Dear J Thank you for your email. I wonder what the Yijing says about our interaction? This would be a good experience in aligning the text with material conditions - a process mediated by our own 'intentions'. Of course, material conditions and intentions continuously change - but the Yijng text remains constant. The efficacy of translation merely allows us to peer into the historicity of the text - to a lesser or greater accuracy. Indeed. 'words' are the business we are engaged in - and a question lingers as to whether it matters how these words are generated and received. An open-ended enquiry might allow for possibilities of 'being' that are firmly closed-off by precise answers. This is 'why' the individual lines of the Yijing 'move' and 'transform'. All Best Wishes Adrian
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Very interesting.
The human urge to stratify as a means to move from one place another - figuratively and materially - is highly creative and drives the ongoing engine of evolution. It exists and is perpetuated because it works - regardless of the subject it is applied to. Mathematics, engineering, medicine, politics, spirituality, sport and art, etc, and so on. This is why humans conform to group activities - even group activities such as monasticism - where everyone believes they are on their own - requires a supportive mechanism that would mirror any normally functioning royal abode precisely! And here we are - at the end of stratification, somewhere in the middle of stratification - or nowhere near stratification! As for myself, I see reality from the inside - as it is happening at the root of unfolding - even though the limitation of human language makes this sound like a 'subjective' statement. Reality is a) out there, but b) I experience it through the continuous unfolding of perception. Removing fear and attachment changes the game. After-all, we manifest within a physical body that itself manifests within a physical world - which although 'real' - manifests within our perception! So, in answer to your question 'How do I see it?' - or something similar - in answer I must say that I do not see it in anyway at all - as this would fall into a false dichotomy - which is just too time consuming and energy sapping to generate, maintain and defend! Perception is spacious - that is all I know. If You make an in-depth study of the symbolism associated with the 'Yijing' - or 'Book of Changes' - you will develop an intuitive understanding and comprehension of these diagrams even if you cannot read the Chinese language script! The hexagrams, trigrams, yin-yang roundels and five phases ideology are all designed to convey deep and profound insight into the inner and outer state of a) existence and b) reality. In ancient China only around 10% of the population could read and write. This means that 90% could not understand the complex ideograms - but they could be trained to understand the symbolic language designed to present the highest understanding humanity in China had been able to develop at the time, whilst focusing the mind and directing the physical body. This symbolic acts very much like a modern computer language that transfers immense amounts of data from the mind of the teacher into the mind of the disciple! The 'Book of Change' itself - with its sixty-four hexagrams - acts very much like a 'random access memory' (RAM) which oddly enough, is one of the names used to describe 'god' in ancient Indian philosophy! Original Chinese Language Article:
https://www.wang1314.com/doc/topic-20941322-1.html Dear Alex I understand your question. Living in accordance with the ‘Dao’ (道) is an everyday Chinese characteristic which involves, diet, study, appreciation of nature, medicine, martial arts and even warfare if circumstances demand – despite everyone agreeing that ‘peace’ (安 - An) is far better than violence for human affairs! Just as the body must be brought into ‘line’ with nature on the outside (and on the inside) - so must the thought processes and emotional feelings, etc. Whereas ‘neidan’ (内丹) denotes a deliberate process of self-cultivation – some people simply surround themselves with Daoist-friendly objects, procedures, people and circumstance. Such a method might also include living in isolation in the hills so as to imbue the Dao of nature. Within married life, this involves primarily ‘shared’ experiences toward a common aim – which, of course, you are already engaged within. If you manage to align the mind and body correctly with the Dao of nature, then the Dao will manifest within the mind and body as a calm and expanded mind and healthy biological processes, etc. This is considered a very difficult path as it involves perfect ‘timing’ and exact ‘positioning’. Whereas ‘neidan’ is a matter of directed will-power, living within the Dao of nature is the exact opposite – where all contrived will-power must be given over to the functionality of ‘nature’. This is the way things have to be. It is not easy and is not always ‘nice’. Being indifferent to praise or blame is a matter fundamental ‘humility’. Virtue (德) needs to be explained. This is the ‘de’ found in the ‘Dao De Jing’ (道德经) - which is two-books combined into one volume – the ‘Dao Jing’ (Chapter 1-37) which explains the ‘Dao’ (Way) and the ‘De Jing’ (Chapters 38-81) which explain ‘De’ (or ‘Virtue’). What is ‘de’ (virtue)? Virtue (de2) is comprised of this ideogram ‘德’. The left-hand particle ‘彳’ (chi4) refers to two-feet walking slowly and carefully along a path and denotes a specific direction that must be taken. The lower right-hand particle is ‘心’ (xin1) which means ‘mind-heart’ and is used here, as the ‘foundation’ of the entire concept. The middle right-hand particle is ‘直’ (zhi2) which represents an ‘eye’ which ‘sees’ through ‘enhanced’ vision. The right-hand particle is a contraction of ‘十’ (shi2) literally meaning the number ‘ten’ and referring to the well-known idiom of the ‘ten directions.’ When all this is combined together, ‘virtue’ refers to a path that elevates the conscious awareness so that the practitioner can ‘see more.’ This ideogram is often thought to represent a tower the practitioner climbs – and that once the top is reached – a complete panorama of vision is attained! Therefore, a virtuous Daoist practitioner is one who disciplines his mind and body, directs his life in a certain direction, and reaps the benefit of such an existence through a superior ‘inner’ and ‘outer’ vision.
Many lack the ability of ‘looking within’ properly. Looking within is not half-heartedly attempting a method and then wandering away when problems are encountered, as there is no such thing as trouble-free Daoist self-cultivation! Trouble and difficulties represent ‘blocked’ energy that must be ‘dissolved’ through a superior quality of awareness. Breathing deeply and fully in and out of a body that is free of muscular tension allows the mind to ‘still’ and ‘expand’. This is the first position of attainment within Qianfeng Daoism and represents the levels of relative and full enlightenment as found within Chinese Ch’an Buddhism. The attainment of Buddhist Enlightenment is exactly where Qianfeng Daoist development begins. If you cannot gain this enlightenment, then you are not practicing within the Qianfeng School. If you mistakenly think that Buddhist enlightenment has nothing to do with Daoist practice, then you are not part of the Qianfeng School. Listen carefully – the attainment of what is called ‘enlightenment’ within the Chinese Buddhist schools is where Qianfeng practice begins! Realising enlightenment is not the end product within the Qianfeng School, but only the beginning. Simply going away to learn new movements out of boredom achieves nothing if profound awareness is not cultivated here and now! People can learn all kinds other beneficial Daoist activities – such as qigong and Taijiquan, etc - but sooner or later, we all have to ‘look within’ to find the inner stability described in all the ancient texts from virtually every tradition. Dressing, moving and speaking ‘like a Daoist’ changes nothing if the inner energy chemistry has not been ‘refined’, ‘strengthened’, ‘transformed’ and ‘directed’ through ‘awareness’ and ‘understanding’! Indeed, for years Richard Hunn (1949-2006) ‘refused’ to discuss Qianfeng Daoism with me, despite encouraging me to ‘ingest’ the deep and profound text of ‘Taoist Yoga’. At the time, this seemed an odd method compared to the Ch’an School – that was how I was limited at the time. Today, Master Zhao Ming Wang discusses Qianfeng Daoism with me all the time...
Genuine Daoism advocates an expansion of consciousness into the totality of nature – but avoids a collapse into ‘otherness’ worship – as there is no attachment to the connectedness or collectivity of existence. Furthermore, as Daoist training begins and ends with honesty and self-sufficiency, there is no descent into a morbid attachment to an inner subjectivity. Collectivism and individualism reflect and complete one another – with the practitioner ‘free’ to ‘move’ and ‘think’ in any of the ten directions. The practice of nei dan requires a momentary ‘turning away’ from the outside world, but this is not a permanent state. The true nature of the external world is discovered once a limited view of it is given-up, and this is attained by looking within. By looking into the conscious fabric of the universe – the true nature of the universe is fully comprehended and understood. A good teacher only points the way and he or she does this in a timely manner free of ulterior motives, sinister calculations or hidden agendas. Daoism is a tricky business if a practitioner becomes bogged down in terminology and the sophistry often associated with a lack of genuine practical experience. A pseudo-intellectualism designed to distract a practitioner from a ‘teacher’s’ lack of experience is often deployed nowadays, to keep the student ‘trapped’ in a teacher-student relationship that is premised upon dishonesty and the furtherance of delusion in the world of red dust. This attitude also extends to false students who are engaged in a purely intellectual exercise of ‘collecting’ as much ‘dead’ information as possible about an obscure subject, and battling with their fellow ‘collectors’ about who can dishonestly ‘extract’ the most genuine information from true teachers (preferably for ‘free’). This type of person crosses my path on a regular basis in the West. They collect their lists and pretend to be authorities upon Daoist practice – but as they do not practice and have not achieved any of the stages they think they know about, their words are empty of substance and yet full of ego, hatred and anger. This is what they really feel inside about their deceptive ways, and are depressed every time their lying works (after a brief but fleeting sense of false euphoria). A person with experience immediately knows when he or she meets another person who has experienced a similar set of awakenings – it is that simple. Pseudo-knowledge is always transcended by genuine practice and real experiences. This is why honesty (诚实 - Cheng Shi) is an important aspect of character development in the Daoist practitioner. Those with bad characters and hidden agenda are gently ‘ignored’ and no further instruction is granted. Only a heartfelt adopting of genuine respect will remedy this situation.
ACW - 釋大道 (6.9.2019) UK Qianfeng Sub-Branch of the 千峰先天派 (Qian Feng Xian Tian Pai) - Thousand Peaks Prenatal School (Beijing) |
AuthorAdrian Chan-Wyles (內丹 - Shi Da Dao) - Qianfeng Lineage: Zhao Bichen (1860-1942), Charles Luk (1898-1978) and Richard Hunn (1949-2006). Acknowledges Master Zhao Ming Wang (赵明旺) of Beijing as the ONLY Lineage Head of the Zhao Family Lineage of Qianfeng Daoism in China and the world. Archives
February 2024
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