Taoism and Taoist Beliefs on Life After Death

Taoism is a philosophical, ethical,
and religious tradition of Chinese
origin that emphasizes living in
harmony with the Tao. The term
Tao means "way", "path" or
"principle", and can also be found in
Chinese philosophies and religions
other than Taoism. In Taoism,
however, Tao denotes something
that is both the source and the
driving force behind everything that
exists. It is ultimately ineffable: "The
Tao that can be told is not the
eternal Tao."…read more

In Taoism, death is neither feared
nor desired- instead a person
enjoys living. In a sense, the afterlife
doesn't exist in terms of a Taoist
belief system- it's in life that we are
eternal in Taoism. The afterlife is
within life itself. We are of the Tao
when living and upon death are the
Tao again.
· Eventually the hope is to become
immortal, to achieve oneness with
the Tao, to have reached the
deeper life. This is the afterlife for a
Taoist--to be in harmony with the
universe.…read more

According to the Tao death is not really
a loss, but a transformation, and that
what we knew as the person moves on
to participate in an endless ever-
changing dance of manifestation,
existence and de-manifestation that is
the Tao. Mortal existence is just one of
the infinite numbers of manifestations
of the Tao. Taoism states that we must
learn to overcome the human instinct
to view mortal death as bad and as the
"ultimate end", and to rest comfortably
knowing that what happens to us after
mortal death is also part of the eternal
process of the Tao. If we can learn to
live in harmony with the Tao during our
mortal lives, we will be in harmony with
the Tao at the time of our mortal death.
If we can manage that, then
everything else will fall into place; that
is the nature of the Tao.…read more

Taoism upholds the belief in the
survival of the spirit after death.
Taoist believes birth is not a
beginning, and death is not an end.
In ancient days a Taoist that had
transcended birth and death,
achieved Tao, was said to have cut
the Thread of Life. In Taoism, the
soul is not reborn; it simply migrates
to another life. This process, the
Taoist version of reincarnation, is
repeated until Tao is achieved.
Taoism perceive life, death and
rebirth as a continuous cycle. This
cycle has no beginning and no end.
The soul is eternal, yet the soul is
not the object of reincarnation.…read more

A very common and major goal of
most Taoists is to achieve
immortality rather than enter the
regular after life. Reaching this
goal is not easy; there are various
tasks that must me met during
your entire lifetime to be qualified
to be immortal. In Taoism one's
soul or energy is considered to be
interlocked with the vital energy,
which is what nourishes your soul.
Riding the body of impurities can
increase this energy. Aside from
these requirements, you must lead
an upright, moral and good-
hearted life.…read more