Saturday

dao self-sufficiency



Chinese characters for "self-sufficiency"


"Camoflauge" REBA


Be self-sufficient but not isolated.
When the king of China closed the borders,
Centuries of stagnation and decadence began.




All the philosophy of Tao is intended to lead to self-sufficiency. Whatever one needs to do in life, one should be able to do on one’s own. Whether one is trapped in the wilderness or whether one is dealing with a social gathering requiring etiquette and grace, one should be able to cope with aplomb and ease.

Being self-sufficient is not the same as being isolated. This is a very important point. When the king of China closed the borders, the country was self-sufficient enough to enjoy the contentment. But eventually an inbred society developed. Stagnation and decay set in.

The same problems can arise in people who are so self-sufficient that they fail to engage life fully. Either they will implode from the sheer weight of their own decadence and stagnation, or they will explode once the outside world confronts them with something they cannot comprehend.

Those who follow Tao roam the world. They may avail themselves of the temporary advantages of withdrawal and intense self-cultivation, but they do not become permanently isolated. They flow with the Tao, are with all things, and therefore avoid decadence.


self-sufficiency
365 Tao
daily meditations
Deng Ming-Dao (author)


REBA (camo)
in the series of Reba Exhibit photographs:
Motorola V220 cell phone photoshop filters
©2005.15.11 lisbeth west

These changes emerge, yet rushing water does not act. Reba is thirteen and shows us that she is reaching the end of her time with us.

Reba speaks now of profound images and knows each moment is precious.

Reba lived her first six years thrown out into 40 acres near Conifer (read: deep wood, high altitude, frigid temperatures) with not much shelter and a bowl of dog food sorta near the door. Reba knows about eyes. it is the eye of the enemy that strikes first, so much so that her balanced rushing water does not act shares the balance we hold today.

She is happy and doing well walking after the stroke (she tends to tilt to the left, matching our political leanings I ponder..). Our friend Dan knows living with stroke and teaches little but shows much about rushing water does not act. Reba awaits instruction about non action.

We have not had our first snow here: We still take awe in the survival of our baskets of fushia, dianthus, geranium, Jacob's Ladder, and small flowered petunia are fine and sassy, a pine needle in the way.

The hummingbird feeder has yet to be put away — one of hundred or so... and in the finer days of fall I almost hear one of the swallowtails coming up from the canyon or sitting on the lilac limb protecting his feeder or flower.

Our seasons are often heard first, then smelled, then we notice the light in the house changes as we move plants to their favorite places. They have their seasons, keeps us alert to what is coming in our lunar cycle.

A tip of the heater and the quiet again, of closed doors and children. Lucy Basset, discovering the middle years of five last June, now sits closely to the only other friend she has in her world.

As we cross this water together we shall remember that rushing water does not act.

lisbeth west
november 19, 2005
7:12 am (-7GMT)


archived at http://www.duckdaotsu.org/115/self-sufficiency.html

a reading list of books and interpretations of the Daodejing is available at
http://www.duckdaotsu.org/dao_books.html



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Thursday

dao sustaining



Chinese characters for "sustaining"


Reba's gift of vision



Orange and gold carp,
Living beneath ice.
Uncaring of the world above,
Sustained by the water below.



In the rapidly chilling autumn, ponds begin to ice over. The waters become deep, dark, and mysterious, but in those depths the fish can survive the coming winter.

Tao may be known as directly as water is knowable to a fish. My Tao will not be the same as your Tao. We are both individuals, each with different backgrounds and thoughts. As soon as Tao enters into us, it takes on the colors of our inner personalities. When it passes out of us, it returns again to its universal nature. This is an ongoing and constant process, like water flowing through a fish’s gills. Just as the water nurtures the fish, so too does Tao nurture and sustain us. As long as we continue our immersion in Tao, we will be as safe as a carp in water. When we separate from Tao, we are as helpless as a fish out of water.


sustaining
365 Tao
daily meditations
Deng Ming-Dao (author)
ISBN 0-06-250223-9

REBA
in the series of Reba Exhibit photographs:
Motorola V220 cell phone photoshop filters
©2005.15.11 lisbeth west

Has anyone worked with animals preparing for the transition? There are many questions that Reba holds, due to a great deal of abandonment and mistreatment in her first 6 years, before she came to live with me. She is afraid, needs preparation, .but I have never had an animal with this much imbalance about the change. I plan to read the Book of the Dead for her. Please contact me if you have any input or support to give me. I have worked with human hospice "preparation" and the transition. This is new for me, my other animals have passed here and were unafraid. I look at my clinging ego and know that my denial is just leaving....

Thank you to Gabi for yet another talent and gift: She is E 明朝 a specialist in Apitherapy and her work, along that of thousands around the world, can bee seen at http://www.apitherapy.com/ where we will find her listed as " Gabi Greve, Dr. med. (Managing Director); GokuRakuAn International Culture Center;.. ; Japan"

Another dear friend noted this, which has been my belief since meeting Reba:
“I do not know what your beliefs on reincarnation are, but I would suggest the following: It sounds as though Reba is preparing to make the step into a human existence the next time around. When we achieve a heightened spiritual awareness, we tend to awaken people, places and things. From the pictures it is rather apparent that she is on that cusp of humanity. With that come the fears of loss of self and loved ones.

I would suggest a period of meditation and a soul to soul communication between you. Love never dies, even if the forms we take in life do.
Sil ”

And a conversation with another wonderful friend went this way:
... ?? Is she reading your mental pictures? ...
I am trying to keep the mantra of ‘rushing water does no work’ as I speak with her... trying to visualize luminosity... What do you think would help? I have no fear except that I may not be there when she passes... However it has never happened with any other children. I have been blessed with the gift of being with them when they passed. Fear of abandoning her is in dreams, and I know that type of ego work does bleed over...
thank you Mike, Keep writing!
i think she is picking up on some recent problem you are worrying about sit on your favorite rock or sit next to your favorite plant. they will give you clearer answers.
With love
Mike
You have no idea the gratitude for gifts you are sharing with me during this time. I have several of Gabi's original photographs ready for the daily meditations, but am continuing to follow the focus of my mind's eye right now. Perhaps I use that too much and have intellectualized myself out of listening... I am listening though!


archived at http://www.duckdaotsu.org/115/sustaining.html

a reading list of books and interpretations of the Daodejing is available at
http://www.duckdaotsu.org/dao_books.html



Join the daily Taoist meditations mailing list
Email:

visit duckdaotsu's store for exclusive gifts and prints!
http://www.cafepress.com/duckdaotsu/ (still creating Reba's exhibit)



email to:
See new designs & be first to hear about special sales
duckdaotsu RT

Wednesday

dao singing



Chinese characters for "singer"


Reba


Rain comes, and the birds—
Silhouettes against the pearlescent sky—
Respond excitedly in song.
they open their throats to heaven’s nectar,
And rhyme with the drops.


All of nature is song. Sometimes the song is in a minor key, with purple tones that stir the soul, bursting the heart with pent-up emotions. Sometimes it is joyous, full of rich melodies and grand chords that bring electric thrills. Sometimes it descends into strange modes, guttural chants, and obscure dissonances.

It is up to each of us to sing as we feel moved by the overall song of life. Do we harmonize with it? Do we sing a counterpoint? Do we purposefully sound discordant tones?

Perhaps a student first encountering Tao endeavors to harmonize with it, but that isn’t all that there is to having a relationship with Tao. Tao gives us the background, the broad circumstances. It is up to us to fit into it, go against it, or even flutter off on oblique angles. Don’t look at Tao as one big inexorable stream in which we float like dead logs. What could that lead to except logjams?

No, let us be like the birds. Who sing when Tao send them rain. Who know what to do when winter comes. Who embroider the sky with their own unique paths. Who will sing a counterpoint when they need to. who will sing poetry that is discordant when it must be and rhymes when it is proper.



singing
365 Tao
daily meditations
Deng Ming-Dao (author)
ISBN 0-06-250223-9


REBA
in the series of Reba Exhibit photographs:
Motorola V220 cell phone photoshop filters
©2005.15.11 lisbeth west

Has anyone worked with animals preparing for the transition? There are many questions that Reba holds, due to a great deal of abandonment and mistreatment in her first 6 years, before she came to live with me. She is afraid, needs preparation, .but I have never had an animal with this much imbalance about the change. I plan to read the Book of the Dead for her. Please contact me if you have any input or support to give me. I have worked with human hospice "preparation" and the transition. This is new for me, my other animals have passed here and were unafraid. I look at my clinging ego and know that my denial is just leaving....

archived at http://www.duckdaotsu.org/115/singing.html

a reading list of books and interpretations of the Daodejing is available at
http://www.duckdaotsu.org/dao_books.html



Join the daily Taoist meditations mailing list
Email:




email to:
See new designs & be first to hear about special sales
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dao rest



Chinese characters for "rest"


lucy and reba exchanging news



The year’s end is coming;
I feel great contentment.
completion means rest.
Rest means renewal.
Renewal means new beginnings.



Perseverance is a great virtue, but perseverance cannot be cultivated without endings. Perseverance does not mean an endless engagement in Sisyphean tasks. It means beginnings, middles, and ends, and then starting over again. We are nearing the end of our year, but we could not contemplate this ending without having gone through the completions of all the days and months that have come before.

It’s good to look toward the end of things. Not only does it provide perspective, but it also provides the stepping-stone to our next endeavor. When things end, it should ideally mean the attainment of our goals. We should start everything with definite goal in mind, otherwise our lives will lack purpose. Once we attain our goals, we should be glad and rest. We need the time for our psyches to absorb the significance of our acts. With rest comes renewal, and with renewal we can build the force of our characters and thereby stand stronger for our futures.

In the countryside farmers frequently nap in their carts of hay as their mules automatically take them back home. They know how to make achievements and rest at the same time!


rest
365 Tao
daily meditations
Deng Ming-Dao (author)
ISBN 0-06-250223-9



Reba and Lucy share a moment
in the series of Reba Exhibit photographs:
Motorola V220 cell phone photoshop filters
©2005.15.11 lisbeth west

I want to thank all of those who have responded to my request about vegan health diet and herbal remedies for cancer in dogs. Reba has a small stroke last Saturday night and we took her in to her vet to discover that the mass that was small and "not to be worried about" was indeed cancer. We are asking any and all resources we can find for our Reba. We are blessed to be near the Veterinary Hospital at Colorado State University — where holistic medicine and acupuncture is an excellent option for us.

Thank you for your patience at this time. I have spent every moment caretaking her and assisting her in learning how to walk a bit better after her small stroke. She is doing well.

I have only been able to focus on my personal meditation, consulting the Oracle and working on this photo exhibit of my dear Reba. Thank you for your tolerance and patience. We will do well with your healing energy sent her way. We are grateful for so many wonderful friends.


archived at http://www.duckdaotsu.org/115/rest.html

a reading list of books and interpretations of the Daodejing is available at
http://www.duckdaotsu.org/dao_books.html



Join the daily Taoist meditations mailing list
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email to:
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dao joy



Chinese characters for "joy"


Reba in her garden, shortly after having her stroke


Do your devotions make you happy?
Is your life a joyous song?



In all this talk about spiritual devotion, there is one simple fact. You have to like it. It should make you happy. It is unfortunate that so much coercion, unhappiness, bitterness, guilt, and fear become wrapped up in spirituality. Why can’t we simply do things out of joy?


Practicing spirituality isn’t a matter of drudgery. It is’t a matter of fear. It isn’t for fitting into a social group. It has nothing to do with status. Being devoted to holiness in your life is a matter of joy and celebration. When you sit down to meditate, a smile should come to your lips and a feeling of joy should permeate your body. When you go to consecrated ground to give thanks and celebrate, you should do so not because of the day of the week or out of the habit of ritual, but because this is the best way that you know how to adore your gods and express the wonder of being on this earth.

Yes, yes, there is much unhappiness in this existence. That unhappiness is part of the overall field of negativity. There are also positive things in life, and spirituality is foremost among them. So whenever we practice our spiritual devotions, let it be in gladness and joy.



joy
365 Tao
daily meditations
Deng Ming-Dao (author)
ISBN 0-06-250223-9


Reba's view of the garden
in the series of Reba Exhibit photographs:
Motorola V220 cell phone photoshop filters
©2005.10.11 lisbeth west

I want to thank all of those who have responded to my request about vegan health diet and herbal remedies for cancer in dogs. Reba has a small stroke last Saturday night and we took her in to her vet to discover that the mass that was small and "not to be worried about" was indeed cancer. We are asking any and all resources we can find for our Reba. We are blessed to be near the Veterinary Hospital at Colorado State University — where holistic medicine and acupuncture is an excellent option for us.

Thank you for your patience at this time. I have spent every moment caretaking her and assisting her in learning how to walk a bit better after her small stroke. She is doing well.

I have only been able to focus on my personal meditation, consulting the Oracle and working on this photo exhibit of my dear Reba. Thank you for your tolerance and patience. We will do well with your healing energy sent her way. We are grateful for so many wonderful friends.

archived at http://www.duckdaotsu.org/115/joy.html


a reading list of books and interpretations of the Daodejing is available at

http://www.duckdaotsu.org/dao_books.html



Join the daily Taoist meditations mailing list
Email:




email to:
See new designs & be first to hear about special sales
duckdaotsu RT

dao cameleon



chameleon


Reba in her "glamour photo" -- Ready for my close up, mr, de Ville



If I don't want to be known,
I cannot be known.
The best actor can divide role from self.
The best liar can divide truth from falsity.


People think that they know you. Soon you begin to play the role that they place on you. Why should you act a certain way to please others? You should do things from your inner awareness and from your own feelings. If they do not accord with the herd, then so much the better.

You should change when it pleases you. Your life is flexible. If you let other people shape you, then you will never know independence.

The sages say that all life is illusory, and they usually lament this. The way of Tao s to use this fact and not let it oppress you. If you want to dodge others, then step behind one of the myriad illusions in this world. If you do not volunteer anything and you neither conform or deny, the opinions of others can never stick to you. Then you will be left in peace.

True sages never go by appearances. When it comes to introspection, they are not deceived by the appearances their own minds spew out. They know that if they want to get at the truth, then they must pierce to the very core.

So if you would hide from others, avail yourself of the false appearances of life. If you would know yourself, distinguish between the false appearances of life. Above all, do not be put off by the illusory nature of life. Use it. Everything in this life can be an advantage to the wise.



chameleon
365 Tao
daily meditations
Deng Ming-Dao (author)
ISBN 0-06-250223-9



Reba waiting for her close-up
in the series of Reba Exhibit photographs:
Motorola V220 cell phone photoshop filters
©2005.12.11 lisbeth west

I want to thank all of those who have responded to my request about vegan health diet and herbal remedies for cancer in dogs. Reba has a small stroke last Saturday night and we took her in to her vet to discover that the mass that was small and "not to be worried about" was indeed cancer. We are asking any and all resources we can find for our Reba. We are blessed to be near the Veterinary Hospital at Colorado State University — where holistic medicine and acupuncture is an excellent option for us.

Thank you for your patience at this time. I have spent every moment caretaking her and assisting her in learning how to walk a bit better after her small stroke. She is doing well.

I have only been able to focus on my personal meditation, consulting the Oracle and working on this photo exhibit of my dear Reba. Thank you for your tolerance and patience. We will do well with your healing energy sent her way. We are grateful for so many wonderful friends.


archived at http://www.duckdaotsu.org/115/chameleon.html

a reading list of books and interpretations of the Daodejing is available at
http://www.duckdaotsu.org/dao_books.html



Join the daily Taoist meditations mailing list
Email:




email to:
See new designs & be first to hear about special sales
duckdaotsu RT