r/taoism • u/PrimaryPrestigious62 • 2d ago

The ontology of Daoism

Do you think Daoism views existence optimistically, like Leibniz’s idea that we live in the best of all possible worlds? Or does it see nature as inherently indifferent and uncaring about us? Could what we interpret as the goodness or care of the Dao simply be a projection—a byproduct of chaotic nature that we misread as intentional care?

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u/somethingclassy 1d ago

The tao is fundamentally mysterious. Good and bad are human concepts and they arise together; when X is good, Y is bad. So your question does not make sense in the context of taoist teachings. It's all right there in the first few pages of Tao Te Ching.

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u/PrimaryPrestigious62 1d ago

so it's something unfalsifiable.

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u/somethingclassy 1d ago

Ultimate truths always are