Laozi tianxi diyi 老子天下第一 by Zhao Qiguang 赵启光 (review)

Abstract

168 Journal of Chinese Religions should make every effort to systematically discuss and rigorously critique previous scholarship before they can hope to surpass it. PAUL R. KATZ, Academia Sinica, Institute of Modern History Daojiao yu nüxing 道教与女性 ZHAN SHICHUANG 詹石窗. Beijing: Zongjiao wenhua chubanshe 宗教文化出 版社, 2010. ISBN 978-7-80254-297-6. 196 pages. RMB 26.00. The author is director of the Laozi Research Institute at Sichuan University and a prolific author on Daoist topics. According to his afterword, this book is a reworking of essays on women and Daoism that he began publishing twenty-two years ago. The book is divided into two parts: a history of Daoism and female worship and a section on Daoism and female practice. The first part is a conventional recounting of the worship of female deities and immortals, as well as its influence on Chinese history and local customs. The second section on practice has chapters on its origins and goals, and chapters on beauty and sex skills. Overall, the book seems to reflect the growing interest in women and Daoism but it is uninformed by other research in the field and is of limited use unless one is teaching a course at a Chinese university and needs a stolid overview in Chinese. IAN JOHNSON, Beijing Laozi tianxi diyi 老子天下第一 ZHAO QIGUANG 赵启光. Beijing: Beijing Daxue chubanshe 北京大学出版社, 2010. 180 PAGES. ISBN 978-7-301-09018-3. RMB 25.00. The author is a professor of Chinese at Carleton College, a liberal arts school in Minnesota. The book is based on lectures he gave on Shandong Cable Television’s Xinxingtan 新杏坛, an educational show. Zhao says that people tend to think of Laozi as dealing with big issues in Book Notes 169 life “but you can use it in your daily life. People do not realize that he can solve family issues too.” The book then explains how the Daodejing respects women, encourages a harmonious marriage, allows people to feel content and to live a long life. Written in a very accessible, colloquial style, complete with audience questions and Mr. Zhao’s folksy answers, the book can be seen as part of a small but significant effort to popularize Daoism to a more urban audience. IAN JOHNSON, Beijing ...