The Relationship Between Wu 無 and Dao 道 in the Daodejing 道德經: Beyond Nothingness in a Decolonial Direction

Abstract This article examines the relationship between wu 無 and dao 道 in the Daodejing 道德經 to explore its resonances with decolonial thought––understood here first as the dismantling of colonial impositions within the philosophical imaginary, and subsequently as a resource for resisting new forms of monoculturalism. It argues that the prevailing tendency to interpret these terms through Western metaphysical frameworks––such as the transcendence/immanence dichotomy and the categories of “nothingness” and “being” ––perpetuates a long tradition of epistemological hegemony. This imposition cannot be dismissed as mere flawed hermeneutics. Though often well-intentioned, such an approach assimilates the text’s distinctive concepts into familiar paradigms, thereby neutralizing their disruptive potential and obscuring the Daodejing ’s ethical-political core. The analysis demonstrates that characterizing wu as absolute nothingness, relative nonbeing, or Heideggerian being generates insurmountable conceptual contradictions and perpetuates a colonial reading of the text. Moving beyond this critique, the article proposes a decolonial reorientation by recovering wu not as a metaphysical ground but through its dynamic, lessening function within dao ’s circular process. This approach takes the Daodejing as a text of strategic resistance, emphasizing practices of weakening, return, and unlearning. By framing its process of “decreasing daily” as a preparatory practice for epistemic humility, the article uncovers a profound resonance with María Lugones’s decolonial project of “living with uncertainty.” Ultimately, this reading situates the Daodejing as an interlocutor in decolonial philosophy, highlighting how its ancient strategy of self-weakening and open-ended engagement with the world offers a resource for challenging dominant, oppressive logics.