{"id":2229,"date":"2011-05-15T00:27:17","date_gmt":"2011-05-15T04:27:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/yang-sheng.com\/?p=2229"},"modified":"2011-11-18T14:56:17","modified_gmt":"2011-11-18T19:56:17","slug":"illuminating-the-dao-yang-sheng","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yang-sheng.com\/?p=2229","title":{"rendered":"Illuminating the Dao \u609f\u9053 – The Dao & Yang Sheng"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Dao, the Dao-De-Jing, <\/em>and Yang Sheng<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

<\/em><\/p>\n

Kevin W Chen, <\/strong>Ph.D. MPH<\/p>\n

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A painting of Lao Zi going to the West<\/p><\/div>\n

Laozi and the<\/strong> Concept of Dao<\/strong><\/p>\n

According to the Records of the Grand Historian<\/em> (\u53f2\u8bb0 Shiji<\/a><\/em>) by Chinese historian Sima Qian<\/a> (\u53f8\u9a6c\u8fc1 ca. 145\u201386 BCE); Laozi, the alleged author of Dao-de-jing<\/em>, lived in the 6th<\/sup> century BCE and worked as the Keeper of the Archives for the royal court of Zhou kingdom.\u00a0 He grew weary of the moral decay of city life, noted the kingdom’s decline, and decided to venture west to live as a hermit in the unsettled frontier at the age of 160.\u00a0 At the western gate of the kingdom, he was recognized by a guard official (Yi Xi). The sentry asked Laozi to leave his wisdom in writing before he would allow him pass.\u00a0 With no other option, Laozi wrote down about 5000 words of his life philosophy and wisdom for the first time.\u2026\u00a0 This is the legendary origin of the Dao-de-jing<\/em>. In some version of the tale, the sentry is so touched by the work that he left with Laozi to never be seen again. Some legends elaborate further that the “Old Master” was the teacher of the Buddha, or was the Buddha himself.<\/p>\n

Although Laozi started the Dao-de-jing<\/em> with a statement \u201cthe Dao that can be told is NOT the eternal Dao,\u201d many ancient Sages and masters have still tried many ways in the attempt to \u201ctell\u201d or \u201cshow\u201d what \u201cthe Dao\u201d is, or how it should be interpreted, so as to help ordinary people like us to \u201cwu<\/em>\u201d (\u609f comprehend and illuminate) \u201cthe Dao.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 My bachelor\u2019s degree is in philosophy and during my training I had two courses in the history of Chinese philosophy with \u201cDao-de-jing<\/em>\u201d as the core of the course; however, after reading Dao-de-jing<\/em> multiple times, I would not say that I really understood \u201dthe Dao\u201d in its true meaning at that moment. But I did learn something new every time I read Dao-de-jing<\/em>.\u00a0 I will share my perspective and knowledge on this subject. I hope readers will find this interpretation stimulating and serve as a conduit to share more insightful opinions. My intention is to help us get closer to \u201cthe Dao,\u201d and eventually illuminate \u201cthe Dao\u201d with our own intuition, understanding and cultivation.<\/p>\n

There are multiple meanings or interpretations for Dao, most scholars agree that the two most outstanding or common laws in Dao are: (1) unity and transformation of the opposites (\u5bf9\u7acb\u8f6c\u5316), and (2) return to the root or the beginning (\u8fd4\u672c\u590d\u521d).\u00a0 The theory of unity and transformation of the opposites in exposition of the universe and its change derives from the primitive thought.\u00a0 We can find many similar descriptions in western philosophy. However, in Laozi\u2019s philosophy or writing, not only the pairs of opposites are overwhelming in the book, numbered over seventy (such as being vs. not-being, difficulty vs. easiness, height vs. low and so on), but also the concept of universality\u00a0 is emphasized with the pair of Yin and Yang. \u201cAll creatures cannot turn their backs to the shade (Yin) without having the sun on their bellies ( a myriad of things shoulder the yin and embrace the yang).\u201d (Ch. 42).\u00a0 Meanwhile, Laozi emphases the balance and harmony of the contradictions, and the change is the process of transformation of the opposites toward each other. These myriad of things are not only opposite and interdependent, but also mutually changeable and the change is definite to take place.<\/p>\n

The second most important law of Dao is that \u201cin Dao the only motion is returning.\u201d(\u8fd4\u8005\u9053\u4e4b\u52a8\uff1bCh. 40) In other words,\u00a0 to return to the root and the beginning is another law of circular movement manifested by Dao.\u00a0 However, what Laozi emphasizes is to go back to the root and return to the beginning, to maintain tranquility and submit to the fate (or the nature).\u00a0 As he explains in chapter 52: \u201cThat which was the beginning of all things under the sun we may speak of as the \u2018mother\u2019 of all things.\u00a0 He who apprehends the mother thereby knows the sons. And he who has known the sons, will hold all the tighter to the mother, and to the end of his days suffer no harm.\u201d (\u5929\u4e0b\u6709\u59cb\uff0c\u4ee5\u4e3a\u5929\u4e0b\u6bcd\u3002\u65e2\u5f97\u5176\u6bcd\uff0c\u4ee5\u77e5\u5176\u5b50\uff0c\u590d\u5b88\u5176\u6bcd\uff0c\u6ca1\u8eab\u4e0d\u6b86\u3002)<\/p>\n

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Calligraphy of "Dao" and the first sentence of Dao-de-jing<\/p><\/div>\n

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The Dao and the Dao-De-Jing<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThe Dao\u201d is a unique concept in Laozi\u2019s \u201cDao De Jing,\u201d the classic book everyone is talking about these days, but no one so far can claim a true understanding of it.\u00a0 According to my professor of Chinese philosophy, \u201cthe Dao\u201d refers to the laws behind everything in the universe that integrates the unnamed (our intuition) and the named (our reasoning) together. This can only be truly understood or comprehended through our intuition with experience.\u00a0 All the languages and names are attached to certain reasoning and manifestations, therefore \u201cthe Dao\u201d that can be told or communicated by language is not the original or real Dao.\u00a0 All the books, stories and talks about \u201cthe Dao\u201d are just some examples of, or the path toward, the Dao.\u00a0 In other words, the true Dao can only be illuminated through our own cultivation, meditation and comprehension.<\/p>\n

Students who attended the medical qigong training by World Institute for Self-Healing (WISH) may remember master He\u2019s only recommendation of additional reading after qigong cultivation, the Dao-de-jing<\/em> (DDJ) in its original Chinese version.\u00a0 All translations have already added the translator or author\u2019s own understanding and commentary, which is most likely to lead you far away from the true Dao.\u00a0 According to some Daoist masters or practitioners, even though you may not understand the words well when you read the DDJ the first few times, just read it through, and remember those words. You will have a better chance to understand them once you continue your qigong cultivation-practice since the real Dao cannot be expressed in words any way\u2026.\u00a0 For those who understand Chinese, this is a possible way to illuminate the Dao. However, for those who do not understand Chinese, how are they going to illuminate the Dao effectively?<\/p>\n

Well, I am not sure how to solve this technical problem, but I know a web site that lets you compare 29 versions of English translation at once. Although this could make the simple \u201cDao\u201d more complicated or confusing.\u00a0 For those who intend to study \u201cDao\u201d or DDJ, this could be a great way to deepen your understanding of the message in DDJ (although 29 at once can be a bit overwhelming; you can pick the ones you like). http:\/\/www.wayist.org\/ttc%20compared\/index.htm<\/a><\/p>\n

This web site could become a useful tool for the beginner to study how different English language translators rendered the ancient Chinese text of the Dao-de-jing (or Tau Teh Ching). You can browse the DDJ chapter by chapter and see 29 different translations in line-by-line comparisons.\u00a0 However, keep in mind that each version of translation is already implanted with the translator\u2019s values and \u201cmisunderstanding.\u201d<\/p>\n

In my opinion, the degree of truth in each translation is not correlated with the understanding of ancient Chinese, or scholastic capability and the depth of knowledge.\u00a0 Instead, it is the translator\u2019s ability to comprehend and illuminate the unnamed Dao which you are actually reading and comparing.\u00a0 Ironically, the more knowledge one has, the more names or restrictions will limit one\u2019s thoughts and expressions; therefore, making this person less likely to be one who would reach the level of true Dao.\u00a0 However, living in the sea of \u201cnames\u201d and \u201crules,\u201d we need some lights or signals to lead us toward the path of true Dao, which is what the reading of DDJ would serve.<\/p>\n

The Dao De Jing and Yang Sheng<\/strong><\/p>\n

One thing really wonderful about DDJ is that, no matter what profession you are in, or what political or philosophic perspective you possess, you will find something appropriate or useful for yourself. In DDJ, a physicist will find the rules and insight of the universal forces, a mathematician will find unique solutions to some math problems, a politician may find the ultimate way to manage a country or an entity, and a qi practitioner will find the path toward the Dao \u2013 the peak of mind-body integration and cultivation\u2026.<\/p>\n

As to Yang Sheng, or nurturing life for health, the main ideas in Dao-de-jing can be summarized in three basic points: (1) fewer desires or lowering desire (\u5be1\u6b32), because \u201cthe five colors confuse the eye, the five sounds dull the ear, the five tastes spoil the palate; and excess of hunting and chasing makes mind go mad.\u201d (Ch. 12) Thus one should \u201cblock the passages, shut the doors, let all sharpness be blunted, all tangles united, all glare tempered, all dust smoothed.\u201d (Ch. 56).\u00a0 (2) No addition to one\u2019s vitality (\u4e0d\u81ea\u76ca\u5176\u751f). \u201cTo fill life to the brim is to invite omens,\u201d (Ch. 55) because \u201cwhatever has a time of vigor also has a time of decay. Such things are against Dao, and whatever is against Dao is soon destroyed.\u201d (Ch. 55) \u201cHow is it that the death-spots in man\u2019s life and activity are also thirty percent? (Those who could have lived long but walk into death of their own accord also number about three-tenths. Why?) It is because men feed life too grossly.\u201d (\u4eba\u4e4b\u751f\uff0c\u52a8\u4e4b\u4e8e\u6b7b\u5730\uff0c\u4ea6\u5341\u6709\u4e09\u3002\u592b\u4f55\u6545\uff1f\u4ee5\u5176\u751f\u751f\u4e4b\u539a\u3002 Ch. 50). (3) To keep vital qi \u2013 \u201cempty the mind and solid the abdomen\u201d (\u865a\u5176\u5fc3\u3001\u5b9e\u5176\u8179)\u3002A man should always \u201ckeep the unquiet physical-soul from straying, hold fast to the Unity (keep the spiritual and sentient souls united).\u201d (\u8f7d\u8425\u9b44\u62b1\u4e00\uff0c\u80fd\u65e0\u79bb\u4e4e\uff1f) <\/strong>and \u201cconcentrate your breath make it as soft as infant (concentrate the vital qi to attain a state of pliancy).\u201d (\u4e13\u6c14\u81f4\u67d4\uff0c\u00a0\u80fd\u5982\u5a74\u513f\u4e4e\uff1f Ch. 10)<\/p>\n

Of course, I am sure we can learn much more than these three points on Yang Sheng from Dao-de-jing<\/em>.\u00a0 The above discussion is intended to just serve as a starting brick that may attract the true jade out\u2026. (\u629b\u7816\u5f15\u7389).\u00a0 In Chapter 67 of Dao-de-jing, Laozi clearly states the essence of his thought and life philosophy: \u201chere are my three treasures, Guard and keep them! The first is kind or mercy; the second is frugality; the third, refusal to be foremost of all things under the heaven.\u201d (\u6211\u6709\u4e09\u5b9d\uff0c\u6301\u800c\u4fdd\u4e4b\u3002\u4e00\u66f0\u6148\uff0c\u4e8c\u66f0\u4fed\uff0c\u4e09\u66f0\u4e0d\u6562\u4e3a\u5929\u4e0b\u5148\u3002)<\/p>\n

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A painting of Laozi and his three-treasure statement<\/p><\/div>\n

Dao is everywhere in our life.\u00a0 The true Dao is supposed to be very simple, around us, and deep inside us. A good practitioner can illuminate Dao in everyday life, like Michelle Wood has been doing the past few years in the column \u201cIlluminating the Dao\u201d.\u00a0 I received a greeting card from a friend a while ago, which touched me deeply in a special way.\u00a0 There are many statements full of meaning which correlate to the true Dao in the card. I would like to share some with you as my conclusion to this introduction to \u201cthe Dao\u201d:<\/p>\n