Today's Tao Te Ching readings were very much like all the ones before. That is one thing I don't like about this book, it is very repetitive. Anyways, it talked about to live by the Tao, since that is the only reasonable way and the way of nature. We have to learn to live… humbly. It really makes a lot of sense, if you don't take credit or arrogance from any achievements you do then the world would be a better place. The Tao isn't exactly telling us not to do anything, it is telling us to achieve stuff, because it is the way of nature of course, but to move on.
Some aphorism that caught my attention:
'Achieve results, but never glory in them. Achieve results, but never boast. Achieve results, but never be proud. Achieve results, because this is the natural way. Achieve results, but not through violence.' (THIRTY) (Excuse me, it was 'the natural way', not the way of nature.) This is exactly what I was explaining. We should do all kinds of things but move right past them without letting them raise our ego or our self-image one little bit. I agree with the concept but I think that this might be a little extreme.
'Tao abides in non-action.' (THIRTY-SEVEN) We encounter the term 'non-action' again. We saw it in the Bhagavad-Gita, I think or way before now so it is kind of strange how such different texts have the same base. We came to the conclusion that everything is an action, even non-action. I think that the Tao Te Ching adapts it here to mean that even though we are acting, we are acting through non acting- it's the opposites again. Even through the simplest act we affect a much bigger picture, we just maybe don't realize it.
'The ten thousand things carry yin and embrace yang. They achieve harmony by combining these forces.' (FORTY-TWO) Ha, I was right! This thing is all about yin and yang! Read it and cry suckers!
Sorry, I just saw it and had to boast. I am going against the ways of Tao, oh dear me!
No comments:
Post a Comment