This article aims to propose a new way of studying the ideas and political thought contained in Guodian Laozi. This new way consists of presenting other relevant texts and ideas of the pre-Qin period as annotative materials for interpreting the connotations of certain key concepts in the target text. Using such a method, I argue that pu might be understood as the simplicity resulting from a policy which promotes agriculture and discourages luxurious crafts and commerce, wuming as ＂retaining the substance and discarding nominal form＂, wuwei as ＂refraining from pursuing nominalism＂, and ziran as ＂abiding by the substance of beings＂.

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