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onlynow
transformativeinformativeenergy
Registered: 02/06/07
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Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist?
#7352591 - 08/30/07 04:03 PM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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Well, does he?
-------------------- Strive to be more than a codified manifestation of a generalized technological consciousness
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Lion
Decadent Flower Magnate
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: onlynow]
#7352598 - 08/30/07 04:05 PM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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I am a Taoist.
-------------------- “Strengthened by contemplation and study, I will not fear my passions like a coward. My body I will give to pleasures, to diversions that I’ve dreamed of, to the most daring erotic desires, to the lustful impulses of my blood, without any fear at all, for whenever I will— and I will have the will, strengthened as I’ll be with contemplation and study— at the crucial moments I’ll recover my spirit as was before: ascetic.”
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onlynow
transformativeinformativeenergy
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: Lion]
#7352606 - 08/30/07 04:07 PM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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then you must truly know what a Taoist is. explain!
-------------------- Strive to be more than a codified manifestation of a generalized technological consciousness
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Icelander
The Minstrel in the Gallery
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Posts: 95,368
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: onlynow]
#7352987 - 08/30/07 05:46 PM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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Quote:
onlynow said: Well, does he?
Why not. Would it matter either way?
-------------------- "Don't believe everything you think". -Anom. " All that lives was born to die"-Anom. With much wisdom comes much sorrow, The more knowledge, the more grief. Ecclesiastes circa 350 BC
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Veritas
Registered: 04/15/05
Posts: 11,089
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: Icelander]
#7352998 - 08/30/07 05:47 PM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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"The Taoist who can be named is not the true Taoist."
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Icelander
The Minstrel in the Gallery
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: Veritas]
#7353008 - 08/30/07 05:50 PM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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sez you
-------------------- "Don't believe everything you think". -Anom. " All that lives was born to die"-Anom. With much wisdom comes much sorrow, The more knowledge, the more grief. Ecclesiastes circa 350 BC
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it stars saddam
Satan
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Posts: 15,571
Loc: Spahn Ranch
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: Icelander]
#7353055 - 08/30/07 06:03 PM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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Quote:
Icelander said: Would it matter either way?
Not if he was a true Taoist.
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Icelander
The Minstrel in the Gallery
Registered: 03/15/05
Posts: 95,368
Loc: underbelly
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: it stars saddam]
#7353070 - 08/30/07 06:06 PM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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Right
-------------------- "Don't believe everything you think". -Anom. " All that lives was born to die"-Anom. With much wisdom comes much sorrow, The more knowledge, the more grief. Ecclesiastes circa 350 BC
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dblaney
Human Being
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Posts: 7,894
Loc: Here & Now
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: Icelander]
#7353091 - 08/30/07 06:10 PM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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Quote:
Icelander said:
Quote:
onlynow said: Well, does he?
Why not. Would it matter either way?
Indeed, it wouldn't matter either way so long as he didn't get caught in the label. However, chances are such a being would not present him or her-self as a Taoist, as that would tend to get other people caught in the label.
-------------------- "What is in us that turns a deaf ear to the cries of human suffering?" "Belief is a beautiful armor But makes for the heaviest sword" - John Mayer Making the noise "penicillin" is no substitute for actually taking penicillin. "This country, with its institutions, belongs to the people who inhabit it. Whenever they shall grow weary of the existing government, they can exercise their constitutional right of amending it, or their revolutionary right to dismember or overthrow it." -Abraham Lincoln
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justin340
Rock Star
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: Veritas]
#7353191 - 08/30/07 06:36 PM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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Quote:
Veritas said: "The Taoist who can be named is not the true Taoist."
-------------------- "Miracles will happen as we trip." Seal "Born with insight and a raised fist...Action must be taken. We don't need the key we'll break in. rip the stage, rip the system I was born to rage against 'em. What? The land of the free? Whoever told you that is your enemy? I've got no patience now so sick of complacence now. know your enemy! Those who died are justified. we gotta take the power back! Some speak the sounds but speak in silent voices. transmissions bring submission. For Jesus blessed me with its future and I protect it with fire for it's the end of history. Sleep now in the fire! There's a right to obey and there's a right to kill. The jury's sleepless we found your weakness and it's right outside our door. Now testify." R.A.T.M
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onlynow
transformativeinformativeenergy
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: Veritas]
#7354363 - 08/30/07 11:59 PM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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Quote:
Veritas said: "The Taoist who can be named is not the true Taoist."
-------------------- Strive to be more than a codified manifestation of a generalized technological consciousness
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MorphMan
δSλ
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: onlynow]
#7354413 - 08/31/07 12:12 AM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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I guess I might qualify as one of those weird ass new-ager's but in my opinion it doesn't matter if you label yourself a Taoist. I had never really thought about my spiritual "path" until one day I asked my World Cultures teacher "what do you think I am?" (asking her about spirituality/religion). She replied very confidently, "you are definitely a Taoist."
I realized at that point that the way I approach life in general would certainly be considered Taoist. I don't actually assume the title of "taoist" because quite frankly I feel bad about offending someone because of my religion. It seems like a lot of "true Taoists" or "true Buddhists" are offended that such people as myself would just take a little from each spiritual path and make a collage of everything I agree with. They like to think that they are above "us newagers" because they are more "pure" than us, they are more superior because they follow everything they are told down to the very word. Maybe it makes me even more of a Taoist because I am apathetic to other's opinions of me. Still, I don't think a label changes anything. You can label yourself, you can label others, but in the end everything is as it is. When it all comes down to it, labels are stripped away and everything is seen exactly as is with no preconceptions or prejudices.
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Cracka_X
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: MorphMan]
#7354469 - 08/31/07 12:29 AM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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depending on how people percieve a title like Taoist is the thing. To me Tao isn't some religion... it isn't a religion (I'll say that confidently), but it is everything. Like a word that has infinite meanings that entail this life, before life, and way beyond endlessly after one's life. Every combination and the culmination of everything imaginable and unimaginable is Tao..
Oh, and the flow of the Universe is Tao... which is everything. but that flow is very dynamic.
therefore...
Quote:
Veritas said: "The Taoist who can be named is not the true Taoist."
-------------------- The best way to live is to be like water For water benefits all things and goes against none of them It provides for all people and even cleanses those places a man is loath to go In this way it is just like Tao ~Daodejing
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LosAngelesGraff
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: MorphMan]
#7354479 - 08/31/07 12:31 AM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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a true tao's is set in their ways.
Perception is a clear jewel that shows up demons; strength is a sword of wisdom that cuts down demons. Both are necessary.
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onlynow
transformativeinformativeenergy
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: MorphMan]
#7354480 - 08/31/07 12:31 AM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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I don't actually assume the title of "taoist" because quite frankly I feel bad about offending someone because of my religion.
Nice answer
Others may label a Taoist a Taoist, but a Taoist will not label himself.
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Cracka_X
Spiritual Dirt Worshipper
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: onlynow]
#7354488 - 08/31/07 12:34 AM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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Quote:
onlynow said: I don't actually assume the title of "taoist" because quite frankly I feel bad about offending someone because of my religion.
Nice answer
Others may label a Taoist a Taoist, but a Taoist will not label himself.
What if you belong to the Reform Taoist Congregation? http://www.reformtaoism.org/
-------------------- The best way to live is to be like water For water benefits all things and goes against none of them It provides for all people and even cleanses those places a man is loath to go In this way it is just like Tao ~Daodejing
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MorphMan
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: Cracka_X]
#7354509 - 08/31/07 12:42 AM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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Quote:
Cracka_X said: depending on how people percieve a title like Taoist is the thing. To me Tao isn't some religion... it isn't a religion (I'll say that confidently), but it is everything. Like a word that has infinite meanings that entail this life, before life, and way beyond endlessly after one's life. Every combination and the culmination of everything imaginable and unimaginable is Tao..
Oh, and the flow of the Universe is Tao... which is everything. but that flow is very dynamic.
therefore...
I like it and I agree. You used some very effective wording. I couldn't think of how to explain it, but apparently I don't need to.
I totally agree with Tao not being a "religion" per se. It's more of a subconscious way of life.
This topic has inspired me to actually learn about traditional Taoism. It would be extremely interesting to attempt to understand how this way of life was created and the mind(s) that were behind it.
Oh, I love the quote about Tao being the flow of the universe and that flow being very dynamic. To me, it means that one must walk along their path and no matter how unpredictable, undesirable, or unusual that path may be, one still continues the journey with unrelenting acceptance for all that is, all that was, and all that ever will be. One is completely impartial and willing to walk along the path and observe the world around them without fear of rejection, suffering, or pain. One understands that everything in life is necessary, that every experience combined equals the sum total of one's personal existence. Everything is taken with a grain of salt and everything is analyzed and understood. Taoism is utter bliss, happiness emanating from simple awareness.
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onlynow
transformativeinformativeenergy
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: Cracka_X]
#7354524 - 08/31/07 12:51 AM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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would i have to label myself?
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MorphMan
δSλ
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: onlynow]
#7354536 - 08/31/07 12:57 AM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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No, I don't think you'd have to label yourself. If a word is placed on you by yourself or by someone else, it doesn't actually change the reality of the situation. It is merely a point-of-view conveyed by that specific person about what they believe to be true. Words can never define what or who you are, words can never be what they attempt to be. Pure, unconditional representation is not possible through art, words, music, etc., it only exists in the mind of the individual. For example, a Taoist may not mean the same thing to two different people. Who is to say that their opinions are superior to others? What gives anyone the right to define what/who someone else is?
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onlynow
transformativeinformativeenergy
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Re: Does a true Taoist label himself a Taoist? [Re: MorphMan]
#7354560 - 08/31/07 01:06 AM (16 years, 6 months ago) |
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This topic has inspired me to actually learn about traditional Taoism. It would be extremely interesting to attempt to understand how this way of life was created and the mind(s) that were behind it.
Mantak Chia talks a lot about this..
"The Taoist goal is ultimately to gather the primal energies driving all our desires, emotions and thoughts and cultivate them back into their original state of pure spirit."
"The Taoist teaching of physical immortality doesn’t suggest men no longer die. It means that before they die they have the opportunity to cultivate a “solid” or substantial spiritual body, also known as the Immortal Body, the Solar Body, the Crystal Body, and other names. In the west the closest parallel to a Taoist Immortal is probably an angel. This is different from schools that teach how to become a holy man by dissolving the individual ego into the bliss of cosmic oneness. The Taoists insist each adept preserve his individual nature within a body (physical or spiritual) so he can oversee the growth of his soul until final union with “wu chi,” the noth-ingness from which the oneness of the Tao emerges. This “staying in your own body” precludes the adept from totally surrendering to any guru or divine being or religious authority. No one else can do your spiritual work for you.
Chia sees his role as simply that of a teacher who helps his students empower themselves through cultivation of their chi energy. He passes chi (or “shakti”) to his students only so they will have a better sense of what to cultivate and refuses any dependent emotional relationships. He describes himself as the lead driver in a caravan of cars. “I can give each student a road map, a set of tools and instructions on how to fix his car. We start out together, and help and love each other as much as possible along the way. But ultimately everyone has to make it on his own. Some will break down, get lost, or choose a different route. Some may find a better road than the one I plotted. As a teacher, there’s no kindness I can offer beyond the map and tools and precise instructions for driving safely.”
The Taoist premise is that few men ever penetrate the secret of fully tapping the sexual power that is sleeping deep within their own body. It is revolutionary for the average man to think he can enjoy a deep and radiant pleasure in sex that penetrates permanently to the core of his being, an experience far superior to ordinary genital orgasm. The kind of prolonged “total body and soul orgasm” cultivated by Taoists is normally thought to be the exceptional gift of passionate and sensitive women. It has even become the greatest myth of western culture-the woman as passionate object of romantic love, the one who brings love to its real tenderness. The Taoists taught that men can participate equally in love through a truly exquisite balancing of sexual energies that is as tangible as any physical sensation of genital orgasms."
-------------------- Strive to be more than a codified manifestation of a generalized technological consciousness
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