莊子是中國偉大的哲學家之一，對生死有深刻的體悟，及獨到與精闢的見解，當他面對妻子死時，猶能「鼓盆而歌」，甚至死後要以「天地為棺槨」，願將自己的屍體為「烏鳶與螻蟻食」，這種生死齊一的坦然與豁達態度，正是生死教育的最佳典範。
由於目前臺灣的生死教育大多引進西方的理論，對於東方的生死哲學反而缺乏深刻的論述，及廣泛地運用。故生死教育急需運用莊子的生死哲學建立一個建全的體系，使之更為充實，更具效力，更能達成其宗旨。
因為莊子的生死哲學跌宕玄妙，旨在破除吾人悅生惡死的心理，他從自然宇宙觀提出「道通為一」及「通天下一氣」的理論，以為若能視萬物為「一」，死亡便不足畏懼、掛懷，從而達到「生死同狀」、「生死一條」的境界，如此便可超克死亡。這種思想對人在面臨死亡時能發揮極大的作用，對生死教育也產生極深遠的意義。本論文即旨在透過莊子的生死哲學，闡發其對生死教育的諸多意義，以供關心莊子生死哲學及生死教育者參考。
Chuang Tzu was one of the greatest Chinese philosophers whose personal understandings and insights of life and death were unique and penetrating. For instance, he beat the pot and sang with the rhythm when his wife passed away. What is more, he even decided to make the universe his casket and would let his remains be eaten by crows, vultures and ants after his death. Such frank and open manner to treat life and death equally is the ideal model for life and death education.
The current life and death education in Taiwan is on the surface due to the fact that it is imported mostly from the western theories and it lacks a deep interpretation and wide usage of Chinese philosophy of life and death. This is why the life and death education urgently needs to incorporate Chuang Tzu’s life and death philosophy in order to create and strengthen a complete, efficient system which would help to achieve its goals easier.
Chuang Tzu's philosophy of life and death is abstruse and exquisite. It aims at eliminating the common thoughts of delight to live and detest to die. Through the theory of natural cosmology, he proposed “Tao is the source of all objects” and “Chi pervades the universe”. He assumed that death is not to be terrified and anxious about if people could view all subjects as one (Tao). Furthermore, it is possible for mankind to conquer death eventually when they reach the state of “life and death is just the same”. The thinking is very powerful when people are confronting with death, and it is also very influential to life and death education. In light of Chuang Tzu’s life and death philosophy, the thesis intends to explain its numeral significances on life and death education, and to provide reference resources for people who concern with Chuang's philosophy of life and death and for educators in this field.
