There were many but three names are most popular- Lao Tzu, Lie Zi and Zhuang Zi. All their works were very complicated, especially that of Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching. This was written for Yin Xi, the Guardian of the Pass, who had asked Master LaoTzu to write something so that his knowledge will not be lost to the world before allowing Lao Tzu to proceed to the mountains and never to be seen again. Confucius had travelled far just to meet and spar with LaoTzu, in 501 BC and left shaking his head, saying Lao Tzu was the most complicated Dragon.
Lie Zi came only to be known when in 398 BC he was driven to find new pastures in the famine of that year while Zhuang Zi was mention by Sima Qian aroung 330 BC.
In the list below, I will attempt to give some idea of the ancient Sages' wisdom which formed the basis of Taoist teachings. The following were attributed to mainly Lie Zi or others of his time.
1. There is a Producer that has not been Produced and a Transformer that is not transformed. The Yin-Yang is the Producer, the Cycle of the Four Seasons is the Transformer.
2.There were the following stages - great mutation, great origin, great beginning, great flux
3. Being that perishes here is born again elsewhere; one that is added here, is subtracted from somewhere.
4. When Shang Giu Kai went into fires unscathed and asked for the secret, he answered, " I have no formula, I go as my natural instinct pushes me, without knowing why nor how it is done.
5. Any attention paid to the exterior troubles or changes the interior
6. The best use that one can make of speech is to keep silent. The best action is not to act. To embrace everything that is knowable ends with but superficial knowledge.
7. He who has reached perfect union with the Cosmos can no longer be wounded by any being; he can penetrate metal and stone as he wished; he can walk freely on water and through fire.
8. When his student was leaving him for another master, Hu Zi said " You do not know all my doctrines. I have only given you the exoteric teachings and not the esoterics."
9. Common people's subject of conversation are poison to the perfect man.
10. For the Taoists, sentiment is an error, emotions a fault.
11. There are those who can maintain peace without governing, inspire confidence without speaking,make everything work without interfering.
12. He who has found what he was seeking, no longer speaks of it. Nan Guo Zi's silence is more meaningful than any word.
13. Every excess brings ruin
14. He who knows how to hide his strength is stronger tha he who exercises it
15. Time is infinite, according to you. What do you think od space? Xia Ji replied "Void is infinite"
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