Theophile the Younger decided to ponder over Taoism; he knew that the Elder was an expert in that domain.<\/p>\n
Theo. \u2013 I know you have taught Sahaj Marg meditation for over forty years, and you also taught Taoism to your students in traditional Chinese Energetics. Could you, please, tell me something about Tao?<\/p>\n
The Elder \u2013 Whether we have to do with Christian mysticism<\/a>, Sufism<\/a>, Kabbalah or Taoism<\/a>, note that all these traditions have a fixed value: the heart. Each of them is taught in accordance with the times and culture, but the heart, i.e. Love, reigns over all of them. I have always adapted to whomever I met, putting myself at the service of their hearts, whilst respecting their beliefs, their religion. When dealing with the others, those who say they are non-believers, I’d rather use the wisdom I drew from Chinese medicine and Taoism.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 Why?<\/p>\n The Elder \u2013 The Taoists do not speak of God but of an essential principle, of a universal energy, of Ying and Yang, of inner balance, of a life in tune with Nature, in tune with oneself. They have adopted a neutral language, appropriate for people who consider themselves as atheists, but who are deeply sensitive and humane. The Taoists live an unrestricted life.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 Rather like the Buddhists then.<\/p>\n The Elder \u2013 That’s right, but I know Taoism and the Taoists’ canonical books better: the Su Wen Ling Shu<\/em> and the Yi Jing<\/em>. They contain a revealed knowledge, and are a key part of the knowledge required for practicing and teaching traditional Chinese Energetics. The Taoists draw a distinction between the organ the heart is, ‘xin’, and the Heart-Mind, ‘Shen’. Shen is considered as the centre of the Being. It manages, dispatches blood (xue) and energy (qi), and also rules over the mind, which it helps balance and harmonize.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 Do their books speak of Love?<\/p>\n The Elder \u2013 No, they are about benevolent neutrality.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 So the Taoists are more akin to the shamans who teach Ho’oponopono<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Elder \u2013 More specifically, they connect themselves to the median vacuum in the heart and they let happen what must be done.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 Hence the benevolent neutrality of the observer.<\/p>\n The Elder \u2013 And his own benevolence, too, which is related to Love, though they don’t say so. The Taoists let all breaths and virtues from the Tao act by themselves, for fear of interfering with Nature or with the life of any other living being.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 They have a reputation for being free persons, and they are not subject to any authority, is that right?<\/p>\n The Elder \u2013 The notion has generally been misunderstood. The Taoists also disregard the demands of their egos. They let the winds go through them and guide their lives. This requires a great sense of discipline and permanent alertness, so as to let Tao keep control.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 Could you explain what Tao is exactly, please?<\/p>\n The Elder half closed his eyes and started uttering:<\/p>\n “Tao means What is nameless … After a short pose, he continued:<\/p>\n “Since I do not know the Nameless I call it Tao. This approach is similar to the approach of the ways and religions we know, Theo commented.<\/p>\n The Elder \u2013 Knowledge is universal. Reality is One. The Taoists speak about that Unity, about Zero that equals Infinity, and above all, they live that Unity. The Nameless also appears in the Torah, in the Koran, and in many other sacred books.<\/p>\n Theo. The solution is always that Infinite Zero<\/a>; so, nothing within us may be disturbed or unsettled.<\/p>\n Go on, the old attentive man advised.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 Well! When I am the Infinite Zero, Divine Love is totally freed within my Self and nothing but It is now acting. All the rest appears as illusory, deprived of any real existence, and cannot affect me.<\/p>\n Amused, the Elder approved with the following poem:<\/p>\n “Being Nameless, It represents the origin of the Universe; This poem by a Taoist thinker gives us the direction towards the Self Realization, the old man explained. We could as well replace ‘Nameless’ with the name ‘God’, or ‘The Divine’. Some people object it, or even reject it. So, we talk about ‘Nature’, about ‘Universal Energy’, using the Tao rules and the writings of the Taoist Masters as a means of communication.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 But Tao is the Uncreated God, the Centre Babuji mentions, saying it has no name, no mind and no attribute!<\/p>\n The Elder \u2013 Of course it is! But whatever you call it, the approach of the Divine is one and unique. Even by calling it ‘Nameless’ or ‘Tao’, you can turn it into a dogma if you are not careful.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 Like some religions that consider any pictorial representation of God is blasphemy and is totally forbidden, when in fact representing Him is absolutely impossible. Whoever tries to do it is therefore mistaken. Yet, it does not prevent us from invoking God through prayer, poetry, or any other means such as identifying the Divine within some great spiritual beings.<\/p>\n The Elder \u2013 And within everyone and everything of course. Such visualization brings about an immense joy dogmatic mentalities cannot experience. We can feel a definite reverence, when facing Beauty and diversity in the divine creation. Man totally carries what is created, the universe, the Divine. There is no denial of it. All the rest is only a cultural issue. Taoism invites us to access that vacuum within us and perceive the Nameless.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 How do they proceed?<\/p>\n The Elder \u2013 They meditate on the median vacuum. Two poems evoke the Tao.<\/p>\n “Tao is attributeless. “The thousand beings all emerge from Tao. Letting Theophile the Younger savour the deep signification of the poem, The Elder stood up to welcome a visitor he introduced to his young friend: The Elder let them in order to go and prepare tea.<\/p>\n Tseu stared at Theo and said quietly: Theo. \u2013 Why do you mention Time?<\/p>\n Tseu \u2013 What characterizes the flow of time is that it keeps changing. Such variations can be spotted in a game of ‘opposite complementary forces’ we call ying and yang. Terrestrial Time can be identified in the four seasons. Man seeks for his way within all these movements and balance arises from harmony.<\/p>\n He paused. Then, Theophile the Younger asked: Tseu \u2013 By resorting to one’s inner peace and silence in order to perceive the right moment:<\/p>\n “Motionless, the being is attentive to the Ying-Yang movements But Theophile wanted to go ahead, and to get him into a corner, so he asked: Tseu quietly put down on the table the cup of tea the Elder had served him and he closed his eyes. Like a motionless mountain, impassive, he stood upright and silently breathed deeply. A soft power emanated from him. His whole being was sort of shining. Around him, every single thing, every being, seemed to be at the right place, in complete harmony with the instant. Silence itself was given a very special feel and filled the room that was bathed in light in that end of the day.<\/p>\n Theo of course recognized the internalization signal and he let his mind totally be absorbed into his heart while observing closely such a mesmerizing character.<\/p>\n After a long moment of peace and deep balance, Tseu quoted Laozi again:<\/p>\n “Thirty rays converge at the hub, – I see, Theo said. I treated the issue from the notion of “absolute vacuum” and I can see now how it is that vacuum that will let energy and life settle within that inner space the vacuum created.<\/p>\n Tseu \u2013 That vacuum constitutes the link between the Ying and the Yang. It always comes together with fullness, with the inner and the outer. In order to be in tune with Heaven and Earth within ourselves as well as with the environment, we only have to go to that original vacuum for a refill.<\/p>\n Theo said nothing, but he immediately remembered the Sufi notion of the original nature called ‘fitra’<\/a> he had been told about.\u00a0 (http:\/\/theophilelancien.blogspot.fr\/search\/label\/fitra).<\/p>\n Though Theo had kept his idea silent, Tseu approved it with a discreet nod and looked at him with a smiling face.<\/p>\n \u2013 So, he too can read my thoughts, Theo said, laughing.<\/p>\n \u2013 Being attentive to the subtle hints that egress within him, a wise man puts himself in tune with the breaths of Heaven and Earth in order to progress on the path without going astray, Tseu said sententiously.<\/p>\n \u2013 What about the Taoists’ Action and Non-action I have been told about? Theo asked, demurely.<\/p>\n Tseu \u2013 The wise man spontaneously tunes up with things. We practice a ‘non-method’ which consists in going back to the natural order of anything through the median vacuum of the heart-mind.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 Doesn’t that compare with the clarifications quantum physics would give?<\/p>\n Tseu \u2013 It does. But we steer for spontaneity and innocence, rather than for intelligence. We comply with the instant. There is no strategy of any sort.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 OK, but it has been proved that an observer changes the nature of his experiment just by the mere fact that he is observing it. You are aware of the butterfly effect, aren’t you?<\/p>\n \u2013 Quite aware, Tseu replied maliciously, thanks to our great ancient friend Zhuang Zhou, who was busy writing when he dreamt he was a butterfly flitting and fluttering about, happy with himself, ignoring he was Zhuang Zhou. Suddenly he woke up and there he was, solid and unmistakable Zhuang Zhou, who didn’t know whether he was Zhuang Zhou who had dreamt he was a butterfly, or a butterfly dreaming that he was Zhuang Zhou (Zhuang Zhou II-6).<\/p>\n Undisturbed, Theo replied: \u2013 They were true Taoists, Tseu exclaimed.<\/p>\n The three men laughed wholeheartedly.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 Could you give me another practical example concerning Taoism?<\/p>\n Tseu \u2013 I can offer a metaphor, if you want. Non-action means rigidity is excluded;\u00a0 it implies flexibility, which allows bending and rising. See the willow-tree and how it can bend very low under the weight of snow, going as far as touching the ground. Its strength lies in its flexibility and its quiescence, whereas another tree will risk breaking down as it contends with the weight of the snow.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 By bending down to earth the willow develops humility, like in ‘the oak and the reed’ fable.<\/p>\n Tseu \u2013 I suppose so, but when you make one with the breath of the instant the idea of ‘I’, of the ego, doesn’t exist any more. There is a flow you immediately ride just as an innocent child would do.<\/p>\n \u2013 Oh! Is that another way of subduing the ego<\/a>? Theo asked.<\/p>\n Tseu \u2013 The first manifestation of Tao is in Ying and Yang, which combines with the Infinite in a space situated between Heaven and Earth. \u00a0Man stands in the middle, getting that flow which is mixed with the heavenly and the worldly breaths. In order to receive that flow, the human beings must first have freed and opened all their openings. Once their openings are empty, they will let all the energies circulate freely and mix harmoniously within them.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 That’s what we do with the heart, the heart chakra at least: we purify it, we clean it so as to rid it of all the impressions and complexities obstructing the way so that the yogic transmission may flow into it.<\/p>\n Tseu \u2013 Everything would eventually meet of course, whatever the times, places or traditions. Differences are only in people’s separatist minds. For instance, the Hindi are said to be polytheistic because they call ‘devas’ what monotheistic religions call angels and archangels. There is a lot of prejudice and xenophobia among people worldwide. They dread differences and since they are not united themselves, they believe they can protect themselves by advocating a separation from others, from all foreigners.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 A stranger will be strange and people will shun whatever looks strange to them.<\/p>\n Tseu continued: Theo. \u2013 And what of the primitive people who resort to magic and superstition?<\/p>\n The Elder \u2013 Magic is nothing but a wrong way of using laws and principles for personal purposes. Besides primitive magic, there is a modern magic that advertisers and politicians resort to. They manipulate potential customers to entice them into buying their product or into voting for them. They have acquired an obvious know-how based on psychology. That is a modern form of magic, which consists in manipulating illusion for self-centred purposes.<\/p>\n Theo. \u2013 Is it that easy to manipulate us?<\/p>\n Tseu \u2013 It is not today’s topic, but here is some food for thought: a curse will work only if within yourself something is letting it work and if it happens to be in accordance with the emitted intention; otherwise, it is inefficient.<\/p>\n Theo. felt mischievous: The Elder, corrected him: Then Theo claimed emphatically: \u2013 That is enough for fantasy. Let us be back to our Taoists, the Elder challenged him gently.<\/p>\n Theophile the Elder Theophile the Younger decided to ponder over Taoism; he knew that the Elder was an expert in that domain. Theo. \u2013 I know you have taught Sahaj Marg meditation for over forty years, and you also taught Taoism to your students in traditional Chinese Energetics. Could you, please, tell me something about Tao? The Elder […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":726,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"Theophile the Younger decided to ponder over Taoism; he knew that the Elder was an expert in that domain.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 I know you have taught Sahaj Marg meditation for over forty years, and you also taught Taoism to your students in traditional Chinese Energetics. Could you, please, tell me something about Tao?\r\n\r\nThe Elder \u2013 Whether we have to do with Christian mysticism<\/a>, Sufism<\/a>, Kabbalah or Taoism<\/a>, note that all these traditions have a fixed value: the heart. Each of them is taught in accordance with the times and culture, but the heart, i.e. Love, reigns over all of them. I have always adapted to whomever I met, putting myself at the service of their hearts, whilst respecting their beliefs, their religion. When dealing with the others, those who say they are non-believers, I'd rather use the wisdom I drew from Chinese medicine and Taoism.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 Why?\r\n\r\nThe Elder \u2013 The Taoists do not speak of God but of an essential principle, of a universal energy, of Ying and Yang, of inner balance, of a life in tune with Nature, in tune with oneself. They have adopted a neutral language, appropriate for people who consider themselves as atheists, but who are deeply sensitive and humane. The Taoists live an unrestricted life.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 Rather like the Buddhists then.\r\n\r\nThe Elder \u2013 That's right, but I know Taoism and the Taoists' canonical books better: the Su Wen Ling Shu<\/em> and the Yi Jing<\/em>. They contain a revealed knowledge, and are a key part of the knowledge required for practicing and teaching traditional Chinese Energetics. The Taoists draw a distinction between the organ the heart is, 'xin', and the Heart-Mind, 'Shen'. Shen is considered as the centre of the Being. It manages, dispatches blood (xue) and energy (qi), and also rules over the mind, which it helps balance and harmonize.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 Do their books speak of Love?\r\n\r\nThe Elder \u2013 No, they are about benevolent neutrality.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 So the Taoists are more akin to the shamans who teach Ho'oponopono<\/a>.\r\n\r\nThe Elder \u2013 More specifically, they connect themselves to the median vacuum in the heart and they let happen what must be done.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 Hence the benevolent neutrality of the observer.\r\n\r\nThe Elder \u2013 And his own benevolence, too, which is related to Love, though they don't say so. The Taoists let all breaths and virtues from the Tao act by themselves, for fear of interfering with Nature or with the life of any other living being.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 They have a reputation for being free persons, and they are not subject to any authority, is that right?\r\n\r\nThe Elder \u2013 The notion has generally been misunderstood. The Taoists also disregard the demands of their egos. They let the winds go through them and guide their lives. This requires a great sense of discipline and permanent alertness, so as to let Tao keep control.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 Could you explain what Tao is exactly, please?\r\n\r\nThe Elder half closed his eyes and started uttering:\r\n Theophile the Elder\r\nAn excerpt from\u00a0Dialogs with Theophile the Elder<\/em>\r\nTheophile the Younger\u2019s initiation<\/em><\/p>","_et_gb_content_width":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[600,394,453,378],"tags":[569,647,642,641,646,301,644,643,172,640,645,171,170],"class_list":["post-2540","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog-en","category-spiritual-paths","category-taoism-chinese-medecine","category-theophile-the-youngers-initiation","tag-advanced-practice","tag-balance","tag-breath","tag-essential-principle","tag-heavenly-path","tag-hooponopono","tag-infinite-zero","tag-nameless","tag-shen","tag-universal-energy","tag-vacuum","tag-yang","tag-yin"],"yoast_head":"\n
\nNothing is apart from the Nameless …”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\nI try to call it Greatness.
\nGeatness entails expansion,
\nExpansion entails remoteness,
\nRemoteness entails Return.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\nWith a name, it is the Mother of all beings.
\nThrough Non-being, let us seize its secret,
\nThrough Being, let us approach its access.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\nIt exists by itself, undifferentiated,
\nand vast beyond what is conceivable.
\nYet, it is wholly present in the tiniest seed.”<\/p>\n
\nThe illusion of their falling apart is but the mutual effect
\nof the Ying and the Yang.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\n\u2013 Here is my friend Tseu, who can answer your questions and tell you about Tao or Ying and Yang much better than I could.<\/p>\n
\n\u2013 We consider tha, as a whole, a human being’s work during his or her lifetime consists in getting in tune with Tao. The Tao Way is called ‘the heavenly path’. Following it will help us be in tune with Nature and with Time.<\/p>\n
\n\u2013 How do we search for that Time?<\/p>\n
\nand to the five actions of the elements.
\nThe sage observes all the inner and outer movements
\nthrough the practice of Action and Non-action,
\nin the rightness of time.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\n\u2013 How to approach Tao?\u00a0 If I have understood properly, it has no beginning and no end, it is undetermined and formless. It is nothing and contains nothing. How to do, then?<\/p>\n
\nbut the median vacuum is what makes the chariot go.
\nThe clay has been moulded into pots,
\nbut how the pots are used depends on their inner vacuum.
\nThe house is fitted with doors and windows
\nbut again vacuum is what allows housing.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
\n\u2013 Babuji used to evoke ‘actionless action’ and Lord Krishna’s advice was that we should not worry about the results of our actions.<\/p>\n
\n\u2013 The more separatist people are, the more we must sympathize and send them all our love. Separation is the sign that the persons don’t like themselves very much and therefore receive little love from others.<\/p>\n
\n\u2013 What a shame! I love it when Gandalf the Grey fights evil forces. The fights are memorable moments.<\/p>\n
\n\u2013 But he who bears the ring is the real hero, whose innocence will help him save the world. Power has practically no power over him. Even Queen Galadriel, the Lady of the Elves, guards against the power of the ring for fear of being corrupted.<\/p>\n
\n\u2013 Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely!<\/p>\n
\nAn excerpt from\u00a0Dialogs with Theophile the Elder<\/em>
\nTheophile the Younger\u2019s initiation<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"Tao means What is nameless ...\r\nNothing is apart from the Nameless ...\"<\/blockquote>\r\nAfter a short pose, he continued:\r\n
\"Since I do not know the Nameless I call it Tao.\r\nI try to call it Greatness.\r\nGeatness entails expansion,\r\nExpansion entails remoteness,\r\nRemoteness entails Return.\"<\/blockquote>\r\nThis approach is similar to the approach of the ways and religions we know, Theo commented.\r\n\r\nThe Elder \u2013 Knowledge is universal. Reality is One. The Taoists speak about that Unity, about Zero that equals Infinity, and above all, they live that Unity. The Nameless also appears in the Torah, in the Koran, and in many other sacred books.\r\n\r\nTheo. The solution is always that Infinite Zero<\/a>; so, nothing within us may be disturbed or unsettled.\r\n\r\nGo on, the old attentive man advised.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 Well! When I am the Infinite Zero, Divine Love is totally freed within my Self and nothing but It is now acting. All the rest appears as illusory, deprived of any real existence, and cannot affect me.\r\n\r\nAmused, the Elder approved with the following poem:\r\n
\"Being Nameless, It represents the origin of the Universe;\r\nWith a name, it is the Mother of all beings.\r\nThrough Non-being, let us seize its secret,\r\nThrough Being, let us approach its access.\"<\/blockquote>\r\nThis poem by a Taoist thinker gives us the direction towards the Self Realization, the old man explained. We could as well replace 'Nameless' with the name 'God', or 'The Divine'. Some people object it, or even reject it. So, we talk about 'Nature', about 'Universal Energy', using the Tao rules and the writings of the Taoist Masters as a means of communication.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 But Tao is the Uncreated God, the Centre Babuji mentions, saying it has no name, no mind and no attribute!\r\n\r\nThe Elder \u2013 Of course it is! But whatever you call it, the approach of the Divine is one and unique. Even by calling it 'Nameless' or 'Tao', you can turn it into a dogma if you are not careful.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 Like some religions that consider any pictorial representation of God is blasphemy and is totally forbidden, when in fact representing Him is absolutely impossible. Whoever tries to do it is therefore mistaken. Yet, it does not prevent us from invoking God through prayer, poetry, or any other means such as identifying the Divine within some great spiritual beings.\r\n\r\nThe Elder \u2013 And within everyone and everything of course. Such visualization brings about an immense joy dogmatic mentalities cannot experience. We can feel a definite reverence, when facing Beauty and diversity in the divine creation. Man totally carries what is created, the universe, the Divine. There is no denial of it. All the rest is only a cultural issue. Taoism invites us to access that vacuum within us and perceive the Nameless.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 How do they proceed?\r\n\r\nThe Elder \u2013 They meditate on the median vacuum. Two poems evoke the Tao.\r\n
\"Tao is attributeless.\r\nIt exists by itself, undifferentiated,\r\nand vast beyond what is conceivable.\r\nYet, it is wholly present in the tiniest seed.\"\r\n\r\n\"The thousand beings all emerge from Tao.\r\nThe illusion of their falling apart is but the mutual effect\r\nof the Ying and the Yang.\"<\/blockquote>\r\nLetting Theophile the Younger savour the deep signification of the poem, The Elder stood up to welcome a visitor he introduced to his young friend:\r\n\u2013 Here is my friend Tseu, who can answer your questions and tell you about Tao or Ying and Yang much better than I could.\r\n\r\nThe Elder let them in order to go and prepare tea.\r\n\r\nTseu stared at Theo and said quietly:\r\n\u2013 We consider tha, as a whole, a human being's work during his or her lifetime consists in getting in tune with Tao. The Tao Way is called 'the heavenly path'. Following it will help us be in tune with Nature and with Time.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 Why do you mention Time?\r\n\r\nTseu \u2013 What characterizes the flow of time is that it keeps changing. Such variations can be spotted in a game of 'opposite complementary forces' we call ying and yang. Terrestrial Time can be identified in the four seasons. Man seeks for his way within all these movements and balance arises from harmony.\r\n\r\nHe paused. Then, Theophile the Younger asked:\r\n\u2013 How do we search for that Time?\r\n\r\nTseu \u2013 By resorting to one's inner peace and silence in order to perceive the right moment:\r\n
\"Motionless, the being is attentive to the Ying-Yang movements\r\nand to the five actions of the elements.\r\nThe sage observes all the inner and outer movements\r\nthrough the practice of Action and Non-action,\r\nin the rightness of time.\"<\/blockquote>\r\nBut Theophile wanted to go ahead, and to get him into a corner, so he asked:\r\n\u2013 How to approach Tao?\u00a0 If I have understood properly, it has no beginning and no end, it is undetermined and formless. It is nothing and contains nothing. How to do, then?\r\n\r\nTseu quietly put down on the table the cup of tea the Elder had served him and he closed his eyes. Like a motionless mountain, impassive, he stood upright and silently breathed deeply. A soft power emanated from him. His whole being was sort of shining. Around him, every single thing, every being, seemed to be at the right place, in complete harmony with the instant. Silence itself was given a very special feel and filled the room that was bathed in light in that end of the day.\r\n\r\nTheo of course recognized the internalization signal and he let his mind totally be absorbed into his heart while observing closely such a mesmerizing character.\r\n\r\nAfter a long moment of peace and deep balance, Tseu quoted Laozi again:\r\n
\"Thirty rays converge at the hub,\r\nbut the median vacuum is what makes the chariot go.\r\nThe clay has been moulded into pots,\r\nbut how the pots are used depends on their inner vacuum.\r\nThe house is fitted with doors and windows\r\nbut again vacuum is what allows housing.\"<\/blockquote>\r\n- I see, Theo said. I treated the issue from the notion of \"absolute vacuum\" and I can see now how it is that vacuum that will let energy and life settle within that inner space the vacuum created.\r\n\r\nTseu \u2013 That vacuum constitutes the link between the Ying and the Yang. It always comes together with fullness, with the inner and the outer. In order to be in tune with Heaven and Earth within ourselves as well as with the environment, we only have to go to that original vacuum for a refill.\r\n\r\nTheo said nothing, but he immediately remembered the Sufi notion of the original nature called 'fitra'<\/a> he had been told about.\u00a0 (http:\/\/theophilelancien.blogspot.fr\/search\/label\/fitra).\r\n\r\nThough Theo had kept his idea silent, Tseu approved it with a discreet nod and looked at him with a smiling face.\r\n\r\n\u2013 So, he too can read my thoughts, Theo said, laughing.\r\n\r\n\u2013 Being attentive to the subtle hints that egress within him, a wise man puts himself in tune with the breaths of Heaven and Earth in order to progress on the path without going astray, Tseu said sententiously.\r\n\r\n\u2013 What about the Taoists' Action and Non-action I have been told about? Theo asked, demurely.\r\n\r\nTseu \u2013 The wise man spontaneously tunes up with things. We practice a 'non-method' which consists in going back to the natural order of anything through the median vacuum of the heart-mind.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 Doesn't that compare with the clarifications quantum physics would give?\r\n\r\nTseu \u2013 It does. But we steer for spontaneity and innocence, rather than for intelligence. We comply with the instant. There is no strategy of any sort.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 OK, but it has been proved that an observer changes the nature of his experiment just by the mere fact that he is observing it. You are aware of the butterfly effect, aren't you?\r\n\r\n\u2013 Quite aware, Tseu replied maliciously, thanks to our great ancient friend Zhuang Zhou, who was busy writing when he dreamt he was a butterfly flitting and fluttering about, happy with himself, ignoring he was Zhuang Zhou. Suddenly he woke up and there he was, solid and unmistakable Zhuang Zhou, who didn't know whether he was Zhuang Zhou who had dreamt he was a butterfly, or a butterfly dreaming that he was Zhuang Zhou (Zhuang Zhou II-6).\r\n\r\nUndisturbed, Theo replied:\r\n\u2013 Babuji used to evoke 'actionless action' and Lord Krishna's advice was that we should not worry about the results of our actions.\r\n\r\n\u2013 They were true Taoists, Tseu exclaimed.\r\n\r\nThe three men laughed wholeheartedly.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 Could you give me another practical example concerning Taoism?\r\n\r\nTseu \u2013 I can offer a metaphor, if you want. Non-action means rigidity is excluded;\u00a0 it implies flexibility, which allows bending and rising. See the willow-tree and how it can bend very low under the weight of snow, going as far as touching the ground. Its strength lies in its flexibility and its quiescence, whereas another tree will risk breaking down as it contends with the weight of the snow.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 By bending down to earth the willow develops humility, like in 'the oak and the reed' fable.\r\n\r\nTseu \u2013 I suppose so, but when you make one with the breath of the instant the idea of 'I', of the ego, doesn't exist any more. There is a flow you immediately ride just as an innocent child would do.\r\n\r\n\u2013 Oh! Is that another way of subduing the ego<\/a>? Theo asked.\r\n\r\nTseu \u2013 The first manifestation of Tao is in Ying and Yang, which combines with the Infinite in a space situated between Heaven and Earth. \u00a0Man stands in the middle, getting that flow which is mixed with the heavenly and the worldly breaths. In order to receive that flow, the human beings must first have freed and opened all their openings. Once their openings are empty, they will let all the energies circulate freely and mix harmoniously within them.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 That's what we do with the heart, the heart chakra at least: we purify it, we clean it so as to rid it of all the impressions and complexities obstructing the way so that the yogic transmission may flow into it.\r\n\r\nTseu \u2013 Everything would eventually meet of course, whatever the times, places or traditions. Differences are only in people's separatist minds. For instance, the Hindi are said to be polytheistic because they call 'devas' what monotheistic religions call angels and archangels. There is a lot of prejudice and xenophobia among people worldwide. They dread differences and since they are not united themselves, they believe they can protect themselves by advocating a separation from others, from all foreigners.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 A stranger will be strange and people will shun whatever looks strange to them.\r\n\r\nTseu continued:\r\n\u2013 The more separatist people are, the more we must sympathize and send them all our love. Separation is the sign that the persons don't like themselves very much and therefore receive little love from others.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 And what of the primitive people who resort to magic and superstition?\r\n\r\nThe Elder \u2013 Magic is nothing but a wrong way of using laws and principles for personal purposes. Besides primitive magic, there is a modern magic that advertisers and politicians resort to. They manipulate potential customers to entice them into buying their product or into voting for them. They have acquired an obvious know-how based on psychology. That is a modern form of magic, which consists in manipulating illusion for self-centred purposes.\r\n\r\nTheo. \u2013 Is it that easy to manipulate us?\r\n\r\nTseu \u2013 It is not today's topic, but here is some food for thought: a curse will work only if within yourself something is letting it work and if it happens to be in accordance with the emitted intention; otherwise, it is inefficient.\r\n\r\nTheo. felt mischievous:\r\n\u2013 What a shame! I love it when Gandalf the Grey fights evil forces. The fights are memorable moments.\r\n\r\nThe Elder, corrected him:\r\n\u2013 But he who bears the ring is the real hero, whose innocence will help him save the world. Power has practically no power over him. Even Queen Galadriel, the Lady of the Elves, guards against the power of the ring for fear of being corrupted.\r\n\r\nThen Theo claimed emphatically:\r\n\u2013 Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely!\r\n\r\n\u2013 That is enough for fantasy. Let us be back to our Taoists, the Elder challenged him gently.\r\n