ChiDragon

The modern meaning of 亡 is death or vanished. The ancient meaning of the character 亡 is equivalent to 無. Not many people knew that. Thus, no, it doesn't change its meaning.

Chapter 40 1. 反者道之動。 2. 弱者道之用。 3. 天下萬物生於有， 4. 有生於無。 1. Reaction is Tao's action. 2. Weakness is Tao's function. 3. All things in the world came from 有(you). 4. 有(you)came from 無(wu). Notes: 1. Weakness is softness. 2. 有(you) is Tao in the manifest state. 3. 無(wu) is Tao in the non-manifest state. The 有(you) and 無(wu) are defined by Lines 5 and 6 in Chapter One. It delineates Tao sometimes is visible and sometimes invisible. That is why I like to keep both characters intact instead of translated into another language. It is because something they will get lost in the translation.

It is not secret at all. It was the misinterpretations of the Dao De Jing(DDJ) by many people. Even the ordinary natives. It is because that the DDJ was written in classic Chinese. Unfortunately, it is very difficult for modern people to comprehend without the aid of native scholars. The interpretation with the modern approach sometimes leads to a wrong full meaning of the characters. Therefore, it is better to learn it from well know qualified native scholars about the subject. BTW I am not a qualified native scholar, but I had learned from their books.

The whole idea in the philosophy of Taoism is about Wu Wei(無為), let nature take its course, do not interrupt the course of nature. It seems you have a good grips of Taoism.

有生於無 : The direct translation is "Everything comes from Nothing". However, what it was simply saying is "the visible comes from the invisible" or "the invisible becomes visible." That is the basic description of Tao in Chapter one.

I don't think there are any restrictions. Qigong helps to speed up the metabolism to get rid of the waste materials in the body. The retention of urine in the body does more harm than good. Urine should be removed from the body ASAP. Qigong helps to circulate the blood in the blood vessels. Duing the circulating process, it generates the body heat to overcome the coldness in the cold water. If one has a cold body, it would be more harmful in drinking cold water before the practice. In addition, a warm body can resist the cold weather much more than a cold body. A cold body means the body does not generate enough heat, internally, to resist cold temperature in the environment. Asking silly question will make one smart in the future. Peace!

Practitioners who practice Qigong, must study the concept of breathing and take mental note of its importance. By all means, learn to breathe the abdominal breathing method. It is to breathe slowly and deep down to the abdomen. It is the ultimate breathing method(UBM) for traditional and modern science which are called for. Whatever one thinks it is chi, energy or oxygen, just breathe it to be beneficial. Who cares what it is call as long it produces energy in the body or gives energy to the body. Whatever one thinks it is. It works, that's all it matters. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/6763845/

All Taiji practices will automatically initiate the breathing exercise. Video link https://youtu.be/KvJPcILOJt0

Dear Adm I would like to have a PPD set up for me. Please. Thank you.

The original name for the title is very long. So, it was cut short for simplicity.

I grant you it's a I grant you that it is a Taoist literature. However, any mistranslation of those terms will throw it off. Peace!

I think the translation is obfuscated with the misuse of many English words. 神(shen) doesn't mean spirit nor spiritual in TCM. According to the TCM definitions for 精氣神(Jing Chi Shen) are defined as follow: 精(Jing) Is the nutritional substances that nourish the body. It's also considered to be the main element of the body structure. 氣(Chi) is the micro substance that vitalize and activate the functional performance of all the organs in the body. 神 (Shen) is the mental consciousness that initiates and controls all the activities of the body. In order to have a healthy body, the TCM Taoists are considered these are the three treasures. They must be maintained and fine tuned to the maximum capacity to sustain life for longevity.

It seems that you are not doing any exercise at all. Your muscles are not contracting to generate the energy in your body to function properly. How is your breathing? Tell me how deep can you breathe. Breathing and muscle exercise is very important for your health. Practice Taiji is good for you to improve your present health.

How old are you? Are you a student? What kind of life style are you living in? Do you do the m-thing alot like a teenager? Please tell me more about yourself so I can help you. I don't think the problem can be solved as simple as unclog or open the meridians.

Qi is just an imaginary term used very loosely by TCM. No one can define it so someone could be understood. One can only understand in one's own view.

What kind of problem are you encountering?

The moral law in the mind of Sun Tze is the good for the people. The ruler is obligated not to rage a war. If he does, it must be for a good cause and beneficial to all people. It will bring unity between the ruler and the people to keep the country as a whole.

Yes, you are do understand the art of war clearly. Sun Tze suggested that the ruler might not know the situation in the battle. It is better not to interfere with the strategy of the commander. The commander knows better how to handle the situation in his accord. However, in order, for the commander to fight the war most effectively, Sun Tze was strongly recommended to disregard any unreasonable order from the ruler.

A tactic is only good for one victory for one enemy. It maybe repeated for anther opponent. Each situation is different from one to another. That is why it was said: " let your methods be regulated by the infinite variety of circumstances"

May I translation this to my understanding. 孙子曰：凡用兵之法，Sun Tze says: In using the art of war, 全国为上，破国次之；To keep the country intact as a whole is the top choice. The opposite is second choice. 全旅为上，破旅次之；To keep the battalion intact as a whole is the top choice. The opposite is second choice. 全卒为上，破卒次之； To keep the soldier intact as a whole is the top choice. The opposite is second choice. 全伍为上，破伍次之。To keep the group intact as a whole is the top choice. The opposite is second choice. 是故百战百胜，非善之善者也；Therefore, even though wining all the wars, it is not ideal for a good warrior. 不战而屈人之兵，善之善者也。Defeating the enemy without engaging a fight, it is a good strategy for an experienced warrior. What Sun Tze was suggesting, by saying all that, is to avoid a war by all means if possible.

This is a process for psychological warfare. It is a strategic method to make the opponents to believe what you want them to believe and fall into the trap. There are lots of hidden secretes in the art of war to win a war. It is a matter of interpretation and application. Misinterpretation and misapplication will not help to win the war but lost. If someone tried to interpret it as one thinks, then, one has missing the whole point of what Sun Tze was called for.

What you are saying is the process of the war but not the result. It is the intention of the war that determines the legality of the war.

Within the scope of the art of war. A legitimate war is only fought for a good cause. Even though the war was won without a good cause, it was considered to be a lost. That is the philosophy of Suntze(孫子).

I would interpret that the art of war is do not go into battle unless it cannot be avoided. The entire book is suggesting if a war was fought, then, the goal is how to win or lost with minimal cost.

Yes, exactly.