9-9-9 Posted February 23, 2018 Since: “The Tao that can be spoken is not the eternal Tao The name that can be named is not the eternal name The nameless is the origin of Heaven and Earth The named is the mother of myriad things” What are we discussing on this forum? I’m sure it’s been discussed in prior posts. As a new member I thought it might be a good question to ask, or maybe not? Thanks Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeff Posted February 23, 2018 3 minutes ago, 9-9-9 said: Since: “The Tao that can be spoken is not the eternal Tao The name that can be named is not the eternal name The nameless is the origin of Heaven and Earth The named is the mother of myriad things” What are we discussing on this forum? I’m sure it’s been discussed in prior posts. As a new member I thought it might be a good question to ask, or maybe not? Thanks Because there is a path to realizing the Tao that can be spoken of... Chapter 16 - Tao Te Ching Empty yourself of everything. Let the mind become still. The ten thousand things rise and fall while the self watches their return. They grow and flourish and then return to the source. Returning to the source is stillness, which is the way of nature. The way of nature is unchanging. Knowing constancy is insight. Not knowing constancy leads to disaster. Knowing constancy, the mind is open. With an open mind, you will be openhearted. Being openhearted, you will act royally. Being royal, you will attain the divine. Being divine, you will be at one with the Tao. Being at one with the Tao is eternal. And though the body dies, the Tao will never pass away. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wu Ming Jen Posted February 23, 2018 The Tao that can be spoken is the great mother that provides and nourishes all forms, the named. Not biased by race, species and mental contrivance. Regular humans are lost and forget their own divine origin. this and that, good and bad all born from ignorance and self interest this is not the way. The nameless will settle the dust 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Michael Sternbach Posted February 23, 2018 14 minutes ago, 9-9-9 said: Since: “The Tao that can be spoken is not the eternal Tao The name that can be named is not the eternal name The nameless is the origin of Heaven and Earth The named is the mother of myriad things” What are we discussing on this forum? I’m sure it’s been discussed in prior posts. As a new member I thought it might be a good question to ask, or maybe not? Thanks Good question! But then, why did Laotzu, after saying that, go on writing a whole book about the Dao? 9 minutes ago, Jeff said: Because there is a path to realizing the Tao that can be spoken of... Chapter 16 - Tao Te Ching Empty yourself of everything. Let the mind become still. The ten thousand things rise and fall while the self watches their return. They grow and flourish and then return to the source. Returning to the source is stillness, which is the way of nature. The way of nature is unchanging. Knowing constancy is insight. Not knowing constancy leads to disaster. Knowing constancy, the mind is open. With an open mind, you will be openhearted. Being openhearted, you will act royally. Being royal, you will attain the divine. Being divine, you will be at one with the Tao. Being at one with the Tao is eternal. And though the body dies, the Tao will never pass away. You mean the path to realizing the path can be spoken of? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
9-9-9 Posted February 23, 2018 Thank you for the responses. It seems as though words can guide us towards the path? Was LT writing of the Dao or motivating readers to seek answers within (self and/or nature)? Is the mother of all things, nature? Just sharing my thoughts that were sparked by the responses. Maybe we can shorten the path (or path to the path😀) through sharing. Xie Xie 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeff Posted February 23, 2018 10 minutes ago, 9-9-9 said: Thank you for the responses. It seems as though words can guide us towards the path? Was LT writing of the Dao or motivating readers to seek answers within (self and/or nature)? Is the mother of all things, nature? Just sharing my thoughts that were sparked by the responses. Maybe we can shorten the path (or path to the path😀) through sharing. Xie Xie That one is easy too... Tao Te Ching - Chapter 6 The valley spirit never dies; It is the woman, primal mother. Her gateway is the root of heaven and earth. It is like a veil barely seen. Use it; it will never fail. Use it, as it will never fail. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Michael Sternbach Posted February 23, 2018 (edited) 2 hours ago, 9-9-9 said: Thank you for the responses. It seems as though words can guide us towards the path? Was LT writing of the Dao or motivating readers to seek answers within (self and/or nature)? Is the mother of all things, nature? Just sharing my thoughts that were sparked by the responses. Maybe we can shorten the path (or path to the path😀) through sharing. Xie Xie My view on what Laotzu meant is that the path can't be defined once and for all, because it is the path to yourself, which you must travel in your own way. There is no way to map it out in advance; it may take awkward turns and be full of surprises (you know, dragons and unicorns showing up, etc. ). Because what you are heading to is the realization of your own unique individuality (a.k.a. your natural, spontaneous self, liberated from sociocultural conditioning that is inhibiting it), the path that leads there is of necessity a unique and individual one as well. However, there are certain general principles and approaches that will be applicable in this or that situation, and those can indeed be spoken about. But you are quite right, above all, Laotzu is guiding us to seek our answers within rather than unduly relying on external sources of information, such as so-called authorities. Edited February 23, 2018 by Michael Sternbach 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
vonkrankenhaus Posted February 23, 2018 He wrote that because Dao is not a thing to speak of in the first place. It is not a "thing". It means "Way" - like "the way home". The "Way" is not a road and does not go to a destination. It's like "the way to make a mess". The "way to make a mess" is not a physical "thing". But we can talk about it for convenience. If we tried to weigh this "way", for example, that wouldn't make sense. Because it doesn't "weigh". -VonKrankenhaus 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Stosh Posted February 23, 2018 "Oh,,, Mr. Holmes, I would love to tell you! ,,, but then, of course, I'd have to kill you." 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
windwalker Posted February 24, 2018 7 hours ago, Michael Sternbach said: Good question! But then, why did Laotzu, after saying that, go on writing a whole book about the Dao? Did he? did he write the book or did someone else write it? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dawei Posted February 24, 2018 Maybe you know the song, Two is Better than One... a part of the lyric is: Well maybe two is better than oneThere's so much time, to figure out the rest of my lifeAnd you've already got me coming undoneAnd I'm thinking two, is better than one Laozi might simply explain numbers as: One... Light coming undone Two... now comes the clue Three... now see me Four... now opens the door Five... breath alive Six... observe the mix Seven... including heaven Eight... and all create NIne... something refine Ten... Light once again Names refer to forms and objects. If forced to give it a name... then I call it XYZ. Now we can talk about XYZ. Its styled name is ABC. We're talking alphabet soup. Laozi may not of eaten that but he surely knew its taste. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
