I am a Taoist for 40 years now (not a religion). Cults use religion as a tool. Stalin created a cult of personality with fear as his main enforcement/control tool.
I am a Taoist for 40 years now (not a religion). Cults use religion as a tool. Stalin created a cult of personality with fear as his main enforcement/control tool.
I won't claim to be a Taoist, but while I've often had difficulty reading the Tao Te Ching, I remember that in the poleaxed days following 9/11 it was the only thing that seemed not a complete waste of time to read.
Get and read Allan Watts books. He makes it understandable to English speakers. Get the Jane English translation of the Tao Te Ching. This philosophy has inspired me for decades. It is also had a heavy influence in my recent book of poems, “Journeys into the Red Zone”.
I've read quite a bit of Alan Watts, and I agree. Fascinating person, full of contradictions, and always thought-provoking. I got that Jane English Tao Te Ching back in the mid-1970s, and a few years ago got a newer printing of it that's in a smaller format. Ursula Le Guin published a rendering of it from translation which also seems interesting.
I am a Taoist for 40 years now (not a religion). Cults use religion as a tool. Stalin created a cult of personality with fear as his main enforcement/control tool.
I won't claim to be a Taoist, but while I've often had difficulty reading the Tao Te Ching, I remember that in the poleaxed days following 9/11 it was the only thing that seemed not a complete waste of time to read.
Get and read Allan Watts books. He makes it understandable to English speakers. Get the Jane English translation of the Tao Te Ching. This philosophy has inspired me for decades. It is also had a heavy influence in my recent book of poems, “Journeys into the Red Zone”.
I've read quite a bit of Alan Watts, and I agree. Fascinating person, full of contradictions, and always thought-provoking. I got that Jane English Tao Te Ching back in the mid-1970s, and a few years ago got a newer printing of it that's in a smaller format. Ursula Le Guin published a rendering of it from translation which also seems interesting.
"So many ways, to get a lift
So many ways to get your, head unzipped."
- Mark Sandman