DAILY PHOTO: Bukit Cina [Chinese Hill — 三宝山]
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Tag Archives: Taoism
BOOKS: “Tranquil Sitting” by Yin Shi Zi
Tranquil Sitting: A Taoist Journal on Meditation and Chinese Medical Qigong by Yin Shih TzuMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Publisher’s Site
This manual is an English translation of a work earlier published in Chinese. It is nominally on Taoist meditation and is written by a Taoist author, but it does include discussion of Buddhist practices as well (specifically Mahamudra.) Also, part of the author’s declared intent with this text is to write in a manner approachable to a wider audience, and because of this sect is rendered less important. So, for example, the book employs more scientific and physiological modes of explanation as opposed to meridians and other conceptual approaches from Traditional Chinese Medicine.
The book is presented in two parts. I found the first part much more beneficial and productive. Said first part is a general guide to meditation. It discusses fundamentals, theory, physiology, and how to align one’s living with a meditative practice (i.e. how diet, breathwork, sleep, etc. influence one’s practice.)
The second part consists of long and fairly detailed descriptions of the author’s experiences with both Taoist and Mahamudra meditation. I didn’t find this part useful, and I believe it may be counterproductive. Discussion of the author’s subjective experience may lead readers to get hung up on chasing identical experiences to the detriment of just practicing. It may give false ideas about “correct” and “incorrect” experiences of the meditation.
Overall, it’s a fine guide to meditation, particularly the first (i.e. larger) part. I can’t say that it breaks a lot of ground. A reader well-versed in meditation may not gain much insight from this book, but it’s as good as any to get started.
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DAILY PHOTO: Scenes from Melaka’s Chinese Temples
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FIVE WISE LINES [November 2024]
Inspiration enters at the border between hard work and laziness.
Lu juren in “Poets’ jade splinters” [Trans. by Barnstone and Ping in The ART Of Writing]
I will not own anything that will one day be a valuable antique.
Miyamoto musashi in “My way of walking alone” [Dokkōdō] (Trans. by Teruo machida)
A house full of gold and jade can’t be guarded.
Laozi in the DAo De jing [Ch. 9]
Writing is a struggle between presence and absence.
Lu ji in The ART of Writing [Trans. by Barnstone and ping]
The best leaders remain unknown; the next best are praised; the next best are feared, and the worst are mocked.
Laozi in dAo de Jing [Ch.17]
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BOOKS: “Tai-Chi Chuan in Theory and Practice” by Kuo Lien-Ying [ed. Simmone Kuo]
Tai-Chi Chuan in Theory and Practice by Kuo Lien-YingMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Publisher Site
This brief book discusses Taijiquan primarily from a philosophical perspective. Though a significant amount of the book’s page-count consists of full-page pictures of various taijiquan movements, it isn’t so much a how-to book. Readers who enjoy an eclectic book that’s short and sweet but also kind of all over the place have a good chance of liking this book and gaining from its varied tidbits of wisdom. Readers who favor books with a clear organization and internal logic will probably find this to be an odd stew of short writings (essays, guides, poems, scriptural excerpts, etc.) It should be noted that not all of the writings are from Kuo Lien-Ying, himself. It includes a translation of a manual by Wang Tsung-Yue (13th Century) as well as an appendix consisting of writings from the Daodejing, Tang Dynasty poetry, and quotes from Mencius and Confucius. It also features a chapter on the I-Ching and Taiji philosophy by Kuo’s wife, Simmone Kuo. Besides the Wang manual, which is right up the alley of Kuo’s writings, it’s not clear why the other pieces were selected (not that they aren’t beneficial, but that they seem random.)
One thing I really liked about this book is that a lot of it is presented in bilingual format. For someone learning Chinese, this is quite beneficial. (Especially, given that it consists of short pieces that can be more easily consumed by a new reader.) That said, those who don’t read Chinese may see the translations as further indication of padding a pamphlet up to book scale. The monochrome photos are well-done and could definitely be of use to someone who practices taijiquan (though would not be of much use to someone new to it.)
This book is an insightful mess, make of that what you will.
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BOOKS: “Taoism: An Essential Guide” by Eva Wong
Taoism: An Essential Guide by Eva WongMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Publisher Site
This book offers the reader clarity about the scope of Taoism, a daunting challenge given Taoism’s long history and how it overlaps with other schools of philosophy as well as with Traditional Chinese Religion, more broadly. The book is divided into three parts: history, specialties (magic, divination, ceremony, inward training, and karma yoga,) and practices (meditation, somatic practices [e.g. qi gong and taijiquan,] and rituals and ceremonies.) The history section covers a period from pre-Taoist shamanic practices of 5,000 years ago, practices that would inform early Taoism, to a period during which Taoism became entwined with Buddhism and Confucianism. The specialties and practices sections attempt to give the reader a broad overview while avoiding discussion of “how-to.”
I found this book to be informative and interesting. It did feel more effectively geared toward someone with an interest in Taoism as religion rather than Taoism as a philosophy. The discussion does sometimes get into the weeds on issues like ceremonies and talismans (again, not in a how-to fashion, but with some arcane detail nevertheless,) but — at the same time — besides some discussion of the teachings of the Tao Te Jing and some exploration of Taoist metaphysics in the Divinational Taoism chapter, there’s not a lot of insight into Taoism as philosophy. That said, it does end each chapter with a “Further Reading” section that can point readers interested in a specific topic elsewhere.
If you’ve ever been overwhelmed at one of those bright and complicated Chinese temples and would like some insight into what Taoists do and how it’s different (or not different) from what Confucianists, Traditional Chinese Religion practitioners, and Zen Buddhists do, this is a good book to check out. If you’re solely interested in Taoism as a school of philosophy or otherwise have a specific focus such as qi gong and breathwork practices, you can probably find books that are better tailored to your needs.
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Fēnggān [Senryū]
the monk rode in
on a bright-eyed tiger, and
started hulling rice.
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“Broadminded” [Poetry Style #23 (旷达)] by Sikong Tu [w/ Audio]
One may live a century --
Short span though it may be:
Joys are bitterly brief
And sorrows are many.
You may take a wine jug
On your wisteria rounds:
See flowers grow to the eves
As sparse rains wet the grounds.
And when the wine is gone,
One strolls with cane and croons.
We become wizened with age;
South Mount, fair through countless moons.
NOTE: The late Tang Dynasty poet, Sikong Tu (a.k.a. Ssŭ-k‘ung T‘u,) wrote an ars poetica entitled Twenty-Four Styles of Poetry (二十四诗品.) It presents twenty-four poems that are each in a different tone, reflecting varied concepts from Taoist philosophy and aesthetics. Above is a crude translation of the twenty-third of the twenty-four poems. This poem’s Chinese title is 旷达, which has been translated as: “Illumed” [Giles,] “Big-hearted and Expansive [Barnstone and Ping,] “Expansive,” and “Open-minded.”
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“Transcendent” [Poetry Style #21 (超诣)] by Sikong Tu [w/ Audio]
With no god, but with spirit;
With no mass of tiny things;
Up on high, with the white clouds --
Borne aloft on breezy wings.
From afar all seems in place.
When you arrive it's not there.
Just like acting with the Way
Leaves customs beyond repair.
Chaotic mountain woodlands,
Sweet green moss in the sunshine.
Keep reciting your mantra,
Till it's lost among the pines.
NOTE: The late Tang Dynasty poet, Sikong Tu (a.k.a. Ssŭ-k‘ung T‘u,) wrote an ars poetica entitled Twenty-Four Styles of Poetry (二十四诗品.) It presents twenty-four poems that are each in a different tone, reflecting varied concepts from Taoist philosophy and aesthetics. Above is a crude translation of the twenty-first of the twenty-four poems. This poem’s Chinese title is 超诣 and it’s been translated as “The Transcendental” and “Super”
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BOOKS: “Handbooks for Daoist Practice: Scriptural Statutes of Lord Lao” by Louis Komjathy [and Lord Lao]
Handbooks for Daoist Practice: Scriptural Statutes of Lord Lao by Louis KomjathyMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Author Site
This paper presents exposition on, and translation of, an important Taoist work. Like many collections of sutras and other epigrams of wisdom, the “Scriptural Statutes of Lord Lao” are only a couple pages of sayings. To be more specific, they consist of nine practices (九行) and twenty-seven moral precepts. The bulk of the twenty-five-ish pages of this work are a scholarly background on the nine practices and twenty-seven precepts, plus back matter including references and the original (Chinese) “statutes.”
I read this because the nine practices seem like a concise statement of what it means to be Taoist (a topic that can be tremendously complicated given the varied sects, beliefs, and practices that all fall under the heading of “Taoist” — some religious, some philosophical, and some mystical.) Those nine practices are: non-action (which is much more complicated than just sitting on one’s bum,) softness, guarding the feminine, namelessness, stillness, adeptness, desirelessness, contentment, and knowing how and when to yield. The text offers some insight into where these practices come from (e.g. the points in the Dao De Jing that reverence them,) but the scope of the work is far to limited to gain a deep understanding of them (for that one will have to go elsewhere.)
I found reading this short work to be quite beneficial and insightful, despite its thin profile. I’m glad it includes the original text as well as provides citations, as therein much of its value lies.
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Tiger Riding for Beginners 