The Creation of the Universe from Nothingness by Laozi from the perspective of Nothingness in the Christian Tradition

Abstract

On the occasion of the confirmation of a Professorship Honoris Causa from University College of Literature of Dharma Drum Mountain in 2019, Piero Coda gave a lecture on the comparison between the Nothingness of Buddha and Christian tradition. In the description of Christian tradition, he explored two main arguments: the first argument is around the phrase in the Bible: “from nothing he creates”; the second argument is “the nothingness out of love” within the Trinity, among the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Based on these two arguments, this article offers a similar comparison about the concept of creation in the book named Dao De Jing of Laozi.