Lost in Translation

Do some likes and dislikes last forever? Forever? I don't know. A lifetime? Most certainly! There are things that you will always like and always dislike while you live in mortal flesh. For example you like air, and food, and warmth; dislike pain, and hunger, and cold. These won't change unless you have some form of fundamental psychological breakdown, which is highly unlikely. Will these always be limiting factors? Ah, the real question! You have the power to choose. You always have the power to choose. Your likes and dislikes never need to limit you. If they do then that is also by your choice. This is why awareness is so important. Once you are aware that you choose to be limited by a personal like/dislike then you immediately can choose to end that limitation. But if you lack awareness of the interaction between like/dislike and choice - if you assume a dislike is a limit and a like is a mandate - then you are stuck. Hope this helps.

I like. I dislike. I am aware that I like. I am aware that I dislike. Like or dislike is not the problem. Lack of awareness is the problem.

Dyselics of the wlord untie!

I practice patience, lots, and lots of patience. Taoism helps me here in many ways.

What kind of job do you have/what do you do most of the day? I work in an office, sitting all day in front of a computer. Years ago when I started on this path I thought of myself as Taoist. Since then I'm not so sure. Labels, even the label of 'Tao', seem ... inaccurate. For most things they suffice, but not this. So, yeah, who knows? How does Taoism affect your job? I try to maintain my attentiveness as much as I can, to be mindful at all times. I fail, a lot, but each failure is a lesson for next time. I focus my attention not only on what I am doing, but on how I am feeling. This is very important to me. Since I'm human (no doubt this is a human body), it is important to experience being human. In my earlier years I wanted to surpass my humanness, rise above it - now I want to know it in all its glory and all its pain. Do you channel what you're experiencing into your job in any way? Of course! This is my life!

You may want to check out something called "Family Constellations" (http://www.hellingerpa.com/constellation.shtml). There are probably practitioners in your area. I have participated in many of these. They can be quite powerful.

Yes, but we are talking about different things. Awareness burns on, but we are also human beings. Human beings have human experiences. I feel it is important to understand this, otherwise we risk becoming dissassociated, which is less like awareness and more like denial. It does someone little good to set up the expectation that awareness equals total bliss. Maybe ultimately this is true (I am NOT there and do not seek that), but for many on the path, if they grow towards awareness, achieve a level of understanding but still feel emotional pain, instead of embracing what they do have they may give up and turn around over what they are still missing. It is my intention to highlight this danger, not to challenge you. If I have offended then I sincerely apologize.

What does this mean? Are you saying China is Satan? What about the '1'? 359 is not the same as 3591 anymore than 'ham' is the same as 'hamster'. What am I missing here?

Fear while meditating. This is very common. Don't stop! DO meditate with lights on. If needed, practice standing, walking, or moving meditation. Welcome!

A little anarchism on a Monday morning is good for the soul. ;-)

25 years after first reading it and I just now realised that "Pooh" in "The Tao of Pooh" is a pun on "Pu", the "uncarved block". Am I slow or what? Thank you, and welcome!

Excellent observation! I always enjoy a good "awakening" thread. This point of awakening as a beginning is (IMHO) crucial to understand. We (my experience) begin by thinking awakening is it. Bam! All problems solved. Blissful life from now on. But no, that's not it. That's naive. Just as awakening doesn't mean you no longer eat or breath, similarly it doesn't mean you no longer feel pain. Rather, awakening adds a new depth of understanding to the experience of life. It provides a richer context. You still have emotion. You still feel good. You still feel bad. You are still alive, but your aliveness is more vibrant. And yes, you still get pissed off sometimes. You still get angry. You still feel stress. But these "negative" feelings hold less gravity. They are more fleeting. That's my experience. Yours may differ. But regardless of how we individually process spiritual growth, I am happy for all who are on the path.

OMG

Ah, 1995... working a crappy job all day and going to school at night, struggling to pay the bills, new to Taoism, and glued to MTV whenever I visited my mom and sister. This song, Angelyne billboards, and Duckman cartoons are among my favorite memories of that time. Thanks for the flashbacks!

Respectfully, I very much like what you have said but I find it difficult to follow your prose. Could you please explain this in plainer language? Thanks!

Hello Andi, I recommend pursuing mindfulness at this time. Spend time simply perceiving, feeling, and being present. Avoid judgements. Good, bad, I like, I don't like - they won't help you right now. Let yourself feel. Don't try to articulate. Words will come later. And always, welcome.

This is worth repeating.

Hi William, Read the Tao Te Ching as you would poetry. Read it. Think about it. Discover how it makes you feel. Discuss it with others. Come back to it again and again. Over time you may find your understanding of a verse, or a phrase, or even a single word changing. It gets deeper and richer as time passes. Eventually you may find it's just a book. To each their own. Welcome to TDB!

Fidget spinner for Taoists.

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/dolores-oriordan-the-cranberries-singer-dead-at-46-w515435 May she rest in peace.

Thank you. In many ways the spiritual path is the path of empathy. One learns, and learns to appreciate, that one is not the center of all things, and that one's actions impact others, and vice-versa. It is humbling to say the least.

They got pills for that nowadays. :-D

I practice Taoism by sitting on my a**.

Namo Kuan Shi Yin Pusa. Kinda just rolls off the tongue. I'm not too big on mantras, or mudras, or anything else that feels like codified tradition, but I make exception for Kuan Yin.