Are you a Taoists ???

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Do! If the Tao interests you, you might enjoy it quite a lot.

i read that he had an IQ of 170 when he was nine. Wow! And that he spent two years of his life in a mental institution; why is it the extremely intelligent always lament?

So, for any of you that would like to know, i read the Tao that was translated by Victor H. Mair.

He who embodies the fullness of integrity
is like a ruddy infant.

Wasps, spiders, scorpions, and snakes
will not sting or bite him;
Rapacious birds and fierce beasts
will not seize him.

His bones are weak and his sinews soft,
yet his grip is tight.
He knows not the joining of male and female,
yet his penis is aroused.
His essence has reached a peak.

He screams the whole day without becoming hoarse;
His harmony has reached perfection.

Harmony implies constancy;
Constancy requires insight.

Striving to increase one's life is ominous;
To control the vital breath with one's mind entails force.

Something that grows old while still in its prime
is said to be not in accord with the Way;
Not being in accord with the Way
leads to an early demise.

Rule the state with uprightness,
Deploy your troops with craft,
Gain all under heaven with noninteference.

How do I know this is actually so?

Now,
The more taboos under heaven,
the poorer the people;
The more clever devices people have,
the more confused the state and ruling house;
The more knowlege people have,
the more strange things spring up;
The more legal affairs are given prominence,
the more numerous bandits and thieves.

For this reason,
The sage has a saying:
"I take no action,
yet the people transform themselves;
I am fond of stillness,
yet the people correct themselves;
I do not interfere in affairs,
yet the people enrich themselves;
I desire not to desire,
yet the people of themselves become
simple as unhewn logs."

The softest thing under heaven
gallops triumphantly over
The hardest thing under heaven.

Nonbeing penetrates nonspace.
Hence,
I know the advantages of nonaction.

The doctrine without words,
The advantage of nonaction--
few under heaven can realize these!

reminds me of the bible in some ways because it agrees with it and it sounds like the guy who wrote it read the Bible and got some ideas lol. As a Christian I've noticed that a lot of things are true outside of my religion because they agree with what the Bible says, like an athiest or Islamic man can say something true.

question what is "the Way" refering too. And why does this sage guy have morals? They are good morals to me as a Christian well the things I've read like guide your troops and rule the state with uprightness. This sage person did he invent the morals? and how can you gain all under heaven with noninterference? not getting that one. Please explain thanks

Oh, Yeah!! ! Let me ruminate about this for a while...
It's going to be long. My response, i mean.

The Way - the Tao- could be explained as harmony with the universal Will. However, the Tao that can be explained is not the true Tao.



"Morals" is really not the most accurate word here. They're not rules to justify or condemn actions, they're guides toward acting in harmony. They're not so much invented as observed in the ways of nature.



By letting the Way do the work for you. Wu Wei, action without action; think of it like the principle of leverage.

Wow, Coyote, I'm impressed!!

I would also like to add that the Way cannot be described, but, it involves all facets of life: the weak/strong duality, emotional/spiritual/physical trinity, earth/fire/wind/water (there are more elements sometimes) alchemical-life, the basic waxxing/wanning of creation/destruction and how it is never the same the second time around.

The sage just knows! He realizes all around him, and knows of the end-product. He can intervene, but knows not to, because it will make no difference. He could instruct the ignorant, but doesn't. He knows that it won't matter.

This is why i love the Tao. It is wisdom accessed.

Read quite a bit about taoism a few years ago, and it really resonated with me. I can't bring myself to claim anything other than gnosticism though.

I have read the tao te ching many times, as well as many Buddhist texts. I am a practising Buddhist, and studied Taoism, as it was the introduction of Buddhism into China and its melding with Taoism that spawned Zen (Ch'an in Chinese), which is the brand of Buddhism I practice.
One of my favorite texts that I am digesting is the Dhammapada. Has anyone tackled this? It is not Zen, nor Taoist, but I find that Buddhism and Taoism are very closely related in many aspects.

Yeah I think they are total cousins. I skimmed the Dhammapada once, and i wish i had a copy now. It was good stuff.

http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/index.html
This is a link within a site called Access to insight, which is devoted to Theravada Buddhism, which i have also studied. The Dhammapada is one of the links. I also have a Tao Te Ching link on my desktop at work, and read through it sometimes.
And thank you for this wonderful thread!!

No problem. I'm obsessed.

Studying Taoism and Buddhism got me through some very dark times in my life, and meditation still continues to help me. Until I saw this thread I had wondered if there was anyone else on wp that studied Eastern religion, but hadn't had time to investigate that.