Time & Space

Taoism meets Materialism: How does Fan Zhen rewrite the history of Thought with ‘Form and Spirit against each other’?  Introduction: Historical Context of Intellectual Transmission Similarities in Historical Background Social turbulence during the Wei-Jin and Northern-Southern Dynasties (5th-6th century CE)（It’s similar to the chapter of Parallel thumb on Parallelism） The flourishing of Buddhism and indigenous…

The nature of reality, the fluidity of identity, and the boundaries between illusion and truth are themes that have fascinated thinkers across cultures and centuries. Two seemingly disparate works—The Truman Show (1998), a modern satirical film directed by Peter Weir, and the ancient Daoist parable of Zhuangzi’s “Butterfly Dream” from Zhuangzi Chapter 2—explore these questions in strikingly similar…

The Taoist Concept of “Creation from Nothingness” (有生于无) and Dark Matter 1. Core Conceptual Comparison “Being arises from Non-Being” (You sheng yu wu, Tao Te Ching Chapter 40): “Wu” (Non-Being) does not signify absolute nothingness but rather an unmanifest potential state (e.g., the formless Tao, the undifferentiated void). “You” (Being) refers to the observable, manifested world (the “ten thousand…

1. Core Similarity: The Pursuit of an “Ideal Society” Common Ground: Critique of Reality: Both reject excessive control (e.g., Confucian rituals/European feudalism). Harmony as Goal: Laozi seeks alignment with nature (Dao), while utopias envision conflict-free equality. Simplified Governance: Laozi opposes complex laws; utopias (e.g., More’s Utopia) mock legalism in favor of natural reason. Key Difference: Wu…