Religious teacher and central figure of Taoism, lived c. 6th century BC.
Knowledge about Lao-tzu comes nearly exclusively from a biography written by the historian Ssu-ma Chi'en around 100 BC, several hundred years after his life. According to that report Li Erh was born in the state of Ch'u (in today's Honan province) and served in the office of astrology, divination and sacred books at the court of the Chou dynasty. He received the name Lao-tzu ("Master Lao") in recognition of his wisdom and teaching.
Ssu-ma Chi'en reports that the young Confucius met with Lao-tzu and acknowledged the Master's greatness, who scolded him for his pride and ambition.
According to the biography Lao-tzu was unhappy with the decline of the Chou dynasty and decided to travel west to the state of Ch'in. When he came to the Hsien-ku pass the border guard asked him to write down his wisdom, so Lao-tzu stayed with him and wrote the Tao-te Ching ("Classic of the Way and its Power"), a book of 5,000 characters in two sections that became the main scripture of Taoism. Lao-tzu then continued his journey, and according to Ssu-ma chi'en "nobody knows what has become of him."
Whether the described events did actually take place cannot be assessed. What is clear is that the Tao-te Ching was written be several authors over several centuries. Some doubt even the historical reality of the person Lao-tzu. But as a religious figure he is of great importance and lives on as an admired philosopher in Buddhism, as a saint or god to many common people and as one of Taoism's greatest divinities.