Antedating all formulations, Taoism is associated with a recondite realm of the mind where the customary divisions of thought do not exist. Taoism recognizes the potential of humanity to acquire extraordinary powers and modes of perception. The dilemma concerning the individual and collective benefit or harm deriving from the exercise of such possibilities leads some practitioners to subordinate everything they do to the quest for permanent stabilization of consciousness, namely the purification and deautomatization of the mind so as to make it sensitive to reality. To this end a practice of central importance is that of "balancing yin and yang", through which unconditioned energy is gathered. One method of doing so, in the case of the individual, is through the practice of alchemical procedures. A closely related method, traditionally used in the governance of any collectivity, is that associated with the I Ching. In such cases, practitioners commonly practice quiet, meditative sitting as an aid to development of their understanding. This may involve meditative exercises such as the "waterwheel exercise". Some traditions also practice a form of sexual yoga (the twin cultivation of yin and yang), considered as complementary to meditation. Taoism recognizes that no practice, including the stillness produced by concentration, is necessarily sufficient to break through the boundaries of psychological conditioning and may only hold it in temporary abeyance. In particular altered states produced during such exercises are viewed as "phantom elixir" in that they vanish with time. The art that is cultivated is that of blending and transcending the elements of duality, notably stillness and movement, in order to unite the celestial and mundane within humanity.
Tao is literally the [path]
or [way]
, in Japanese [michi]
, and in many ways equivalent to the Buddhist [dharma]
. Tao is also ultimate reality, the unity underlying plurality. It is the motive of all movements, the mother of all substance. Its nature or virtue is referred to as [teh]
, harmony or strength, whose presence indicates health and strength of the body and harmonious relations with all. With [Tao]
as the source and natural way of things at all levels, from the physical to the spiritual, Taoism sees all misfortune as deriving from separation from this source and deviation from this way. Returning to the source means the cultivation of simplicity, and becoming child-like by mortification of the will, by recollection and meditation. Only by obedience and study can spontaneous, "unstudied" action - [wu wei]
- truly arise, as naturally as water finds its own level. Although deliberate right choice and obedience to ethical codes have merit, they are very much "second best". Unitive knowledge of Tao - the ground and the logos - is true charity, achieved at the spiritual level by means of morality and kindness. Enlightenment - [ming]
- arises when the truth of the return of all things to the Tao as a universal law is known and experienced. Such understanding cannot come from learning or intellectual reasoning but only through realization within one's self of unity with Tao and its emptiness.
Basic to the principle of Taoism is the relativity of attributes - there is no ultimate attribute, a thing is only long in comparison with something which is shorter and which has been taken as standard. Such a standard cannot be absolute or objective although it may be thought of as such. In Tao, opposites are blended and contrasts harmonized.
Despite this description, Tao is in fact said to be the wordless doctrine, being beyond words, which are irrelevant to the deep experience Tao brings. The Tao that can be expressed is not the Tao. This may perhaps be compared with the mystical [nada sound]
of Hinduism, that which brought creation into existence, unhearable, unpronounceable, of which the audible manifestation is [Om]
. One does not worship the Tao, one harmonizes with it. All forms and names, all external characterizations are simply mental gymnastics. It is through silence and nothingness that Tao is approached, not only no speech but no thoughts and no reflections, simply "resting in nothingness". One returns to the Tao, the source of all, by letting go of everything else.
Taoism uses many media of expression, of which many are recognized has having degenerated over time, obscuring any underlying link which may have existed between them. These forms of expression, doctrine and praxis continue to evolve and adapt in response to contemporary needs. Central to Taoist understanding is the statement: A path that can be verbalized is not a permanent path; terminology that can be designated is not a permanent terminology. Some authors identify 3,600 practices in Taoism. Others repudiate all such formal practices as "sidetracks" which merely hint at the metaphysical nature of Tao and confirm the contention that truth is formless. Most didactic devices employed by Taoism can therefore be interpreted in different ways. No standard scheme is universally applied. This apparent confusion follows directly from the fact that Taoism endeavours to deal with the process of formalization as it assists and restricts human development.
