Yang Chu’s Garden of Pleasure

The ancient wanderer Yang Chu’s philosophy wrote about makings of the good life. Yang Chu, known as “the philosopher of pleasure and contentment,” has a deep concern with enjoying life to the fullest. Yang Chu argues that true egoism does not center on seeking fame or glory, but rather the development of the individual. the ability to take pleasure in the simple aspects of life grows by allowing the inner voice and senses to grow.
Yang Zhu (traditional Chinese: 楊朱; 440–360 BC), also known as Yang Zi or Yangzi (Master Yang), was a Chinese philosopher during the Warring States period. Not to be confused with Yang Xiong (Chinese: 揚雄; 53 BCE–18 CE) a Han dynasty scholar, poet, and author. Yang Chu was a classic Chinese philosopher who probably lived in the fourth century BCE. He has been associated with Taoism, although the connection is problematic as the beliefs of Yang Chu are quite different from those of Taoist philosophers such as Chuang-Tzu and Lao Tzu. In ancient times, these thinkers were not considered to be members of the same school of thought. The text attributed to Yang Chu was preserved in the Lieh Tzu, which did not reach its final form until about 400 CE. In it, Yang Chu is not mystical at all. He is mainly concerned with enjoying life to its fullest, with allowing people to express themselves as much as possible, and with not interfering with natural processes.