Lao Tzu vs. Machiavelli

Lao Tzu vs. Machiavelli

Government, politics, leaders…

 Below you will find a comparison of Lao Tzu’s very poetic ideas on government compared with Machiavelli’s more strict ideas.

Political figure	Lao Tzu	Machiavelli
Purpose of Government	This intellectual believes that the government’s main purpose is to maintain the wellbeing of the people. Unlike traditional governments, their power is limited in order to avoid changing nature’s course. Along with this the government will not try to convince its people of anything.	Maintaining power is a huge component of Machiavelli’s idea on government. By keeping the nation strong its people will in turn be peaceful and happy. Similar to Lao Tzu, Machiavelli also believes that the wellbeing of the country’s citizens must always be kept in mind. Lastly the government must create laws and rules that apply to the specific situation at hand.
Leader’s Obligation	According to Lao Tzu the leader has many obligations: no use of violence, maintain happy citizens, enter battles with sorrow. These are just a few of the very important traits a leader must maintain. One main obligation of the leader is to avoid influencing change but instead just let nature take its course. Lao Tzu says “the world is a sacred place,” things should not be altered by the individual but instead should just be left alone. A more obscure obligation is that the leader must be discrete in governing the people, if they don’t think that they are being governed then there will be less problems.	On the complete opposite side of the spectrum lies the obligations of the leader in Machiavelli’s eyes. The concerns/rights of the individual within the country are to be ignored by the leader. In this type of government, it is necessary to do what is best for the country not the individual. The main role of the leader is to secure power and security of the nation by direct an effective means. With this comes a leader who must be loved but feared at the same time. Now this may all seem a bit much but Machiavelli does not intend for this leader to be a tyrant.
Work of the State	Good relations between the people of the state and the leader are key within Lao Tzu’s idea of government. Similar to the leader’s role the people must also let nature influence what will happen. By living under a government described by Lao Tzu the people of the state are lead toward being less selfish. With the elimination of the desire for material goods people of this state are less likely to commit crime. Overall Lao Tzu’s thinking basically says that less government intervention equals happier citizens.	Less government is not the case in Machiavelli’s eyes…actually it is the complete opposite. The people of this type of state must express fear as well as love toward their leader. For example, if someone did something wrong they would be brutally punished in front of the other townspeople as an example of what would happen if a crime was committed. This was done to instill fear. Contrary to the previous statement, leaders would benefit the community by keeping them safe and donating to communities. Overall people of this state must know that the leader is in place to keep the security of the state intact.
Qualities of the Leader	Often named Master or Sage, which means wise, must have multiple traits in order to be a successful leader. The leader must always trust his people and not talk or act out of character. When it comes to power he must not try to be powerful but instead just let nature make him powerful.	The number one quality of Machiavelli’s leader is that he must be able to survive. With survival comes knowing how to hunt, follow the land and the history of the country. As a leader his profession is to be competitive in wars and express discipline. There is no time off for the leader, even in time of peace he must still be training. Although this leader seems to be intimidating he must also have good virtues and intelligence.

Following the comparison are some videos about Lao Tzu and Machiavelli's ideas.

This is Lao Tzu's Philosophy of The Way

This is an Introduction of Machiavelli's piece The Prince