The Father and Son of Taoist Philosophy

[Marblehead]

Chuang Tzu stopped talking for a moment and Lao Tzu quickly added:

 

 

There Is Nothing Smaller Nor Greater Than Tao

It accomplishes its tasks and completes its affairs,
And yet we do not know its real name.

When its work is accomplished,
It does not take possession,
It merely rests.

The Ten Thousand Things derive their lives from it,
And it does not deny them.

The Ten Thousand Things entrust their lives to it,
And yet it does not act as their master.

Being the home and the root of all things,
Yet claiming no credit,
It may be considered great.

Because to the end it does not claim greatness,
Its greatness is achieved.

We look at it but cannot see it;
We name this “the Invisible”.

We listen to it but cannot hear it;
We name this “the Inaudible”.

We reach for it but cannot touch it;
We name this “the Intangible”.

These three cannot be examined to the limit.

They elude all our inquires
And hence blend and become one.

There is nothing more encompassing above it,
And nothing smaller below it.

[Marblehead]

Chuang Tzu replied:

 

 

The Domain Of The Imperceptible

I search with my eyes but see nothing; I call that the Invisible. I listen but hear nothing; I call that the Inaudible. I grasp for it but touch nothing; I call that the Intangible. None of these experiences brings an answer; I find only an undifferentiated Unity. Its upper part has no light; its lower part has no darkness. Indiscernible, it cannot be named, for it remains in the domain of the imperceptible.

[Marblehead]

And he continued:

 

 

The Pivot

Tao is obscure when men understand only one of a pair of opposites, or concentrate only on a partial aspect of being. Then clear expression also becomes muddled by mere word-play, affirming this one and denying all the rest.

Hence the wrangling of men; each denies what the other affirms, and affirms what the other denies. What use is this struggle to set up “No” against “Yes,” and “Yes” against “No”? Better to abandon the hopeless effort and seek true light!

There is nothing which cannot be seen from the standpoint of the “I.” If I begin from where I am and see it as I see it, then it may also become possible for me to see it as another sees it. Therefore there is nothing that cannot be seen from the standpoint of the “Not-I.” If I begin by looking at anything from the viewpoint of the “Not-I,” then “I” do not really see it, since it is “Not-I” that sees it. Hence the theory of reversal; that opposites produce each other, depend on each other, and complement each other.

However this may be, life is followed by death; death is followed by life. The possible becomes impossible; the impossible becomes possible. Right turns into wrong and wrong into right; the flow of life alters circumstances and thus things themselves are altered in their turn. But disputants continue to affirm and to deny the same things they have always affirmed and denied, ignoring the new aspects of reality presented by the change in conditions.

The wise man therefore, instead of trying to prove this or that point by logical disputation, sees all things in the light of direct intuition. He is not imprisoned by the limitations of the “I,” for the viewpoint of direct intuition is that of both “I” and “Not-I.” Hence he sees that on both sides of every argument there is both right and wrong. He also sees that in the end they are reducible to the same thing, once they are related to the pivot of Tao.

When the wise man grasps this pivot, he is in the center of the circle, and there he stands while “Yes” and “No” pursue each other around the circumference.

The pivot of Tao passes through the center where all affirmations and denials converge. He who grasps the pivot at the still-point stands in the place from which all movements and oppositions can be seen in their right relationship. Hence he sees the limitless possibilities of both “Yes” and “No.” Abandoning all thought of imposing a limit or taking sides, he rests in direct intuition. Therefore it is said, “Better to abandon disputation and seek the true light!”

[Marblehead]

Both paused momentarily and then Lao Tzu said:

 

 

Tao Gave Birth To The One

Before the beginning,
Tao existed but all was chaos;
Tao did not have a manifest form.

The Tao gave birth to the One;
The Universe.

The One gave birth to the Two;
The Universe and Heaven.

The Two gave birth to the Three;
The Universe, Heaven and Earth.

The Three gave birth to the Ten Thousand Things.

The Ten Thousand Things carry Yin on their backs
And wrap their arms around Yang.

Through the blending of the vital forces
They arrive at a state of harmony.

The Tao gives birth to them;
Rears them,
Matures them,
Completes them,
Supports them,
Protects them,
And rests them.

It gives birth to them
But does not try to overcome them;
It acts on their behalf
But does not make them dependent;
It matures them
But does not rule them.

This we call Profound Virtue.

This is the root from which
One may survey the Universe.

The Tao gives birth to them
And Virtue nourishes them.

Substance gives them form
And their unique capacities (Virtue) complete them.

Therefore the Ten Thousand Things
Venerate the Tao and honor Virtue.

As for their veneration of the Tao
And their honoring Virtue;
No one rewards them for it;
It is constantly so on its own.

[Marblehead]

And Chuang Tzu replied:

 

 

Out Of Tao, One Is Born

“Since I can say the word One, how can speech not exist? If it does exist, we have One and speech, two; two and one, three; from which point on, even the best mathematicians will fail to reach the ultimate.”

[Marblehead]

Lao Tzu waited for Chuang Tzu to say more but nothing came forth so Lao Tzu continued:

 

 

The Nature Of Tao

The character of great Virtue
Follows alone from the Tao.

As for the nature of the Tao;
It is shapeless and formless.

Formless! Shapeless!
Inside there are images.

Vague! Indistinct!
Inside there are things.

Hidden! Obscure!
Inside there are essences.

These essences are very real;
Inside them is the proof.

Boundless! Formless! Continuous!
It cannot be named or defined,
And returns to the state of no-thing.

This is called the formless form,
The substanceless image.

That is why it is called Elusive.

Meet it and you do not see its face;
Follow it and you do not see its back.

[Marblehead]

To this Chuang Tzu had something to say:

 

 

Great And Small

When we look at things in the light of Tao, nothing is best; nothing is worst. Each thing, seen in its own light, stands out in its own way. It can seem to be “better” than what is compared with it only on its own terms. But seen in terms of the whole, no one thing stands out as “better.” If you measure differences, what is greater than something else is “great,” therefore there is nothing that is not “great;” what is smaller than something else is “small,” therefore there is nothing that is not “small.” So the whole cosmos is as a grain of rice, and the tip of a hair is as big as a mountain; such is the relative view.

You can break down walls with battering rams, but you cannot stop holes with them. All things have different uses. Fine horses can travel a hundred miles a day, but unlike cats or weasels, they cannot catch mice. All creatures have gifts of their own.

The white horned owl can catch fleas at midnight and distinguish the tip of a hair, but in bright daylight it stares, helpless, and cannot even see a mountain. All things have varying capacities.

Consequently, he who wants to have right without wrong, order without disorder, does not understand the principles of Heaven and Earth. He does not know how things hang together. Can a man cling only to Heaven and know nothing of Earth? They are correlative. To know one is to know the other. To refuse one is to refuse both. Can a man cling to the positive without any negative? If he claims to do so he is a rogue or a madman.

[Marblehead]

And, after taking a quick, deep breath Chuang Tzu continued:

 

 

Tao Is Beyond Words

Cocks crow, dogs bark; this all men know. But, even the wisest cannot tell whence these voices come or explain why dogs bark and cocks crow when they do.

Beyond the smallest of the small there is no measure. Beyond the greatest of the great there is also no measure.

Where there is no measure there is no “thing”. In this void can you speak of “cause” or of “chance”? Can you speak of “things” where there is “no-things”? To name a name is to delimit a “thing”.

When I look beyond the beginning I find no measure. When I look beyond the end I find also no measure. There is no beginning of any “thing”. You speak of “cause” or “chance”? You speak of the beginning of some “thing”?

Does Tao exist? Is it then a “thing that exists”? Can it “non-exist”? Is there then “things that exist” that “cannot exist”?

To name Tao is to name no-thing. Tao is not the name of “an existent”. “Cause” and “chance” have no bearing on Tao. Tao is a name that indicates without defining.

Tao is beyond words and beyond things. It is not expressed either in speech or in silence. Where there is no longer speech or silence Tao is apprehended.

[Marblehead]

After a brief pause Lao Tzu inserted:

 

 

The Mysterious Female

The Valley Spirit never dies;
It is called the Mysterious Female.

The Mysterious Female is the gate
To the roots of Heaven and Earth.

Subtle,
Yet everlasting,
It seems to exist.

In being used,
It is not exhausted.

Continuously,
It remains.

Draw upon it,
And it serves you with ease.

 

Edit to add my notes regarding this:

 

(The Valley, like the bellows, is a symbol of Taoistic "emptiness". The Mysterious Female is the principle of Yin, the negative, the receptive, the quiescent. He who makes use of nature's laws accomplishes results "without labor".)

Edited January 28, 2015 by Marblehead

[Marblehead]

Chuang Tzu replied:

 

 

The Silent Beautiful Universe

There is great beauty in the silent Universe. There are manifest laws governing the four seasons without words. There is an intrinsic principle in the created things which is not expressed.

The Sage looks back to the beauty of the Universe and penetrates into the intrinsic principle of created things. Therefore the perfect man does nothing, the great Sage takes no action. In doing this, he follows the pattern of the Universe.

[Marblehead]

And then he quickly continued with:

 

 

The Root Of All Things

The Spirit of the Universe is subtle and transforms all life. Things live and die and change their forms without knowing the root from which they come. Abundantly it multiplies; eternally it stands by itself. The greatest reaches of space do not leave its confines and the smallest down of a bird in autumn awaits its power to assume form. The things of the Universe emerge and submerge, but it remains forever without change. The Yin and the Yang and the four seasons move in orderly procession. Darkly and without visible form it seems not to exist and yet exists. The things of the creation are nourished by it without knowing it. This is the root from which one may survey the Universe.

[Marblehead]

Chuang Tzu paused to look at the fishes jumping out of the water and Lao Tzu said:

 

 

The Shape Of The Mother Of All Things

The thing that is called Tao
Is elusive, evasive.

Evasive, elusive,
Yet latent in it are forms.

Elusive, evasive,
Yet latent in it are objects.

Dark and dim,
Yet latent in it is the life-force.

The life-force is very true.

Latent in it are evidences.

From the days of old till now,
Its names have never ceased.

By this we may view the Mother of All Things.

How do I know the shape of the Mother of All Things?

Through these manifested forms!

[Marblehead]

And Chuang Tzu replied:

 

 

Through Inaction The Heaven Becomes Clear

Through inaction, the Heaven becomes clear. Through inaction, the Earth remains at peace. From the combination of the two in inaction, all things of the creation are acted upon. Evasive, elusive, do they not come from a source? Elusive, evasive, does not the Tao have a form? All things multiply and grow from inaction. Therefore, it is said, “The Heaven and Earth do nothing and everything is done.” How can man learn this example of inaction?

[Marblehead]

Chuang Tzu continued:

 

 

The Character Of Perfect Tao

Tao has its inner reality and its evidences. It is devoid of action and of form. It may be received, but cannot be touched. It may be perceived, but cannot be seen. It is based in itself, rooted in itself. Before the Universe, Heaven and Earth were, Tao existed by itself from all time. It gave the Universe, Heaven and Earth their birth. To Tao, the zenith is not high, nor the nadir low. Existing before the Universe, Heaven and Earth, it is not regarded as long ago; being older than the primeval beginnings, it is not regarded as old.

[The Name]

Tao existed by itself from all time.

 

 

Therefore it is impossible to speak of it because it cannot be defined. It is literally absolutely nothing.

 

It's not nothing not something not this not that not infinite not finite not great not petty not bright not dark not empty not full not profound not shallow not intelligent not stupid not complex not simple not inside not outside not there not here not life not death not existence not nonexistence not dual not nondual not one not two not singular not multitudinous....it cannot be known it can only be not known because its the only thing that is real. It isn't knowing not ignorance not real not unreal not it not me not wisdom not ignorance not abstraction not reality not mind not body not instinct not will not consciousness not unconsciousness not subconsiousness not hyperconsciousness not the noosphere not the world-soul not gods not mortals not time not space not ocean not shore not not.

Edited February 2, 2015 by The Name

[The Name]

Therefore knowledge is useless. It is better to stay still and go with the flow of Tao.

[Marblehead]

Your first post will stand true to the end.

 

But this one:

Therefore knowledge is useless. It is better to stay still and go with the flow of Tao.

I think you have jumped the gun. Later this will be spoken to rather thoroughly.

[Marblehead]

After the short break Lao Tzu said:

 

 

Being Originates In Non-Being

The things of the world originate in Being,
And Being originates in Non-Being.

The Tao is that toward which all things flow.

It is the treasure of the good man,
And that which protects the bad.

[The Name]

Your first post will stand true to the end.

 

But this one:

I think you have jumped the gun. Later this will be spoken to rather thoroughly.

 

Maybe....

[Marblehead]

Chuang Tzu responded:

 

 

The Origin Of Things

“Do you suppose,” asked the disciple of the Sage, “that we can ever know of the origin of the Universe?”

“Why, yes,” replied the Sage. “The time of long ago is just like the present.”

The disciple did not know what to say and withdrew. The next day, he came again and said, “Yesterday I asked you if we could know the origin of the Universe and you said, ‘Yes, the time of long ago is just like the present.’ Yesterday I seemed to understand what you meant, but today, I feel in the dark. Will you please enlighten me?”

“You understood my meaning yesterday,” replied the Sage, “because you were in full possession of your soul. Now you are in the dark because you have lost it and are trying to find it. There is no such thing as long ago and the present, or the beginning and the end.”

The disciple was unable to reply, and the Sage continued. “I see you cannot reply. Do not consider death as the end of life and do not consider life as dying with death. Both life and death are dependent on something else and find their unity elsewhere. Do you suppose that there was something which existed before the origin of the Universe? That something which gives birth to other things could not be a thing itself, for things could not exist before there was something. There must have been something which preceded it and there must have been something which still preceded that preceding something.”

[Marblehead]

A short silence followed then Lao Tzu said:

 

 

All Opposites Are Constant

The mutual production of being and nonbeing;
The mutual completion of difficult and easy;
The mutual formation of long and short;
The mutual filling of high and low;
The mutual harmony of tone and voice;
The mutual following of front and back;
These are all constants.

Therefore,
Being and non-being interdepend in growth;
Difficult and easy interdepend in completion;
Long and short interdepend in contrast;
High and low interdepend in position;
Tones and voice interdepend in harmony;
Front and behind interdepend in company.

[Marblehead]

Chuang Tzu responded:

 

 

The Relativity Of Opposites

Speech is not the mere blowing of breath; it is intended to say something, only what it is intended to say cannot yet be determined. Is there speech indeed, or is there not? Can we, or can we not, distinguish it from the chirping of young birds?

[Marblehead]

Then Chuang Tzu continued:

 

 

The Distinctions Of Opposites

How can thought be so obscure that there should be a distinction of true and false? How can speech be so obscure that there should be moral judgements and mental distinctions of "right" and "wrong", "true" and "false", "is" and "is not", "affirmative" and "negative", to "justify" and "condemn", to "affirm" and "deny"? Where can you go and find Tao not to exist? Where can you go and find that words cannot be proved? Tao is obscured by our inadequate understanding, and words are obscured by flowery expressions. Hence the affirmations and denials of the various religions, each denying what the other affirms and affirming what the other denies. Each denying what the other affirms and affirming what the other denies brings us only confusion.

[Marblehead]

And without pause Chuang Tzu continued:

 

 

The Leveling Of All Things And Attributes Into One

There is nothing which is not this; there is nothing which is not that. What cannot be seen by the other person can be seen by myself. Hence I say, this emanates from that; that also derives from this. This is the theory of the relativity of standards.

Possibility arises from impossibility, and vice versa. Affirmation is based upon denial, and vice versa. This being the case, the true Sage rejects all distinctions. For one may base it on this, yet this is also that and that is also this. This has its “right” and “wrong”, and that also has its “right” and “wrong”. Does then the distinction between this and that really exist or not? When this and that are both without their correlates, that is the very “Axis of Tao”. And when that Axis passes through the center at which all infinities converge, affirmations and denials alike blend into the infinite One. Hence it is said that there is nothing like using the Light.

The possible is possible; the impossible is impossible. Tao operates, and given results follow; things receive names and are said to be what they are. Why are they so? They are said to be so! Why are they not so? They are said to be not so! Things are so by themselves and have possibilities by themselves. There is nothing which is not so and there is nothing which may not become so.

Therefore take, for instance, a twig and a pillar, or an ugly person and a great beauty, and all the strange and monstrous transformations. These are all leveled together by Tao. Destruction is the same as creation; creation is the same as destruction. There is no such thing as creation or destruction, for these conditions are again leveled together into One.

Only the truly intelligent understand this principle of the leveling of all things into One. They discard the distinctions and take refuge in the common and ordinary things. The common and ordinary things serve certain functions and therefore retain the wholeness of Nature. From this wholeness, one comprehends, and from comprehension, one comes near to Tao. There one stops. To stop without knowing how one stops; this is Tao.

[Marblehead]

Pausing only to take a breath, Chuang Tzu continued:

 

 

The Relativity Of All Standards

“But how then,” asked the disciple, “arise the distinctions of high and low, of great and small, in the material and immaterial aspects of things?”

“From the point of view of Tao,” replied the Sage, “there are no such distinctions as high and low. From the point of view of the vulgar individual, each holds himself high and others low. From the vulgar point of view, high and low, honors and dishonor, are things conferred by others.

“In regard to distinctions, if we say that a thing is great or small by its own standard of great or small, then there is nothing in all creation which is not great, nothing which is not small. To know that the Universe is but as a tare-seed, and the tip of a hair is as big as a mountain; this is the expression of relativity of standards.

“In regard to man’s desires or interests, if we say that a thing is good or bad because it is either good or bad according to our individual standards, then there is nothing which is not good, nothing which is not bad.

“Thus, those who say that they would have right without its correlate, wrong, do not apprehend the great principles of the Universe, nor the nature of all creation. One might as well talk of the existence of Heaven without that of Earth, or of the negative principle without the positive, which is clearly impossible. Yet people keep on discussing it without stop; such people must be either fools or knaves.”

“Very well,” replied the disciple. “Am I then to regard the Universe as great and the tip of a hair as small?”

“Not at all,” said the Sage. “Dimensions are limitless; time is endless. Conditions are not constant; external limits are not final. Thus, the wise man looks into space, and does not regard the small as too little, nor the great as too big, for he knows that there is no limit to dimensions. He looks back into the past, and does not grieve over what is far off, nor rejoice over what is near, for he knows that time is without end. He investigates fullness and decay, and therefore does not rejoice if he succeeds, nor lament if he fails, for he knows that conditions are not constant. He who clearly apprehends the scheme of existence does not rejoice over life, nor repine at death, for he knows that external limits are not final.”