The Tao te Ching, or The Book of the Way is a classic manual for on the art of living, revered as one of the wonders of the world. The Tao are the basic principles of the Universe and can be applied in any area of life, from government, love and business to family life and ecology. Lao-tsu the originator of this manual may have been a contemporary of Confucius in 551-479 B.C. As the legend goes, Lao-tsu was asked to write down the principles of life upon leaving the city he lived in.
The Tao is the art of doing not doing!
The Tao may seem paradoxical only on the surface, that the more truly solitary we are the more compassionate we can be, the more we let go of what we love, the more we present our love becomes, the clearer our insight into what is between good and evil, the more we can embody the good. The Tao says, "I am the truth and the life." The teaching of the Tao is moral in the deepest sense. The Master sees evil as an opaqueness, state of self absorption which is disharmony of the universal process. Embodying the light, light shines through by compassion for the wicked and helpless. Does not reject anyone and is available to all people.
The Chinese do not have words for male and female, therefore he/she will be used interchangeably in this text. One note before embarking on The Book of the Way; the truth is right before our eyes, the farther you enter into it the deeper you will go.
The pages are broken up into sets of five verses each. I suggest that you take a few verses and contemplate them for a while before moving to the next ones. Taking each sentence within so the feelings and ideas will surface and reveal themselves to you. Each time you read or listen to the Tao you may find that your perceptions change thus, when you re-read the verses you never comprehend them in the same way, but in a new and more subtle light. There is a an unspeakable spiritual quality to the Tao Te Ching.
May inner Peace keep and guide you.
It is said that every morning Lao Tzu used to go for a walk in the hills. One friend asked him, "Can I come with you one day? I would particularly like to come tomorrow, because I have a guest who is very much interested in you, and he will be immensely glad to have the opportunity to be with you for two hours in the mountains."
Lao Tzu said, "I have no objection, just one simple thing has to be remembered. I don't want anything to be said because I have my eyes, you have your eyes, he has his eyes, we can see. There is no need to say anything."
The friend agreed, but on the way when the sun started rising the guest forgot. It was so beautiful by the side of the lake, the reflection of all the colors, the birds singing and the lotuses blossoming, opening, he could not resist, he forgot. He said, "What a beautiful sunrise."
His host was shocked because he has broken the condition. Lao Tzu did not say anything, nothing was said there. Back home he called his friend and told him, "Don't bring your guest again. He is too talkative. The sunrise was there, I was there, he was there, you were there -- what is the need to say anything, any comment, any interpretation?"
(an excerpt from The
Third Quantum Leap by Osho)
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