Cosmo

Now that's evolution

 

Wonder how would the artists draw the transformation as for the 'stages of evolution'.

There's 0 and then poof!! Infinity! (Or Over 9000!); now please fill up the space in between.

 

 

 

 

 

P.S.

Glad to hear from you, David.

If everything is ten thousands, then over 9000 is pretty close

To people who are less philosophically minded personifications of concepts often works better for them. Thats why you get a God for every concept in many Asian religions.

It's not practical. Let's be more idealistic. There has to be some kind of law and order. The old king Yao picked Xu You to take over his throne was to assure that Xu You will take good care of his throne. Customary, a Chinese king always hand down the throne to his first born son. However, King Yao was wise enough to give it to someone which is more sagacious. Yao knew his son will not do a good job.

Lao Tzu pretty much gave up on humans working together and gtfo of China. Make no mistake, these are the descendents of Mozi, the exact opposite to the will to perform rites.

Wow.

It sure is an interesting approach to taoism, eh?

If youre trying to control youre only going to lose.

But is Tao a thing? I suggest not. "God" is always a thing for nearly everyone.

I imagine all is verbs.

I think there is a theme emerging here which says "that which is true is that which is useful and that which useful is that which can be understood."

 

OR ... you make a thing useful or not by understanding its nature.

 

OR ... stop thinking about things and limits of their uses and start thinking about possibilities.

 

(I keep changing my mind) lol

The 1st and 2nd thing are the same.

And so maybe the third.

Bah. Zhaungzi would nod to all of those.

Hehehe.

 

Please everyone, translate in your mind, every time you see the word "God" to read "Tao". There is no "God" in Taoism.

It all means the same thing. Different words for the same thing. Tao is no more accurate than God. They are both inaccurate. Because they can both be spoken of

controlled "like a chariot", no. invited, yes, according to many Taoist priests and shamans, so I wouldn't assume that Chuang Tzu had no familiarity with weather influencing practices at a general level or better, regardless of our faiths...

Feng shui

Would you settle for 70% knowledge and 30% experience...??? According to my knowledge, that was how I have gained my experience though knowledge. It was not all experiences. Sometimes, experience alone are very deceiving. However, we must learn from experience to fulfill the other 30% of knowledge.

Knowledge is infinite and we are finite. Pursueing the unlimited with the limited is foolish.

 

Usefulness and Uselessness are one of the same but what makes things useful or useless?

The subjectivity of what is inside of us.

What is actually useful?

What is actually useless?

Who is the judge of such?

Look and See accordingly; the objectivity of the subjective. (I like borrowing words)

 

Something that is useful is something that gets used. Something that is useless is something that does not. Usefulness and uselessness are the same thing.

Bring forth more of my curiosity

If the manifestation knows the will, act by the will, becomes one with the will.

Then will the manifestation be divine?

This seems to be jumping around a few different ideas. Will and Divine were not necessarily linked in my mind.

But, the way you phrased, I would answer:

If the manifestation of the will knows the will, acts by the will, and becomes one with the will, then no the manifestation would not be "divine". It would not be "the will". It would simply be in accordance with "the Divine" or "the will".

@Cosmo

A Divine Cat! A Divine Trees! Divine World!

Aren't all creations Divine? I am curious.

A manifestation of a will and a will are not the same.

How do we become enlightened? Or how do we realize our light?

Sansara is a mental process. The constant process of thought. Never ending. You are forever trapped.

For the Hindu's this manifests itself in the belief of rebirth.

Englightenment is liberation from this process.

How to get there varies person to person and belief to belief. But since you are on Tao Bums.com, I would read chapter 2 of the Chuang Tzu.

If you are willing to look beyond Taoism, read the Bhagavad Gita.

Look up Karma yoga.

Etc.

We can use Tao

Using the order of things for our own benefit has gotten this planet to the disheveled state it is in now.

Perhaps it is time to let nature use us.

You, Sir, have a large tree and are troubled because it is of no use - why do you not plant it in a tract where there is nothing else, or in a wide and barren wild? There you might saunter idly by its side, or in the enjoyment of untroubled ease sleep beneath it. Neither bill nor axe would shorten its existence; there would be nothing to injure it. What is there in its uselessness to cause you distress?'

The useless is useful. While the useful quickly becomes useless.

In his metaphor, he illustrated the difference between a broad minded and a narrow minded by using specific animals with their limitations. The one with a broader knowledge which has greater expectation and with a lesser knowledge has lower expectation. He was also pointing out the irony about the little dove which didn't know better but laughed at the broad minded Peng bird.

Use the word 'experience' instead of 'knowledge'.

However, wouldn't it be better to be the one using the instrument in order to help others? Sure, we can be satisfied with being just the instrument but I think it would be much more productive to be the user of the instrument.

And you believe you can use your instrument better than the divine can?

No. You are a creation that has been afforded free will and the power of making choices and taking responsibility for your actions.

 

So you have no right to blame or praise whatever supreme power you believe in.

 

You are the utility (instrument) of your own making.

 

So what does the above section say to you?

It says that I am an instrument in the hands of God.

That our goal is to do everything within the present moment, which has been predecided, and without an attatchment to either our motivations for doing the action, or the outcome of the action. Why paddle against the river? One should strive to become an instrument of action. In our ignorance we feel that "I am doing".

But suppose one who mounts on (the ether of) heaven and earth in its normal operation, and drives along the six elemental energies of the changing (seasons), thus enjoying himself in the illimitable - what has he to wait for? Therefore it is said, 'The Perfect man has no (thought of) self; the Spirit-like man, none of merit; the Sagely-minded man, none of fame.'

See it now?

I am an instrument in the hands of God.

Just as the quail, the conclusions that we make could be entirely different if we were within a different body. The conclusions that we make could be entirely different if we had a different past. The conclusions that we spend much thoughtful time deliberating on could be entirely different if we realized that there is always more truth of the matter to be realized.

durp derp di herp di derp di durrrpppppp

hurr durr