Innocence
Black and orange butterfly --
Flying joyously.
Wings like a nun's hands:
First fold in prayer,
Then open in offering.
The world moves toward war. Leaders increase their rhetoric. Armies
mass along the border. The world, it seems, never tires of conflict.
We should remember the innocent in life. The delicate, the gossamer,
the beautiful. A butterfly lives for a day. It comes into the world
with very little reason except to fly and mate. It does not question
its destiny. It does not engage in any alchemy to extend its lifespan
or to change its lot. It goes about its brief life happily.
A butterfly is always attracted to the beautiful. Whether it is the
sun on a blade of grass or the edge of a deep ruby rose, the butterfly
spends its brief time dwelling on loveliness.
Even the angry and insane leave the butterfly alone. Why can we not
learn to honor the innocence in one another? Maybe we spend too much
time dwelling on the ugly. In the name of practicality and realism, we
think about strategy, defense, territory, gain, and advantage. We are
too late to be like the butterfly. But at least we can honor it, and
move as closely as possible to its simple existence.
Personal Interpretation
Simplicity is the key to an enjoyable life. The more we amass, the more complicated life becomes. The more we think on things that are beyond our ability to change, the less we live in the moment. Let us strive to be more like the butterfly who is content to live its short life in peace. It is innocence embodied, attracted to beauty in all its myriad forms. Perhaps a world of peace and prosperity is only a dream, but we improve our world with each and every effort we make toward tranquility. Let the butterfly be our guide.
Friday, September 25, 2015
September 21st
Non-interference
I love this lake,
Basin of heavenly tears,
Tilted from lunar pull
Jostling its shore.
I love these mountains,
Stark rock outcroppings,
Sculpted by the oceans,
Lifted at some unknown time,
Isolated in a field of vetch,
Cleaved by silver falls.
A sentinel owl regards me unblinkingly,
And beyond, alpine forests form a cadence
To a distant moon.
The earth is overrun by investigators and engineers. The wilderness is made vulgar with the noise of tourists. We don't need their thermometers and saws. We don't need bridges and monuments. In the context of Tao, this is to violate the earth with human ambition and to crawl over the landscape like flies over fresh fruit. Instead we should simply walk through this mysterious world without being a burden to it.
Personal Interpretation
For too long we have tried to bend nature to our will. We have taken without giving anything in return. We need not impose ourselves on the natural world. We can walk through forests without harvesting the wood of their trees, can reflect on the sea without disturbing its waters. To live in concert with Tao is to see ourselves as being on equal footing with all life. When we truly adopt this mindset we will find that we think less about our sense of self and more about the great web of life itself.
I love this lake,
Basin of heavenly tears,
Tilted from lunar pull
Jostling its shore.
I love these mountains,
Stark rock outcroppings,
Sculpted by the oceans,
Lifted at some unknown time,
Isolated in a field of vetch,
Cleaved by silver falls.
A sentinel owl regards me unblinkingly,
And beyond, alpine forests form a cadence
To a distant moon.
The earth is overrun by investigators and engineers. The wilderness is made vulgar with the noise of tourists. We don't need their thermometers and saws. We don't need bridges and monuments. In the context of Tao, this is to violate the earth with human ambition and to crawl over the landscape like flies over fresh fruit. Instead we should simply walk through this mysterious world without being a burden to it.
Personal Interpretation
For too long we have tried to bend nature to our will. We have taken without giving anything in return. We need not impose ourselves on the natural world. We can walk through forests without harvesting the wood of their trees, can reflect on the sea without disturbing its waters. To live in concert with Tao is to see ourselves as being on equal footing with all life. When we truly adopt this mindset we will find that we think less about our sense of self and more about the great web of life itself.
September 20th
Counterpoint
It is blazing hot today.
Valley heat is drawn to meet the coast.
The cool days of autumn dance with false summer.
White within black, black within white.
Autumn was coming on, and yet today there is a sudden shift. It is hotter than summer. Even in the midst of a cooling trend there is its opposite. In the minds of those who follow Tao, duality in life is not clearly demarcated. There is a fuzziness at the line. Day does not have a sharp border with night. So it is with the alternations of the seasons. It is not a simple, smooth continuum from summer into autumn. There is complexity and counterpoint.
If nature is full of subtlety and even false appearances, how wise must we be in order to follow life's rhythms unerringly?
Personal Interpretation
Followers of Tao see the dual forces of nature as defining one another, and the boundaries between opposites are more blurred than we sometimes acknowledge. We may observe trends only to witness unexpected reversals. This is the nature of life. It can be difficult to sense patterns and to accept their divergence, but this is precisely what we must do if we wish to live in accordance with the principles of Tao.
It is blazing hot today.
Valley heat is drawn to meet the coast.
The cool days of autumn dance with false summer.
White within black, black within white.
Autumn was coming on, and yet today there is a sudden shift. It is hotter than summer. Even in the midst of a cooling trend there is its opposite. In the minds of those who follow Tao, duality in life is not clearly demarcated. There is a fuzziness at the line. Day does not have a sharp border with night. So it is with the alternations of the seasons. It is not a simple, smooth continuum from summer into autumn. There is complexity and counterpoint.
If nature is full of subtlety and even false appearances, how wise must we be in order to follow life's rhythms unerringly?
Personal Interpretation
Followers of Tao see the dual forces of nature as defining one another, and the boundaries between opposites are more blurred than we sometimes acknowledge. We may observe trends only to witness unexpected reversals. This is the nature of life. It can be difficult to sense patterns and to accept their divergence, but this is precisely what we must do if we wish to live in accordance with the principles of Tao.
September 19th
Loneliness
Loneliness need not be despair.
It could be an opportunity
Why are people lonely? It is because they feel no contact with anyone or anything else. They need to feel that they are valued, that they are a part of something, and that their environment will respond to them. When that does not happen, they feel isolated. One of the major strategies for combating loneliness is to have a mate and family. That is not always perfect, and the problems of a relationship and family sometimes outweigh the terror of loneliness. It is far better to be self-sufficient. Then whether one has loved ones or not, one will not suffer from loneliness.
Some people claim that self-sufficiency is a myth. A person is a social animal, they declare; people cannot successfully live outside of some community. But that is not the correct way to understand true self-sufficiency. What we are referring to is a supreme sense of connection with oneself and the cosmos around oneself. This doesn't preclude community with others, but it does prevent the excesses and shortcomings that occur when society is one's only source of union.
Tao surrounds us. One who is with Tao is never lonely, but is an integral part of the natural cycle. In the same way that water surrounds a fish, Tao surrounds us. If we feel lonely, then it is only because we are forgetting how we are totally immersed in Tao. That is why loneliness can be an opportunity : It reminds us that we are dwelling on our own egoistic identity rather than on the support of Tao.
Personal Interpretation
Loneliness need not lead to despair. It can be an opportunity to realign ourselves with Tao. We should not rely upon others for a sense of comfort, but rather choose self-sufficiency. This does not mean that we should never commune with others. It means simply that we should also be capable of disconnecting from the world. While it may seem counterintuitive, this is the surest way to reestablish a connection with society and feel less isolated.
Loneliness need not be despair.
It could be an opportunity
Why are people lonely? It is because they feel no contact with anyone or anything else. They need to feel that they are valued, that they are a part of something, and that their environment will respond to them. When that does not happen, they feel isolated. One of the major strategies for combating loneliness is to have a mate and family. That is not always perfect, and the problems of a relationship and family sometimes outweigh the terror of loneliness. It is far better to be self-sufficient. Then whether one has loved ones or not, one will not suffer from loneliness.
Some people claim that self-sufficiency is a myth. A person is a social animal, they declare; people cannot successfully live outside of some community. But that is not the correct way to understand true self-sufficiency. What we are referring to is a supreme sense of connection with oneself and the cosmos around oneself. This doesn't preclude community with others, but it does prevent the excesses and shortcomings that occur when society is one's only source of union.
Tao surrounds us. One who is with Tao is never lonely, but is an integral part of the natural cycle. In the same way that water surrounds a fish, Tao surrounds us. If we feel lonely, then it is only because we are forgetting how we are totally immersed in Tao. That is why loneliness can be an opportunity : It reminds us that we are dwelling on our own egoistic identity rather than on the support of Tao.
Personal Interpretation
Loneliness need not lead to despair. It can be an opportunity to realign ourselves with Tao. We should not rely upon others for a sense of comfort, but rather choose self-sufficiency. This does not mean that we should never commune with others. It means simply that we should also be capable of disconnecting from the world. While it may seem counterintuitive, this is the surest way to reestablish a connection with society and feel less isolated.
Friday, September 18, 2015
September 18th
Silence
Seek silence.
Gladden in silence.
Adore silence.
Personal Interpretation
Learn to adore the silence if you truly wish to be at peace. When we close ourselves to the world and turn inward, we are free to express ourselves. There is no need to defend ourselves or relentlessly pursue the aims of a materialistic and ultimately transient life. We can simply be. There is great beauty in the silence. It is here that Tao resides and once we experience it for the first time, we will find ourselves drawn to it time and time again. This is as it should be.
Gladden in silence.
Adore silence.
As one progresses on the path, one seeks silence more and more. It will be a great comfort, a tremendous source of solace and peace.Once you find deep solitude and calm, there will be a great gladness in your heart. Here finally is the place where you need neither defense nor offense -- the place where you can truly be open. There will be bliss, wonder, the awe of attaining something pure and sacred.
After that, you will feel adoration of silence. This is the peace that seems to elude so many. This is the beauty of Tao.
Personal Interpretation
Learn to adore the silence if you truly wish to be at peace. When we close ourselves to the world and turn inward, we are free to express ourselves. There is no need to defend ourselves or relentlessly pursue the aims of a materialistic and ultimately transient life. We can simply be. There is great beauty in the silence. It is here that Tao resides and once we experience it for the first time, we will find ourselves drawn to it time and time again. This is as it should be.
September 17th
Stimulation
Sex, coffee, liquor, and cigarettes
Are the totems of today.
Stimulation has replaced feeling.
Personal Interpretation
Stimulation is not the same thing as feeling. We often seek what we need from external source. Ultimately, it must come from within if we are to be at peace with ourselves. We should cultivate sensitivity and good health, should work to be compassionate and aware of the importance of our own selves. All that we need is within. We are not obligated to rely upon the many crutches of artificiality that dominate our lives. The sooner we discover that, the sooner we can return to Tao's embrace.
Are the totems of today.
Stimulation has replaced feeling.
In today's world, these are the unfortunate equations :Do you want intimacy? Have sex.
Do you want to be energetic? Drink coffee.
Do you want freedom from inhibitions? Drink wine.
Do you want a fashionable prop? Smoke cigarettes.
Why is it that these things have replaced what should naturally be done? Because people have lost the knowledge of how to do these things without artificial stimulation. Why not seek intimacy through sensitivity? Energy through good health? If we overcome our obstacles, we won't need inhibition. Pretension will fall away. Only then will there be a blossoming of Tao.
Personal Interpretation
Stimulation is not the same thing as feeling. We often seek what we need from external source. Ultimately, it must come from within if we are to be at peace with ourselves. We should cultivate sensitivity and good health, should work to be compassionate and aware of the importance of our own selves. All that we need is within. We are not obligated to rely upon the many crutches of artificiality that dominate our lives. The sooner we discover that, the sooner we can return to Tao's embrace.
Thursday, September 17, 2015
September 16th
Bridge
Dream arch shimmers in storm clouds:
Bridge between heaven and earth.
Its entrance is hard to find.
In legends, they say that the rainbow is the bridge between heaven and earth. Think how difficult it is to walk this bridge. Not only does it appear very seldom, but we cannot easily find it. It seems to be just at the horizon, but the more we go toward it, the more it eludes us. To find its end, to even stand at its base and contemplate the dizzying heights that must hover over its high arch is even more impossible. If we were to stumble upon that sacred path, could we be light enough and pure enough to walk its raindrop surface to the embraces of gods?
My companion says that he once saw a triple rainbow. What a rare sight indeed! Truly, the land where he saw it must have been blessed, and he was lucky to have such beauty revealed to him.
But then again how high must heaven be to need three insurmountable bridges?
Personal Interpretation
Some say the rainbow is the bridge between Heaven and Earth. How ephemeral it is, seeming to vanish as we approach it. Perhaps there is a lesson in this notion. Heaven is unattainable to us while we are bound to the mortal coil. The best we can hope to do is marvel from afar. A thing is not made less beautiful because it eludes us. Some might argue that it is this characteristic about a thing that makes it more beautiful. There is true value in reaching for perfection even if we can never attain it. Sometimes it is enough to observe a thing, to be immersed in it, to be moved to wonder. We spend so much time glorifying ourselves. Why not glorify nature for once? It holds untold mysteries.
Dream arch shimmers in storm clouds:
Bridge between heaven and earth.
Its entrance is hard to find.
In legends, they say that the rainbow is the bridge between heaven and earth. Think how difficult it is to walk this bridge. Not only does it appear very seldom, but we cannot easily find it. It seems to be just at the horizon, but the more we go toward it, the more it eludes us. To find its end, to even stand at its base and contemplate the dizzying heights that must hover over its high arch is even more impossible. If we were to stumble upon that sacred path, could we be light enough and pure enough to walk its raindrop surface to the embraces of gods?
My companion says that he once saw a triple rainbow. What a rare sight indeed! Truly, the land where he saw it must have been blessed, and he was lucky to have such beauty revealed to him.
But then again how high must heaven be to need three insurmountable bridges?
Personal Interpretation
Some say the rainbow is the bridge between Heaven and Earth. How ephemeral it is, seeming to vanish as we approach it. Perhaps there is a lesson in this notion. Heaven is unattainable to us while we are bound to the mortal coil. The best we can hope to do is marvel from afar. A thing is not made less beautiful because it eludes us. Some might argue that it is this characteristic about a thing that makes it more beautiful. There is true value in reaching for perfection even if we can never attain it. Sometimes it is enough to observe a thing, to be immersed in it, to be moved to wonder. We spend so much time glorifying ourselves. Why not glorify nature for once? It holds untold mysteries.
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