Taomeow

A perfect wuwei act

Recommended Posts

You go to work, do your job, mind your own business,

B.S. with your coworkers ,use a bit of common sense

give the wife a hug, walk the dog, meditate a bit

and hit the sack.

 

 

Its living simply , not trying to be the belle of the ball

strike it rich or determine the fate of the masses.

 

Stosh

 

Darn, I've been doing it wrong all these years... hugging the dogs and walking the wife ! LOL

 

Basher

  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Darn, I've been doing it wrong all these years... hugging the dogs and walking the wife ! LOL

 

Basher

 

Yea but the dogs are happy and wife is slim smile.gif

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

CD.. Zhi ran and Wu wei has a difference meaning. You can not say that zhi ran is the hidden meaning for wu wei. Tao isn't seems like water. What I meant with the perfect example of wu wei is water is that the characteristic of water can be a perfect example of wu wei in daily life. It flows to the lowest area, it gives many benefit to humans and other creatures and so on, but water has never ask humans or other creatures to pay back what was given.

 

nice.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Okay, I'm back with you after that post.

Great ,

Basher can joke there a bit at my expense :P

 

but what I am aiming at, I think you see

There are all sorts of fancy metaphysical

and linguistic arguments being employed

around the subject,,the conjugations in chinese

and western vs eastern tradition etc

but in the end , the meaning has to make sense

in a real time practical world

What the heck does it mean to 'be like water'?

What the heck is 'doing but not doing?'

and I'm looking at it from the

end point perspective first.

as in

What sort of living brings folks peace?

What would a peaceful person be doing down the street

from me? What was the perspective he had that

enabled him to look at the world with acceptance?

And so forth

Because I think the ancients did just that themselves!

They grounded their ideas in real-world observations.

 

I am well aware my interps are seen as pedantic by some

and those folks are expecting weird and inexplicable

answers. They think of monks staring at walls and various types of

behavior which arent commonplace.

But looking at Lao as a wise and indulgent grandparent

trying to benefit his own decendants ...

all of a sudden none of it seems impossible ,pie-in-the-sky

hypothetical dreamland stuff you arent ever going to "get."

Nor are there unrevealed hidden nuances in the Chinese that

makes much difference.

( good translation is terriffic and difficult

but once you 'get' the point ..that job is done

and you live it to benefit by it)

 

Stosh

Edited by Stosh

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

CD.. Zhi ran and Wu wei has a difference meaning. You can not say that zhi ran is the hidden meaning for wu wei. Tao isn't seems like water. What I meant with the perfect example of wu wei is water is that the characteristic of water can be a perfect example of wu wei in daily life. It flows to the lowest area, it gives many benefit to humans and other creatures and so on, but water has never ask humans or other creatures to pay back what was given.

 

I do understand we have some basic knowledge of the Tao Te Ching. As long we have the basic fundamentals in common, there is no argument about that. Thus we just apply the principle or thinking differently. Thanks....:)

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Great ,

Basher can joke there a bit at my expense :P

 

...but in the end , the meaning has to make sense

in a real time practical world

What the heck does it mean to 'be like water'?

What the heck is 'doing but not doing?'

 

Stosh

 

Sorry Stosh, I was just in one of those "devil may care" moods today !!! LOL.

 

Could the Water analogy simply mean "be pliable & adaptable in all circumstances. When you arrive at some sort of obstacle, simply go around it." ?

 

 

Basher

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

but ......,the conjugations in chinese

and western vs eastern tradition etc

but in the end , the meaning has to make sense

in a real time practical world

 

What the heck does it mean to 'be like water'?

What the heck is 'doing but not doing?'

What sort of living brings folks peace?

What would a peaceful person be doing down the street

from me? What was the perspective he had that

enabled him to look at the world with acceptance?

 

Because I think the ancients did just that themselves!

They grounded their ideas in real-world observations.

But looking at Lao as a wise and indulgent grandparent

trying to benefit his own decendants ...

all of a sudden none of it seems impossible ,pie-in-the-sky

hypothetical dreamland stuff you arent ever going to "get."

Nor are there unrevealed hidden nuances in the Chinese that

makes much difference.

( good translation is terriffic and difficult

but once you 'get' the point ..that job is done

and you live it to benefit by it)

Stosh

 

Stosh.....

I don't know have I said this to you or not...!!!

You are a gentleman and a scholar......:)

Edited by ChiDragon

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Sorry Stosh, I was just in one of those "devil may care" moods today !!! LOL.

 

Could the Water analogy simply mean "be pliable & adaptable in all circumstances. When you arrive at some sort of obstacle, simply go around it." ?

 

 

Basher

No offense taken at all !! really !

I thought it was funny too once you pointed that sequence out.

 

And yep I think the water thing is analagous to human behaviors

endeavors attitudes , I see it as intentionally imprecise.

A big chunk of the wisdom is that you yourself look to see what is the

meaning that it posesses.

I Sometimes see this one as being true to your

nature, taking the opportunities as they arise yet being settled till they do.

But the way it feels right to you is the one you should respect.

 

 

A totally different example of that kind of "general advice"

is Tsun tsu's art of war

He doesnt know exactly what you are going to face, and cant spell out

what you should do, the best he can do is lay out the cards you need to consider

and point at the direction one best plays those cards.

( I think its beautifully structured especially

considering the subject matter).

 

Stosh

Edited by Stosh

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Stosh.....

I don't know have I said this to you or not...!!!

You are a gentleman and a scholar......:)

You have and Im happy to accept the term gentleman

since I try for that (mostly)

but the scholar thing is a little of a stretch

for me to fit :) but Ill take it when it falls my way.

Thanks

Stosh

Edited by Stosh
  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites