Manru23

Hello and Happy 2019! (Apologies in advance for long post!!!!) I am a British lady in London who has recently been restarting a long paused spiritual journey and I really like the principles and ideas of Daoism/ Taoism but have some doubts/ concerns. Daoism itself is not new to me, I studied Chinese from a Bachelor Degree level and spent five years living in China, however at the time I had never considered it would be a path for me. The last six months I have felt a strong yearning for spiritual fulfillment and growth but I have a checkered past when it comes to religion, my parents were both agnostic and I joined the church on my own at 11, then at 18 several things happened that made me refute my Christian beliefs. I have always been a very spiritual person drawn to a wide variety of ideas, I used to do crystal meditations as a teenager and had very positive experiences with Tai Chi. Although I have tried to convince myself otherwise I can’t shake the feeling there may be “something out there” and that spiritual practice will enrich my life and fill the void I am feeling. However I find many modern religions pious and judgmental- especially about women- and in conflict with the things I consider important in life ( sexuality, peace, tolerance, passion, etc). I’ve read certain texts and watched videos that talk about Taoism as a lifestyle/ philosophy/ religion however a lot of these seem at odds with the ideas covered in the original texts. Following that winding preamble what I really want to ask is: How does Daoism impact on your life? What actions or thoughts do you believe a Daoist should/ shouldn’t do/have? How does Daoism fit in with a modern lifestyle? ( office jobs, social constructs, romantic relationships) Any advice or anecdotes would really be appreciated!

Hello Zen Pig, thank you very much that certainly is a great ideal to have but sometimes I wonder how it fits with a modern life. As an office worker at the beginning of my career it is hard not to have ambition for the future and feel the need to achieve success/ notoriety in my chosen career path....yes this seems at odds with Daoist teachings which does cause me to feel conflicted. Thanks again for your reply!

Thank you very much for your reply and your thoughts. What appeals to me about Taoism in general is that it is a highly personalised believe system, one of the main principles is “the way that can be described/ named is not the true way”, which therefore encompasses a tolerance and openness to all other beliefs and religions. For me it was the hypocrisy of those who prescribe to systemic religion which gave me pause for thought, the families who were the most active within my local church were the more selfish, arrogant, greedy and hypocritical and for me I just couldn’t get over the way religion have them an added sense of entitlement to look down on others. When I was in China there was a woman who was desperate to convert me to Buddhism, she had a monk make a prayer necklace for me and even took me to the temple and showed me how to pray. What struck me was all the money people were paying inside the temple to burn incense then when she came out and walked past a homeless man with one leg she simply put her hands together and said 阿弥陀佛. Any way thanks again for the food for though!

Thank you so much! I look forward to exploring much more!