Thankyou for this. I am a Vipassana meditator, improvised theatre teacher and a newly minted reader of Zhuangzi (not everyone's first entry point into Daoism, but mine). I'm also a fan of the whole McGilchrist/Vervaeke/whatever thing kind of giving legitimacy to imagination, intuition, embodiment and so on.
It's great to read something from someone who has been chewing on this a few decades longer than I have.
Ah Aden, good to have you here. It is enlivening to finally talk with other people other than 10 close friends and T'ai Chi family about all this. Though of course, that is also a wonderful and thankfully ongoing thing too...
By the way, forgive me as I still use the old Romanisations of T'ai Chi rather than Taiji, Chuang-Tzu rather than Zhuangzi and Tao rather than Dao, etc. It is out of deep respect for my Great Grandmaster Dr Chi Chiang-Tao, whom I never met, but whose Way influences my life each day. I'll explain why I stick to these in a post one day but do please always feel free to use the Pinyin terms.
It feels like I have chewing on this since about 2006, give or take. I count myself extremely lucky to be part of an unbroken living T'ai Chi tradition with heavy emphasis on Tao (as opposed to Confucianist or utilitarian), so everything we do in practice as practical martial art also has an immediate resonance in the psychological & philosophical realms. In about 2012 I went through the Taoist Classics and made a sort of sticky note accordance between them and The Master and his Emissary, as the correspondences leapt out at me. The work of this winter is to reread Iain's book for the third time, reread the Classics for the umpteenth time, and somehow wrangle something cohesive for you here for January. Writing that here means that I will do it, and not put it off.
Zhuangzi / Chuang Tzu is an ideal entry into Tao, actually; irreverent, lively, moving. The Lieh Tzu is also a joy. I am at a three-day T'ai Chi workshop right now in London each afternoon and evening with my teacher, but when I get home, I will find the edition I have and post it here, along with a short reading list on the next post. Greetings from beside the Thames.
It’s so good to hear your voice speaking these words of growth and to be able to name the forces I feel pulling on my heart and mind. Many days it seems impossibly hard to break free of the patterns that would have me fall in line. I look forward to learning more. Thank you.❤️
Thank you. In listening it reminded me of how often in the media, particularly with news stories out of the US and other western countries about storms- wind, snow, water, the reference to being at war with nature.
Caroline I have just discovered you on this amazing thing called Substack. You’re sharing of the grand unified practice linking to the Tao and the ground of being and embodied orientation with our beloved earth is sweetness and strength combined. As a 75 year embodied woman I first discovered snd fell in love with Lao Tzu and Chuang Tse in my twenties snd recognized home. Your life seems so rich and your path of dedication shared here is an affirmation. I will be passing this on to my sensitive friends. Much gratitude
Thankyou for this. I am a Vipassana meditator, improvised theatre teacher and a newly minted reader of Zhuangzi (not everyone's first entry point into Daoism, but mine). I'm also a fan of the whole McGilchrist/Vervaeke/whatever thing kind of giving legitimacy to imagination, intuition, embodiment and so on.
It's great to read something from someone who has been chewing on this a few decades longer than I have.
Ah Aden, good to have you here. It is enlivening to finally talk with other people other than 10 close friends and T'ai Chi family about all this. Though of course, that is also a wonderful and thankfully ongoing thing too...
By the way, forgive me as I still use the old Romanisations of T'ai Chi rather than Taiji, Chuang-Tzu rather than Zhuangzi and Tao rather than Dao, etc. It is out of deep respect for my Great Grandmaster Dr Chi Chiang-Tao, whom I never met, but whose Way influences my life each day. I'll explain why I stick to these in a post one day but do please always feel free to use the Pinyin terms.
It feels like I have chewing on this since about 2006, give or take. I count myself extremely lucky to be part of an unbroken living T'ai Chi tradition with heavy emphasis on Tao (as opposed to Confucianist or utilitarian), so everything we do in practice as practical martial art also has an immediate resonance in the psychological & philosophical realms. In about 2012 I went through the Taoist Classics and made a sort of sticky note accordance between them and The Master and his Emissary, as the correspondences leapt out at me. The work of this winter is to reread Iain's book for the third time, reread the Classics for the umpteenth time, and somehow wrangle something cohesive for you here for January. Writing that here means that I will do it, and not put it off.
Zhuangzi / Chuang Tzu is an ideal entry into Tao, actually; irreverent, lively, moving. The Lieh Tzu is also a joy. I am at a three-day T'ai Chi workshop right now in London each afternoon and evening with my teacher, but when I get home, I will find the edition I have and post it here, along with a short reading list on the next post. Greetings from beside the Thames.
It’s so good to hear your voice speaking these words of growth and to be able to name the forces I feel pulling on my heart and mind. Many days it seems impossibly hard to break free of the patterns that would have me fall in line. I look forward to learning more. Thank you.❤️
Thank you. In listening it reminded me of how often in the media, particularly with news stories out of the US and other western countries about storms- wind, snow, water, the reference to being at war with nature.
Caroline I have just discovered you on this amazing thing called Substack. You’re sharing of the grand unified practice linking to the Tao and the ground of being and embodied orientation with our beloved earth is sweetness and strength combined. As a 75 year embodied woman I first discovered snd fell in love with Lao Tzu and Chuang Tse in my twenties snd recognized home. Your life seems so rich and your path of dedication shared here is an affirmation. I will be passing this on to my sensitive friends. Much gratitude