Stephen Mitchell’s interpretation of the Tao: Tao is like a well: used but never used up. It is like the eternal void: filled with infinite possibilities. It is hidden but always present. I don’t know who gave birth to it. It is older than God.
The next interpretation comes from a book called The Tao and its Character which is in public domain on The Kindle. 1. The Tao is (like) the emptiness of a vessel; and in our employment of it we must be on our guard against all fullness. How deep and unfathomable it is, as if it were the Honoured Ancestor of all things! 2. We should blunt our sharp points, and unravel the complications of things; we should attempt our brightness, and bring ourselves into agreement with the obscurity of others. How pure and still the Tao is, as if it would ever to continue! 3. I do not know whose son it is. It might appear to have been before God.
From Byron Katie’s interpretation comes: It is like the eternal void: filled with infinite possibilities.
She states, “it is like a bottomless well: you can always draw from it, and it will always give you the water of life. Because it is completely open and sees that nothing is true, it is filled with more possibilities than we can ever imagine.”
Wayne Dyer’s interpretation: The Tao is empty but inexhaustible, bottomless, the ancestor of all. Within it, the sharp edges become smooth; the twisted knots loosen; the sun is softened by a cloud; the dust settles into place. It is hidden but always present. I do not know who gave birth to it. It seems to be the common ancestor of all, the father of things.
Dr. Dyer wants us to live in the concept of infiniteness because the Tao is the source of all things and is infinite and that we should look at ourselves from the perspective that we also are infinite being living in a world of sharp edges and knots. He advises us to tap into the bottomless Tao and find the energy we need to do whatever it is we want. When we are struggling with problems we can tap into this bottomless and infinite Tao to find the answers. And at all times we should strive to be in the infinity that is hidden.
I love, love, love this verse. I have been trying for the last week to remember to ask the question “what should I do next?” instead of just knee-jerking my next actions out of habit. Some moments I have remembered and some moments I have not. Earlier in the week I was actually asking that question with everything I did. From what do I eat, to which yoga poses will I practice, to what shall I work on now. As the week progressed and I found myself in the weekend, I asked less and less because it was all about having fun and not thinking. But I did find myself remembering to let go and relax in the moments which is always a plus for me.
I can’t say that asking the question, “what should I do next?” made a profound difference in my life as I do not know whether, when I took one route home versus another I avoided an accident or not, or if I would have eaten any differently than I did. But I do know that I was more productive. I’m working on getting organized after a year of being very disorganized and I’m working on finding receipts for some tax work I need to get done. I’ve been putting these two actions off for weeks and after doing the Tao and asking “what next?” I have, as of today, found most of the receipts I need and I’ve cleared out a huge pile of papers that have been staring me in the face. Plus I feel better, more calm. Why? Because I know that if I ask the question, “What next?” and I trust that this infinite bottomless Tao exists, then I’m always tapping into that higher perspective of infinite possibilities and I’m always moving in the best possible direction for me.
So my goal this week? To continue my practice of asking the question, “What next?” so that I can train my brain not to react out of habit but to actually tap into this bottomlessness that Lao Tzu called the Tao and “to be” in the Infiniteness at all times. Happy tapping!
References:
Mitchell, Stephen (2009-10-13). Tao Te Ching (p. 6). Harper Collins, Inc.. Kindle Edition.
The Laozi (2009-10-04). The Tao Teh King, or the Tao and its Characteristics (Kindle Locations 29-30). Public Domain Books. Kindle Edition.
Mitchell, Stephen; Katie, Byron (2007-02-06). A Thousand Names for Joy: Living in Harmony with the Way Things Are (p. 13). Random House, Inc.. Kindle Edition.
Dyer, Wayne Dr. 1 Change Your Thoughts, Change Your Life, Audio Version, (Disc 1)
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