chuang tzu: was an ardent taoist, embodied the taoist spirit so to speak, and mencius was his teacher.
was a major impact on taoism as well as buddhism.
was heavily influenced/involved in the arts.
we are born with certain traits, but those are insufficient, they must be combined with the ones we acquire throughout our life in order to reach our full potential in life.
this allows us to reach the pinnacle of our life and of ourselves in the most potent and influential taoist way imaginable.
was a mystic like rumi.
very nature-oriented whereas rumi and sufism was more being one with God-oriented.
if decorum was evident and sufficient, there was no need for a government.
and that all humans are resilient and flexible and can mold themselves to fit their surroundings very well, more than they think.
given they have to go along with nature.


lao tzu: known to be Tao personified, but not a God. wrote the tao te ching, and founded taoism. basically was the taoist spirit.