Who knew I was a Taoist all along? I thought I was a nihilist. Not the kind with black turtlenecks but another kind. I've always been a bit interested in Dao/Taoism but never studied. All of the western weirdos who were into Eastern philosophy scared me off. I didn't want to turn into one of them like Steve Jobs or that hippy book about motorcycle maintenance. I believe in living in the moment and always have. Back when I was first studying Chinese I learned all the words for moving around: directions, street signs and so on because those are immediately useful. A lot of them had the character dao in them somewhere, like dadao, boulevard or daoda, arrive.
One day, I step into the vestibule of some random temple and there is a two-story high scroll of the character 到.
As I craned my neck to see the top, I said, "ooooh, I get it! Dao! The way!"
Upon seeing this, I was enlightened.
I actually like Chinese philosophy, particularly Confucianism, because of how materialistic it is. It's about running a state and keeping people from killing each other, while a lot of Greek philosophy is about the nature of the self yada yada.
The development of the various schools, and their support bases, is also interesting from a historical materialist perspective. You have the Confucians (nerds), who look at a world in war and destruction, and say 'this suffering is because of lack of knowledge. If we educate everyone to follow rules, respect their superiors and protect those below them, there will be peace. So we must fund education and research, and thoroughly educate emperors and officers.'
Then the Mohists, who come from the working classes, say 'have you seen these snobs? They exploit us all the time and would start a war if it benefits them, since it'll be us dying for them. So we need to train weaker groups to resist the strong, and do away with useless luxuries like rituals and elaborate musical performances'.
The Legalists (civil servants) attack the Confucians from another angle, pointing out that statecraft is not as black and white as the Confucians think, and that the only quality on which a public servant should be judged is the ability to get things done. 'It does not matter if the cat is black or white, as long as it catches mice.'
Finally you have the Taoists, who were originally mystics, but whose teaching that government should interfere as little as possible won them the support of the merchants. Absolutely fascinating how each class came up with its own philosophical tradition according to its material interests.