Taoist "Oblivion" Thought

"Sitting in oblivion(坐忘)’’is an important part of Chuang-Tzu’s religious theory, which is a way to cultivate oneself according to the religious doctrine as well as an ultimate state connected with Taoism after gradual practice.The Taoists in Tang Dynasty reformed the practice method of "sitting in oblivion" on the basis of traditional practice method of refining the body and spirit, making the content of it more abundant, the gradation clearer and the practice method more Stylized, thus making "sitting in oblivion" gradually separated from what Chuang-Tzu originally meant "sitting in oblivion" for.This essay, based on what have been accomplished in the relative field, tries to give a brief account of "sitting in oblivion" of Taoism in Tang Dynasty using the method of academic history.Chapter One gives a brief introduction to the ideological origin of the practice method"sitting in oblivion", which was originated by Chuang-Tzu. Guo Xiang wrote the influential Annotation on Chuang-Tzu(《庄子注》),who later made a great influence on how Taoists in Tang Dynasty understood "sitting in oblivion".Chapter Two and Three select two Taoists, Cheng Xuanying and Wang Xuanlan of Tang Dynasty, as the subjects of the study who both have unique insights into the practice method "sitting in oblivion". In these two chapters, the two Taoists thoughts are deeply analyzed and their theoretical contributions to the development of the practice method "sitting in oblivion" are made clear as well.Chapter Four and Five make a careful organization of Heavenly Hermit (《天隐子》)and Discourse on Sitting in Oblivion(《坐忘论》), which intensively discussed the practice method "sitting in oblivion". Afterwards this essay brings up its own opinion of some disputable questions therein and clarifies different characters of the practice method "sitting in oblivion" in the two books.