Guo Xiang

Guo Xiang

 or Kuo Hsiang

(died 312, China) Chinese Neo-Daoist philosopher. He was a high government official who adapted and completed another philosopher's unfinished commentary on the writings of Zhuangzi. Interpreting dao (“the way”) as nothingness, he argued that it cannot produce being and cannot be a first cause. He concluded that there is no agent of causality in the universe; all things spontaneously produce themselves, and everything has its own nature. Happiness comes from following that distinctive nature, and dissatisfaction and regret come from failing to follow it. He also interpreted Daoist “nonaction” to mean spontaneous action rather than sitting still, a deviation from original Daoism that agreed with Zhuangzi's thought.