Wuwei, China

Wuwei (woo-WAY) Taoist concept of a disengagement from the affairs of the world.

Early Taoists recognized as the chief moral virtue the trait of wuwei – disengagement from the competitive exertions and active involvement in affairs of the world. Wuwei required that individuals refrain from advanced education (which concentrated on abstruse trivialities) and from personal striving (which indicated excessive concern with the tedious affairs of the world). Wuwei called instead for individuals to live simply, unpretentiously, and in harmony with nature.

Wuwei also had implications for state and society: the less government, the better. Instead of expansive kingdoms and empires, the Tao Te Ching envisioned a world of tiny, self-sufficient communities where people had no desire to conquer their neighbors or to trade with them. Indeed, even when people lived so close to the next community that they could hear the dogs barking and cocks crowing, they would be so content with their existence that they would not even have the desire to visit their neighbors.