May 12, 2025

What do we want from religion? Eternal life? 

Invisible assistance in having our way/getting what we want? 
The old Taoists sought to align themselves with the Tao or Way
in order to assist/participate in the flow of life and being
by doing what was called for in each situation as it arose--doing the right thing, in the right way, at the right time time, in the right place--in the service of balance and harmony, and to promote the general wellbeing of life in the cosmos.

"The path that can be discerned as a path is not a reliable path." This is Martin Palmer's interpretation of the line that has been rendered as The Tao that can be said,told, explained, defined, etc. is not the eternal Tao."

We cannot talk about the Tao, but we can know it in hindsight, by seeing the Way that has brought us, guided us, to where we are.

What works to get us where we are? What has led us from birth to here, now? What helps us to know what to do in each situation as it arises?

What works for me is "emptiness-stillness-silence." I drop into emptiness-stillness-silence and wait for guidance to arise, emerge, appear on its own "just as it is" "as one thus come" to light the way. And to continue to refine/adjust the way all along the way, constantly adapting to changing circumstances moment by moment to achieve the optimal flow, or movement, from "then to now." Which is the ideal "Te" or "virtue" to realize or enjoy or know as we live our life as circumstances beget circumstances all our life long.

What works for Donald Trump is bullying, intimidating, humiliating, threatening, coercing all that stands between him and what he wants at every point in his life. To hell with whomever or whatever is in his way. 

So there is a wide variety of options to choose from in selecting a source of guidance and direction for our life's path.