Episode

Taoism: Ep. 2 - The Path that is the Path

Podcast
The Wes Cecil Podcast
Published
Jul 17, 2026
Duration seconds
2816
Processing state
not_requested
Canonical source
https://shows.acast.com/wes-cecil/episodes/taoism-ep-2-the-path-that-is-the-path
Audio
https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/66fb968b13b87f41275ee4bd/e/6a5951eef782764c4c173e88/media.mp3
JSON
/v1/public/podcasts/the-wes-cecil-podcast-7118191/episodes/taoism-ep-2-the-path-that-is-the-path
Markdown
/podcast/the-wes-cecil-podcast-7118191/taoism-ep-2-the-path-that-is-the-path.md

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Summary

Two key insights from a key section of the Tao Te Ching ask us to question 1) Our propensity for committing ourselves to pre-established narratives and 2) Our love of language games. By throwing these fundamental tendencies into doubt, Taoism provides a radical critique of pretty much every conceivable system, not just the prominent schools of Chinese philosophy. While the passages seem a bit gnomic and mystical, they are rather a very clear articulation of a key source of human confusion and unhappiness. Join Wes on Patreon for a deeper dive into the ideas we explore on the podcast. It’s a space for lifelong learners — with bonus lectures, course materials, peer discussion, and audio diaries from France. Wes is active in the community and often engages directly with listener questions. Starting at $2/month. Image credit: Thanato, CC BY-SA 3.0 < https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.