ABSTRACT
The idea of wu originated with a text known as the Laozi or the Daodejing, which is conventionally attributed to a senior contemporary of Confucius, Lao Dan, who was revered as Laozi, the suffix zi indicating something like master. The Laozi contends that you arises from wu, which denotes nothingness or the original state of the universe when nothing has emerged. The named and nameless are not two stages of cosmological evolution. However, some philosophers prefer a rather different reading initiated by Wang Anshi, who reinterpreted the compounds you-ming and wu-ming. In other words, under his interpretation, wu as Dao is both transcendent and immanent. The Laozi contains the author's concern and reflections about the tendencies of human civilization, and it manifests his worry and his hope for human societies and life. Still another negative particle, wu, forms compounds such as not being supercilious, not being haughty, and not showing strength.
