Tao Te Ching Chapter 81-1 Beautiful words

Today's Tao

Trustworthy words are not beautiful. Beautiful words are not trustworthy. (Ch.81)


If you don't have time, please just check this chapter.

As Lao Tzu says, reading words is not very important.

The important thing is living.

Living is the most religious act of all.


There are three basic points.

1. The so-called world is a hologram and catalyst to keep Tao's energy circulating.

2. "Self" doesn't exist. "Self" is just a word given to one part of a hologram. (☞See also Tao Te Ching / Chapter 7 / No Self)

3. Words, including knowledge and thoughts, are part of a hologram.


What is living?

Living is turning the prayer wheel.

It is called Tenborin 転法輪 in Zen Buddhism. (☞See Tao's flower 38-14 and Kensho Jobutsu / No away 47-3)

It is receiving Tao's energy through a hologram and emitting Tao's energy while projecting a hologram.

On your face, it takes place.

It is called Menju 面授, Face transmission. (☞See Face Transmission / Menju / Beauty 80-8)

Beautiful words, such as logic, analysis, judgment, and justice among others, are obstacles that increase your resistance.


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-Beautiful words 81-1
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-Tao in Heaven 81-7
-Sage's Tao 81-8
-Tao by Matsumoto / Tao Te Ching / Chapter 81
-Words are not good enough 1-1
-Empty words 22-13
-Say no words 23-1
-Without words 43-4
-Adorned words 62-4


Lao Tzu answers your question!



☞«Recommended Books 11» I am glad you are the one who is reading this recommendation. I am sure that I can count on you. Next time you meet one of your friends who are interested in Japan's literature, please mention the name of Osamu Dazai. "Who's that Dazai guy? I know Mishima and Banana, but I have never heard of him", he might reply. Osamu Dazai is probably the most underrated Japanese novelist outside the country. So, the artist needs your help. When the situation is the most desperate, you just feel like laughing. Why? Because laughter has magic. It transforms a tragedy into a comedy within a second. «No Longer Human» and «The Setting Sun» are tragically funny. Both are considered masterpieces in Japan. Smile guaranteed.

Tao Te Ching Chapter 76-3 Fragile life

Today's Tao

The life of everything; grasses or trees, is soft and fragile. (Ch.76)


Why does life exist?

Why do the lives of grasses and trees exist?

First, life, or the life of any being, is part of a hologram.

Second, a hologram exists as a catalyst.

The catalyst stimulates Tao, the circulation of the fundamental energy.

This relation between the stimulating and the stimulated beings is metaphorically expressed as "to explain manifestation / 説法 [seppo]", or "to turn the wheel of manifestation / 転法輪 [tenborin]".

In other words, everything you see in your hologram is a prayer.

The catalytic prayer stimulates you, who is Tao.


That's why Zen Master Dogen says:

"Sometimes it uses the letters of one hundred grasses;

sometimes it uses the letters of ten thousand trees".

あるいは百草の文字をもちゐ、

あるいは万木の文字をもちゐる

(Bukkyo 仏経, «Shobogenzo»)


«Related Articles»
-Soft life 76-1
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-Mujoseppo = non-living preach / Hard and Strong 76-5
-Soft and weak men 76-6
-Strong army, no win 76-7
-Karoshi / Snapped branch 76-8
-Hossho stays low 76-9
-Hoben gate / Soft and Weak 76-10
-Tao by Matsumoto / Tao Te Ching / Chapter 76


Tao answers your question!



☞«Tao Te Ching» Key word comparison (3) / -Dark Depth 玄 [gen]- Let's see how they translate 玄之又玄 in Chapter 1. / "Mystery of mysteries" On the left, «Tao Te Ching (SkyLight Illuminations)» translated by Derek Lin. / "Deep and again Deep" On the right, «Tao Te Ching» by Stephen Addis and Stanley Lombardo.

Tao Te Ching Chapter 72-6 Take it

Today's Tao

Therefore, he leaves that and takes this. (Ch.72)


First in Chapter 12, then in Chapter 38, and now this is the third time Lao Tzu asks us to leave "that" and take "this". (☞See Not that one, but this one 12-7 and Leave it 38-15)

Then, what are "this" and "that"?

"This" is Tao, which is true You.

And "that" is your hologram, which is the world in front of you, including your own self.

"Leave your hologram and take Tao."

That's what Lao Tzu is saying here.

Watch out. This could be your pitfall.

"Uh, h… The world is my hologram, and Lao Tzu is asking me to leave the hologram. I know how to do it. I meditate. While meditating I can leave this reality and go into an altered state. This is Satori, right?"

Wrong!

Satori is not an act of looking for a refuge.

Take this reality as a catalyst and cherish "right now right here".

Emit Love and turn the wheel of manifestation (=転法輪 [tenborin]).

Learn: "this = that"!

This is Satori.


«Related Articles»
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-Tao by Matsumoto / Tao Te Ching / Chapter 72


Tao answers your question!



☞«Tao of ****» The first line comparison (4) / "Hello. I'm Willie Nelson. A way can be a guide, but not a fixed path. —The Tao Te Ching" On the left, «The Tao of Willie: A Guide to the Happiness in Your Heart» written by Willie Nelson and Turk Pipkin. / "Increase your effectiveness as a leader by helping others to develop and grow." On the right, «The Tao of Coaching: Boost Your Effectiveness at Work by Inspiring and Developing Those Around You» written by Max Landsberg. / Unusual combinations are always welcome.

Tao Te Ching Chapter 67-6 Send Love

Today's Tao

The first one is to send Love. (Ch.67)


The first treasure is "to send Love".

This Love signifies not only the feeling between two people but the energy that sustains all the beings.

You can call it Tao, Buddha, Zen, the Higher Being, or whatever you think appropriate.

The expression is the translation of the Kanji / Chinese character 慈 [ji].

Receiving and sending this energy Love is the basis of the mechanism, which has plenty of names, including 心 [shin], 転法輪 [tenborin], and Yin Yang circle.


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-Not the first 67-8
-Be brave 67-9
-Be vast 67-10
-Leader of the vessel 67-11
-Stuck in life 67-12
-Love, win, defense 67-13
-Heaven, Love, Tao 67-14
-Tao by Matsumoto / Tao Te Ching / Chapter 67


Tao answers your question!



☞The Kanji / Chinese character 心 can be interpreted in various ways. If you pronounce it [kokoro], it means heart. The character can signify the center such as part of 中心 [chushin]. At the chapter of Sangai yuishin 三界唯心 in his «Shobogenzo», Dogen asks us to interpret 心 [shin] as a mechanism.

Tao Te Ching Chapter 59-6 Never-ending cycle

Today's Tao

If you don't see the end of this cycle, you can keep the country. (Ch.59)


A: "Master Bonbon, banks are bankrupt. Our country is collapsing. Do something for us!"

B: "Trust your bank managers and political leaders. Leave your money in the stock market. Meditate and wish that stock prices will go up."


Remember?

When Lao Tzu says "the country", it means "your hologram".


Zen Master Fuyo Dokai 芙蓉道楷 (Fu-jung Tao-k'ai) called it "blue mountains".

He said:

"Blue mountains walk constantly. 青山常運歩"

（正法眼蔵「山水経」より）


This is the Tao / hologram cycle.

It is Hokke ten hokke 法華転法華: Buddha's manifestation turns Buddha's manifestation (=Tenborin 転法輪).

This cycle of the manifestation of Love will never stop.

Don't worry.


従来の転いまもさらにやむことなし

In the chapter of Hokke ten hokke in «Shobogenzo», Master Dogen guarantees you that the spin of this cycle has never stopped nor will stop.


You know why?

Because you are the cycle.


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-Don't waste 59-1
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-Never-ending cycle 59-6
-Forever 59-7
-Live eternally 59-8
-Tao by Matsumoto / Tao Te Ching / Chapter 59


Tao answers your question!



☞Intelligence has the least importance for Lao Tzu. Nevertheless, some books are worth reading. You can get information in order to reduce your knowledge in general. One is Lynne McTaggart's «The Field». Thanks to the book, I learned plenty of information about the recent discoveries in various academic fields that correspond to Lao Tzu's teachings. Another is Shusaku Endo's «Silence». The Japanese Catholic author tries to look for the answer to the question: "Why did God keep silent at the very moment when one needed his voice?".

Tao Te Ching Chapter 57-8 Ho 法 & Laws

Today's Tao

The more laws and decrees are known, the more robbers there are. (Ch.57)


Laws cannot control the world.

The more we try to control it with them, the more troubles we create.

We have been learning this hard ways these days.

This chapter 57 has Lao Tzu's maxims directly applicable to your life.

Nevertheless, the more practical they seem to be, the less essential they are.

We have to remember that many later hands had been added to the original Tao Te Ching.

That's the difference from Dogen's «Shobogenzo», whose original is the one we read nowadays.

That's why we often ask the 13th-century Zen master for some help.

Laws are part of your hologram.

In Buddhism, laws, teachings, and Buddha's manifestation are beautifully expressed by one word, 法 [ho].


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-Ho 法 and Laws 57-8
-Sage's "Do nothing" 57-9
-Don't move 57-10
-Don't work and Get rich 57-11
-Desire 57-12
-Tao by Matsumoto / Tao Te Ching / Chapter 57


Tao answers your question!



☞This «Child Guardian» is called Jizo in Japan. The Kanji / Chinese characters 地蔵 [jizo] literally express the storage of the earth. He stores plenty of love for the people, for both the children and the adults. This deity probably represents the Japanese sentiments towards Buddhism better than mighty Buddha himself. The earthiness of Jizo reminds us of our ancestors, who came from all over by land or by sea or who had been living in the archipelago all the time. With the incense from Kyoto, this mini Jizo statue will make a good gift for your enlightened friend.

Tao Te Ching Chapter 47-3 Kensho Jobutsu / No Away

Today's Tao

The farther you go away from it, the less of it you know. (Ch.47)


Osamu Kanaya talks about Kensho Jobutsu 見性成仏 of Zen Buddhism in his Japanese translation of this chapter of Tao Te Ching. («Roshi», Kodansha Gakujutsu Bunko, Kodansha, Tokyo)

"See one's nature and become Buddha." (=Kensho Jobutsu 見性成仏)

You are Buddha. You are Tao.

So, it is logical that "The farther you go away from" your own self, the less you learn about Tao and Buddha.

First, you learn that your own self and the rest of the world are part of the hologram. (1)

Then, your hologram will teach you what Tao and Buddha is. (2)


Naoto Matsumoto adds:

This exchange between (1) and (2) is precisely the cycle of Yin and Yang, Tao's cycle,  the prayer wheel, or the wheel of the manifestation (Horin 法輪).

That's why turning the wheel of the manifestation (Tenborin 転法輪) is interpreted as preaching, where the learning and the teaching of (1) and (2) take place simultaneously.

This is synonymous with receiving and sending Love.


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-No outside 47-1
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-Tao by Matsumoto / Tao Te Ching / Chapter 47


Tao answers your question!



☞A man who can speak English cannot talk about Zen as well as this Japanese man does. A man who can talk about Zen cannot speak English as well as the Japanese man does. His name is Daisetz Suzuki. He asks us three questions: "Can we live by Zen?", "Can we live with Zen?", and "Can we live Zen?". His answer is a rhetorical question: "Can we live without Zen?". Whether you live by Zen or not, Zen is you. One cannot live without Zen.

Tao Te Ching Chapter 38-15 Leave it

Today's Tao

Therefore, he leaves that and takes this. (Ch.38)


Therefore, leave your hologram and remember that you are Tao.

That's for sure.


But can we leave Tao and go into the floating world of holograms?

Yes, that's what great masters do.

Knowing that this fragile world of holograms is just a catalyst, you play there.

You have fun and appreciate the holographic world for existing right here right now.

"This" and "that" are interchangeable. This exchange makes a circle. It is the act of turning Tao's wheel. (=転法輪 [tenborin])

Let's do it. We are masters of life, too.


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-Lost mercy 38-9
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-Disorder 38-11
-Foreknowledge 38-12
-Thick and Thin 38-13
-Tao's Flower 38-14
-Leave it 38-15
-Tao by Matsumoto / Tao Te Ching / Chapter 38


Tao answers your question!



Previous video / Ch.38 text / Next video


☞Some want a prayer wheel at home. Other don't know anything about it, but live a life of prayer wheel without prayers, just with sincerity. Both of them are the same. No one is better than any. Kurosawa embody a life of a sincere prayer in his «Dodes'ka-Den».

Tao Te Ching Chapter 38-14 Tao's Flower

Today's Tao

He remains in its fruit and stays away from the flower. (Ch.38)


Certainly, "its fruit" means Tao, and "the flower" its hologram.

You always remain in Tao's "fruit" because true You are Tao itself.

Nevertheless, holograms are important, too.

In Dogen's «Shobogenzo» 道元の正法眼蔵, he explains 法華　転　法華 [hokke ten hokke]:

the flowers of manifestation turn the flowers of manifestation.

It is a beautiful way to describe "holograms provoke holograms".

This makes a circle or a cycle, which is the wheel of manifestation 法輪 [horin].

Keeping the cycle is precisely turning the wheel of manifestation 転法輪 [tenborin].


«Related Articles»
-The highest attainment 38-1
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-Lost attainment 38-8
-Lost mercy 38-9
-Lost righteousness 38-10
-Disorder 38-11
-Foreknowledge 38-12
-Thick and Thin 38-13
-Tao's Flower 38-14
-Leave it 38-15
-Tao by Matsumoto / Tao Te Ching / Chapter 38


Tao answers your question!



Previous video / Ch.38 text / Next video


-There are many ways to turn the wheel of manifestation / Horin. You don't have to look for Satori. You can learn how to rely on Tariki / the power of non-self. Eventually you will find out self and non-self are the same thing. A contemporary Japanese novelist Hiroyuki Itsuki talks about his experience of evacuation from Korea during WW2 and tells us how to "embrace despair".

Tao Te Ching Chapter 38-13 Thick & Thin

Today's Tao

Therefore, a great man remains in its thickness and stays away from its thinness. (Ch.38)


Thickness means Tao.

In Chapter 15 Man who knew Tao Lao Tzu says:

"Thick, as if he were an uncarved block."


Thickness = an uncarved block = Tao

(☞See also Chapter  28 Uncarved block)


Thinness means a hologram.

A hologram is superficial.

Besides, Lao Tzu asks you to stay away from the thin hologram, which we call the world.

You should detach yourself from your world. Don't get stuck in there.

Nevertheless, we must not despise it.

Because it is the flower of Tao's manifestation (=法華 [hokke])

It stimulates you to emit more Love / Tao energy to turn the wheel of manifestation, 法輪 [horin].

The act is called 転法輪 [tenborin].


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-Politeness 38-6
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-Lost attainment 38-8
-Lost mercy 38-9
-Lost righteousness 38-10
-Disorder 38-11
-Foreknowledge 38-12
-Thick and Thin 38-13
-Tao's Flower 38-14
-Leave it 38-15
-Tao by Matsumoto / Tao Te Ching / Chapter 38


Tao answers your question!



Previous video / Ch.38 text / Next video


-Beautiful flowers bloom in all the spheres of existence. Some stories shine. Some are worth telling to another generation.

Tao Te Ching Chapter 35-6 Invisible Tao

Today's Tao

Even if you try to see Tao, you can't see it. (Ch.35)


You cannot see Tao.

All what you see is the manifestation of Tao.


Master Dogen says:

"If one emits Truth and goes back to the source, the false emptiness of ten directions will emit Truth and go back to the source."

一人発真帰源、十方虚空、発真帰源

(Tenborin 転法輪, «Shobogenzo»)


It means:

"When one emits Love the fundamental energy (=Tao) and goes back to Tao, his hologram will emit Love and go back to Tao, too".

Every hologram can be Tao the nothingness.


Love = Tao = Buddha


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-Tao by Matsumoto / Tao Te Ching / Chapter 35


Tao answers your question!



Previous video / Ch.35 text / Next video


-«The Decay of the Angel»is the last book of Yukio Mishima's «The Sea of Fertility» series. At the end of the story a nun explains what reincarnation is. Having finished writing the novel, the author went to the headquarters of Japan's Self Defense Forces and …. You know the rest of the story.