TAO Te CHING: Listen

May 20th, 2010

WELCOME to my blog: The Beauty of Being Human

A girl in love with beauty and the human spirit, this is my chronicle of inspirations, connections and faux pas – it takes all to be a real human being living a full and conscious life. Cheers to experiencing more joy and loving ourselves as we are!

Beauty: Wisdom from the TAO te CHING

I love gleaning the wisdom of the ancient masters! and my well-worn pocket edition Tao Te Ching by Stephen Mitchell is always handy for such a wisdom seeking moment as this morning. I take in a slow breath and randomly open my little book:

Chapter 15

The ancient Masters were profound and subtle.

Their wisdom was unfathomable.

There is no way to describe it;

all we can describe is there appearance.

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They were careful

as someone crossing an iced-over stream.

Alert as a warrior in enemy territory.

Courteous as a guest.

Fluid as melting ice.

Shapable as a block of wood.

Receptive as a valley.

Clear as a glass of water.

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Do you have the patience to wait

til your mud settles and the water is clear?

Can you remain unmoving

til the right action arises by itself?

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The Master doesn’t seek fulfillment.

Not seeking, not expecting,

she is in the present, and can welcome all things.

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After a VERY TOUGH DAY yesterday, what struck me today from this chapter was the “waiting til your mud settles and the water is clear… remain unmoving til the right action arises by itself.” How many times have I found myself distressed because what I wanted to happen, my expectation, was not being fulfilled? How many times have I felt myself stressed, trying to force my agenda, just to have it go nowhere? MANY TIMES of course — I’m human after all :).

I know that it FEELS MUCH BETTER, inside and outside myself, when I am patient and allow life to occur at it’s own pace, through it’s own creative unfolding. When I am doing that, this is how it works for me:

I keep my target in mind (what I want to accomplish), then focus only on my breath and heart’s rhythm. Letting go of my agenda and wound-up self, “what’s next” usually comes with ease, leading me clearly and effortlessly toward my target. The end result from this spirit-lead process is usually much more than my own self could have imagined.

The more I practice Letting Go and Letting God, as the 12-steppers would call it, the easier it gets. So that, even on my worst days, I can find my way through to a graceful , peaceful end.

We can all be Masters if we just listen in to ourselves: FLUID, RECEPTIVE, ALERT, COURTEOUS, CLEAR and CAREFUL (Focused is how I like to think of Careful).

Buddha, The TAO, God, Spirit, Source, The Universe, Allah, Mother Nature — When we can be patient, LISTEN and be present, they never steer us wrong, never.

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