To cure a weakling child

Karma (More correctly Phala as Karma is action and Phala is the fruit)
Reigns for the childish ego who wishes to do bad.

Reincarnation
A blanket for the childish ego which fears the end of false identity.

Ishvara
Any personal god such as God, Infinite Energy, or any other name given to an ultimate but especially one looked towards for support is parent or guardian for the weakling ego.

GuRu
Meaning DarkLight, the person to guide you from darkness to light, or any other middle man such as vicar, rabbi, spiritual leader is the ego admitting it is small but also stating that it one day wishes that, with help, it shall be proved valid.

Mantra
Any personal mantra from "Om" to "All is good" is a weak clinging of the ego to some false positive.

Satsang
The company of wise people is a weak ego looking for someone it deems better to pat them on the head and say "it's ok, you're ok".

Meditation
An ego entering a state it wishes to maintain during all acts. The ego refuses to accept change and flow as it is too fragile so pines for a place with no movement.

Religion
The childish ego wishing to realign with that which it was never separate.

Yoga
The childish ego wishing to yoke or rejoin with that to which it was never separate.

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Tao Wow | Daily Cup of Tao

9/11 10 years on

It is not 10 years yet but nearly 9. Next year will mark this major anniversary of what must have been the biggest event of modern times, if not all times: September 11th 2001.

Some humans, for some gain, brought about an act of complete terror. In all likelihood, and I am yet to see how this can be denied, there was high level involvement in this act that lead to mass confusion, prior to the event, as it unfolded, after, long after and still now.

Why no military jets were scrambled, why the only 3 steel structured skyscrapers ever that have fallen to fire all fell on one day and why one of them was untouched and still fell (Building 7), why the mayor knew ahead of time that the towers would fall - how he knew (and there is a recording of him, prior to the falls saying he knew they would fall), why he left rescuers in there knowing this, why the BBC and CNN reported building 7 falling over 10 minutes before it fell (the building was in shot, on camera, fully upright when it was reported as collapsed and it collapsed after the announcement), why the owner of the complex said on the day, on camera, that he called for building 7 to be demolished, denied it ever since, how the planes and large parts of the steel structured building turned to dust but a passport of a hijacker landed on the street intact, how the buildings fell at near free-fall speed down through the path of most resistance, into their footprints, aka controlled demolition, unexplained explosions before, during and after, tons of steel turned to white dust when only thermite can cause this, superheated molten metal in the site for days after the event....

None of these details mesh with the official story that amongst other omissions mentions building 7 a total zero times.

This event still fascinates people and I mention it here for as little reason as that a natural curiosity has lead my wife to begin researching this event and asking me questions I can not answer.

"Why do none of these facts add up?."

It is sad to say that as the sea tries new creative ideas such as tsunami so too the human race tries new creative ideas such as mass manipulation of its own kind for gain. The universe is an infinitely creative being that manifests as infinitely wonderful and infinitely awful things - and this perspective, one way or the other, is good or bad only because of us. In a way we are the judge of God and not he of us. Now I don't believe in God one bit but I twist this Christian idea as it fits people's minds, our language and logic - Infinity (that is God here) is a magic show, and we (as separate spectators) are the audience. We are in the show and watching it, we judge it, not it us.

So we resolve to two positions - One we share as humans: That this is a terrible and incredibly difficult event to explain. The other that this is infinity demonstrating itself, so nothing we should worry about.

This perhaps draws us to the crux of philosophy. Where do we sit here?

1) All "Enlightened" sages, sadhus, gurus, hermits, muppets, men at pulpits, enigmas, and mushroom trippers will tell you that the universe is this one, this god, this fractal, this infinity, this thusness, and it is just the way it is - the mind is the problem.

2) All humans will say that acts such as 9/11 are awful.

By the above we may see that humans have minds and so the two positions mentioned do resolve to one answer - the issue, the cause of these events and the feeling of the outcome are matters of mind. Media manipulation (deliberate or not, caused, engineered or not) does demonstrate the power of altering perspective. Did a group of powerful people orchestrate this event to remove the powerful Bush family from office? Was the Bush family in on it for alternate gain? Was it a secret service operation for another gain? Was it 3 simultaneous engineering and architecture hiccups that lead to all the confusion? Was is .... ?

We don't know: Media manipulated the events, accidentally, deliberately or not, engineered or not, but the result was a world in confusion. The event did happen, it was universally seen as terrible but our man sitting in lotus position says it does not matter, it is in the mind.

As humans, as Confucius, as Buddha, as Lau Tzu we stand and say "What the fuck are you doing can you please just sit down and share a pot of tea?" and as the universe we form a new virus that lives off eyeballs.

Ha Ha, the universe is this display of creativity. It can be bloody awful and (most of the time) it is quite amazing. As a group of people somewhere in the world starve another group share a banquet and waste food. As one dolphin gets caught in a net and dies an excruciating death so another surfs a wave to paradise.

What the highest tellers of truth say is that it is not the show that we should pay attention to (which is naturally polar) but the awareness we have of anything that should be key. This root element to all events, awareness, is untouched by polarity as it is the sole immovable ground to all.

So the show is there if you want to watch it but the key to happiness is to see awareness itself as unchanging truth and the rest as a transient dance.

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Tao Wow | Daily Cup of Tao

Satsang

We all go around and read each others blogs and if you hit a blog containing wisdom then that is Satsang, (being in the presence of the wise) Here are two:

iyogi2many

Self-Knowledge

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Tao Wow | Daily Cup of Tao

Kill Buddha

Is it best to see Buddha as a concept than as a person? If you follow the line of thought on this blog then yes. Any idea of this being a person or something to personally live up to is anti the idea of, and a barrier to, the absolute.

Buddha as a person invokes some need in people to admire, look up to, hold in reverence and these are not useful states to be in. Instead seeing Buddha as yet another name for the ultimate along with Tao, Brahman, true self, then it and the associated teachings are more useful and powerful.

Buddha then is the concept passed down the ages but at some unfortunate time it was personified and dirtied by this Christ/Guru tendency.

For me Buddha is more a word to be mentally read as Tao or Brahman and not associated with a person.

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Tao Wow | Daily Cup of Tao

What are you not?

Why seek Tao?

You feel something missing

What in that case is Tao?

It is all you are not

So I ..?

You are all that is not Tao

But Tao is all?

Tao is all

So Tao is me?

Tao is you

So I am Tao?

You are Tao

I no longer need to seek Tao!!

Good, as you have talent for this, can you please find my slippers.

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Tao Wow | Daily Cup of Tao

Ask the Yogi

Will I find Enlightenment through Yoga?

Yes, if it is under your toes.

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Tao Wow | Daily Cup of Tao

Violent Religion

(This post just flopped off my fingers so it must have a reason to be)

Taoism, Buddhism, Zen, Hinduism (certain areas), and probably other examples fit this post.

Some people obviously resist elements of these teachings that are violent and/or are so direct as to penetrate to the true being. Wei Wu Wei said something like "For truth to hit home it must penetrate like an arrow, and that is likely to hurt".

The Tao Te Ching and other such works pull no punches. They do not invite the reader to lands of angels playing harps or ways to achieve financial or popular gain but unremittingly sledgehammer the reader over the head with reminders of how simplicity is both the way and the objective of this method. "Nature is cruel at times and treats things impartially, so too is the sage who treats people impartially". Most would read this and perhaps say 'ah, ok, the sage treats all people the same no matter who they are' and this is true, but it also means that the sage will also directly tell you if you are being a fool or out of tune with the way. Taoism also accepts angry outbursts, acts of violence and weapons as life. Again referencing nature the Taoist would state that nature is not always at rest and can produce storms; animals have claws and teeth, and we have our own teeth, fists and nails - weapons are but an extension of these. They then remind us how, while outbursts may come, they must also disappear as quickly as the sun floods back over the land after the storm cloud passes, and there should be no residue or wave carried from the event. Act, move on.

Zen masters will hit students with a stick. If the master did not hit them then students may demand a new master as they expect to be hit. Zen masters will shout at students to wake them from slumber and Zen as practiced by the Samurai, the martial artist, the Shaolin Monk is used to justify and give a law to acts of fighting to the death. (Although the Zen is predominantly included to focus the mind here, and sorry if I tainted your art with my shoddy knowledge).

This violence is external and outward but is reflected also in the inward teachings. Yogis and other elements of the Hindu system will starve the body and force lines of inquiry so deep and so solid as to shatter the supposed self. This is also echoed in Zen and Buddhism as direct and forceful methods to the core of our being. Methods to expose the truth can not be softly softly all the time if they are to bear fruit with all practitioners.

It is the case with many people who wish to discover the truth that they will solidly refuse to cast off previous beliefs. Taoism and the others also tell you to unlearn all that you have come with before attempting to learn afresh otherwise the person will taint the new ideas with the old and will be unable and unwilling to go with new lines of thought. We see this with some initiations where masters leave the prospective student out in the cold, give them hard tasks and menial work to test resolve. These stories come to us from Hinduism, Buddhism and Taoism.

When I say to a Christian friend that there is "Simply no room for God" they end the conversation. When I ask someone to put aside learning and text book replies they will lose footing and speak of this conversation now having no room for reason. When I say that the truth is out of the bounds of reason they accuse me of faith in the unprovable. When I say that there is no room for faith as who is it with faith and what is there to have faith in, they demand themselves to have reality and for this line of conversation to be called void as it now enters the metaphysical and can not be proved one way or the other.

These are all defense mechanisms employed to reinforce the fake I. Tools of the ego which will do anything to hold on to reality.

Unwilling to let go of the side of the pool they can never float and this makes further exploration, as the above is only initiation, impossible. To ask them to meditate and surrender to what they find they will get no further than closing their eyes. They will reason every point with preset ideas and never leave the fake self. The ego is a very cunning and very persistent beast that will pretend to be the self. You will hear voices of how the goal has been met but this is really the ego still present and faking it. Ego too will expect reward from inquiry and will be hard to shove when it realizes that the goal is its own end.

This is what these methods must have an impartial, cruel, violent and direct nature that exposes the weaknesses and pokes at them. While someone can relate the philosophies to daily existence it takes true power to truly know the self.

"Mastery of others takes power, Mastery of the self......"

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Tao Wow | Daily Cup of Tao

The Master who was still learning

The first student entered the room of the master and sat.
The master said to him; "You may clean all of the dust from your head but you will still be left with a broom."
The student thought he had understood the teaching, stood, bowed and left.

The second student entered the room of the master and sat.
The master said; "You may clean all the dust from your mirror but what about the dirty cloth?"
The student said; "There is no cloth."
The master said; "Then what of the mirror?"
The student replied; "That is your mirror not mine." He stood up and left.
At this the master became truly enlightened.

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Tao Wow | Daily Cup of Tao

Bloody Buddha

There were Buddha's previous to Buddhism. Hinduism and probably Vedism[*] carried the term Buddha as meaning one who is outside of and not requiring religion. One who is so right in themselves that the many tools offered in the multifaceted Vedas were not required.

That aside, the Buddha we all know of set us a problem in this new adaptation where Buddhism became a religion. He by being a Buddha made us all, like it or not, Buddhists. When one person becomes such a thing then everyone else defaults to not that. He also left some challenges behind that we have to get through to become Buddha and not Buddhist (secure in our self and not seeking).

So like it or not you are either a Buddha or a Buddhist. You have to solve the issues he left us or not. Everyone is a Buddhist to some degree and as that is measured in awareness then the worst ones don't even know it. And now for a quote that struck me recently;

"When I was a Buddhist my family and friends became so tired of me. Once I was a Buddha we were perfect together."

While being a Buddhist, especially when not in a culture of Buddhism, then you are a pain to be around. You ask all the toughest questions, won't let anything go, constantly trying to get your self right and asking others around you to do the same. "Hey mum why don't you try meditation" "Hey friend just let it go, why not read this book?".

But once you are a Buddha you let it all go, you are right, life is right, you have no intention to alter another as you know why they are who they are. Once you are at peace with yourself you don't rub people up the wrong way, or ask too much of them, you act right and all benefit.

end.
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*[I have an idea that the world of maybe 250,000 years ago was almost all land, the sea was far far less deep and the people of those times were very advanced (spiritually, and not in the way we may think of advanced in pointless plastic technology). I think that the seas rose so much as to bury that world and leave only remnants on very high ground, the tips of which are today's separate continents with separate yet related cultures. This is why the Tibetans are so unique on their plateau as they were always the high up spiritual meditators and India just happens to be the place that the knowledge was best preserved. It was at some kind of point where the race was split by the rising sea, but high in knowledge, than South America and Egypt got its highly advanced, similar yet separate, structures, writings and so on and the world now has tiny fractions of an incomplete puzzle sitting, separated by phobias, and spread over the land separated by seas.]

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Tao Wow | Daily Cup of Tao

School time

I am concerned and a little perplexed when I see people follow Jesus figures, gurus and others. It may be said that I have too much of leaning to Lau Tzu or Chunag Tzu but in both cases I am let off the hook by my feeling that I am not reading their words. I am reading words of wisdom which have been passed on many times, through many people, meditated on by many and myself, they were collated into written works and that is how we have the books. To say one person is responsible for either work is a rarely held view. Also I am not tied to the words, I find great simple clarity to many of the lines but do not see them as infallible or exclusive, just nice pointers to the way.

I am my guru, my teacher is nature and life. I see my way, meditate to my way, act my way. The ego you meet when you meet me is mine, similar to the child I was, the adult I have been and am, it is not affected too much by haves or have nots. The spiritual me is like the ego me but operates best without other people. Spiritual me is here when I am alone, when I meditate, read, write, walk, stand, work, and so on. It is my way until I have to interact with others and then ego me adds life and humour to the situation as required.

Spiritual me learns from nearly every act of ego me, life, nature and others. A shadow may be my teacher, a sound, an insect. It could well be a book, a guru type figure, a wise friend or even a dumb one, anything. I take the experience and it becomes the teaching.

So while I would advise others not to have someone between them and the wow, I also would advise them very strongly not to see me as anything more than a passing reflection in their own being. We are the answer to our quest, each one of us holds the key to the very thing sought. So teacher is in the way, give him a kick, show him who is the boss - and move on.

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Tao Wow | Daily Cup of Tao

I am your guru!

All is based on an assumption so all is wrong. When you find truth you can't explain it even to yourself and so because of this it would be terrible to have people follow you. Any leader must be unwilling and only there to encourage others on a similar path to continue walking, staying under a tree is nice but don't stay too long, don't follow someone else down a path, but if you meet, compare notes, that is all. Do not take someone's notes, just look at them and drop them.

Everyone to this day has been wrong. Those who were close to right had their own truth. It worked for them but failed for everyone who followed. To follow is to fail at the outset. A person wandering with no aim is more right.

As enlightenment is such a unique state it can have no verbal truth so nothing written or said about it has any value. No book, words or saying.

The purest doctrine is silence, the next best pointing. Those with any more are fit for nothing but confusion. The last thing to do would be to take it seriously.

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Tao Wow | Daily Cup of Tao