Taoist Texts

damn, why it had to be me? anyway, how come the Egyptians did not have the yin yang theory.

It is. except it is the other way around.

well, if you would like to supply quotes we can look at it closer probably by WuLu, not QZ

[this is a wrong conclusion, as shown by the later excerpt where the criticism extends to the practitioners of both schools who practice wrongly] [《純陽帝君神化妙通紀》 this is more of a friendly ribbing than a basis for generalizing about the superiority of Taoism. Note that the two spirits are friends] [this is not relevant to the alleged superiority of Taoism] [Note that the incorrect practice of the both faith’s is criticized, not Buddhism per se.] [Note the mix of the Buddhist and Taoist terminology] [here Eskildsen admits that there is no superiority of Taoism, just a criticism of the mistakes made by the both faiths] /Stephen Eskildsen "The Teachings and Practices of the Early Quanzhen Taoist Masters"/

He simplifies and generalises too much. I will address it in a separate post since it is a big quote. All of them said that;) All good questions with the same answer: you see , in the abrahamic paradigm you convert to a faith because nothing depends on you personally and everything depends on the church you belong to. In the eastern paradigm, everything depends on your personal effort and nothing on the church, if only for the reason that there is no church. And from that follows that you convert to a teacher. If you meet a buddhist that impresse you - you convert to buddhism, if you meet a taoist that impresses you - you convert to taoism. The taoist converts are those who happened to meet a taoist teacher, thats all. Oh well, they did not really mean that, or if they did we will not take it seriously;) depends what is meant by syncretism. a syncretism of what? a new age, pop syncretism is not that good. defo;) I can, but you see decisiveness is in the eye of the beholder. the listener is the decider. The politicking ones sure. The modern and pre-modern buddhism is about politicking and marketing. They will do anything;).

A Fantasist shool;) i would say That website is a good primer but not much more than that. I would say it is an attack not an impartial judgement. No, thats definitely wrong. What the taoists object to are the wrong ideas about buddhism, not the buddhism ideas. This is mostly fringe Wulupai attack on Buddhism, not the mainstream POV. The latter was always the unity with buddhism. Again, even when there is a criticism of Buddhists methods from the genuine Taoists, it is directed at the wrong methods not on Chan per se or in general.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zou_huo_ru_mo_(medicine) http://www.qigongtherapy.com/qigongdeviation.html http://daoistkungfu.com/academy/147.html

another brick in the wall http://www.aish.com/h/pes/t/f/British-Museum--Evidence-of-Israelite-Slavery-in-Egypt.html

子曰：“由！知德者鲜矣。” The Master said, "You, those who know virtue are few." De is virtue. it seems that Then Is Now. already.

Is not everything Dao actualized?

It is still the best available. All the others are based on it. Almost all the others are fantasies.

317-319 AD, May 23 CT. 9.16.3 – Emp. Constantine I. Magicians and such who use their art against the minds of men are guilty and shall be punished; however, to use this art for good, to seek favorable weather during harvest for example, is allowable under the law. [from my current translation job;)]

Yes but that is overly dramatic and unlikely, since it takes effort to drive oneself crazy;) most people just dabble in this. A mild to mid level discomfort is a sure thing though. No, unfortunately you guys do not know how.

Hey Yueya I copied the text to here http://www.thedaobums.com/topic/40780-female-alchemy-from-chen-ying-ning/ Also thanks for Komjathy's guidelines, have not seen them before, quite chuckle-worthy;)

The One That Shall Not Be N-d

His name is Lois, not Art, mister!

Hi Donald;) Absolutely, happy to oblige. The most authoritative (or most primary)source from which the phrase 實無 (shi-wu , being-non-being) was appropriated by the Taoist literature is The Diamond Sūtra (Sanskrit:Vajracchedikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra) is a Mahāyāna (Buddhist)sūtra from the Prajñāpāramitā, or "Perfection of Wisdom" genre, and emphasizes the practice of non-abiding and non-attachment. The Diamond sutra is one of the most influential Mahayana sutras in East Asia, and is a key object of devotion and study in Zen Buddhism. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_Sutra A paralel text is here. http://ctzen.org/sunnyvale/enUS/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=141&Itemid=57 Unfortunately, that key phrase is also translated incorrectly there. I know;). You see, right of the bat, when the ppl tried to translate it they fell into the naif trap of transl. the 'shi-wu' as 'actually no' E.g: 10. Transformation to a Buddha World The Buddha said to Subhuti, - “What do you think? When the Tathagata studied under Dipankara Buddha, did he receive any Dharma?” -“No, World Honored One, when the Tathagata studied under Dipankara Buddha, he did not (actually) receive any Dharma.” 佛告 -須菩提•於意云何•如來昔在然燈佛所•於法有所得不• - 不也•世尊•如來在然燈佛所•於法實無所得• Which is of course wrong and is debunked by a subsequent explanation of what the shi-wu really stands for: 14. A Mind Without Attachments Subhuti, the Truth (Dharma) that the Tathagata has attained is neither real nor unreal. 須菩提•如來所得法•此法無實無虛• Turns out it is a contraction of 'being which is non-being', a key idea of Buddhism which (actually together with the rest of 'em, lol) was lost on translators, resulting in nonsensical 'there is no attainment' etc. Or to summarize what happened to the ill fated phrase 實無所得 habitually mistranslated as 'there is no attainment': correctly, it means 'the attainment is our self-realisation as not being nor not non-being', which is coded as 實無 shi-wu.

How much is too much? But that is not the point. The point is that translating 實無所得 as " we accomplish nothing" is to miss what the text says completely. It is a very incorrect translation. Because 實無所得 means 'gaining the being and non-being'. It is a Buddhist formula, which is explained as 「如來所得於是中無實無虛」"Buddha's achievment is not in being and not in non-being" or 如來實無說法 'Explanation of buddhism is in being and non-being'.

Yes. to translate 實無所得 as " we accomplish nothing" is a bit too naif. Here, 實無 is a contraction of a Buddhist formula 「如來所得於是中無實無虛」or 如來實無說法.

Yes it is quite interesting, thanks for translation It was but nothing beats personal effort, so good job. The Qingjing jing has been translated into English by Balfour (1894:70-73), Legge (1891 2:247-54), and Kohn (1993:24-29). Wong(1992) translated the Shuijingzi (水精子) commentary. "The Classic of Purity and Stillness". Lapis Lazuli Texts. English translation. The Wonderful Scripture on the Constant Purity and Tranquility - An English Translation of 清靜經 Canon of Purity and Tranquility Reconstruction of the musical setting of Qingjing Jing published in 1592 Free translation made by Five Immortals Temple in China These bits are quite tricky, translators habitually get them wrong.

Legge did not quite understand the phrase 'The body is also from Heaven; but one must become a sage inwardly first , in order for his sage-hood to exhibit in his external appearance after that'

Depends on what exactly in the west. There is congruence between neidan and western alchemy, some Christianity as well; everything else, in particular the modern western occultism - no.

Morning Walker;) First of all on your kind request. Out of respect to you personally i will meet it half-way. First, today, one of those guys offered me to start a discussion with their teacher directly - i thanked and declined. Second, i will place my answer to your last post not here, but in my little sandbox, where barely anyone will see it, lest it annoys someone here. Third, i promise not to engage these folks, unless they attack other schools again, as is their wont. You of course are very welcome to continue our pleasant chat in my PPF or here, as you see fit. Thanks, man;)