The Parting of the Way

"As to the sage, no one will know whether he existed or not."   --- Lao Tsu

The book, The Parting of the Way, by Holmes Welch, is a short examination of the Tao and its historical development. Today many would find that the Tao, and Zen Buddhism, especially, are quite similar.

In fact today many practitioners of Zen are also observant of some practices of Taoism. Of its founder, Lao Tzu, believed to be also the writer of the Tao Ti Ching, Confucius remarked, " I have seen... But when it comes to the dragon, I am unable to conceive how he [Lao Tzu] can soar into the sky riding upon the winds and clouds. Today I have seen Lao Tzu, and can only liken him to a dragon." Taoism is an important part of Chinese spiritual understanding for multitudes over a span of more than a thousand years.

In fact, some suppose that the principle text of the Tao, the Tao Ti Ching, is the most translated Eastern religious text; others have remarked upon its ethos to the Christian story. Welch writes, "In recent years there has been a growing interest [in the West]in Buddhism, especially in Zen," owing much to Taoism in its development as a distinct denomination within the practice of Buddhism.

Some have proposed that the Tao Ti Ching was a "manual" fashioned for the practitioner of tso-wang, an early form of yoga practiced in China. This text is not to be a manual on breathing practices leading to trance, yet it gives allusion to the Taoist practice of meditative trance. Ultimately the impact of the Tao Ti Ching, according to Welch, lies in the demonstration of how such power that "trance states give over the material world, and also how such trance states can be the basis for the metaphysical realm.

'In Trance, the ruler returns to the roots of his nature, perceives the Unity of the Universe, the non-existence of absolutes, and the non-existence of contraries. One must be empty of desire to achieve trance, and the Power that it gives. "How does this Power work? It makes possible to act without action, to bring things about without interfering, to act by bypassing the contraries of every event.
Those who try by other means--by [exterior imposition of] morality, by fear or punishment-- only spoil what they do as fast as they do it." Welch writes that different language translations have inserted their ideas into the work, some more mystical.

On the other hand, translators such as Northrup, says Welch are metaphysical. Northrup was interested in comparing the Asian texts with religious texts of the West. Some call this "comparative religion," with an interest to learn both the sameness and uniqueness of humankind universal.

Northrup believed that all Asian religions are founded on the Aesthetic component of mental functioning. Reality in this way is directly sensed, experienced, unlike the west which tends towards intellectual exploration. In this view, by experience, it is then possible to paint ones' experience from the inside, viewing the outside.


Later Taoism developed ideas of immortality. From Buddhism, the Chinese also developed a concept of the soul. While the Buddha himself did not historically believe in a "soul" as is supposed in western thought, anatta reduced persons to five "heaps of matter" which included interior aspects of the human person.

As to the personality, classically the Chinese view is that a personality is composed of those anatta aspects as a composite. At death part of one ascended to heaven, part descended below and part, the life breath, simply faded away, not to return.

The schools of Buddhism which historically became most practiced in China were those schools that taught and believed in an immortality of the soul. Immortality to these practitioners had to be both physical and metaphysical. Gradually both these ideas were adopted by the Taoists.

These ideas came into place after the Han dynasty. Over time, historical Taoism developed a strong theocracy to administer to the social hierarchy of the faith, and of everyday matters of the people. The historical wizard-shaman of the Tao was born in this time. In contrast to the corruption of the Imperial court, the Taoist structure rapidly came to be seen as more stable, more helpful, and more beneficial to the people. Its practice in the early period spread wildly.

Yet Lao Tsu did not urge his values on anyone; however, he said that, "everyone under heaven says our Way is greatly like folly." He also, while not urging his views upon others, noted that while they are "good and right," if we do not follow them, we invite disaster.

In the time of the Song or Sung dynasty, the Jade emperor came into great importance among the people. This was a time of strife and war with invaders from the north. The Jade emperor was a god believed to be with a vast court containing many persons and complex rituals. Once a year it was thought, that all the gods came to pay court to the Jade emperor, giving homage and accounts of their administration. If they did well, they received rewards, if not, they were punished.

The deities were many, and as diverse as those gods of the sun, the moon, the neither worlds, the hearth, etc. Since the time of the Sung or Song dynasty hence, the pantheon of Taoist deities has been relatively stable with a concept of heaven and hell included in the theology as well.

The Tao today continues to share with Buddhism deities such as Kwan Yin, goddess of mercy, Kuan Ti, god of war. Few persons are exclusively Taoist or Buddhist in much of China today. Sharing its patrimony with other religions of China, Tao values are: honesty, kindness to all creatures, speak truthfully, do not gossip or slander others; be not boastful or hypocritical, do not take bribes, nor covet another's possessions, nor his wife; respect the elders. This is consistent with the simple mind, the Confucian teachings, and many Buddhist denominations.

Truly, any or all of these values mentioned here could be placed in a Christian Sunday sermon as well, without notice. They function as core human values. We are, it seems, more alike than we are different.

An Ode to Technology and to Gossips

"Going against the virtue of selflessness. Being unreasonable. Using evil intentions to guide your actions. Being cruel and destructive.Taking advantage of kind people.Talking secretly against your parents and elders. Showing disrespect for your teachers. Engaging in rebellious actions. "Framing" the innocent. Slandering your co-workers. Being deceitful. Lying to your relations. Being aggressive and resentful.Taking things for yourself whenever you wish. Not knowing right from wrong. Talking behind people’s backs." --Treatise on the Tao, by Lao Tzu

When we, for a long or short period of time due to anger, envy or other resentments, speak out about others in ways that are false or misleading about that person, we commit character assassination. Gossip has the same effect, and that is the reason many, if not most, spiritual traditions either ban it or take a dim view to its practice. It is corrosive and damaging to community.
For this discussion assassination is defined as: to kill in a surprise attack for political or religious reasons; to gossip for same or similar personal reasons (Webster's Dictionary).

Today the overwhelming presence of technology in our lives and the easy access to the internet makes the opportunities for character assassination, gossip or outright slander easy, and increasing. Even when things are posted are untrue, oddly over time people's beliefs may be swayed and their former good opinions altered to a more negative tone. How does that happen?

Lori Andrews writes about this subject in her new book, I Know Who You Are and I Saw What You Did,  primarily about privacy issues and the internet. She discusses at length the 1890 legal briefs written by then young Boston attorneys Louis Brandeis and Samuel Warren in a chapter titled Technology and Fundamental Rights. Recounting the young Brandeis' life, author Andrews talks about his concern for his family when in 1889 his first child was born and the Kodak Brownie portable camera simultaneously made its first appearance. No longer was it necessary to go to a photo studio to be photographed with large, cumbersome cameras. Now they were portable and increasingly every where. He was concerned about the indiscriminate photographing of his children while in public. Doesn't a person have a right to "their own face?" he mused. Surely there must be a legal answer to this new question brought by technology.


Prior to portable cameras a person could hardly be photographed without their permission, largely due to the limits of the technology. After 1888 when the Brownie appeared, all changed. These photo enthusiasts were called "photo fiends" by the popular press. As Warren and Brandeis assessed the impact of the portable camera in modern life, their instinct told them several things: people should be able to have control over their images; they also should have the simple right to be left alone, and the right to control the information others could collect about them; in short theirs was a conception of the privacy rights, and rights of due process that today we all now enjoy.

Their 1890 legal brief advanced these ideas:

"The intensity and complexity of life attendant upon the advancing civilization have rendered necessary some retreat from the world, so that solitude and privacy have become more essential to the individual; modern enterprise and invention have, through [various] invasions upon his privacy, subjected him to mental pain and distress far greater than could be inflicted by mere bodily injury."

They continue their thought that there is indeed an essential right for individuals to be simply left alone, like the legal protections against assault, beatings or malicious prosecution. The right of a person to control what is said or written about him has long had a place in law. The suits of slander and libel address traditional wrongs to others committed by would be character assassins when in public speech or in traditional publications such as books, newspapers or magazines. One's reputation is among the very first of property rights an individual must, and ought to protect. It is indeed the very first form of property rights possessed by individuals. Brandeis and Warren later went on to become members of the Supreme Court of the United States of America.

Satan is an Angel

"Innocence is a mystery greater than evil." --James Hillman

There is a long tradition in human history of Satan, or an entity with similar characteristics called by another name. Tradition holds that Satan, also known as Lucifer, the Deceiver or the Devil, is indeed an angel; a very powerful angel who exerts great energies into the world. Some would like to suppose that angels are all goodness, that they are without their own will, that they only perform the will of the Creator, of gods. However this simply is not so.

Many presume this force which is exerted by the angel, Satan to be a negative one. Yet like Mara, the evil one of Buddhism, Satan is a much needed energy in the world. Why so? Because without the Evil One, the Buddha would not know his goodness, the good would be without a name. One cannot know by experience the way or the good without being tempted; one cannot exercise his free will or be whole and complete without an awareness of the world in its entirety. All things are present in the world at all times.

And angels have, and do indeed, tempt and corrupt. The Bible in 1Corinthians11 for example says, "a woman should have a sign of authority on her head, because of the angels." Revelations claims that the angel, Satan, must be "seized the dragon, the ancient serpent, which is the Devil or Satan, and tied up for a thousand years."

Also interestingly the name Lucifer means "Light Carrier." And in Judaism, the Devil is an angel who causes not only mischief, but disorder; he is an adversary. Tradition going back to Judaism unto the present declares the Devil to be:

"the Devil and the other demons were created by God, good in their nature, but they
by themselves have made themselves evil... Here it is clearly thought that the
Devil and the other demons are spiritual or angelic creatures created by God in
a state of innocence, and that they became evil by their own act. It is added
that man sinned by the suggestion of the Devil." --www.thenewadvent.org


Tradition further teaches that as angels, demons are:"the Devil, and the other demons are but a part of the angelic creation, and their natural powers do not differ from those of the angels who remained faithful. Like the other angels, they are pure spiritual beings without any body, and in their original state they are endowed with supernatural grace." The choosers of darkness for light, of evil for good, and while it would seem that [these choices] can only be accounted for by some ignorance, or inadvertence, or weakness, or the influence of some overmastering passion. But most of these explanations seem to be precluded by the powers and perfections of the angelic nature.

The weakness of the flesh, which accounts for such a mass of human wickedness, was altogether absent from the angels. There could be no place for carnal sin without the corpus delecti(the physical body). And even some sins that are purely spiritual or intellectual, seem to present an almost insuperable difficulty in the case of the angels."--www.thenewadvent.org

As well, it is false to suppose as already mentioned, that the Judeo-Christian tradition alone largely holds well developed views of devilry. In the world, as we experience it, there are many traditions, some already mentioned holding strong conceptions of an evil doer. From the teachings of the Bon to the Tao, to the Hindus multiple creatures of mal, the Muslims, indigenous spiritualities around the world, the Zoroastrians and many others. Why is it so? What is there to learn about life as it is--suchness by learning of an evil doer? What are our assumptions, our notions? Do we hold a belief that my faith isn't involved with that, that I am better or above such notions?

It seems to be a facet of human nature, of ego, of deficit, to not countenance the face of ill will, to suppose that angels are only for the desire and bidding of gods, or that they can do no evil. The everyday world tells us other-wise. Many transgress the precepts, fall short of the teachings of their acknowledged faith, or simply live in a lower, darker state, more than an animal and less than an arhat or a seeker of the Way. Like the angels, there is only a difference in the choosing. We often seek to substitute our own will and ego for that of the Creator, the unknowable One. And then we suffer. Innocence and evil, as Hillman writes, are indeed a mystery.

The Dharma, The Tao, The Way

The terms Dharma, Tao and the Way are familiar spiritual descriptions, often tossed around which come from several spiritual traditions, both East and West. Yet as the well known Indian physician and author, Deepak Chopra writes in his book The Path To Love, what may seem as separate is really not so, through interbeing. He discusses these traditions as long living in the human world, that they are in his view, rather more unified, that they inter-be as one.

"Dharma" is also translated as "law" or "righteousness." In India, today someone who follows the family tradition of work, worship, and social behavior is said to be in his "dharma." Modern Western society is not dharmic in any of these ways, since our children feel free to choose very different occupations from their parents', along with new codes of behavior and new places to live. In both East and West the rootedness of a dharmic society has been undermined in this century.

However, Dharma is more than social convention; it is a living force that can bring you through the many threats and challenges of life. Your ego [western term, from the Latin meaning self or I] does not believe this for it cannot find dharma; ego is not guided by love, and dharma is intimately tied to love. In the West, the closest concept to dharma is grace [one, whole, universal], the loving presence of God that keeps humanity under divine protection. When Jesus spoke of God seeing the fall of a sparrow, he was referring to dharma. In China, the same concept emerged as Tao, the middle way, which was seen as an invisible but real power that organizes all life. Being in tune with the way is the same as living within dharma. The Christian term the Way is likewise. Jesus exhorted his disciples to "come follow me."

"Every spiritual tradition has taught that success in life depends upon finding the Way and ignoring the distractions of external things. Your Ego, however, insists that your survival depends upon paying total attention to the outer world. Its primary tactics--vigilance and defensiveness--are the very antithesis of surrender in the way. Your ego, a perception of which, causes you to believe that separation is necessary..." In reality separation is not ever necessary; it is something chosen or not.

Being in dharma however, "heals separation by making us [inter-being] a reality," not as a 'unit of two,' but as a whole, oneness, a universal spirit. Chopra explains further, "You are acting in dharma whenever you allow rather than oppose. Allowing results in statements such as these:

* Is there something you need?
* How can I help?
* I see what's going on with you.
* Go ahead.
* I understand what you mean.
* You're right.

"Unity makes another person's viewpoint completely clear; you understand someone who is outside yourself." What makes this possible is the realization of inter-being, that what you value, esteem, follow isn't something outside yourself, it may be only outside of your ego. Thus "following your dharma in the deepest sense means not only obeying the laws set down by society or adhering to rules of religious conduct--there is no fixed formula for finding the Way..." Set spiritual guideposts for yourself, thus making this newer, broader meaning of dharma essential.