wandelaar

As Cobie mentioned there were some problems with unacceptable posts on OriginalDao, but I think that OriginalDao would have closed down anyhow. In the end there simply were not enough active members to have a vibrant forum with a continuous stream of fresh interesting discussions. Reddit has its own rules and regulations so I don't think unacceptable post will become a problem there on the new OriginalTao. But can you find enough active members/participants to still make for interesting discussions after say one of two years? That will be the main challenge...

Yes - there is a post now! :-) So is your new OriginalTao forum part of Reddit? And if so, what is the difference with the Discord-version?

Please post a link to the exact Reddit page that you want me to view.

Took a look, but the page on Reddit is (still) empty...

http://www.daoisopen.com/guodianlaozi.html Are these found texts relevant for our understanding of the Tao Te Ching as we know it?

You keep ignoring the facts. Your impressions are not necessarily objective facts, and particularly not if you had hallucinations too. Further Zhongyongdaoist mentioned the presence of (primitive) morality in the animal world and I did several times too but you stubbornly keep ignoring this because it doesn't fit your pessimistic worldview. Finally even if I would get depressed when I had to endure what you endure than that still wouldn't prove anything as to the correctness of your interpretation of your experiences. But I hope someone else's comments will be of more use to you than mine. Goodbye.

What can I say? You appear to be certain that it was a god or demon that did that to you, but how do you know? Further you appear to be willfully blind to the roll played by mutual aid in both the animal and the human world, while at the same time focusing on the ugly things in this world. But good and bad are both real, and are inextricably mixed up. We are all just straw dogs as far as Tao is concerned, and there is no reason to get depressed about it.

Don't know...

Well - my message is actually morally uplifting...

@helpfuldemon Maybe you should think somewhat less, and study somewhat more. Primitive forms of morality in the animal world are a fact, regardless of what you think about it. See for instance the research by Peter Kropotkin and Frans de Waal.

Cobie is a she.

Is this the same author?: https://www.strath.ac.uk/humanities/schoolofhumanities/history/centreforthesocialhistoryofhealthhealthcare/ourresearch/theasiancocainecrisis/asiancocaine-ourteam/ianbaker/

That might be so, I don't know.

Supposing a God to exist doesn't solve anything. That only transforms the question of why there is the world as we know it to the question of why there should have been a God creating or organizing the world instead of nothing at all. I prefer to simply accept the fact that I don't know why there is this world as we know it. It's a mystery. However I agree with you that the supposition of the existence a loving God doesn't agree with the facts, unless we suppose that God to be relatively powerless.

https://ianbakerjourneys.wordpress.com/about/ Is that this guy? If so, than he could well be a Dr. ...

What reasons do you have to suppose such an animal God to exists, and if he does exist why would there be only one animal God? Why not a male and a female animal God, or even a family of animal Gods, or several tribes of them?

Being told that there is a Heaven, or that God has a morality doesn't prove anything. A truly moral person doesn't follow anyone's orders (whether of a man or God), but acts on the basis of an inner conscience. Where that conscience is lacking religion doesn't help either. See how Putin and Trump position themselves as God's servants, and get away with it. Further there are religions that actually demand or promote the killing of non-believers.

Why waist any more time on Awaken or Taoist Texts? The kind of brutal Taoism they promote simply isn't worth the effort, at least not from a modern western perspective. Taoism is a very broad current and anyone claiming to represent the only real Taoism is therefore simply wrong. Awaken and Taoist Texts are perfect examples of the fundamentalist intolerance combined with spiritual arrogance that often follows on too much learning. A sad sight. I had some discussions with Taoist Texts before and although he indeed knows a lot about Taoist texts his logic is ludicrous and not up to the task. See this: Are we to believe that most western role playing "taoists" pretend to follow someone of whom they never even heard his name? I better move on.

I agree with that. Acquiring (supernatural) powers as a goal of cultivation might start one on the path but should indeed eventually be replaced by goals like virtue, morals and kindness. The latter might help one to lead a fulfilling and pleasant life. The quest for power however will lead to endless battles, frustrations, and spoiled relations with fellow human beings. This is true regardless of whether supernatural powers exist or not.

Weird!

Better start some new topics with discussions about the classics. If it's about the TTC, Chuang tzu, Lieh tzu or even Confucius' Analects than I would be happy to participate. That would be a more positive, constructive solution to the problem. Let me know...

@Earl Grey What happened? I have been away for some time, but before that I always appreciated your posts as coming from one of the more knowledgeable members here although I didn't always agree with you. Why not just go on posting your own opinion on and/or experience with things as you used to do?

Yes - that's the main problem! Any internet forum will have some unhelpful members, that's simply a fact of life we have to live with. But if nonsense, bragging and cursing starts setting the tone for the entire forum than potential new members will rather choose to stay away than to join us, that is: unless they like the toxic atmosphere. In time the forum will then spiral down the same dark road that all lightly moderated fora go. I see Pak_Satrio pointed at the same problem.

It isn't simply a question of interpersonal style but of a deep abhorrence of fellow human beings who are seen as not on the same level (and are thus disqualified as scumbags). If such falls under "high level spiritual development" than I prefer to be without it.