"Tao de Jing" - the main treatise of the mystical tradition of ancient China. He had a great influence not only on the formation of Taoism, but also on the spiritual culture of the Ancient East. The creator of "Tao de Jing" is traditionally called the main teacher of Taoism - the legendary Lao Tzu. It is believed that he was a senior contemporary of Confucius, and they even met. For most of his life, Lao Tzu served as the custodian of the imperial archives during the Zhou Dynasty. Deciding to leave the people because the sage was disappointed in them, he wrote and left a small book "in five thousand words" at the request of the head of the border post through which he left China. This was a treatise on the Way and Perfection - "Tao de Jing".