Chapter 46: Heresy flaunts its strength to mock orthodoxy; Mind Monkey in epiphany slays the deviates.
"Righteous" Buddhists 1 - Daoism
Hello everyone, I hope you’re all well. We’re almost almost there, let’s go.
That king was in truth a confused man: he would side with the east when they mentioned east, and with the west when they mentioned west: Sounds like a puppet emperor.
“I'll guess first. The chest contains an empire blouse and a cosmic skirt.”: I don’t know what a cosmic skirt could be…
When Eight Rules heard the words, he grinned sardonically to Sha
Monk, saying, “Little does he realize how many years of peach eating are
behind this!”: Don’t remind us! Everything started because of peaches.
“They wish to wage one more contest with you in head cutting,
stomach ripping, and going into a cauldron of boiling oil to take a bath”: Disclaimer: Taoists didn’t do these things, in case someone was wondering. It may be something that happens in fantasy CDramas with daoist cultivators but not in real life. Excercise is important in daoism, such as Tai Chi Chuan, but this was made in order to make your body become like the Dao.
“Taoists did not find value in the Buddhist assumption that spiritual transformation could take place merely as a change in one’s consciousness, without any real reference to one’s physical life or to the subtle processes at work in the world around us. Taoists typically believed that personal transformation must be a holistic transformation, a transformation of all their being – including what other traditions have often distinguished as mind, body, and spirit – in accord with the most subtle and sublime processes at work in the world in which we live”. Source: Kirkland, R. (2004). Taoism: The enduring tradition. London: Routledge.
“This is because for “the Taoist Master, the true Gods are found within himself . Taoists speak not of a supreme being but of a supreme state of being – a sublime state that lies deeply locked within every human being and can be reached only through the great personal effort and self-discipline.” The achievement of this form of spiritual realization is sometimes referred to as Keeping the One or Returning to the Void in which “the inner and the outer being must act together,” a state in which “action and thought must agree”. Source: Reid, D. (2001). The tao of health, sex and longevity. London: Pocket Books & Schipper, K. M. (1993). The Taoist body. Berkeley: University of California Press.
In relation to that, I recommend that you read Kristofer Schipper books or at least, watch videos where he speaks, such as this one, if you’re interested in Daoism.
“There's one thing, however. I don't want my hands tied, for I want to wash and clean out my viscera”: I think I said this in a previous chapter, but this book si very gore-y.
“The human form is hard, hard indeed, to get!
Make no elixir when there's no true guide.
You have charms and water to send for gods
But not the pill to make your life abide.”: This poem by the king speaks about how tricks won’t help you become more enlightened or to live longer or better.
I’m glad to have the chance to help you learn about Daoism in this chapter, instead of always speaking about Buddhism, it was refreshing.
See you in 3 days!
The Green Goat Inmortal by Zhang Lu