Religious Origin of the Terms Dao and De and Their Signification in the Laozi

Bibliographic Data

ID12558656
AuthorsJinhua Jia (0000-0003-3398-909X, University of Macau, corresponding author)
Year2009
Volume19
Issue4
Pages459-488
Publication date2009-09-09
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of the Royal Asiatic Society (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1356-1863 • E-ISSN: 1474-0591
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s135618630999006x
OpenAlexW2030633404
LanguageEN
Citations received6
References cited20

This article applies a synthetic approach of philological, religious, philosophical, and cultural studies to explore the original meaning of the terms dao 道 and de 德, two primary concepts in traditional Chinese intellectual history. Through an etymological analysis of the characters dao and de , and supported by both received and discovered texts and materials, this article demonstrates that dao originally represented the spirit of the Pole Star/High God and the movement of Heaven, and de , in relation to dao , originally represented the impartial virtue and power of Heaven. In terms of this new interpretation, the article further discusses the signification of dao and de in the Laozi to uncover the mystic aspects of the text

Art · Epistemology · Heaven · Interpretation (philosophy · Linguistics · Literature · Meaning (existential · Mysticism · Philology · Relation (database · Sociology · Theology · Virtue · Chinese history and philosophy · Hong Kong and Taiwan Politics · Japanese History and Culture · Philosophy

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