Water in Taoism: No. 5

In Taoism, it teaches that “the spirit of the valley never dies”.  The valley is where water is born, and where it starts to flow as a river.  That is the place where fresh water wells up, and the water at the valley is full of life energy.

The rich topographical variety produces numerous valleys in Japan.  Tao says, the valleys will never dry out, and are eternal.

I have produced my work in the water which comes from the valleys.  I am 70 years old now, and full of energy.  I am positive that it is because I have absorbed the energies at the valleys for lat 35 years.

You may need to release tension from being in the city, sort out tangled emotions, look for a leading light, or get back your tenderness.  Those can be possible simply by walking by the river, drinking tea by the river while you listen to the sound of the water, or playing with water which will balance your feeling inside of your mind.

The valley is a place where all the life force is born.  Therefore, it will never die.  Moreover, it promises for the eternal life. 

Please go out to look for the water from the valley.

Water in Taoism: No. 4

The movements of Tao is invisible, however, do exist. They never stop, and are eternal.  They keep changing, for sure. 

Somewhere on the earth, something keeps welling up.  We cannot grasp the thing.  However, my guess is that the unknown is water.

The amount of the water stays the same since 3.5 billion years ago.  Water has kept moving, and interacted with all the substances.  The interactions have made the nature transformed.  Depending on the circumstances, water changes its form from liquid, gas, to the solid.  It influences the substances from inside.  This movement is the nature of water.

For humans, living means moving and changing, as well.  By walking, our stamina will circulate throughout the body.  At the same time, it produces a vibration which turns on the energy that is essential for living.  By moving, our bodies can sweat from the core.  The water turns into vapor, and vanish into the air from whole body.  Then, bodies require to rehydrate with fresh water.

“Wow… the water taste so good, and my body is so refreshed!”  This is the movement of Tao.  So, why don’t you move water inside of your body?

Water in Taoism: No. 3

Movements of Tao are natural and bear no intention.  The natural forth which exists as it is, is the most powerful.  Human tend to move with intentions and reform what exist in nature.

Water has exists on the earth for last 35 billion years and never stopped to move.  When it flows, water knows the easiest and convenient way.  When it is steep, for example, water flows with speed.  When it crosses a field, it flows even relaxed way.

The flow of water is nature itself.  However, humans build riverbanks so that the water flows straight for their convenience.  As a result, humans have to fight with nature.  Under those circumstances, the power of water is beyond human’s imagination, and destroys artifacts. 

If a river is campshed by humans, precipitations in the mountains flow into a river and reach to the sea within 3 days.  I wonder if there is more effective way to protect a riverbank so that it flows more slowly so that the earth can absorb more water. 

When the earth is nourished with the water, it leads to nurture animals, plants, and all other living being, I believe.

The untouched nature has the best power and knows what is effective.  Therefore, if the water is let flow as it wants, it shows the best consequences.  The water has a desire to nurture all beings, while it flows slowly and be absorbed deep in the earth.

Water in Taoism: No. 2

Water nurtures all living things.  Where the water is, the place is full of water’s power to make all the things alive with its best efforts.  Whether it is an insect or a plant, water gives power to the creatures to stay alive.  That is water’s pleasure.

Moreover, water flows to the lowest with its own will.  Water keeps itself alive by moving and flowing.  Dust and garbage tend to accumulate at lower places, but water is willing to flow into there.  It stays there for a while, and starts moving again to lower and lower until the lowest.  Then it reaches to the lowest place on the earth, sea, where the water has a relax time with others. 

That is the water’s desire.  Therefore, we have to maintain the environment in a good shape so that water can flow with ease.  Water circulates between earth and sky while purifying this planet.  The earth is the place where all living things get together and water prays that this planet will exist forever.  For the purpose, water transforms itself into other forms so that it can hydrates and purify the earth.

This is the desire of water.  In this way, Tao explains that water’s power is same as its role.  When I speak for water, these are pleasure, desire, and pray of water.

Water in Taoism: No. 1

In Tao* scriptures, it reads “closest being to Tao is heaven and earth, and closest movement to Tao is water.

How Tao treats water?  First, it is explained as noncompetitive.  In other words, it does not compete with anything.  It accepts everything, and emerges into objects.  Yet, it does not lose its identity.

If a person applies this way of life to this real world, one is regarded as a looser, and people would blame one’s naïveness.  However, is it really so?

Since individual statements are so prevailed in the society, a person can stand alone and does not loose one’s identity even one is mingling with others; even then, the one is still sure which way one should go.  If the person can recognize it as a noble way of thinking, one is a person of Tao.

A person of Tao is flexible and soft.  Therefore one cannot easily be toned apart, never gives up and makes steady efforts to achieve the will.  Water is guardian for the freedom, tolerance, and purification.

*Tao: One of the Chinese philosophical traditions. Please refer to Tao (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taoism)