n_, these the Five Elements, and so on, through
the male and female norms (_tao_), to the production of all things.

Chu Hsi's Monistic Philosophy

The writings of Chu Hsi, especially his treatise on _The Immaterial
Principle [li] and Primary Matter [ch'i]_, leave no doubt as to the
monism of his philosophy. In this work occurs the passage: "In the
universe there exists no primary matter devoid of the immaterial
principle; and no immaterial principle apart from primary matter";
and although the two are never separated "the immaterial principle
[as Chou Tzu explains] is what is previous to form, while primary
matter is what is subsequent to form," the idea being that the two
are different manifestations of the same mysterious force from which
all things proceed.

It is unnecessary to follow this philosophy along all the different
branches which grew out of it, for we are here concerned only with
the seed. We have observed how Chinese dualism became a monism, and
how while the monism was established the dualism was retained. It is
this mono-dualistic theory, combining the older and newer philosophy,
which in China, then as now, constitutes the accepted explanation of
the origin of things, of the universe itself and all that it contains.

Lao Tzu's "Tao"

There are other cosmogonies in Chinese philosophy, but they need not
detain us long. Lao Tzu (sixth century B.C.), in his _Tao-te ching,
The Canon of Reason and Virtue_ (at first entitled simply _Lao Tzu_),
gave to the then existing scattered sporadic conceptions of the
universe a literary form. His _tao_, or 'Way,' is the originator
of Heaven and earth, it is "the mother of all things." His Way,
which was "before God," is but a metaphorical expression for the
manner in which things came at first into being out of the primal
nothingness, and how the phenomena of nature continue to go on,
"in stillness and quietness, without striving or crying." Lao Tzu is
thus so far monistic, but he is also mystical, transcendental, even
pantheistic. The way that can be walked is not the Eternal Way; the
name that can be named is not the Eternal Name. The Unnameable is the
originator of Heaven and earth; manifesting itself as the Nameable,
it is "the mother of all things." "In Eternal Non-Being I see the
Spirituality of Things; in Eternal Being their limitation. Though
different under these two aspects, they are the same in origin;
it is when development takes place that differ