Taoism

[Guest Andrea_Heilotes]

I just kind of started stumbling into this belief set and was pleased to find that it makes sense to me asnd I don't have to believe any wacky things like old guy in the sky knocked up a 14 year old and the minor gave birth to thew same guy who knocked her up in the first place. And that all this is true because some dudes got together 05 years after the fact and said it was true.

I just really dislike Christianity and further dislike Catholicism more. I was raised to be a good little Catholic soldier boy. I even was an altar boy in my elementary school years. But to be fair I only did it because everyone else was doing it and you got to skip out of class.

But Catholicism isn't making sense any more. So I started to dabble with being an Atheist.

But Atheism didn't feel right. Something in my mind was telling me that there was order and meaning to the Universe. But I wanted a "faith" that had some kind of allowance for future scientific discoveries.

Apparently, Taoism has that allowance. A trans friend of mine told me she had come to be a Taoist because it made more sense than the fundamental Protestant Christianity she was raised in. So I started looking into it and figuring out what the basic beliefs of a Taoist were and whether they made sense to me.

Turns out the Taoist principles do make sense to me, at least they do as I understand them. I could be way off in my understanding but as far as I understand it: Taoism says that the world just is the way it is, accept it and don't try to control it. The more you try to control it, the more it will slip through your fingers. So a follower of Tao will just relax and let things do what they do. If one wants to be happy they need to understand how to fit in the flow of things rather than try to go against them. For me it's about suppressing your ego and just accepting your own insignificance. Things are what they are and as a person you just need to accept the fact that it's all out of your control.

I like that Taoism has no apparent morality. Nobody is in the business of telling others how to do things. There's no way to sin against the Tao. There is no great evil "anti-Tao" out there in endless combat against the forces of Tao. Destruction and "evil" are just part of the process of creation and "good" Neither is superior to the other, both are unstoppable forces of the universe. People die because that's the way things are. It's unfortunate, but it's inevitable, it's part of the way life is. Just accept it.

Part of my path out of Christianity involved a suspicion I had that maybe evil wasn't a real thing, perhaps to a god like deity evil is somehow good. What if evil was only a perception of humans but in reality it was just part of good. That would certainly explain why "evil"exists. So then eventually I moved on and forgot about the thought, when I started getting interested in Taoism, the thought returned to me and it all made sense.

I don't know if my perception of Taoism is correct or even remotely close. I read a lot of the Tao te Ching and that's the impression I got. We all just need to let go of this futile human need to cling to power.

So my point is that I'm looking for any other Taoists out there to discuss these things. You know, just in case I'm way off the mark here.

[Charlize]

Finding ones beliefs is a very personal thing. I studied religion in college and spent many evenings (until dawn) drinking tea and talking about the Tao. I must admit much has escaped me as shortly afterwards i started to sit Zen. I then didn't approach religion of any kind for years. At this point giving up myself to a higher power is something i try to understand daily. Perhaps that is an understanding that relates to the Tao. I'm not qualified to discuss your interpretation, but i think your search is well worth the effort and thank you for sharing it.

Hugs,

Charlie

[Guest]

I'm not into Taoism, I'm a Spiritual Christian, but that is light years away from religion. If that is your path to your inner peace, run with it girl!

If you want to get the bad taste of Christian religion out of your mouth, read the book The Ragamuffin Gospel by Brennan Manning. I am not trying to change your path, but it may lay to rest some of the bad history. I hope you find your way. Hug. JodyAnn

[Guest Jaques]

i feel that the Christian message is basically about love and compassion - which is the basis of most religions as far as i can see - its just that people can interpret religions in many different ways to suit their criteria. They commit the most dreadful attrosities against their fellow men in the name of their religion - no wonder they say "Jesus wept"..............and Mohamed..............etc. .i dont follow a religion, though Buddhist helped me a lot along my way - and the Buddha was reputed to have said something like "dont listen to me - find out for yourself"...............so i have always an open mind. I feel truth is inside us all - when we think too much it can get distorted which is why i like that passage in the bible which reads "Be still and know that i am god" - i dont necessarily believe in a god - but dont deny the possibility - but being still, looking inside, as in meditation - letting all the stuff in the head go and listening to the heart i have found a good way, so far as we can, to see whats truth and where we are at. I feel we are all at different stages of our spiritual evolution which is why some people seem to "get it" and others struggle so much but its that journey which makes us what we are and helps us find our way towards truth..............i have only touched briefly on Taoism but it does seem to make sense to me - i feel its like Buddhism, not actually a religion but a way of understanding the way things are.............

[Guest Maria_B]

I haven't heard of Tao personally, and you're the only person I've met that follows it, but it makes sense to me your thoughts on it. Perhaps you can find a Tao board with like-minded people? It can be hard to talk about your spiritual following in diverse boards.

[Guest Andrea_Heilotes]

I'm trying to find a Taoist board. But I just happened to notice that there was a spirituality board here and thought I'd share. to see if there was anyone out there who was a practicing Taoist.

Honestly I like following Taoism, it's just a more laid back belief set. I've always been the type to let things do what they'll do, no need to get all in a huff about stuff. Just let people live their lives and work on living your own. Do what makes you happy.

Yep, that's something I can support. I don't know if I'm lazy or just a bit laissez-faire, but it works for me.

[Guest Kendra K]

I'll have to check out Taoism.

Right now I'm not certain I can call myself a Christian. Just to many things don't add up. Yet, it could be the Christian guilt talking, I can't say I'm an athiest because I can't dismiss the whole I had an experience when I temporarily died thing - which isn't just a Christian thing.

I've looked at Buddhism and I consider them to be higher morally then others I've looked at.

Definitely need to look up Taoism.

[Guest Astrosmurf]

Can't say I really practice Toaism but if you read the Book of Changes you'll see that 'the flow' it talks about can't really be formalised anyway. I understand the Toaist religion/practice has its own gods and meditations etc. but I don't know much about that. I do however use the I Ching quite regularly: http://www.ichingonline.net/index.php and sometimes do some basic Tai Chi. I'm also a 'spiritual Christian' but personally I don't see Toaist thinking necessarily contradicting Christianity in any way.

i feel that the Christian message is basically about love and compassion - which is the basis of most religions as far as i can see - its just that people can interpret religions in many different ways to suit their criteria.

I'll second that. Another thing you might enjoy related to Toaism is Dr. Wayne Dyer's talks on You Tube. Good luck in your spiritual search Andrea

[Guest Rebecca A]

Kendra Buddhism is a way of life not a religion that is exclusive to itself. I know Buddhist Christians, and I know Buddhists who believe all sorts of things that happen in the after life, the path of the Buddha is more about what we do when we are here on this plane than what happens after.

This site has a lot of great information if you dig a little bit for it, and they also have live online worship on Sundays, which I have been thinking of checking out, still learning of the path myself, but maybe it will help: http://www.taoism.net/