rainbow

This has been fantastic advice. thanks a lot everyone. To answer your question, what I see myself doing later in life can be boiled down to one thing: I just want to Dilute the mysteries and misconceptions that drown our conception of reality. I dont know what that will entail but I know that my search for the truth will never end. Not even in this life. Taoism has given me a point of reference when adressing such things as quantum physics and chemistry. I try to meditate every night but time is scarse here. If I can bridge the gap between modern western science (the frontier of quantum physics) and ancient eastern philosophy and shamanistic ideas then I will have completed my goals. The issue in this day and age is that a letter A is more usefull to an admissions office than my eloquency or passion and soul. Thanks again everyone for listening. You are truly a great group of people.

thans a alot everyone. I really like the idea of thinking of this as mental training because one of the reasons I was frustrated was because some of the information we are forced to learn will be forgotten and useless. I guess I wil have to find a balance where I am working hard enough to prevent regret later in life but I can still have fun. Thanks, Rainbow.

Is there an explanation pertaining to coincidence and synchroneities within the teachings of taoism? I guess that because every entity in the universe is somehow connected there is an explanation but when I encounter situations in my life that are so coincedential that I can't explain them I really wish I could understand what is really happening. Here is a situation that I have struggled to explain: Every time I am with my girlfriend a cat of some sort approaches us. It will usually brush up against are legs or hop on our laps. It is so consistent that it is frightening. And the cat is almost always different. I am having trouble articulating myself at the moment and im just hoping to get your opinions on the phenomenon we call coincedence. thanks everyone!

Hello bums. In a nutshell, I am a high school student looking for a spiritual outlet and a philisophical means of traversing this confusing world. I have been looking at this site for a few weeks now so I thought I would register. Last year I developed an interest in buddhism which branched to meditation and then taoism. Life became too busy, or so I thought, and I forgot about it. A few months ago I had an existentialistic breakdown, wondering what my purpose was and if life was worth living. I basically had an overwhelming feeling of insignificance. Thus began my interest in taoism. I am curious as to what "finding the Tao" is and what being Taoist entails. If you could give me your opinions on those questions I would be very grateful. Thanks a lot everyone!

thank you both. I live in southern california and in massachusetts.

Thanks a lot for the help and the warm welcome. I will be sticking around for a while. I think I will observe until I acquire enough courage and knowledge to contribute. I know very little about Taoism, Buddhism, and meditation but compensate for my lack of knowledge with a thirst for knowledge. I would really like to know how I can cultivate chi (maybe a book I could read) and what purposes other than the obvious health and mental chi serves. I really like the idea of analyzing and attempting to control my thoughts and have been making an effort to do this. I try to meditate daily and I have been doing the five rites for a few days now and really enjoy it. I think I need some guidance and more specific directions as how to meditate and cultivate internal energy. Thanks Again!