao Tzu supports this strategy but he goes a step
further by suggesting that any conflict is best
dealt with when the risk of losing it is small and
when strategic intervention is likely to preempt
the need for conflict altogether

71. whose founder, Morihei Uyeshiba, wanted to
. the same logic is found in aikido, a Japanese martial art that manifests Taoist principles
. aikido is a non-violent form of self-defense
whose founder, Morihei Uyeshiba, wanted to
create a martial art of harmony and love, not
discord and hate
. its purpose is not to fight, i.e., to try and win
. it is to “harmonize ourselves with the movement
of the universe and [to] bring ourselves into
accord with the universe itself”

72. can be applied in daily life, up to and including
. winning under these circumstances means “winning over the mind of discord in … [one]self”
. aikido is not just a martial art since its principles
can be applied in daily life, up to and including
the practice of global affairs
. it has been called, for example, a “germane
metaphor” for describing and explaining the
international relations of Japan (Hook et al,
Japan’s International Relations, 2001)

73. “aikido …”

74. world affairs “realism” or the “tit-for-tat”
. the collaborative nature of the aikido/Taoist approach is very different from the “dog-eat-
dog” competitiveness that is the basis for
world affairs “realism” or the “tit-for-tat”
cooperativeness that is the basis for “inter-
nationalism”
. at the same time it is not “globalism”, despite
the suggestion at the start that it might be
. indeed, it has nothing to do with this rationalist,
pessimistic/opportunistic/optimistic spectrum

75. Western, competitive, state-obsessed men who
. it promotes instead positive collaboration of the kind that “self-realization” means
. what, then, does Lao Tzu have to say to the white,
Western, competitive, state-obsessed men who
dominate world affairs today (should they ever
shut up long enough to listen to him)
. as noted as the start global politico-strategics
are usually read in military and diplomatic terms,
i.e., in terms of the changing balance of power
and challenges to state and interstate security

76. . less conventionally they are seen in politico- economic, -social, -cultural and -sacral terms
. this is not what we find in the media, though; there we descriptions of terrorism, trade and financial issues, gender, resource, pollution and population issues – and, of course, wars . the sheer diversity of such concerns, and their global reach today, is what inspired Kaldor to try and expand the discipline’s focus from an “old” war one to a “new” war one

77. .. acting freely and spontaneously
. to the mainstream analyst, Lao Tzu offers wu wei, or the concept of “no unnatural action”
. he recommends:
.. acting freely and spontaneously
.. sparing lives by using overt force reluctantly
(and avoiding it altogether when possible)
.. keeping force minimal when it is unavoidable
.. planning ahead for regional/global challenges
.. not putting weapons on public display, and
.. intervening earlier rather than later

78. . to others he offers the same general advice plus:
.. not stimulating the desire for goods that are
hard to get
.. not legislating morality (is this possible?)
.. using “Robin Hood” tactics to distribute
wealth
.. again, always acting in a timely way, and
.. acknowledging the male but connecting with
the female too

79. As an example, how would Lao Tzu’s ideas apply to global and regional security in the light of the
“rise of China”? . its large military forces certainly suggest that there is a Chinese threat . China has long played a central role in regional affairs as well . as China recovers from the effects of 19th c. imperialism there is no reason to think it will not play this role again

81. . yet others see the likely outcome as being a
. some analysts actively fear China’s rise . other see it doing no more than taking its
rightful place again as a major world power
. yet others see the likely outcome as being a
complex politico-strategic “tango” as Chinese
leaders make various military and diplomatic
moves and the rest of the world responds
. China’s leaders themselves talk of being open
and peaceful while noting on-going issues like
the U.S., the Taiwan, and the “island” ones

83. . China’s rapid economic development has strategic implications of its own, e.g.,
.. the need to protect the shipping lanes along which vital raw materials come in (like oil) and manufactured goods (like clothing) go out . much turns here upon assessments of China’s strategic intentions, since as noted already . if its leaders have no intention of using their power, then the latter is of little significance

85. allows it to maximize its productive potential
. a benign China may mean no more than it wants to continue developing as fast as it can
and that it needs the security environment that
allows it to maximize its productive potential
. it might also mean that it has its own “strategic
culture” and this is different from the Euro-
American one
.. there is a problem, in the latter case, with
“parachuting” Euro-American perceptions
into the Asia-Pacific region

86. . Chinese leaders may use Western words about world affairs while promoting their own civilization
. it is worth noting, however, that China is .. not expansionist .. understands that conflict is avoidable, and .. is only likely to use force - defensively - minimally and - righteously (Johnston, Cultural Realism, 1995, 24)

87. .. the need to better the welfare of the people, and
. this is, in part, Taoist 　. it helps explain why the Chinese think in such
terms as
.. contingency planning
.. strategic restraint
.. the need to better the welfare of the people,
and
.. being “prudent” not “arrogant” (despite
becoming strong), therefore …

88. might be an exception to the realpolitik rule
… any conclusion about China as a rising threat has to include the extent to which its leaders
think in Taoist terms, i.e., the extent to which it
might be an exception to the realpolitik rule
. to treat it otherwise might be to bring about the
very response that Euro-American leaders fear

89. As another example of applied Taoism , how does it apply to the modernist/rationalist culture that is
the cultural context to all world affairs today? In
short:
. modernist/rationalism limits and distorts our
understanding of world affairs
. as noted earlier, however, Taoism can
compensate for this
As to “old” wars and “new” ones …

90. … Lao Tzu, like Thucydides, lived long before the age of globalization; his idea of “old” wars was
pre-modernist and he could not be expected to have known about “new” wars in Kaldor’s sense . this said, his ideas are highly subversive of the logic of “old” wars as this applied in his day, e.g., he knew about standing armies (i.e. “old” war forms) but he thought these should be kept out of sight, used reluctantly, and their victories mourned not celebrated (wu-wei)

91. wars a matter of identity rather than territory
. he also does not endorse how “new” wars interfere with the lives of ordinary people by
displacing them, for example, or by making
wars a matter of identity rather than territory
.. in that respect he is not likely to have
supported either “old” wars or “new” ones
.. he has his own approach – wu wei

94. … and I hope to see you next week