cricketty-rise

Hey everyone, I want to draw your attention to a new book that I just helped put together. It's titled "Around the Tao in 80 Days" by Trey Smith and Alex Paul. It's a commentary on the Tao Te Ching, but not just one version. It contains chapters from many different translations and renditions. You can check it out at http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/6077 and at http://www.xlibris.com/AroundtheTaoIn80Days.html If any of you get around to reading it, I'd love to hear your comments. Maybe we can even open up a discussion on some of the ideas in the book.

you can get the ebook now for free if you want it. Or you can choose a price.

i always saw original taoism as more natural than buddhism. it seems more 'human' and should we really strive to pretend to be anything else?

welcome

as people interested in taoism, what music do you Tao Bums enjoy listening to?

[just as a note: aquiring wealth is not out of step with the tao.]

please listen to what i have to say. i don't think there should be any decisions made too quickly. not until you have heard more than a couple views. it's been said many times by many legendary taoists that you can achieve things through non-doing. gossamer could be relieved from his problems by simply emptying his mind. what should his possesions and his money matter to him? you can achieve happiness without any of these things. and even if he is being oppressed by 'black magic' he can easily defend himself. he just needs to find the strength that is already inside of him. he doesn't need some pricey ritual from a sketchy religious priest. to quote Chuang Tzu: "Hold on to all that you have received from Heaven but do not think you have gotten anything. Be empty, that is all. The Perfect Man uses his mind like a mirror - going after nothing, welcoming nothing, responding but not storing. Therefore he can win out over things and not hurt himself." gossamer, please don't give yourself up to Mak. what you need is already inside of you.

i follow Chuang Tzu's writings almost as much as Lao Tzu's, and I think he/she/they meant it when he said: "know no master ." in chapter 7.

i think a pilgrimage is in order. who wants to organize a carpool?

what's the difference between being dead and one with the tao and being alive and one with the tao?

a. how could you lie and pretend you knew anything about me? b. you are still acting as an elitist. that's not what taoism is about. it's about all things being equal.

both.

hello, i'm alex. from canada. i consider myself a bum, and i'm trying to understand the tao. so you'll probably hear from me a bit.

welcome! from another newcomer.

stop being an elitist. the tao is what it is.

where did you get this from? i'm just curious.

well, there are a few artists that i really like. the appleseed cast -- especially the album Mare Vitalis, has some amazing 'big' sounding music. they also have a lot of interesting themes in their lyrics. cap'n jazz -- this band is definitely not for everyone, but i absolutely love them. their music is usually noodly, out of tune and full of voice cracks, but it is totally refreshing. (definitely full of spontaneity and spirit, like you said.) islands -- the first album by this band is really great. some very catchy and lovable songs. but their second album just wasn't as good.

he is not really a master if he is as righteous as he sounds.

you have some great misconceptions about taoism. first of all, the taoists rejected righteousness. there are no 'rules' or 'precepts' to be broken. second, what do you mean by 'taoism training'?, this is not something you learn at boot camp. so, please, "learn before you comment".

that's a pretty long list. it sounds to me that you've been caught up in some hype. maybe start with something simple?

why do you insist on complicating something very simple?

you are complicating it. just deal with whatever this person has done to you, and realize that you have power over your dreams, not the other way around. if you feel like you can't do anything about it, just take one from the tao te ching and empty your mind completely before you go to sleep.

i don't think there is one best way to find the tao. what works for me is just being quiet most of the time. that seems to help.