Life and Death in Laozi and Zhuangzi: Comparative Perspectives and Contemporary Significance

Abstract

Life and death are among the ultimate questions of human existence. Within pre-Qin Daoist thought, Laozi and Zhuangzi approach these questions from a distinctive perspective marked by detachment, naturalness, and spiritual freedom. Through close textual comparison, this paper examines the similarities and differences between their views from the dual perspectives of life and death. It argues that both thinkers adopt a transcendent attitude toward death, oppose the damage to life caused by excessive desire, anxiety, and rigidity, and advocate material moderation together with spiritual cultivation in accordance with nature. At the same time, they differ significantly in their understanding of the unity of life and death and in the role of qi in explaining the life-death process. In the context of intensifying social competition and hyper-competition, the Lao-Zhuang philosophy of life and death retains important contemporary significance by helping individuals move beyond utilitarian obsessions, alleviate existential anxiety, and cultivate more natural ways of preserving life.