We “know” humans are animals, biologically speaking. Yet do we really feel we are? In reality, there is a wide gap between our knowledge and our experience. Catching the flu for the “first” time in my life recently offers an example of how thought can distort and pigeonhole reality. Assuming that I caught the flu […]
Continue reading…Pleasure Isn’t Well Being
(First Pass: “Chapter of the Week” 2011) Both pleasure and pain can pull us off balance and dim our sense of well being. This parallels chapter 13’s Favor and disgrace are things that startle. Of course, it is easy to see how pain and disgrace do this, but favor and pleasure? That’s more subtle. The […]
Continue reading…Is Rock Conscious?
A while ago, I attempted to pin down a friend (1) of mine on the subject of consciousness. My view that a rock could be conscious didn’t go over too well. He said, “Words are sounds that gain meaning with use. Saying that a rock is conscious is like saying a rock is alive. That might work […]
Continue reading…See No Evil
While discussing life with a friend the other day the word evil came up. He sees America as an “evil empire” that commits acts of torture that surpass anything al-Qaeda has done. I think he was referring to all the bombs dropped over the last 100 years. In any case, this provided grist for my […]
Continue reading…Keep ’em guessing?
(First Pass: “Chapter of the Week” 2011) The Tao Te Ching is so often terse and vague—especially the original Chinese. I expect one reason is that it points to a reality so often at odds with the story we want to hear. Revealing this point of view less obscurely would feel unsettling, even subversive, to […]
Continue reading…Thou Shalt Not…
I doubt devout Christians are here to take offense, so I’ll propose an 11th Commandment… Thou shalt not take the path of least resistance. It has a nice ring to it, yet I’ll admit it sounds unnatural. Indeed, we evolved to take the path of least resistance. Then again, we didn’t evolve to eat grains, […]
Continue reading…You Are What You Own
The 1st and 2nd of Buddha’s Four Noble Truths (p.604) are spot on in regards to the nature and the cause of humanity’s existential difficulties. While these first Truths are a no-brainer, the remedy offered in his 3rd and 4th Noble Truths turn out to be more subtle. It is easier to identify problems or […]
Continue reading…Priorities
(First Pass: “Chapter of the Week” 2011) Prioritizing life is an important step in managing the demands of life, at least a civilized life. In the wild I suppose circumstance pretty much handle what and when animals do what they do. Having freed ourselves from the drudgery of hunting and gathering whenever we get hungry […]
Continue reading…We!
Knowing that we are all in this together evokes a sense of community and well-being. Not long ago humanity had a narrower view of what we are in all this together involved. Happily, science is showing us just how deep and vast the we of this actually reaches. The Science News article, Inside Job, covers […]
Continue reading…You Know
More than once, I’ve mentioned the likelihood that we put the cart before the horse when it comes to learning, understanding, and knowing. Over the last few years, I’ve become convinced that we only truly understand and learn what we already know intuitively. My suspicions began during our home schooling days as I began seeing […]
Continue reading…Who You Are Determines Who I Am, & Visa Versa
(First Pass: “Chapter of the Week” 2011) This is an interesting perceptual phenomenon. Is it true and real? Hmm, that’s hard to say, which makes it all the more fascinating to ponder. Looking at life through this lens can be helpful, regardless of how true it is. At the very least, it gives insight to […]
Continue reading…An Improper Sense of Awe
I marvel at how seriously some people take prophets of doom. Still, I do understand the apprehension. Certainly, my own apocalyptic sense of life probably accounts for my serious side. True believers in Western religions, i.e., a Judeo-Christian-Islamic worldview, have the end of times Judgment Day (1) to worry about. Being a Taoist lets me […]
Continue reading…Thoughts and Ducks Quacking
I spent a lot of the day picking weeds. Nothing beats having enough free time to sit in the warm sun picking weeds. Even better, I’m heeding chapter 64’s, Deal with a thing while it is still nothing; Keep a thing in order before disorder sets in. Occasionally, our ducks come to where I’m weeding, […]
Continue reading…The poetry of it all
(First Pass: “Chapter of the Week” 2011) Norm, a recent visitor to this site says, “I once saw a website which had the Chinese version of the Tao Te Ching. Not just the characters, but also the ’sound’ version of the character. While I don’t understand Chinese, one could see the poetic pattern of […]
Continue reading…So, I’d like to ask…
A Centertao member asked me if I had any advice for a 30 year old. Right away, too much came to my mind for that question! I had to sleep on it awhile. Interestingly, not thinking about a tricky issue is often the best way to resolve it. Not thinking doesn’t mean disregarding it, but […]
Continue reading…Don’t trust anyone under 60
The Science News’ article, Don’t trust any elephant under 60, reveals factors elephants use to choose a leader. (Google [Leadership in elephants: the adaptive value of age].) Surely, their criterion applies to all animals including people. Our choices for what to look for in a leader runs the gamut, as this excerpt from the Science […]
Continue reading…Imagination knows no end
(First Pass: “Chapter of the Week” 2011) In this week’s commentary on chapter 70, I point out how our mind’s ‘ideal world’ is boundless, and how we think we can just do it. Truth be told, we are at the mercy of the fears and needs felt in our reptilian brain. A short article from […]
Continue reading…In Praise Of Nothing
Google [Out of the Fabric: Are space and time fundamental – Science News] for a hint at something I never thought I’d live to see. I’ve always thought that science would take forever to incorporate the irreducible and immeasurable side of reality that the Tao Te Ching observes. The following quotes were particularly striking. For […]
Continue reading…It’s Simply Nature’s Way
The Pope’s reference to suffering struck me. (Google [Pope Benedict stumped by Japanese girl’s question about suffering inflicted by the Tsunami].) Briefly, a young girl asked him, “Why do children have to be so sad?” Benedict admitted: “I also have the same questions: why is it this way? Why do you have to suffer so […]
Continue reading…The Truth About Lies
First, please YouTube [CBS The Truth about Lies]. In two short minutes it delightfully demonstrates how many things most people believe turn out not to be true. It is sobering and humbling to see how blind and deaf we can be. It is remarkable how easily belief (p.591) walks all over clear and irrefutable evidence. […]
Continue reading…