Why Taoism?

[三江源]

Lilly needs light and roots and water and bees and wind.

 

Same as us!

[Marblehead]

If the human mind is empty- unbiased blank slate to begin with ...

I hold to this concept (blank slate) but I always remember that this applies to a properly functioning brain. Therefore there will always be those who will not adjust to being whatever we want to define as a nice person. And too, the upbringing of the child may be such that positive characteristic traits never had to opportunity to develop.

 

However, if we look at the majority of the human animal we could loosely define some traits that would reflect a common human nature.

[Marblehead]

Lilly needs light and roots and water and bees and wind.

 

Same as us!

I didn't need all those winds I had today. Bees? Hehehe. I'll pass, thank you.

[三江源]

I didn't need all those winds I had today. Bees? Hehehe. I'll pass, thank you.

I see from your expressed interests including short skirts and bikinis that you are indeed not passing, on honey, sweetness, pollination, nor buzzing around whatever the wind brings your way...

[Stosh]

I hold to this concept (blank slate) but I always remember that this applies to a properly functioning brain. Therefore there will always be those who will not adjust to being whatever we want to define as a nice person. And too, the upbringing of the child may be such that positive characteristic traits never had to opportunity to develop.

 

However, if we look at the majority of the human animal we could loosely define some traits that would reflect a common human nature.

We are in complete agreement !

 

have a nice evening:)

[Marblehead]

We are in complete agreement !

 

have a nice evening:)

Thanks. You too and all else as well.

 

Coincidence - now playing on my computer is the song "Nature's Way" by Spirit.

[Marblehead]

I see from your expressed interests including short skirts and bikinis that you are indeed not passing, on honey, sweetness, pollination, nor buzzing around whatever the wind brings your way...

Ah! Those were the good old days. I'm just a grouchy, grey-haired old man now. But sure, I still look.

[三江源]

Ah! Those were the good old days. I'm just a grouchy, grey-haired old man now. But sure, I still look.

Grizzled is a good word, no?

 

The repetition that you are an animal and regard yourself as an animal. Is this poetry for your soul? Do you find it inspirational? Do you dance around under the moonlight, howling into the wind? Or swim for hours in the sea, feeling like a manatee?

Do you hunt in packs? Or sing as the light changes at twilight and dawn?

[Marblehead]

So many questions - so few answers!

 

Yes, I think grizzled would fit.

 

Yes, that I am an animal answers many questions I had regarding my instinctual (I sometimes call these intuitional) behavior.

 

In my younger years I did dance in the moonlight, yes. Can't remember ever howling into the wind though.

 

Yes, swimming in the sea - naked whenever possible - and at night whenever possible. Never felt like a manatee though - those puppies are fat!

 

Have always been a lone wolf. I prefer doing my own thing.

 

Sunrises and sunsets. Yes, I enjoy both. Many times have I stayed up all night to watch a sunrise. Did that the first time when I was in my early teens just because I wanted too (too young for the girls yet at that time).

 

Yes, I sing when I feel like singing. I get some really nice smiles when I feel like singing while shopping in Wal-Mart.

[三江源]

so...... a spirit animal!

[chenping]

This will turn into a failed discussion based on the limitation of written language expressed through the sterile means of the internet.

 

I respectfully bow out.

 

Pity. It's my loss if you bow out without even trying.

 

Thou shalt not (anything).

 

Anything and everything? You must be a really wild cat.

 

You think (1) the Christian God is a joke but you worship strange ones like the Dao. You'd (2) swear "Jesus f-cking Christ!" and (6) mess around with women even on (3) Sundays. (5) You want the right to kill anyone, including (4) your old man, trampling on your turf in any way. (7) You steal (ideas count too) and (8) tell lies with conviction that they are truths. And (9-10) you covet and God only know how you do this.

 

You probably don't care if Taoism never gets you to Heaven but what about that other place? And I don't mean Hell.

Edited March 7, 2013 by chenping

[SEEKER OF TRUTH]

When a foolish man hears of the Tao, he laughs out loud. If he didn't laugh, it wouldn't be the Tao.

 

When a superior man hears of the Tao, he immediately begins to embody it.

 

There is a middle ground, perhaps that would be a good start for you. Chapter 41

 

Pity. It's my loss if you bow out without even trying.

 

 

Anything and everything? You must be a really wild cat.

 

You think (1) the Christian God is a joke but you worship strange ones like the Dao. You'd (2) swear "Jesus f-cking Christ!" and (6) mess around with women even on (3) Sundays. (5) You want the right to kill anyone, including (4) your old man, trampling on your turf in any way. (7) You steal (ideas count too) and (8) tell lies with conviction that they are truths. And (9-10) you covet and God only know how you do this.

 

You probably don't care if Taoism never gets you to Heaven but what about that other place? And I don't mean Hell.

[RiverSnake]

This first stanza of the Tao te Ching is why I prefer Taoism to all other traditions, it admits the futility of words and language, it doesn't claim to hold the Ultimate within somekind of metaphysical box, it is raw spirituality at its finest. It admits ignorance and therefore it's wisdom shines.

 

"The Tao that can be told

Is not the eternal Tao

The name that can be named

Is not the eternal Name" Tao Te Ching

 

My 2 cents, Peace

Edited March 7, 2013 by OldGreen

[Birch]

Why Daoism?

 

- Acupuncture

- Bazi

- 5E

- Feng Shui

 

There are worlds of qi to explore. I also happen to be atheist. Please correct me if I get the term wrong but I don't believe in a creator god 'out there'. I also tend towards a non-dual sort of an idea that I can only refer to as 'the reverse' from what I understood prior to taking up meditation practice (which technically wasn't Daoist).

It's always work in progress. I guess I like things that way!

[Marblehead]

so...... a spirit animal!

One could say that, yes.

[Marblehead]

Challenging response so I will speak to it.

Anything and everything? You must be a really wild cat.

Remember, part of being an Anarchist is to allow the same rights to others that I demand for myself. Therefore "anything and everything" has very strict limits.

You think (1) the Christian God is a joke but you worship strange ones like the Dao.

I know nothing of a Christian god not any other form of god. I do not worship Dao or any other illusion or delusion.

You'd (2) swear "Jesus f-cking Christ!" and

It has been many, many years since I have said any such thing. But I do use the "F" word whenever it is appropriate.

(6) mess around with women even on (3) Sundays.

What is so special about Sunday? Yes, I used to mess around with women whenever the opportunity presented itself. Didn't matter the day of the week.

(5) You want the right to kill anyone, including

I reserve the right to kill anyone who has intentions of killing me

(4) your old man, trampling on your turf in any way.

including my father if he would have tried to do so. But while I live with him I was on his turf therefore I would not have had the right for that reason.

(7) You steal (ideas count too) and (8) tell lies with conviction that they are truths. And

I have not stolen anything from anyone in many, many years. But I would in the future if it meant the difference between my living or dying. I have not told a lie in many, many years. If I tell someone something (except for when I am joking) it is because what I say I believe to be the truth. Now, I will grant that I may be wrong but I also reserve the right to be wrong. If I believe something to be the truth then it is the truth for me until I have been proven wrong.

(9-10) you covet and God only know how you do this.

No, I do not covet anything anyone else has. Not for many, many years. I have enough. I know when to stop.

You probably don't care if Taoism never gets you to Heaven but what about that other place? And I don't mean Hell.

Where the fuck is Heaven other than within ones own heart? I am at peace with my Self. That is Heaven. I am, at this moment at peace with all externals affecting my life - that too is Heaven. If you have some place to go you better hurry up and get there. I am exactly where I am supposed to be.

 

Some people search their entire life for something that doesn't exist. I need nothing, I search not. How are you doing?

[Marblehead]

I also tend towards a non-dual sort of an idea that I can only refer to as 'the reverse' from what I understood prior to taking up meditation practice (which technically wasn't Daoist). It's always work in progress. I guess I like things that way!

Yes, this is an ideal. Never truely attainable but we can get rid of many of our "this/that" preferrances. To observe without judgement. To see the rose flower as well as the thorns.

[Stosh]

Nothing wrong with appreciating the pointy delicacy of the thorns

and the determined assertion of the canes

right along with the evasive scent of the bloom

the depth of the color

and the sparkly rainbows in the water droplets

Judging it ALL wonderous ,a pleasure , a drama

IMO

The reason why Im saying this is that the beauty of a rose is not truly in the rose itself

it is the capacity within ourselves to have the feelings and sentiments we do

My cat couldnt care less about the flower than it bobs in the wind (like prey as far as I can tell)

appreciating all the circumstances that we bring upon ourselves, our failures and successes

shortcomings and strengths included , is accepting that we are whatever we are

And in THAT one can come to get off ones own back enough to richly BE

it is tough to let go of judgements ,, but to the extent that one can let go of the negative ones one can benefit .

Some of the vain assessment can go as well . maybe just enough to leave the weights we feel light enough to shrug off casually.....so we can see the next thing freshly.

Edited March 7, 2013 by Stosh

[PLB]

The Tao

[chenping]

Some people search their entire life for something that doesn't exist. I need nothing, I search not. How are you doing?

That was one heck of a confession. You made me feel like your parish priest.

 

How am I doing? I wish I knew. I don't even know where I am and what I am. All I know is that I am cast in the role of Chenping in this mother of all TV series called life. In this present episode, I am messing around in a Taoists forum and talking to you. You sure you are exactly where you are supposed to be? I really wish I can get in touch with the scriptwriter and get him to write me into a better situation.

 

Right now, I am just one of the 7 billion non-players on the planet who live and die, come and go, like straw dogs - human fodder. Only a handful of people get to make a difference in life. I am not asking to be a player because I don't need fame or want power to change anything. In that sense, I am kind of like a wu-wei guy. Like you, I just want enough to be contented and 10 to 20 billion US Dollars would do it for me. This gets me into the players club so I can get up close to see what these human elites are doing as masters of the universe.

 

How's my confession? We are like Catholic priests confessing to one another.

Edited March 8, 2013 by chenping

[Rara]

Attaining greater states of awareness is certainly about non-doing, but in a world that revolves around "doing", the conditioning can get pretty thick, and thus the question "what the heck am I doing?!" haha!

 

Well, the art of doing without actually doing...check out this thread:

 

http://thetaobums.com/topic/9086-how-do-you-personally-employ-wu-wei-non-action-in-daily-life/

 

Surely the TTC sends the message which you already employ...following your own path and only living by what you KNOW rather than what you need to try and figure out or believe in before you die!

 

That's the way I see it...I didn't pursue Taoism...I just realised I was it...and it was me

Edited March 8, 2013 by Rara

[Rara]

We live in a very different world/time from when the TTC was written. Our life, in general, is hustle - bustle get things done and do it all now.

 

Perhaps in regard to the pace in which we live...we seem to evolved somewhat. But some things remain totally unchanged as far as Government is concerned, as an example! I found the majority of the TTC quite reflective of present day...that's what it's appeal to me was in the first place!

[Marblehead]

 

How am I doing? I wish I knew.

Yeah. I think that if we are spending most of our time looking for a purpose of life we are wasting a lot of time that could better be used just living.

 

Funny - the 20 billion US dollars. But all that money won't get you any closer to your true Self.

 

Yes, we all are but straw dogs. Some of us have to walk and others ride in limos. But we all will die.

 

In the most part I think that we each write the script for the role we will have in this play called "Life". Sure, there are associate writers and they sometimes add stuff that is unhelpful and even harmful but as long as we hold to our freedom of choice we can decided what to accept and what to not accept.

 

So, yeah, as long as we don't take this thing called life too seriously there remains the potential for having a nice time while we are here. And yes, wu wei is a nice condition to be in while doing that. (It's hard to get that ego to chill out though. Hehehe.)

[Marblehead]

Perhaps in regard to the pace in which we live...we seem to evolved somewhat. But some things remain totally unchanged as far as Government is concerned, as an example! I found the majority of the TTC quite reflective of present day...that's what it's appeal to me was in the first place!

Yes. The TTC and other great books speak to concepts that are without time limitations. But we still need to know how to apply those concepts to 'our' time. And yes, this is what appealed to me as well.

[chenping]

Yeah. I think that if we are spending most of our time looking for a purpose of life we are wasting a lot of time that could better be used just living.

 

Who cares about purpose? Being alive is like being in a Theme park. I'm not much into that stuff about Tao makes one and one makes two and two makes three and three makes the Theme park. All I care about is getting my rides before it's time to get to the exit.

 

 

Funny - the 20 billion US dollars. But all that money won't get you any closer to your true Self.

 

And you think being a straw dog among the other 99% will get you closer? I just don't get why the rich can't get through the needle's eye or closer to the true Self. Sure, money isn't the rocket propellant that will get you into orbit but it sure can dispel gravity and move obstacles out of the way.

 

 

Yes, we all are but straw dogs. Some of us have to walk and others ride in limos. But we all will die.

 

99% are straw dogs. The players, the movers and the shakers, are something else. Imagine this: you stick your bank card in the ATM Machine, touch "Check Balance", and see "$20,000,000,000". This is it. This is the eternal Tao. Does it matter if you are going to die one day? You are a player. You can literally move mountains. Straw dogs get closer to the true Self. Which do you pick? Wise up, man. I am not the Devil and you are not Jesus in the desert.

 

 

In the most part I think that we each write the script for the role we will have in this play called "Life". Sure, there are associate writers and they sometimes add stuff that is unhelpful and even harmful but as long as we hold to our freedom of choice we can decided what to accept and what to not accept.

 

I am not talking about writing the script about what you're going to do for the day. I'm talking about writing the script that takes you out of the role of a straw dog on a slave ship into a role of a player who parts the Red Sea. I'm talking about real Tao power.

 

So, yeah, as long as we don't take this thing called life too seriously there remains the potential for having a nice time while we are here. And yes, wu wei is a nice condition to be in while doing that. (It's hard to get that ego to chill out though. Hehehe.)

 

There is the wu-wei of the loser and the wu-wei of the winner. If you don't take life seriously, you might as well be dead. Even the ant takes life seriously. And the lilies of the field too, they do sew and spin. Only the biblical ones don't. But in real life - if you really observe the truth about nature - it's all serious; otherwise, you won't have that beauty, you'd have the garbage-strewn streets of cities where no one really gives a damn.