本文從「渾沌」意象著手，探討《老子》渾沌之道的雙重結構：一是在存有論方面，它呈現「有無同出而異名」的弔詭邏輯。另一在倫理學方面，它亦呈現出渾沌與秩序的不一不二之詭譎狀態。而本文的核心重點更在於《老子》的倫理關懷，嘗試從渾沌思維中，揭露渾沌玄德具有治療二元結構的慈柔力量，此尤其可用「上善若水」的水德來隱喻。而《老子》這種批判並治療二元規範倫理，包容、納受「他者」之柔性關懷，筆者稱其為原初倫理。而道家的渾沌與秩序之不一、不二關係，正可反應在原初倫理與規範倫理的關係上，即原初倫理既對規範倫理具有批判性，但兩者亦可具有來往之交涉性格，而非單純的二元對立。對此，《老子》和《莊子》則同中有異，即在不一不二的共同前提上，《老子》更突顯不一之拯治面向，而《莊子》則更強調不二之圓通面向。

Started with the image of chaos, this paper probes into the dual structure of chaos in the Laozi. The first structure is ontology; it shows the curious logic of the well-known saying “Existence and non-existence are from the same origin but have different names.” The other is ethics, which demonstrates the strange sameness and difference of chaos and order. This paper focuses on Laozi’s ethical concern, disclosing that the xuan-de ‘profound virtue’ has the tender power that can cure the dual structure and can particularly be compared to with the virtue of water in the phrase “The best virtue is like water.” “Primitive ethic” is what this paper calls this tender care that criticizes and cures the dual regulation ethic and tolerates others in the Laozi. The balanced relation between chaos and order in Daoism is reflected in the relation between the primitive ethic and the regulation ethic; in other words, primitive ethic contradicts regulation ethic but also interacts with it. Hence, the Laozi and the Zhuangzi are mostly the same but different in some ways. The Laozi emphasizes differences more than sameness whereas the Zhuangzi otherwise.