Under heaven nothing is more soft and yielding than water Yet nothing is better for overcoming what is hard and stiff As we approach the end of the Tao Te Ching’s 81 chapters, the text returns to the theme of water. Water is the most common metaphor for the energy of Tao. It flows […]
Tao Te Ching – Chapter 78 Read More »
This is a beautiful chapter that acknowledges how elusive something so simple can be.My words are very easy to knowVery easy to put into practiceYet under heaven no one is able to know themNo one can put them into practiceWhen people ask me to explain Tao to them, or ask me what they need to
Tao Te Ching – Chapter 70 Read More »
This beautiful chapter is about leadership, comparing a good leader to the sea, resting patiently in the lowest position, allowing all water to return according to its own path. The sea is king of the hundred valleysBecause it lies well below them This passage blends two thematic images in the Tao Te Ching – water
Tao Te Ching – Chapter 66 Read More »
It happened again. I was practicing push hands with another tai chi student before class a few days ago. (Push hands is sort of like tai chi sparring with a partner.) The teacher was watching us from across the room as he got ready for class. After a few minutes, he called to me, “You’re
You’re Trying Too Hard Read More »
You can’t organize truth. That’s like trying to shape a pound of water in wrapping paper. ~Bruce Lee I was having a discussion with a friend about a particular theological concept, one that has defied any sort of sensible explanation for centuries. We had read various scholars’ analyses; we had listened to podcasts interviewing well
圣人行不言之教 This is one of my favorite lines in the Tao Te Ching. The first two characters 圣人 mean sage. The next 行 can mean to move, proceed, engage in, practice. The next two characters 不言 mean no words. The next 之 is a linking character, like a possessive. And the last character 教 means
Invest in loss? That does not sound like wise financial planning or a promising career strategy! Yet it is a slogan we practice with in martial arts, passed down by tai chi master Cheng Man Ching. What does it mean? In the martial arts context, it means being willing to lose in order to gain skill
Don’t push the river. It flows by itself. ~Fritz Perls Water’s wisdom is its ability to respond effortlessly and appropriately to any situation. It flows around obstacles. It yields to an intrusion (think about trying to push water). It flows downhill in harmony with gravity. It takes the shape of whatever contains it. When there
What, you might ask, is the No Way Café? Like any café, it is a place to relax, have some refreshment, visit with friends. The “way of no way” is what’s on the menu. As the name suggests, it cannot be clearly defined. Just as a basic ingredient can be used in many different dishes,