노자철학에서 현실인간에 대한 비판

Abstract

Lao Tzu Philosophy begins with the criticism of reality. The destination is Ideal society and Ideal Human Being [Saint]. The reality he criticizes is diverse; including society, politics, ruling, language, and human behavior. The center of it all is the Human Being. Therefore, the beginning and the core of Lao Tzu's criticism of reality is the Human Being. Lao Tzu criticizes human beings in three categories: government official [士], ruler, and ordinary people. In this paper, we deal only with the criticism of these three kinds of people and do not mention ideal human beings. The officials come from the subordinate government officials of the Zhou Dynasty in the Warring States period. These intellectuals, who became unemployed due to the fall of the Zhou Dynasty, were reincarnated as the government officials of the sovereign Princely States and lived on the transfer of knowledge to the private sector. In this process, the exploration of practical knowledge was focused on, rather than the quest for pure truth. Practical knowledge, a means of success, was an object of envy to the people at the time. Lao Tzu criticized the subjects, intellectuals, because many distortions and problems arise from the process of buying and selling such knowledge. Among the human beings, the people that Lao Tzu criticized most intensively were rulers. The center of everything in the period of monarchy was the king (ruler). The rulers of the Spring and Autumn period were trying to conquer other countries through war. They charged the people with heavy taxes as well as military service. Taxes had also been used for their personal luxuries, in addition to military funding. And he accused them of using coercion and violence for easy governance. Lao Tzu poured acidic criticism on these ruthless rulers. Lao Tzu also criticized ordinary people and the general public. One of the reasons why the Human Being causes problems is because it has a body. The body is greedy with physical desire. Another form of greed is mental desire. The Human Being has a strong sense of honor as well as greed for power and wealth. He devotes his most precious life to honor. And one of the things Human Being seeks is value. From Lao Tzu's point of view, value is relative, and it is contested to take it. On the other hand, living things are soft and dead ones are hard. Ordinary people are stiff and closed. Lao Tzu criticized these points of ordinary people and human beings in general.