Hello (introduction and a question)

chano

There is another tragic side to the "...strives to be as good as he can" side of life. Anyone who excels in what they do must necessarily be never satisfied in what they've done. If they were, they would cease to strive to the point of excellence. This is especially so for anyone striving to achieve an idealized standard or goal.

By defining the 'good' you guarantee a lifetime of the 'bad'. For this reason, I appreciate the sacrifice made by that those who have excelled and left something behind from which we benefit. I'm not alone in that I'm sure, but am, probably, when it come to seeing their sacrifice as coming from weakness, not strength. We are innately set up to see such powers of excellence as 'strengths', and not as symptoms of weakness. Why? I reckon it serves our innate social nature. We need leaders and role models. If we could easily see the weakness that drives them, who would care to follow? Yes sir, Mother Nature sure knows how to pull off a good hoodwink!

chano

I am new to this forum and I thought i would introduce myself. I am 27 and i have begun reading about taoism. I recently read a translation of Tao Te Ching and strangely enough I have already become happier and more content with my life. I have come to see that my beliefs are not mine alone and have made sence of things i never understood about myself. Many people have precived me as cold, I do not lack compassion but i have always understood that there must be balance. Even as a child I held true to taoist belifes without knowing of their existance.

My parents used to tell me that i would never get anywhere in life because i put others in front of myself. I never understood why that was and it struck me as inheriently wrong.

I feel as if my spiritual body has surpassed my mental and physical bodies. If my interpritation is correct this is a bad thing. I know with the proper training the physical body can be caught up but my question is how would one train the mind to be rooted with the tao? Reading the aincient texts alone does not seem as it would be enough to suffice.

Also i am very interested in learning more about taoist herbalisim is their any recources any of you would suggest?

Lynn Cornish

I feel as if my spiritual body has surpassed my mental and physical bodies.

Just one thought. In my experience, mind, body and spirit are all connected, or all one. On a experiential level, its like I can sink my mind down and feel spirit or life force throughout my body. Then, at that point, there is no contention or no divisiveness, no dominance of one over the other.

Maybe you are already balanced but your mind or ego is fighting it, making a problem where none exists.

Lynn Cornish

Same subject. I was sweeping the floor and thought it might be helpful to recommend that you take up Tai Chi or a marshal art. That could be the key to feeling unity between your body, mind, and spirit.

I was thinking, I sure didn't feel integrated at the age of 27. I was jumping out of my skin and so I drank a lot. Lots of good things come with age.

chano

Thank you for your opinion. I have been considering this for a few hours. Here is what i have come up with. I actually was taing Taijiquan for a while but due to circumstances beyond my control my training was put to the side brifely. I have changed my diet from the typical american diet and I am working twords the balance within my physical body.

My thought is by following the eight pilliars of tao one should be able to find balance of all three of the aspects of the body. Therfore becomeing rooted with the tao at least more so than one without balance. The tao of revitalization tells us ways in which to find balance within the body. As does the tao of forgotten foods. It would seem the tao of mastery would be the best place to begin for mental awareness. How would one learn the ways without guidance? I have the fear of misinterpritation. The feeling of fear is what makes me belive i do not have balance of the mind. The paradox in this is the tao te ching tells us "He who is sick of the sickness is no longer sick." Would this then mean by feeling the fear but facing it one is no longer afraid?

Lynn Cornish

Most of your questions are beyond my knowledge. Carl?

Having been born a human, I have a lot of experience with fear! I think everyone is scared but some people don't talk about it. I've found that, yes, by feeling the fear, which is facing it, the fear loses its power. But then, it will sneak up on you again and again. Maybe all fear comes from the fear of death and until we no longer fear death we will have fear. The fear of death is hard-coded into our genes...at the level of lizard mind it is there and it is strong. So fear comes back over and over.

So when feel fear, if you can, sit with it. Notice how it feels in your body and what thoughts come. Let the thoughts pass like clouds overhead. Softly and gently. Then you see that when you don't fear fear or fight fear, it's not so bad.

I dunno. It works for me but I've been meditating since the year one.

Hope that helps. Know that you are not alone.

chano

That does help. I have begun to contimplate fear. I wonder if i fear misinterpritation because misinterpritation would cause all of my efforts seeking balance to cause more imbalance. If this is the case could it then be said i seek balance for persoal agenda? The paradoxes seem to lead to other paradoxes which shows us how little we know the more knowledge we gain and shows the signifigance of our insignifagance. (if that makes even the slightest bit of sence)

mr.minor

I personally have never read the Tao Te Ching, and do little reading on Taoism other than here and sometimes some Iyengar. But as they say, the way that can be spoken of is not the constant way. The constant rumination of thoughts about the way and my personal anxieties and things seems to do little to nothing, year after year. I know in my heart that the more I become closer to myself and the way, the more my actions and thoughts will be reflective of these writings. So with that mentality, I try to think less, and just stay aware. When we set ourselves up with obligations, such as the trying to discover ourselves and find the almighty way, we often come away less satisfied, always a bit behind our ambitions. Thus I've found that less practicing and more listening is for one, easier, but also more gratifying. In a sense, you aren't trying to do anything, but by doing so, you are. When there is nothing to do, there is nothing that is left undone.

Lynn Cornish

I try to think less, and just stay aware.

That's what meditation is, except there's no "trying." When you can watch your thoughts and let them pass, you come to realize how insubstantial most thought is. Then you become less jerked around by your thoughts, and you settle down a bit until you can catch glimpses of the nameless quality that I believe is what the TTC is pointing to.

Along the way, as you meditate, you can't help but come to know yourself. Here's what Carl said about self-honesty:

Mastery, “Tao” or otherwise, is a cultural myth. ‘True mastery’ is only realized when we remain ‘true beginners’. The duality, ‘mastery versus beginner’ is in the mind and emotion (desire) of the observer. It is something we must first strengthen. ‘True guidance’ is the self honesty we face within ourselves. Self honesty is the only truly trustworthy guide. It is the guide’s guide.

Carl

[cite] chano:[/cite]… I have begun to contemplate fear. I wonder if i fear misinterpretation because misinterpretation would cause all of my efforts seeking balance to cause more imbalance. If this is the case could it then be said i seek balance for personal agenda? The paradoxes seem to lead to other paradoxes which shows us how little we know the more knowledge we gain and shows the significance of our insignificance. (if that makes even the slightest bit of sense)

I reckon all we ‘see’ when we look, listen, or read is a reflection of ourselves. There is no such thing really as misinterpretation per se. I say what I say from where I am; you interpret what I say from where you are. What we see is ourselves in the guise of something real out there.

Fear is perhaps the most essential survival instinct, not only for humans, but all life. How we expresses the fear we feel varies widely and often ‘covertly’. Your imagination is having its way with you, e.g., "paradoxes, balance, agenda", etc., but of course that always happens when we [chref=71]think[/chref] and make mountains out of molehills, of which I'm probably doing right now... :oops: