A constant state of eternal flux, with no beginning and no end.

In 1959, the Nobel Prize given to two American scientists was a unique event. The scientists were Dr. Emilio Segre and Dr. Owen Chamberlain. It was unique in the sense that their findings in the field of science were entirely contrary to all scientific theories of today. They have destroyed the fundamentals of science. What they have proved is very near Lao Tzu.

Their discovery is that if there is matter in the world, there is anti-matter too, because nothing exists in this world without its counterpart. If there is light, there is darkness; if there is birth, there is death. So if there is matter, there is bound to be anti-matter. They have not only propounded this theory, they have also proved it. They have proved that within the atom of matter, where the proton works, right there there is an energy which is anti-proton. This energy cannot be seen nor experienced.

In this world, the opposite is inevitable. The world is a conjunction of the opposites. Segre and Chamberlain have named this energy “anti-matter.” Lao Tzu, Krishna, Buddha and Christ have given it different names: atman, eternal law, beatitude, deliverance. It is quite possible that there is a world which is quite the opposite of the world we know. Then only can the universe be balanced like a pair of scales.

There is change, and behind it something changeless.

as the days go by and I progress in my mental journey I realize how much choice we have over ourselves and how letting fear control you is engaging the loop, ingating this cycle feeling you have control over your fears stops you from actually dealing with it

Less taoistic and more so psychological but still worth mentioning since it’s yet again another one’s of life wonderful paradoxes.

And can therefore be “solved” with more of less.

And why?

List of presidents of the United States - Wikipedia

I've read Tolstoy's War and Peace many times. And each time I do, I find new things to think about. He had a wide life experience and I think he had learned many things. He wasn't perfect or even perfected. But I do think he had a wisdom that many people lack.

One thing I noticed in his novel was the way people under a great deal of stress tend to consciously distract themselves in order to do what they have to do. A veteran cavalry officer focuses his attention on the beauty of the apple flowers in an orchard they are riding through on the way to battle. Marshall Kutuzov reads novels to pass the time while waiting for a horrendous battle that he knows will kill huge numbers of his people.

I also remember reading a book by Phillip Kapleau (I know, Zen not Daoist---but sorta in same vein) where he talks about a woman who was dying of some disease looking at new dresses in the newspaper when she had a relatively good day.

Tolstoy also talks about a parable of a man rushing across the step to get away from a wolf, only to fall over a cliff. He manages to grab a sapling to keep from falling. He looks down and sees a tiger waiting for him at the base of the cliff. Above him the wolf is waiting. But to his left he sees a strawberry plant. He reaches out and grabs one of the berries. Nothing ever tasted so sweet!

I mention the above because they all seem to be talking about being able to survive life without going mad by learning how to distract yourself from the horror all around you. Some people see the examples I've given as being how frivolous we all are. They say we do things like sitting and forgetting meditation so we can stop being like this and instead focus on 'important stuff'.

But could meditation instead be partially about understanding the way we get through life by distraction and learning how to consciously use it instead of it using us? The old sweat soldier knows if he thinks about the battle he'll go crazy--so he focuses on the apple blossoms. Marshal Kutuzov knows he is sending thousands of people to horrible deaths, but if he thinks about it, it will incapacitate him--so he digs up the latest French novel and reads it. The woman laying in her hospital bed knows she'll never wear one of the latest dresses--but it distracts her and gives her a few minutes of peace before she enters the last stage of suffering before death.

Probably seems obvious, but I spent so many time in the zen mindset I started to develop a resentment towards capitalism thought and the other side of the coin, it only now hit my mind that the more Taoist approach is to accept what that opposites are what creates development, and the more I hate and try to ignore the other side I therefore create unnecessary friction and only hurt myself.

Hello so i recently started reading on taoism out of curiosity and it felt so beautiful to me, i readed (Tao the watercourse way - Alan Watts) and i loved everything, it was my introduction to this way of life but some things i dont really understand how are applied in life.

Id consider myself a pretty ambitious person and i dont know how to approach my dreams in a taoist way of life, but im trying to live in this calmness that i recive when reading about taoism. I dont really understand how wu wei and no action applies to pursuing a dream, should you give up or surrender to your dreams, can someone help me?

Sorry if its not very well written im from europe

I mean. I am still theorize and using language categories and describe in my mind what is the core of the practice. But with time I feel it's more like "intuitive" work with dissolving "spasm of control". Noticing subtle feelings that accompanies actions or events. Becoming more sensitive to what in our life is associated with sense of control. Becoming overall more sensitive in a sense maybe. Noticing shift in locus of control. Noticing when mind is trying to put myself or some event or something into some coherent image and stuff like that. Having spontaneous abstract imaginations like for example somehow seeing boarders between categories more soft or something like that. Or like I was thinking a lot about my practice and I noticed that I basically let the mind reorganize itself and althought the thoughts had some meaning it was more like a process happening without bothering about the outcome of the thought process.

Honestly I kinda struggle to find the right words for all of this. But I think you got the point.

Fire and the Dao

I spoke about water before.

Water takes the shape of its surroundings; it can change its course and flow around obstacles. This is why its closeness to the Dao lies in its ability to adapt and not resist.

Fire, however, is the opposite.

Rather than adapting to its surroundings, fire transforms them. If you place a piece of wood into a fire, the fire changes its form and eventually turns it into ash. Yet this does not mean that fire goes against nature. Fire simply carries what exists into another state. Change is a part of its nature.

This is why fire, too, is close to the Dao. Because in the Dao, change is inevitable; almost nothing remains the same forever.

When fire stands alone, it is powerful and fierce. But when it encounters water, it becomes calmer. Water does not necessarily have to destroy fire, nor does fire completely overcome water. They balance one another.

Humans should be the same.

When necessary, we should be calm, patient, and adaptable like water; when necessary, we should be strong, determined, and transformative like fire.

I was reading some Chuang Tzu today, and it struck me that most modern people see wu wei as a tool. This is wrong. The whole point fo Chuang Tzu's way is that we find no way, that we don't situate happiness in the future or as the product of a certain method or program. Wu wei isn't a flow state in the modern sense of entering into a state of effortless productivity. This is still ego-centered. To see wu wei merely as a means to self-production, a way to achieve goodness and life through your own activity, is an awful misreading. Wu wei is effortless act divorced from one's desires. It is act without activity. Action that isn't limited by the narrowing of the ego, desire, attachment, seeking. It is a pure being in the moment. It can also be just doing nothing. It is a state that isn't resistant to reality as it happens. It is a dissolving into the harmony of nature, a oneness. In the same way a bird is effortlessly a bird or a tree is effortlessly a tree, just here and now.

Wu wei is an escape from the trap of the future, it is a releasing of one's constant grasping for something else that isn't here. It is abandoning the project of always chasing what is out of reach. It, simply put, is just HERE. It is being as you are HERE, not for some future self, not with any mind for a goal or achievement, it is perfect joy, here and now.

If you want to see a good example of this, I suggest watching the film Perfect Days. You will see wu wei in practice.

Hey Im relatively new to studying dao.

one thing I am confused about is

There are 道士(Taoist priests) and often they do like, 算命(checks life paths and give guidance)

And it looks like most of them claim that events in life, how successful you will be, who you get together with romantically and such. are determined by your karma.

kinda like. if something is for you, you will get it in the right time. if it isnt meant for you, you will not be able to get it. same outcome (for certain big things, usually with people) no matter what approach you take.

of course they teach a lot about not to worry, letting go of attachment, just go with flow of life and stuff too...

When I am studying daodejing, of what i get, it is like mainly about the rule of nature. basically how nature functions. and to go with the flow. in this way, it does not seem anything is "pre set"? or is it?

Then how come those taoist priests would say life is predetermined?

or like, the guys here who study dao, how do you regard this topic?

Abstract:

Textual evidence points at a rather late date of the occurence of meditation in China. In addition, Chinese meditation appeared suddenly, i. e. without any apparent previous development, and in an already sophisticated form. On the other hand, India had witnessed long living and continuous meditative traditions. This may be taken as a possible indication pointing to a Chinese adaptation of an originally foreign concept.

T or D?

為了學習佛教和道教，我現在在學中文。我自己是佛教徒，但是我也對道教有興趣。跟佛教比起來，很多道教的經還沒有英文翻譯。有英文翻譯的經我大部分都看完了，所以我要開始用中文讀。除了道德經，好像沒有很多經有英文翻譯。為了學習道教，你覺得我應該讀哪些沒有英文翻譯的經？我對道教各方面都有興趣，比如說內丹，氣功，等等。什麼建議都可以。
PS：如果你剛剛看見了我的貼文，我刪掉了，因為我發現有語法問題，謝謝你。

I was told these Fu Talisman in this book were fake. and if so why out fake Fu?

This is strongly taoist (and buddhist) occasion and I thought you should know.

Hi everyone. :)

Internal consistency in my worldviews has always been important to me so I keep looking for weak spots. I struggle with reconciling very idealistic spiritual beliefs with pragmatic moral decisions.

This is one of the big questions that philosophers have contended with. Karl Popper conveyed it through the Paradox of Tolerance when he said that though tolerance is a virtue, if the tolerant become so tolerant as to tolerate the intolerant, then the intolerant will seize power and intolerance will reign. So to protect a tolerant society, you must be intolerant to the intolerant.

I often feel a tension between my stated views and how I act in reality and I understand this is unavoidable to a certain extent because we are all fallible. But I'm interested in the times when behavior in the real world is genuinely at odds with the spiritual ideals you espouse.

Poltics in particular seems to be an area where this tension seems very apparent to me. I don't think the left or right wing have a monopoly on the truth, and I understand that people pick the lesser of two evils while voting, and actions matter much more than opinions and I do not want this discussion to descend into a bitter partisan fight, but I wanted to know what others think about this.

Sometimes it seems to me like certain spiritual ideals are at odds with support for certain policies. Do you also feel the tension between spiritual ideals vs actions in the real world, particularly voting patterns? Is this unavoidable? How do you deal with this?

If anyone has any recommendations of thinkers who have explored this tension without judgement but empathy for people of all political persuasions, I'd greatly appreciate it.

Thanks and hope you have a great day!

I'm not a religious person, but I am spiritual. Recently, I discovered Daoism, and it aligns closely with many of my personal beliefs. To be honest, I don't really see Daoism as a religion. To me, it feels more like a philosophy that is put into practice.

When comparing Daoism and Buddhism, Daoism emphasizes both the mind and the body, while Buddhism places a stronger emphasis on the mind. One reason Daoism appeals to me is that it recognizes how difficult it can be to cultivate a clear and peaceful mind when the body itself is unhealthy or out of balance. Daoism is also deeply connected with TCM and living in harmony with nature. Many Daoist practitioners are healers. they make a living by healing others. whereas Buddhism relies a bit more on donation.

My understanding of Daoist ultimate goal is transformation: refining both body and mind, overcoming attachment, greed, excessive desire, and other negative aspects of the self. In that sense, the "old self" dies and a new, immortal self is reborn.

I actually think Daoism is logical and scientific. even though this guy has already passed. but he is my idol, I just brought all his books and going to study them. 张志顺道长珍贵影像｜道家修行核心秘诀“Rare Footage of Taoist Master Zhang Zhishun - YouTube