Taoist Philosophy - Chapter 88

[Marblehead]

The Essential Of The Sublime

 

The good man is the teacher of the good,
And the bad man is the raw material for the good.

To value one's teacher and not cherish the raw goods,
Though one had great knowledge,
He would still be greatly confused.
This is called the Essential of the Sublime.

Therefore the Sage
Is constantly good at helping people.
For that reason there is no rejected person.
He is good at saving things.
For that reason there is nothing rejected.
The Sage uses each according to his talent.
This is called Stealing the Light;
Making use of his knowledge of Nature’s law
To obtain the best results.


The Sage Rejects No Person

There was a man by the name of No-toes who had been mutilated. He came walking on his heels to see a soothsayer; but the soothsayer said, “You were careless, and so brought this misfortune upon yourself. What is the use of coming to me now?”

It was because I was inexperienced and careless with my body that I injured my feet,” replied No-toes. “Now I have come with something more precious than feet, and it is this that I am seeking to preserve. There is no man, but Heaven shelters him; and there is no man, but the Earth supports him. I thought that you would be like Heaven and Earth. I little expected to hear these words from you.”

Pardon my stupidity,” said the soothsayer. “Why not come in? I shall discuss with you what I have learned.” But No-toes left.

When No-toes had left, the soothsayer said to his apprentice, “Take a good lesson. No-toes had his feet cut off, yet he is seeking to learn in order to make atonement for his previous misdeeds. How much more should those seek to learn who have no misdeeds for which to atone?”


On Judging By The Standards Of The Physical

A certain disciple had only one leg. He studied under a great Sage together with another disciple of a well-to-do family. The latter said to him, “When I leave first, you remain behind. When you leave first, I will remain behind.”

Next day, when they were again sitting together on the same mat in the lecture-room, the well-to-do disciple said, “When I leave first, you remain behind. Or if you leave first, I will remain behind. I am now about to go. Will you remain or not? I notice you show no respect to a high personage. Perhaps you think yourself my equal?”

In the house of the Master,” replied the one-legged disciple, “there is already a high personage. Perhaps you think you are the high personage and should take precedence over the rest. I have heard that if a mirror is perfectly bright, dust will not collect on it; if it does, the mirror is no longer bright. He who associates for long with the wise should be without fault. Now you have been seeking the greater things at the feet of our Master, yet you can say things like that. Don’'t you think you are making a mistake?”

You are already mutilated,” retorted the other, “yet you are still seeking to compete in virtue with the purest of men. To look at you, I should have thought you had enough to do to reflect on your past misdeeds!”

Those who cover up their sins,” said the one-legged disciple, “so as not to lose their legs, are many in number. Those who forget to cover up their misdemeanors and so lose their legs through punishment are few. But only the virtuous man can recognize the inevitable and remain unmoved. People who walked in front of the bull’s-eye when a famous archer was shooting would be hit. Those who were not hit were just lucky. There are many people with sound legs who laugh at me for having lost one. This used to make me angry. But since I came to study under our Master, I have stopped worrying about it. Perhaps our Master has so far succeeded in purifying me with his goodness. At any rate, I have been with him nineteen years without being aware of my deformity. You and I are roaming in the realm of the spiritual, and yet you are judging me by the standards of the physical. Are you not committing a mistake?”

Edited March 5, 2013 by Marblehead

[themaninthesuit]

[Marblehead]

Thanks for the post

 

You're welcome.

 

 

The Sage Rejects No Person- haha not sure if i got a good grasp on that one.

 

Yeah, that's a tough one for me. I've not attained that state of purity yet. Hehehe.

[strawdog65]

Hello everyone!

 

Marblehead... great stuff!

 

I was wondering where you are getting these stories

that accompany these posts?

 

I would love to read more of these.

 

As far as what you've posted, Yes... lets talk.

 

Is it, the don't judge a book by it's cover?

Or is it... don't allow ourselves to make

judgments that cloud what we see in

others and what they are capable of?

I kind of see both.

 

A similar idea is the beast of the internet.

 

We know really nothing of each other... therefore

is it not a mistake to have judgment of others

here online?

 

No one here is any more "deserving" of

enlightenment than anyone else... and without

judging we are all the more closer.

We are all seeking the same, by many names and ideas.

 

But the universe knows no names for what we seek.

Even so, it answers to all of us... we have only to listen.

 

Peace!

[Marblehead]

Hi Strawdog,

 

Everything I am posting in this series (Taoist Philosophy) is from Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu.

 

There are many, many translations used, some of books I checked out of libraries many years ago and no longer have access to.

 

When I initially did the work I planned it for only myself so I had no reason to notate the source of the various excerpts I used.

 

The poem portion, of course, is Lao Tzu, followed by associated writing from Chuang Tzu. I can say that it is heavy with Henricks for Lao Tzu and Lin Yutang for Chuang Tzu. So the stories are all Chuang Tzu, various translations - whatever felt best to me.

 

I did some editing to replace Chinese words with generic English words to make the reading smoother (IMO).

 

 

 

Yes, judging. I think it is a natural human trait (a natural process of the brain) to judge. I think that this is good because I believe that judging is a survival instinct.

 

However, as you very well pointed out, we oftentimes rely too greatly on this process and we judge based on very little information and oftentimes this information is either false or misleading.

 

Therefore we should limit our judgements as much as possible. We shouldn't judge based only on external appearances. Better, I think, to not judge but only observe and recognize our observation.

 

I agree that here on the internet is a horrible place for anyone to be judging a person based only on what that person types in a forum. A person may have something in the past that causes them to take a particular stand on a particular concept and this may totally mislead anyone from getting an accurate picture of what the person really is all about.

 

Yes, we all are here for a purpose, our purpose. And I agree, no one is more deserving of 'enlightenment' than is anyone else. We all should be treated equally. Sure, some of us have more established understandings than do others. But that doesn't necessarily make us 'right', does it?

 

One of my main reasons for being here is to share my understandings with others. A secondary reason is to test my own understandings. I am always looking for those who have a different view of a concept than I have. This allows me to question my understanding. If the opposing view holds water I may alter my understanding. The only way I can do this is to not judge the person who said whatever but actually consider the words that were presented and the view offered. But, after gaining as much clarity as possible I will judge and make choices.

 

But this process should have nothing to do with who presented the words and should never be cause for judging the individual.

 

Judging is such a tricky thing because our past memories will always inject themselves into our thought process and alter, sometimes without recognizing it, our thoughts and therefore distort the observation causing us to make an invalid judgement.

 

Fickle thing, our brain. Gotta' keep it from wandering too far from the truth! Thuth! Ha! That's another tricky concept!

[strawdog65]

 

 

Judging is such a tricky thing because our past memories will always inject themselves into our thought process and alter, sometimes without recognizing it, our thoughts and therefore distort the observation causing us to make an invalid judgement.

 

Fickle thing, our brain. Gotta' keep it from wandering too far from the truth! Thuth! Ha! That's another tricky concept!

 

 

 

Hi Marblehead!

 

I greatly appreciate your openness to ideas as ideas themselves.

Ideas separated from any personality... rather than linked to a personality,

I think affords us a view with clarity and little judgment.

 

If it is the Idea: information/knowledge , that is important... then seeing

it with a disassociated view, impartial to it's source, seems to be Wise.

 

As far as the nature of our brains... and truth, how many people on this planet?

That I would venture, is the number of "truths" at hand.

 

 

Peace!

[manitou]

 

To value one's teacher and not cherish the raw goods,

Though one had great knowledge,

He would still be greatly confused.

This is called the Essential of the Sublime.

 

 

To me this again goes to making no judgments. Yes, it's hard to do. But our continual effort to remove that from inside us that obstructs our vision is the very thing that gives us the clarity we seek. If we remember in all instances that we are all One, it's a lot easier to do. The very traits that we find judgable and irritating about another are traits we have within ourselves...otherwise it wouldn't bother us, it wouldn't cross our egos and make us angry if it weren't there. The obnoxious traits we see in others are merely a reflection of our own selves in varying degrees. We have the whole menagerie in there; monkeys, peacocks, snakes, pigs.

[Marblehead]

To me this again goes to making no judgments. Yes, it's hard to do. But our continual effort to remove that from inside us that obstructs our vision is the very thing that gives us the clarity we seek. If we remember in all instances that we are all One, it's a lot easier to do. The very traits that we find judgable and irritating about another are traits we have within ourselves...otherwise it wouldn't bother us, it wouldn't cross our egos and make us angry if it weren't there. The obnoxious traits we see in others are merely a reflection of our own selves in varying degrees. We have the whole menagerie in there; monkeys, peacocks, snakes, pigs.

 

What can I say? Yes, you are right. Yes, I am working on it. But still ...

[strawdog65]

To me this again goes to making no judgments. Yes, it's hard to do. But our continual effort to remove that from inside us that obstructs our vision is the very thing that gives us the clarity we seek. If we remember in all instances that we are all One, it's a lot easier to do. The very traits that we find judgable and irritating about another are traits we have within ourselves...otherwise it wouldn't bother us, it wouldn't cross our egos and make us angry if it weren't there. The obnoxious traits we see in others are merely a reflection of our own selves in varying degrees. We have the whole menagerie in there; monkeys, peacocks, snakes, pigs.

 

 

Hi Manitou!

 

Really, you have to stop going into my head like that.....

 

It is the very things we find most annoying or unforgivable about others

that is considered most intolerable within ourselves.

 

So true and so Illuminating at the same time!

 

When seeing the reaction we have with others, to observe ourselves...

and to then realize why we have this eruption of negativity towards that

individual, is powerful, humbling, and ultimately life changing.

 

 

Peace!

[themaninthesuit]

Hey guys, to start i just realized my quotations do not say who said them so i am sorry if that adds any confusion. Ha ha not really sure why this is happening but i do suck at computers, so please forgive.

 

Marblehead-

Therefore we should limit our judgements as much as possible. We shouldn't judge based only on external appearances. Better, I think, to not judge but only observe and recognize our observation.

Exactly what i am trying to do. I still judge (even though not as much) but try to notice that i do it and correct it. Hopefully this continuous effort will soon rid me of having an initial thought about someone or something.

 

Strawdog-

But the universe knows no names for what we seek. Even so, it answers to all of us... we have only to listen

Very beautfiul man I am going to try and remember that for the rest of the day. And i agree with the internet, people on the internet are usually full of judgement about others. Damn i forgot what the website is called, i call it the shit-talking shit, cuz you can go on and go to someones name and talk shit about a particular person. That in itself is ridiculous, i can go on and rip people to shreds that i do not even know. And really what is the point of doing so, people that do such things are truly only hurting themselves.

 

Manitou-

To me this again goes to making no judgments. Yes, it's hard to do. But our continual effort to remove that from inside us that obstructs our vision is the very thing that gives us the clarity we seek. If we remember in all instances that we are all One, it's a lot easier to do. The very traits that we find judgable and irritating about another are traits we have within ourselves...otherwise it wouldn't bother us, it wouldn't cross our egos and make us angry if it weren't there. The obnoxious traits we see in others are merely a reflection of our own selves in varying degrees. We have the whole menagerie in there; monkeys, peacocks, snakes, pigs.

 

Damn that kind of made me speechless. Because before i felt judgment was more based on the differences between you and someone. And I thought your selfishness or ego was what made you judge them. Like i sag my pants and i used to get of odd looks from older people and sometimes some unnecessary comments. I figured it was kind of like "I dont sag i think its x, y, and z to do so, so this kid must be or believe in x, y, and z." And this may factor in to judgment. But after i read your post i feel that most of my judgment comes from my projection on people like you stated.