The Influence of Taoism Postulates on the Development of Chinese Society
The paper analyzes the main postulates of Taoism, their influence on the development of scientific thought, art, politics, morals and ethical attitudes, accepted in society, as well as on the way of life. On the basis of the study of the ancient Chinese treatise "Tao Te Ching" ("Canon of the Way and Grace"), the article analyzes the main laws derived by Lao Tzu on strength and weakness; the external and internal manifestations of things; courage and cowardice, haste and the ability to wait, the desire to go ahead and the ability to wait; the ability to take into account the level of development of any process and phenomenon. The complex external, continuously changing forms of things, investigated by Lao Tzu and generalized into the laws of the development of things, were put into the basis of all activity. The article describes the influence of the laws observance on people's everyday life, the development of certain areas of China's social and political life, and global business. It considers the importance of following the postulates of the Taoist belief in military affairs for a number of centuries, as well as in China's foreign and domestic policy. Particular attention is paid to the fusion of Taoist practices and traditional Chinese medicine, which assesses a person as the unity of the forces that affect the body.