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Tao
Meditation Leading to Mystic Realization2
The Six Steps as clarified
by
Lao Tzu
and his followers |
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Concentrate on the
centre of your own being
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Be aware of your
breathing experience
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Purify your mind
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Love without interfering
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Allow your
softer, more intuitive, and less dominating feminine qualities to
rise to the fore, so
that you're surrendering rather than dominating, receiving rather
than broadcasting, loving rather than fighting.
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"When the Heavenly Gate opens and
closes, can you play
the party of the Female?" (As the Heavenly Gate opens and
you enter a mystic state of consciousness, can you surrender to
this experience rather than try to manipulate it?)
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Nurture
balance
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The
Success Formula According to
Taoism |
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S=P+O
Success is the sum of preparation and
opportunity |
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I-Ching
– the Secret of Success
Two Systems of I-Ching |
|
1. Space and Time I-Ching System
2. Taoist Methodology, or
The Tao of Change |
|
Space and Time I-Ching
System
Turning Opportunities To Your
Advantage: 5Ws Advice |
|
The Space and Time I-Ching System helps you forecast events through the use
of the date, time, and Five Elements – Earth, Water, Fire, Air, and Space.
Unlike many other methods of forecasting, Space and Time I-Ching System does
not simply foretell future events, but also helps you turn opportunities to
your advantage by offering sound 5Ws advice on:
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Who: the best person whom you should deal with
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What: the action to be taken and what should be done
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When: the best time in which something must be done
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Where: the direction in which you should proceed
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How: the way of doing things, how you should start and maintain the
direction.
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Tao
 Tao
is Chinese for "Way" or "Path," and forms the basis for Taoist philosophy.
Tao is the natural order of the cosmos, the path of equilibrium or
enlightenment.
In early days, before it received its
present name, Taoism was often called 'the Way'. The 'Way' that
Lao Tzu, the founder of Taoism, had in mind is not easy to define. "The
Tao
principle is what happens of itself," wrote Lao Tzu. Tao is really
Nature's way: the order, course of pattern of all things created. For
Taoists, every person and thing is only what it is in relation to others.
Events fall into harmony if left alone. Everything grows and operates
independently, on its own, but in harmony with all. A follower of the Tao
is someone who intuitively understands this energy and
balance in Nature, and works intelligently with
spontaneous natural phenomena.
The Tao of Happiness
The
Law of Nature
The Tao is the law of nature and the basic
principle of universe. It is the law of your true self.
Yin and Yang – the Symbol of Tao
Yin and
yang are symbols of the Tao and Taosim. They are the
dynamic force of the Tao, constantly interacting with one another.
According to the ancient Chinese philosophers,
in the beginning was Tao. But then Tao separated into the two prime
principles, yang and yin. And from the many combinations of yang and yin
everything else that is in the world has emerged.
Yang and yin produced the 'five elements',
which are metal, wood, fire, water and earth. Everything in life is in a
constant state of flux; in fact, the only thing that you can be sure of is
that it will change.
Lao Tzu, the Founder of Taoism
Taoism in general received a great jolt from
Lao Tzu's powerful teaching. Lao Tzu was
a native of Ch'u, a large state on the southern periphery of civilized China
in ancient times. "He was a truly revolutionary thinker who directly
challenged the status quo and lauded humble human qualities that anyone
could aspire to; he measured greatness not in wealth and accomplishments but
in personal integrity and inner harmony. He was in favor of leaders
supporting the welfare of the people, and entirely against war, violence,
official corruption, exorbitant taxation, and all undue interference in the
life of community. He posited an ideal
leadership that was invisible and enlightened, knowing firsthand the
deeper spiritual path to governing."1...
More
Universal Integrity – the Unique Gift of
the Taoist Tradition
Taoism points our attention towards our natural
capacity for transcendence. "A unique gift of the Taoist tradition is that
it does not see transcendent experience as separate and "other" but fully
integrates inner and outer, everyday and mystic, pragmatic and transcendent.
The Tao is a path we can all readily follow without fears of falling over
some esoteric edge, because the Tao points directly to everyday reality and
says, right here before you, in your everyday routine, you will find
transcendence - you will encounter the Tao."1
Wu Wei: the Taoist Approach to Life
Observe nature and yourself just as it is and
learn to participate without manipulation in the spontaneous unfolding of
the present moment. The principle of wu wei, of not forcing
things, is a natural corollary to the Taoist vision of the world. "Working
with the grain, rolling with the punch, swimming with the tide, trimming
sails to the wind, taking the tide at its flood: these are metaphors that
reflect the spirit of wu wei. If the follower of the
Tao understands the principles, structures or trends of human nature,
human society and the natural order, then he can expend least energy in
dealing with them. When he does exert this power at the right moment, his
efforts will have a spontaneous, natural or unforced quality about them."3
Restoring the Link with the Present Moment
The
founders of the Taoist culture of ancient China, identified the judging,
analytical thinking mind "as the perpetrator not only of our particularly
human blessings in life, but also of our particularly human courses.
 They
understood clearly that by dwelling in thoughts grounded in memory,
imagination, beliefs, and assumptions, we humans have gained vast powers to
think logically, reflect upon past experiences, and manipulate the world to
our advantage. However, because thinking is a past-future function of the
mind, we have tended to lose touch with the vital experience of
participating spontaneously in the present moment."1
To restore this "lost in thought" dilemma, you
should distance yourself from the constant barrage of thoughts from your
inner virtual reality, and shift into a deeper consciousness.
By learning to
calmly watch thoughts flowing through your mind without being attached to
those thoughts, you liberate yourself from chronic identification with your
ego's limited notion of what life is all about and open yourself to deeper
spiritual wisdom, insight, and nurturing.
By quieting the dominant thinking
mind, you awaken your latent spiritual consciousness; by gaining release
from your worries and mental torments, enjoy life more fully.1
Te
– a Perfect Virtue
Te is close in meaning to power or virtue.
Chuang Tzu, a great master of the Taoist school of thought, expressed it
thus: 'In an age of perfect virtue, good men are not appreciated; ability is
not conspicuous. Rulers are mere beacons, while the people are as free as
the wild deer. They love one another without being conscious of charity.
They are true without being conscious of loyalty.'
I-Ching – the Secret of Success
I-Ching is the secret of all success in life and business. The key to
success is living in harmony with nature.
I-Ching reflects the changes that
are constantly operating throughout all levels of the universe – the cycles
and tides of luck which you must learn and ride if you wish to achieve
success.
It helps you understand these mysterious rhythms, and to re-align
your live so that you can live more in harmony with the laws of nature. I-Ching
is divided into two systems of wisdom: Space and Time I-Ching System and the
Tao of Change.
The Tao of Change, or Taoist Methodology
The Tao of Change consists of many sets of guiding principles that help you
understand the universal laws. The person who fights the universe always
loses because the will of the universe cannot be changed. Nothing stands
still. For everything there is a proper time. Nothing lasts forever. All
that exists must change. Everything, including success and decline, follows
a specific pattern of succession and occupies a specific period in time. The
pattern of change is repetitious.
The Tao of Change helps you understand
this pattern and, thus, find true contentment. Fighting decline or any other
changes will result in misery, Do not strive to hasten good fortune
prematurely and accept inevitable decline if you wish to achieve true
contentment. Tread the middle path of balanced progress to avoid all
conflicts by aligning yourself with steady rhythms of the universe and
finally become one with Tao.
Case in Point
Rob Tomas
Rob Thomas, a famous singer and songwriter,
lives Tao. He loves the book "Tao
of Pooh," which explains Taoist principles through Winnie the Pooh.
Is Taoism something Rob subscribes to?
"I can't say fully, but I really think that
some of the philosophies of it are simple maybe I'm just lazy," he says. "It
seems with Taoists it's good to be lazy and to leave it up to fate."
Zen
Proverbs, Sayings, and Quotes
Nothing on earth can overcome an
absolutely nonresistant person...
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