wu wei

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

Borrowed from Chinese 無為／无为 (wúwéi).

Noun

wu wei (uncountable)

  1. A state of effortless inaction, in Taoism or Chinese statecraft.
    • 2013, Benjamin Noys, quoting Franco Berardi, Malign Velocities: Accelerationism and Capitalism, Zero Books, →ISBN:
      These alternatives seem tepid, or even reactionary – take Franco ‘Bifo’ Berardi’s invocation of a politics of exhaustion that would ‘become the beginning of a slow movement toward a “wu wei” civilization, based on withdrawal, and frugal expectations for life and consumption’.
This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.