Jan 17-20 Verse 5

The Tao doesn't take sides;
it gives birth to both good and evil.
The Master doesn't take sides;
she welcomes both saints and sinners.

The Tao is like a bellows:
it is empty yet infinitely capable.
The more you use it, the more it produces;
the more you talk of it, the less you understand.

I go back to The Shack and that good or bad is relative, therefore there is no good or bad only choices. There is no judgment. I believe that God/Universe is constantly opening opportunities based on choices we make that will bring about the greatest good.

There are horrible choices, the killing of anyone is terrible. In these situations I think that paths may be opened for the people affected by the choice. Maybe strength is found or opportunities are given to head in a different direction.


We all have those life changing instances that have made us into someone else. Having Conor was one of those. I will never be the 25 year old that spent an hour and half to get ready or the woman who was so opinionated about child rearing. I am a mom that is happy when she remembers to brush her teeth. If something happened to Conor, I would still be a mom I would not revert to who I was.

The line about saints and sinners makes me think of the opposites verse. A sinner is a saints job and a saint is the sinners goal. We are one or the other at any given time, our choices bring us there and bring us out again.

The Universe is like a bellows (tool that blows a strong current of air, used to make a fire burn more fiercely or to sound a musical instrument). While the bellows is empty, it is forever able for use. It never runs out and is ready to help us live more joyously we just have to use it.

Jan 13-16 Verse 4

The Tao is empty but inexhaustible.

It is like the eternal void:

filled with infinite possibilities.

Infinitely deep, it is the source of all things.

Within it, the sharp edges become smooth;

the twisted knots loosen;

the sun is softened by a cloud;

the dust settles into place.

It is hidden but always present.

I do not know who gave birth to it.

It is older than the concept of God.

He is speaking of the energy of the universe. If we could be aware and tap into that energy our edges would smooth. If I take a deep breathe and just relax that is what it feels like to me. Everything is calmer I am more aware of my surroundings and I slow down.

Authors talk about infinite possibilities and how we can ask for/manifest our desires. I always had guilt over this because what if I took the last million and someone else really needed more than I did? I finally realize that there is no 'last' it is always there. You are not taking the last piece of the pie because there is no last piece.

Similar to the loaves and fishes story. They had 5 loaves and 2 fish to begin with and yet 5000 people were fed and there were baskets of leftovers. There was no last loaf. There was more than enough for everyone. Just like the universe/God there is no running out. We can be guilt free in our requests.

The line "it is older than the concept of God", I think means this energy was always around it was just given the name of God at some point. When you start to think about that - this huge, complex and yet simple force that has always been available and will be available long after I am gone - it makes me want to tap into it and be in a relaxed state. It has seen it all and the earth has survived. Whether Conor cleans up his room or not suddenly doesn't seem worth the fight. I'd rather spend the time with him enjoying each other, knowing soon enough he'll be grown and gone. What would I rather a messy room lived in or a clean room empty? I choose messy. Of course his door is closed right now and I can't see the mess so it is easy for me to write that.

If you view yourself as this infinite power and your kids as us, think about how fast they have grown. 10 years is nothing. 10 more and he will be out of the house. Think of the drama and issues of their first 10 years. Our love was constant and we all survived. So our love is like the universal energy - constant, unchanging, big enough for 20 kids, small enough for 1. It fits the situation. It will never run out regardless of what they do or how old they are. If they leave this world before us, our love is still there. If they live in another state, or have chosen not to speak to us - our live is still there. It never, ever goes away.

Oh I am really getting this now. How wonderful to have access to that energy all the time. Makes me sad that I don't take more time to tap into it. Hopefully trying to live the Tao will make me more aware.

Deep breathe and..... smoothing.

Jan 9-12 Verse 3

If the chosen are not exalted, no one envies them. 

If material treasures are not praised, no one steals them.

In other words, if the objects of passions are not shown off, there are no temptations.

The wise ruler does not create such temptations to people but takes care that people have enough food.  This eliminates passions and strengthens people’s health.

The wise ruler always strives to prevent temptations and passions and does not let evil people act.

The absence of these problems brings calm.

 

This one is great. I read The Shack and there is a whole chapter about good and bad. The main character is told he has to judge the world and he starts flipping out because he doesn't want to and doesn't have the ability to. But all through his life he has judged others based on looks, money, smell, behavior etc. So he obviously can judge and does all the time. He is forced to look at what his basis is for judging and he realizes that someone is 'good' when their behavior, looks, etc confirm the mans own personal ideas. Someone is 'bad' when those ideas are challenged. HOWEVER examples are brought up that show his ideas are fluid, what might be bad one day may become good another given different circumstances and knowledge.

God explains that there is no good or bad, right or wrong, there are only choices that either bring you closer to your better self or away from it. 

Deepak talks about how we spend almost 90% of time trying to convince others that we are right or defending our ideas. Think about what could be done with that energy if we just accepted that others have different opinions and behaviors and that we are free to be who we are.

This verse is about removing value and judgment. If I judge money to be important I place a very high value you on it. Then my energy is spent trying to get it , keep it, get more of it. If instead I appreciate what I have, believe that what I need will always be given, then I spend my energy in the now instead of judging others - she has more money than I but I have more than him - I can live in the now. 

 

As an aside - Who even decides that a Monet has tremendous value and a Murphy doesn't? How as a group have we all bought into this? Is Prada purse worth hundreds more than one from JC Pennys? Has all this been created to fuel the retail industry? I am curious about how such high monetary value is placed on somethings and not others. I understand rarity and original, but still. I have the same thoughts on curse words - who decided that certain words were bad?

Back to the verse - Think about what was important to you as a child, teenager, young adult, first married. What I spent energy on, cried over, HAD to have. All those things are inconsequential now and most of the material things I have throw out over the years. When I have to have something now I try to give it time. 

 

I try to focus on being and enjoying. Not that it is a piece of cake. I have friends with great bodies, houses, high status jobs, amazing talents, lots of money, etc and it is easy to want what they have but I try to be very happy for them and myself. I'm working on it.

Jan 5-8 Verse 2

When people see some things as beautiful,
other things become ugly.
When people see some things as good,
other things become bad.

Being and non-being create each other.
Difficult and easy support each other.
Long and short define each other.
High and low depend on each other.
Before and after follow each other.

Therefore the Master
acts without doing anything
and teaches without saying anything.
Things arise and she lets them come;
things disappear and she lets them go.
She has but doesn't possess,
acts but doesn't expect.
When her work is done, she forgets it.
That is why it lasts forever.

This is a deep one. What I get from this is that we need opposites. If we were never sad how would we know happiness. And with the cold weather we have been having, I have never appreciated warm so much! If I wasn't so cold I would probably still enjoy warm, but not really LOVE it as I do now or be so aware of it.

The work lasting forever trips me up, I guess if you were ever done you would leave this world. I would love to hear your comments on this.

My friend, Libby, sent this email to me and I thought is was appropriate to this verse:

I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright no matter how gray the day may appear.

I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun even more.

I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive and everlasting.

I wish you enough pain so that even the smallest of joys in life may appear bigger...

I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting.

I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess.

I wish you enough hellos to get you through the final good-bye.

Basically having enough positive to handle the negative. When I think about it some of my greatest moments came from succeeding after struggling, overcoming a hurdle, figuring out the answer, pushing the flipping kid all the way out.

There is a Chinese story of an old farmer who had an old horse for tilling his fields. One day the horse escaped into the hills and, when all the farmer's neighbors sympathized with the old man over his bad luck, the farmer replied, 'Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?'
A week later the horse returned with a herd of wild horses from the hills and this time the neighbors congratulated the farmer on his good luck. His reply was, 'Good luck? Bad luck? Who knows?'
Then, when the farmer's son was attempted to tame one of the wild horses, he fell off its back and broke his leg. Everyone thought this very bad luck. Not the farmer, whose only reaction was, 'Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?'
Some weeks later the army marched into the village and conscripted every able-bodied youth they found there. When they saw the farmer's son with his broken leg they let him off. Now was that good luck? Bad luck? Who knows?

I love this story but skew it a little. When I am having a negative/bad luck I think of the story and assume it is actually good luck hiding. When I am having a positive/good luck I try to enjoy it and disregard the chance that bad luck could be hiding.  

I found some exercises to do:

1.     List everything you have in your life that you don’t want, and then next to each item, list its opposite.

2.     List everything you want in your life that you don’t have, and then next to each item, list its opposite.

3.     Look at your two lists and “see” the dance of opposites that are now occurring in your life. Put your attention on the opposite you desire.

Try do the following in the next 4 days:

4.     Sit quietly and feel your breath, going in and out of your nostrils. Just feel the breath. From this point of feeling, observe the constant change going on in our mind. Just observe, without judgment. Practice this mindfulness technique for 5 minutes a day.

5.     Spend one day moving from project to project without thinking back on what you just did, or thinking forward to what the results of what you did will be. Move forward with each thing you do like a baby, first playing with his toes, then moving to fingers while toes are forgotten. Spend your day in innocence and peace.

January 1-4 Verse 1

The first verse is "The Tao that can be named is not the Tao". It is about the energy of the universe. Let me say here I will be using Universe/God/energy pretty interchangeable, you use the word you are most comfortable with.

Verse 1 - The Energy of the Universe
The Way of Heaven is like a well that is used but never used up. It is eternal, and the creator of everything in the world. In it all sharpness is dulled, all tangles untied, all glare shut out, all dust swept away. Where did it come from? I do not know. It is older than eternity.

Remember a time when you looked at a sunset, or stood by the ocean, and became “lost” in the experience? No words, just a feeling of being a part of everything. That’s the energy, that is the feeling of oneness. Can you imagine that just being used up? No.

Out from that experience of Oneness, we begin to name things; we “create” our world. We name “ten thousand things”. In naming, we separate. We say that “this” is “this” and “that” is “that”. We “judge”, and out of that judgment springs desire. We see the manifestations of our desires in our world. If we became the leaf and just was, we would be in harmony with all.

We can always return to the Source, simply by being desireless, by living in the moment. By being content with what is, we become aware of our constant connection to source. It is always there - our connection never breaks it just gets staticy.

To “play” with these ideas further, reflect on the following questions:

1. What do you desire now?

2. What do you see in your life that is there because of your past desires? (both good and bad)

3. What would it feel like for you to give up all desire? Just for a moment, to be totally content with all just as it is?

Sometime during this next 4 days, do the following:

4. Walk in nature and see a tree without labeling it. Really experience it without judgment.

5. Allow yourself to relax in the mystery of life. Experience being comfortable, just for a moment, without knowing, without desiring. Just being.

Please post your comments, feelings, experiences on this and I wish us all a safe trip.

Who was Lao Tzu?

Lao Tzu is the supposed author of the Tao Te Ching, one of the greatest books of wisdom. There is no proof that he was ever born, founded Taoism, or wrote the book. Here is the legend:

Some say that on the 14th of September 604 BC, Lao Tzu was born. His mother had carried him for 81 years (I love Conor, but no WAY) so at birth he had white hair, large ears, and could walk and talk. Hysterical that the ears are mentioned, its not wild enough that he was born at 81 but his large ears are noted?

His name means Old Wise One. He was born wise and already knew the magic arts of energy, medicine, healing, longevitiy, clairvoyance, protection and transcendence. And he could talk to the animals. Conor might become a Taoist master if they can teach that.

I want to write a bit about the magic arts. I think it is very interesting that the 7 arts are all based in energy and knowledge. I believe we can all learn these arts, actually I think we are born knowing these arts but our lives and environment bring in stress (or truthfully we allow in) anxiety, greed, etc and these over ride our natural inclination. As we get older we try to release the negativity but we have grown so used to them we are scared of becoming or being perceived as weak, or we worry about losing friends, respect, possessions. I think we can get back to basics, but even as I write this I don't do daily meditation. My mornings are spent thinking what I have to accomplish. Work is more important because it pays the bills, or having a clean house, or lots of other things when I KNOW I could make time for it but don't. This is why I am starting this and making it public. Knowing others are doing it too helps me stay focused.

Ok, back to the legend. When Lao Tzu was asked how he found the Way to Heaven (Tao te Ching), he said "I made a great effort: I tried and tried and tried to find it, but I couldn't. Then one day as I was sitting under a tree, a dry leaf fell, slowly moving with the wind. the wind moved north; the leaf moved norht; the wind moved south; the leaf moved south; then the wind stopped-and the leaf fell down and rested beautifully on the earth. Then again there was some wind and again the leaf rose high in the sky. Suddenly I became that dry leaf; and suddenly I understood the Way To Heaven. No longer was I separate from Heaven, but I was a part of Heaven. Wherever Heaven went, I went. If it changed its mind, I changed my mind. If it stopped, I stopped. If it flowed, I flowed. And that is how I found the Way."

Back to me. This paragraph had a HUGE impact on me. This simple story implies that by going with the flow it is all good. Think about that, if we just went with what was happening in our lives and not fighting it - no stress, no issues, etc. Sadly I had an opportunity to practice this and I failed miserably. I was doing a favor for an acquaintance, which I offered to do and I received absolutely no appreciation, instead I got phone calls wanting more, no thank yous just earlier deadlines. Now if you offer to do something out of the goodness of your heart you should not be looking for accolades. However my ego was hurt and I was pissed. I kept thinking- this is how it is meant to be, learn from this. I did learn a lesson on making sure I show appreciation to others regardless of the task, but I still bitched. If I had just bean the leaf, did what I offered to do, understood where that person was coming from (a place of panic), I would have still ended up in the same place but without the aggravation.

One of my favorite lines from a movie is from Evan Almighty, where the wife is asking for help and God says, "If someone prays for patience, do you think God gives them patience? Or does he give them the opportunity to be patient? If they pray for courage, does God give them courage, or does he give them opportunities to be courageous? If someone prayed for their family to be closer, you think God zaps them with warm, fuzzy feelings? Or does he give them opportunities to love each other?" I had an opportunity to release and flow on the wind and missed it. The great thing about God - more chances.

And the legend continues....
Some consider Lao tzu the greatest teacher of all time. He had many disciples, whom he taught Heaven's way by example and silent meditation. He said, "The truth that can be told is not the real truth; the truth that can be told becomes untrue immediately." This is the first verse of the Tao and one I have trouble with. Other translations of verse 1 are: The ways that can be walked are not the eternal Way; The Tâo that can be trodden is not the enduring and unchanging Tâo. I can't wrap my head around this. The best I can come up with is that anything that has rules, instructions, guidelines and consequences for not following them is not being the leaf. The leaf is in complete harmony with the wind. It doesn't have to do anything for the wind to carry it, there are no regulations to follow, it just happens. My Irish Catholic mind is totally blown!

At 160 Lao Tzu had seen enough corruption and decline to make him want to leave and live his life in peace elsewhere. As he tried to enter a pass, a guard stopped him and refused him passage until he wrote his teachings. For 3 days he wrote the Tao te Ching and then departed.

There are 81 verses in the Tao, as there were 81 years in Lao when he was born. You can also use the 8 as a symbol if infinty and the number 1 as togtherness - so we are all 1 in infinity.

Starting tomorrow our journey begins.....
I think it is going to be one hell of a ride!

Living the Tao

I have decided to try and live the Tao for a year. So starting on 1/1/2010 I will focus on one verse of the Tao for 4 days. There are 81 verses, which should take me to about mid November.

I welcome anyone to join me on this journey. I will post what the verse of the day is and my thoughts on what I think it means, on what has been happening in my life, etc. I would love to hear what your thoughts are as well.

I am starting to research different translations of the Tao and will be using various authors commentary as well.

For the next three weeks I will post what I have learned about the Tao and Lao Tzu to prepare.

Come take a walk with me.....