Lost in Translation

I think we're getting somewhere! As I see it, Tao "moves in all directions" as you say. People however, aren't inanimate objects. We don't want to simple blow whichever direction the wind goes. We want a specific direction. We have goals! Within that context, acting "in accordance with Tao" means to act in such a way that you actually can achieve your goals with a minimum amount of effort and exhaustion. Now, what does it look like if a ruler is able to do this? Well, it will appear as if he is blessed by the gods. He will have received, for lack a better word, the mandate of heaven!

I don"t recall the tree fort. It has been a while, haven't been there since they started work on the duck pond.

I had to Google ASMR. That's a thing. I didn't know...

What's up with that video? The woman sounds like a croaking frog and her hands never stop moving. I couldn't watch it. Too freaky.

Is this the market at Wilson Park on Crenshaw? My wife and I love that place, although we don't go as much as we used to ever since we started going to Sprouts and Whole Paycheck, I mean Whole Foods.

No harm done. I just wanted to point that out so someone else doesn't make the same mistake. I mean, if it can happen to a mod then it can happen to anyone!

I have noticed this too. When I served in the Army I worked with many people from special operations, Rangers, Special Forces, etc. To a man they were very laid back. It was only the younger crowd who were, by and large, unsure of themselves and wound tight.

You can not run before you learn to walk. @Kar3n It was actually Lightseeker who wrote "I am referring the the abilities possessed by Gurdjieff, Osho, Rasputin and others, by which they could control others minds. Can anyone teach me?" It appears you quoted from a quote and the software misattributed the author to @Spotless. Study magic and con artists - and religion. Careful what you ask for - you may wish to really think about your request - they way it is written is fairly disgusting. Here's the quote with full context.

"Mandate of Heaven" could easily to expressed as "In accordance with Tao". If you read what your wrote and simply make this one substitution then the essence is the same but the context becomes much different! "That is, circumstances in the world derive directly from whether ruler acts in accordance with Tao. The ranges of events resulting from failure to act in accordance with Tao could be anything natural catastrophies (drought, flood, earthquake, famine) to socio-political events (revolution, regime overthrow, assassination, war). These reults could be visited directly by Heaven ... or, the people could understand that they, and not their prince, were acting in accordance with Tao and rebel against authority ... or, realize they were being conquered because someone else, and not them, acted in accordance with Tao." This one change of focus has a big impact. It inverts the cause/effect relationship. Instead of being at the mercy of outside forces it shows that we, by our actions, bring forces to bear either with us or against us.

Pain is pain. We all feel it and it sucks. Suffering is pain that we take personally. It's the "woe is me, why is this happening to me?" mindset that we all instinctively adopt. Once you see this and stop taking pain personally then you still have the pain but you no longer have the suffering. As for Buddha, you'll need to ask him why he said what he said. Seriously, just because the soul is non-local, non-timebound, and non-dual does not mean that you and I, here in the manifest world, don't experience locality, time and duality. We do! It's just that - in our essence - we are not "humans waiting to become souls" but rather "souls experiencing humanity." To-MAY-to, to-MAH-to ... I know.

I know nothing about this other forum you speak of, but since you are essentially asking for something with privileged access to divulge secret data you might at least ask it in the "Rabbit Hole" so that your request and any response won't be public and available via a simple Google search.

There is more here than I care to discuss, but I will address your last point. I believe we are here for a reason. As non-local, non-timebound, non-dual souls we have chosen to manifest in this reality knowing full well in-advance what awaits us. This dimension of existence is difficult and stressful, but it is a purposeful stress - not unlike the kind of stress that a student undergoes during class. Once this basic truth of suffering is known (felt, actually) then suffering takes a different quality. It still hurts, but only as pain does. This is my mirror that I gladly share with you.

Let me just say how much I have enjoyed this thread. It seems that most threads in "Off Grid" that are policy centered, such as this one, generate vibrant and varied views that are healthy for mature thought. I tip my hat to all who have participated in this debate. Thank you @Owledgefor starting this topic and for keeping it on point. I sincerely hope we can continue to have articulate conversations such as this on a variety of topics important to our lives outside of our practices without garnering any negative feelings towards those with whom we may disagree. I respect you all.

TDB is a "free market" for the exchange of ideas. An idea "sells" only when it has "value" to the reader. Not everyone will buy what you are selling. Neither will they buy what I am selling. That said, what do you do when people don't buy your ideas? Do you "roll up your sleeves and coerce them," or do you realise that "ruling a country is like cooking a small fish?"

Fascinating topic. I ain't got nuthin' to say but I'm curious to hear more.

Watch yourself, people! I've been feeling like a gen-u-ine a**hole lately. My wife and I got in a big fight. Everywhere I look I see s%*# that I want to break or scream at. It's in the air, and it's real. Take care of yourselves! https://www.elsaelsa.com/astrology/six-planets-chiron-all-retrograde-at-once-2018/

I don't think anyone is advocating no government, but I understand what you mean. The left (lower case "l") pulls for "larger" government and the right pulls for "smaller" government. How large is enough? More! how small is enough? Less! In the end we meet in the middle and the political "market" wins. Most corruption is far more prosaic.... https://abc7.com/society/ca-dmv-worker-slept-on-the-job-for-4-years-audit-finds/3819567/

I think it really comes down to this: If people are prone to temptation and temptation easily leads to to corruption do you A ) build a society around a strong central authority or do you B ) build a decentralized society with each portion checking and balancing the other? I believe option B is the way to go. Others may disagree. That is their right.

I have no words to describe what I feel. "Telepathic Snails" - excellent!

Since you mention Venezuela... 1,000,000 percent means that an item that cost 1€ on January 1st will likely cost 10,000€ on December 31st. This is what you get when the government tries to control something that they have no capacity to control. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-economy/imf-projects-venezuela-inflation-will-hit-1000000-percent-in-2018-idUSKBN1KD2L9

I hear you but I disagree. A powerful and 'evil' business has control over only that area of your life where you let it. The people can regulate a misbehaving business' behavior with their wallets. A power and 'evil' (corrupt) government can arrest you at gunpoint, tax you into submission, fine you into poverty, lock you away in prison and kill you. It is for this reason that governments should remain small, and stay out of business unless absolutely necessary to safeguard the people's well being (an ill-defined, slippery slope) ( Yes, I'm being a little bit melodramatic, but only a little bit. )

In capitalism, a business succeeds by providing a good or service that people want at an affordable price. It is the definition of win-win. It's only when the market stops being free due to government influence that problems get out of hand. Ask yourself why do illegal black markets form?

One advantage to writing software is all I need is a computer, fast internet, web cam with Skype and... Literally work anywhere.

It's good to talk about corruption. Since it can hide anywhere it makes sense to keep governments small and decentralized to minimize the damage government corruption can cause.

You are correct. Capitalism is an economic system whereas socialism is a government system.