I've become acquainted with Taoism and Zen over the last couple of years and as I considered their fundamentals, I saw a strong link to libertarianism. I was surprised because libertarianism is usually presented as a rationalist philosophy (one based on reason alone).with little room for mysticism. Libertarians reject those that tell us (their version of) a Supreme Being is the authority on right and wrong on all matters and is the authority upon which we should base our laws. Yet there is no such conflict with Taoism and Zen because neither describes a Supreme Being nor claims to prescribe right and wrong. In fact, I suggest that libertarianism is the political philosophy that must arise from Taoist and Zen thinking.

To show that relationship, I start with a brief introduction to Taoism and Zen for those that aren't already familiar with Eastern philosophy.

The Tao
Tao (pronounced "Dao") is "the way" or "the path". It is undefinable and cannot be known, but it can be experienced. It surrounds, and flows through all things. It embodies the dual nature of our existence (without light there would not be dark; without love there would not be hate), which is represented by the yin-yang symbol.

The Tao is the Ultimate Reality, the whole of reality that encompasses all things including matter and consciousness. It cannot be described because it transcends human thought and all categories of human thought.

The Tao transcends the dual nature of our reality; it is non-dual; it is One. The dual nature of our universe is a creation of consciousness. Our consciousness creates all distinctions between things. We cannot know the ultimate reality; we can only know a construct of our consciousness. Your consciousness and my consciousness both arise from the same source, which is the Tao.

I am he as you are he as you are me and we are all together.
         -- John Lennon ("I Am the Walrus")

Taoism and Zen
Taoism is a way of living that is compatible with the Tao. The founder of Taoism is generally accepted to be Lao Tsu who lived in China around 500 B.C. He lived during times of constant feudal warfare and in his search for a way of life that could avoid conflicts, he wrote his book of philosophical verses, Tao Te Ching.

Buddhism came to China from India and branched into various forms including Zen. Zen is compatible with Taoism and has existed alongside Taoism. Zen is a disciplined practice in which followers use meditation to seek enlightenment (experience the Tao). Zen also uses koans to help open the mind to understanding. A famous koan is "what is the sound of one hand clapping?".

Libertarianism And The Tao
It's not difficult to find libertarian ideas in the Tao Te Ching and the appropriate verses are often quoted in libertarian writings. But the connection to libertarianism lies deeper than just quotations. Libertarianism arises from the very fundamental idea of the Tao.

The goal of Taoists is to live in a way that is compatible with the Tao -- to be aware of the unity of all things, to go with the flow of the universe, and to minimize the use of force (the principle of wu-wei). Wu-wei itself is libertarian as it rejects the use of force against others, even for good intentions. But if we go deeper we can understand the philosophical justification of wu-wei and why Taoism and Zen must lead to libertarianism.

The Tao is whole and complete and characterized by a lack of distinctions. We create all distinctions between things. In the ultimate reality, there is no right and wrong. The universe is as it is and nothing can be judged to be ultimately right or wrong, so one might even say it is all right.

Maybe it's alright
Maybe we won't fight anymore
Maybe love is waiting at the end of every road
I don't know, I don't know
But maybe, maybe it's
All
Right
         -- Patty Griffin ("Mother of God" from the album "Impossible Dream". Click to play 1MB MP3 clip.)

Because there is no right and wrong in the ultimate reality, any attempt by you to declare that you know what is right and wrong for other people cannot be justified. No authority based on force (like government) can declare what is right and wrong without contradicting the Tao. No person and no authority has a monopoly on truth and correctness.

"If right were really right, it would differ so clearly from not right that there would be no need for argument" -- Chuang Tzu

Does this mean you can steal and kill because there is nothing that is wrong? Well, using force against others is a denial of wu-wei, so those are clearly not Taoist actions. But let's ignore wu-wei for the moment and say that initiating violence is not wrong. Then it is also not wrong to commit further violence in retaliatation for the original action. This may all be "right", but such thinking may not be very useful as a political philosophy.

So what political philosophy can we abide in order to protect us from endless cycles of violence, while we simultaneously reject any authority that is based on the claim of knowing right from wrong? The answer lies in that boundary between our selves and others. We can each live our lives using our personal judgment of what is right and wrong for ouselves, but there is no absolute right and wrong to justify our control of others.

So the only practical way for people to peacefully live together in a way that is compatible with the Tao is for us to grant everyone the right to determine for themselves what is right, as long as their actions don't interfere with any other person's ability to do the same. Your definition of "right" ends where another person's begins.

In other words, each of us must be free to live as we choose as long as we don't interfere with anyone else's freedom to live as they choose.

Government's only proper role, then, is to protect you from others that would infringe on your right to live as you choose, while the government itself also never infringes on that right.

And that is libertarianism.