Zhang Libo(Institute of Religious Studies　Sichuan University,Chengdu　Sichuan　610000)



The Taoist Ecological Ethics Concerning Animal Protection

Zhang Libo
(Institute of Religious StudiesSichuan University,ChengduSichuan610000)

Nowadays,the animal crisis is not only an ethical issue,but also an ecological crisis.In order to resolve this crisis,we should seek ideological support from traditional Chinese culture.Taoism has the theoretical basis concerning the harmonious relations between human and animals,man and nature.In the meantime,the religious doctrines also advocate nursing life,loving life and saving life as well as abstention from killing.The paper attempts to summarize all relevant ideas and carry out a comprehensive research,thus contributing to theories concerning the issue of contemporary animal protection.

the animal crisis;Heaven-Man Oneness;religious disciplines;the retribution for sin;reward and punishment from divinities;abstention from voracity and hunting

Ⅰ.The animal crisis in traditional Chinese culture

Modern animal rights theories coincide with ethical theories of traditional Chinese culture.We Chinese has long been valuing vitality,and “The big moral of heaven and earth is vitality” is an evidence in our traditional culture.〔1〕The idea “The Dao provisions unity,unity provisions duality,duality provisions trinity,trinity provisions the myriad things.The myriad things bear shadows and embrace radiance,are infused with the breath of life to achieve the harmonized trinity of darkness,light and soul.” further reflects that we perceive life from an ontological perspective.〔2〕All the ideas tell the fact that we pay great respect to the holiness of life.Moreover,according to the Buddhist and Taoist scriptures.everything (including man) is endowed with feelings and consciousness.Like animal rights theorists,ancient Chinese treated animals equally.Hence,it has been recognized by scholars both home and abroad that we Chinese have the ideological foundation for addressing the ecological issues today.It is of great necessity to seek for ideological support from Taoism,which advocates harmony and co-existence,to solve the animal crisis.

Ⅱ.Fundamental theories concerning animal protection in Taoism

There exist views on loving life and nursing life in Confucianism and Buddhism as well.While in the traditional Taoism,there exist more theories in this respect.First of all,the ontological view of Taoism offers an indiscriminate perspective to observe everything,such as “The Dao provisions the myriad things” and “From the point of view of Tao,there are no such extremes of value or worthlessness.”〔3〕Proposed by Master Zhuang.In essence,all things in the world are equal,and the difference only lies in the degree of achieving Tao.The so-called value or worthlessness are just common people’s judgment.“Tao is in the ant,in a tare,in a potsherd,in ordure”〔4〕further explains that all things have their Tao and that they are equal.Therefore,Taoism opposes the anthropocentric perspective that we human beings have the privilege of controlling everything.According to one Taoist scripture in late Tang Dynasty,like human beings,other animals all bear Yin and Yang,and have the ability to think,speak,build houses and propagate in spite of the different shapes.As existing life,they are all part of nature.Moreover,the scripture criticizes that man’s intelligence does harm to the society’s original plainness,which is completely de-anthropocentric.

The theory of interaction between heaven and man in Taoism believes that all things come from Qi and are in universal link.Thus,killing animals not only leads to death,but also affects the circulation of Qi.The Qi of depression from the killed animal can break the balance of Yin and Yang,thereby influencing man’s longevity.In light of this,we can conclude that Taoism recommends the harmony between man and animals.

Taoism tends to conceive that both man and animals have feelings as well as awareness,thus sharing common ethical principles,which is demonstrated in one scripture during the period of Five Dynasties.As we share similarities with animals,we should abide by our morals and respect animals instead of hurting them.The act of killing animals or destroying their habitats is neither wise nor moral.

In the field of psychoanalysis,there exists a theory of projection,which means that man can project their own emotions,values and judgments on other things.Man can show empathy to animals.People against animal rights theory may find fault with this theory by claiming that the projection is just the display of human feelings or that human merely save animals out of sympathy.But the fact is more than that,for projection itself can improve human’s virtue as a result.Complying with Five Virtues while treating animals,human actually show their resolution to follow the principles.There is no doubt that the improvement will benefit both sides,not only for the living environment of animals but also for the spiritual realm of man.

Taoism advocates “action without intent”,that is to follow the characteristics of the thing itself.Hence,we human beings should not judge the value of things from our own perspective.Instead,we should learn to observe all things from the perspective of Tao.Observing from our own perspective just reflects our inner desires,while observing from the perspective of Tao illustrates the unique existence of all things,the inherent connection among all things and the value of this connection.In brief,we can maintain ecological balance by developing ecological diversity.

Taoism values vitality,for it treats all things equally.Hence,it is natural to love all creatures.In Tao Te Ching,there writes “ I have three precious things that I hold on to and cherish.The first is called mercy;The second is called prudence;The third is not daring to be on top of the world.”〔5〕As man and all creatures are all created by Tao,then there is no difference.Helping creatures is helping ourselves.Loving creatures is loving ourselves.Therefore,we should treat all creatures the way we would like to be treated and entertain an eternal loving heart.

Taoism values life and perceives that all things are equal,which consequently provides a complete theoretical system for animal protection.More importantly,this kind of theory is not simply based on personal feelings,but can contribute to expanding conservationists’ horizons and deepening their theory.

Ⅲ.Discussion on ideas concerning animal protection in Taoism

As a religion,Taoism has its influence in the secular aspect,educating people about eliminating evilness and developing good virtues.To eliminate evilness,the doctrines need to be prohibitive and mandatory;To develop good virtues,they need to be persuasive and encouraging.When it comes to the issue of animal protection,Taoist doctrines also emphasize the ideology by publicizing religious disciplines,the retribution for sin,and reward and punishment from divinities.In this part,we mainly focus on the relevant ideas.What’s more,unlike our modern thinking pattern featuring isolation and classification,Taoism regards neither protecting animals nor killing animals as an isolated act.Instead,it believes that the killing can lead to physical and psychological crisis,moral crisis and even social crisis.This perspective has an enlightening effect on modern conservationists and we will further probe into it in the following part as well.

1.Religious disciplines

Religious disciplines always have special value,for the process of following disciplines is the process of worshiping its divinity.Still,it is an act of abiding by the world view displayed in the creed.By following religious disciplines,man can feel themselves being part part of the entire divine world,integrating into the world.Furthermore,disciplines demonstrate principles concerning relationship.Through upholding the principles,man can achieve a harmonious relationship with all things,which is particularly beneficial to people’s physical and mental stability.In this regard,Taoism is no exception.Undoubtedly,a great number of Taoist disciplines advocates nursing life as well as abstention from killing.This profound theoretical foundation in Taoism exerts its efficacy by applying disciplines into people’s routine life instead of inculcating on the theoretical level.Hence,Tao can be put into practice so as to prevail in real life.

There are both explicit and implicit disciplines concerning animal protection in Taoist scriptures.On the one hand,the explicit ones are expressed concisely,like “no hunting,no killing birds,etc”.While the simple expressions involve in many specific actions,which are worth contemplation.These detailed stipulations present the specific contexts,urging people to mind their act in every possible way.“No stepping on insects” is a typical example,which reminds people to walk carefully in order not to hurt insects.In other words,stepping on insects is a behavior of ignorance and hauteur,while avoiding stepping on them is a sign of humbleness.On the other hand,the implicit ones do not mention animals,but we can still trace the connotation for animal protection.“Never fire the forests” demonstrates that man should not destroy animals’ habitats,which is consistent with the idea of universal link.We should protect the ecological environment as a whole so as to protect animals.

Observing the examples mentioned above,we can seldom find a purely theoretical discipline.

Instead,they are all linked with specific contexts and quite different from western doctrines.Instead of instilling theories into people’s mind,Taoist disciplines focus on how people should behave in routine life and mildly encourage people to make a change in actions,then a change in ideology.More importantly,Taoist scriptures believe that everything is linked and that animals,plants,land and water are an integral one.When we protect any of them,we protect the ecology,and we uphold Tao,which differs from the isolated ideas of animal rights theorists.This kind of perspective offers referential value to contemporary animal protection.

2.The retribution for sin,reward and punishment from divinities

As one kind of theology,Taoism pays attention to ethics,believing the good virtues are to be blessed by the divinity while evilness are to be punished.The idea of reward and punishment provides a significant theoretical basis for animal protection.In some scriptures,there are even theories quantifying the goodness and evilness through a mechanism called “merit and demerit”.In this mechanism,one can evaluate its own behaviors objectively,which is vividly effective for further improvement.

There are theories about the retribution for sin as well.The retribution for hunting is to make the hunter bear the pain of animals and even more brutality after death.The kind of theory had an effective binding force in ancient times.Though we don’t believe in divinity nowadays,we can still draw lessons from it,perform self-discipline in this aspect,and even guiding children to love animals.

Both the theory of retribution for sin as well as reward and punishment,are epitome of Taoist animal protection ideas.By analyzing them and reviewing them,we can gain enormous beneficial ideas for the current situation.

3.The reasons for abstention from voracity and hunting

Taoism observes all things from the perspective of universal link,regarding them as an integral one.Hence,neither killing nor eating animals is an isolated behavior.Instead,that will lead to a series of consequences,such as climate crisis and food crisis claimed by modern ecologists as well.Taoism presents more inherent and humane discussions on these issues,which can certainly enlighten modern ecologists.We will investigate the reasons for abstention from voracity and hunting in this part.

In Tao Te Ching,“The delicious flavors that make people’s mouth numb.”〔6〕and “indulgence in hunting makes people’s heart wild.”〔7〕Are two examples urging man to refrain from voracity and hunting.The first one indicates that voracity makes people fail to appreciate the flavor of food and hunting makes people lose their inner peace.These expressions tend to be ignored by man,while the most critical reason for this kind of abstention is that voracity and hunting may eventually harm our own body and mentality.Still,except Tao Te Ching,there are more similar doctrines in Taoism in this aspect.The expressions or ideas may differ,while the attitudes towards either voracity or hunting are the same.

The desire for delicious flavors mainly means the love for meat,which is a violent dietary habit.When the desire cannot be satisfied,man may get resentful.As the desire is limitless,and so is the imbalance caused by resentment.Eventually in Taoism,we find that eating meat is linked with animal protection and even more complicated issues regarding our physical and mental health.

Through the discussion above,we intend to explain the unique perspective of Taoism,which believes that one’s behavior can influence one’s physical and mental status,social ethics and even the society.This perspective is completely different from modern classified science.We are certainly aware that Taoist creeds,purposes and ways of thinking share no similarities with modern vegetarianism,which makes us reflect whether it is suitable to combine animal protection initiatives in Taoism with modern ecological theories.(Whether we should establish our own ecology on the basis of Taoist way of thinking instead of blindly following western ways of thinking.) However,Taoism tends to emphasize the specific context instead of inculcating people with empty talk that we should love animals instead of killing animals and eating.Taoism describes specific situations for killing,like hunting animals or stepping on insects,which vividly make people feel about their behaviors and the results.In such a process,people’s feelings are an indispensable part for improvement in virtues and spirits.Like the purpose of any religion,the ultimate goal is man’s mental achievements rather than the external world.We live in a world where abstract ideas and slogans prevail.The lack of realistic theories calls upon the advent of Taoist doctrines,which is so close to our routine life as well as feelings.

Ⅳ.Conclusion

Modern animal crisis has caused severe ecological crisis and ethical crisis.We human beings desperately need to transform our world view,take specific humane measures against animal crisis,and develop empathy while addressing this issue.In these respects,we can draw lessons from ancient Taoist ideas.

Innovations in the thesis:1.For the moment,there are no specialized study in Taoist ideas and principles concerning animal protection,and most only probe into the overall ecological ideas in Taoism.This thesis makes a breakthrough in this field.2.The way of thinking in Taoism is one characterized by the universal link of the world,which is different from our modern thinking pattern.Taoism believes that neither killing animals nor eating animals is an isolated behavior.These behaviors may trigger physical or mental crisis,moral crisis and even social crisis,which offers an enlightening perspective for modern animal conservationists.3.This paper gives a brief introduction about contemporary animal crisis.

(Translated by Huang Qiuyue)

References:

〔1〕廖名春：《周易》，辽宁教育出版社，1997年，第54页。

〔2〕〔5〕〔6〕〔7〕《道藏》第14册，北京文物出版社，上海书店，天津古籍出版社，1988年，第7、10、3、3页。

〔3〕〔4〕孙雍长：《庄子》，花城出版社 ，1998年，第209、287页。

About the author：Zhang Libo(1985—),PhD in Institute of Religious Studies of Sichuan University,research fields:Taoist philosophy.