tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-116958972024-03-07T19:28:20.000+00:00A touch of Ancients, Buddhas, Immortals and ZhouyiAllanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.comBlogger636125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-14541327126804879922015-06-23T06:23:00.001+01:002015-06-23T06:23:55.339+01:00Who will save me?In Spring 2014, Daoist celestial immortal, Wong Tai Sin gave me a poem by way of a qin when I paid a visit to his popular temple in HK. The poem turned out to be an ominous omen:
“Clouds envelop Qinling Mountain and I do not know where my home is.
The snow covers Languan Pass and the horses will go no further.”
It was the same prophetic poem given by Han Xiangzi to Han Yu, his uncle which Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-80643744315095621632015-02-09T06:08:00.000+00:002015-02-09T06:08:41.143+00:00A similar air disaster?Regular readers especially Malaysians are advised not to fly north to Beijing or to any other countries in between Malaysia and China from the month of March onwards to the first week of May, 2015.
Ample time is given for regular readers to reschedule their holidays or business trips to these countries, if they do not wish to tempt fate.
Similar to the missing MH 370, the flight could also Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-1734749009725441422015-01-23T18:19:00.000+00:002015-01-23T18:19:13.480+00:00Guard ammunition dumps!According to an omen from the Book of Changes, a religious fervor group is planning something bold and daring that could shock the world and its financial markets.
If my interpretation of the omen is accurate, the first part of their plan is to raid ammunition dumps for munitions – rockets, missiles, guns and ammo – before carrying out the second part which is to kill innocents in another area Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-35949390344471070792015-01-09T10:51:00.000+00:002015-01-09T10:51:29.154+00:00Potpourri of updates1) Readership
While readers from the US still dominate the readership of the blog for most months of the year, the Russians came up top followed by the Ukrainians in the months of September and October 2014 showing particular interests on subjects of the duality concept, neidan (inner alchemy), and a study of the ancient Way (Tao).
For the past two weeks, the French has surprisingly toppedAllanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-27689344375107962014-12-26T09:12:00.000+00:002014-12-26T09:12:42.148+00:00A study of the ancient Way (Tao) – Accumulate virtue, increase meritsIn Tao Te Ching Chapter 79, Laozi said:
The Way of Heaven is impartial; it is always on the side of the good.
Having Heaven on your side indicates that you are a right person for Tao and will receive its blessings. With Heaven on your side, you count amongst the central, correct, and the blessed. (Refer to the Book of Changes.)
If students of the Way ever wondered how to become good Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-28552346668615082822014-10-20T21:18:00.000+01:002014-10-20T21:18:51.053+01:00A study of the ancient Way (Tao) – Circulation of the LightMeditation is popular because it can help reduce stress and provides some health benefits. The Confucians have their own type of meditation, so do the Chan Buddhists and many others in the world. To avoid frivolous claims, instead of titling this article, meditation or ancient meditation, it is titled Circulation of the Light since Guan Yinshi – the person whom Laozi wrote the Tao Te ChingAllanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-66887739888551034202014-09-16T21:48:00.000+01:002014-09-16T21:59:28.792+01:00A study of the ancient Way (Tao) – The studiesIf Yijing aficionados put on their thinking cap for a while; they would realized that the holy sages who wrote the Book of Changes and the three great ancient sages – Laozi, Confucius, and the Buddha - were incredibly wise. If intended neidan (inner alchemy) practitioners have the affinity to consult Daoist celestial immortals; they would also find these divinities extremely wise.
The Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-6112826862076445822014-08-11T11:28:00.000+01:002014-08-11T11:28:34.219+01:00A study of the ancient Way (Tao) - NeidanWhat is Neidan? Neidan (Inner Alchemy) is a generic term commonly used in the West to differentiate it from that of Waidan (Outer Alchemy).
Waidan was practised over the span of a few centuries in China by the ignorant and the foolish who misunderstood the metaphors - especially of the furnace, of the cauldron, of the medicine and the cooking of it - written in earlier Daoist texts by Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-80673531721299559992014-08-02T12:12:00.000+01:002014-08-02T12:12:15.557+01:00A study of the ancient Way (Tao)Tao is a very profound subject to know and few down the ages have shown the wherewithal to write a complete study of the Way. For without a deep working knowledge of the Book of Changes, and of the Tao Te Ching, a study of the Way would just contain a lot of bias and misinformation leading to unnecessary hindrances to its cultivation.
This intended comprehensive study of the ancient Way (Tao)Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-25276503193878273102014-07-02T19:26:00.000+01:002014-07-02T19:26:44.695+01:00Hexagram 47.3 Oppressed by stoneIn Hexagram 47 Kun / Oppression, the lake is above, water below; the lake is empty, dried up. The upper trigram belongs to the principle of darkness, the lower to the principle of light. Thus everywhere superior men are oppressed and held in restraint by inferior men.
Six in the third place means:
A man permits himself to be oppressed by stone, and leans on thorns and thistles. He Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-9359289121673797972014-06-10T11:23:00.001+01:002014-06-10T11:23:58.287+01:00Creating our own luck (2)Many street smart retail investors will have heard about the conventional wisdom of buying low and selling high and would try hard to achieve that. Yet most of them fail to do so because of various factors that affect their decisions.
In the main, emotions and greed will hamper their ability and decision to buy low and/or to sell high. Another important factor is that of timing cum tradeAllanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-29674973519547972022014-05-16T22:56:00.000+01:002014-05-16T22:56:31.185+01:00Of students and masters (15) – Space between thoughts “In order to clearly experience this state devoid of all thoughts, it is necessary to practice and recognize the space between thoughts. Then you have to practice for weeks, months, and years to be familiar with the empty clarity of mind."
[Lopön Tenzin Namdak RInpoche - (extracts) commentary from The Three Precepts: From the Oral Transmission of the Great Perfection in Zhangzhung transl. Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-20224205901402842152014-04-11T23:28:00.000+01:002014-04-12T06:50:43.617+01:00Creating our own luckHaving received a fortunate prognostication from the Book of Changes in 2012 for my annual hexagram, I did not consult the Yijing again for my fortune for years 2013 and 2014.
In line with the guidance from the accurate Guan Yin Oracle obtained end August 2011, and forearmed with the experiential knowledge of when Yijing omens would come to an end – thus allowing me to ignore the then constant Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-31285417341538786102014-03-14T06:12:00.000+00:002014-03-14T06:30:58.370+00:00Note on Hexagram 24 Fu / Return (2)Last month’s note on Hexagram 24 Fu / Return would be incomplete if we do not take into account of the Commentary on the Decision – first and second Wings - by Confucius. Anyone who wants to become a top scholar of Tao worth their salt has to read the Book of Changes and the Ten Wings otherwise their progress in the dual cultivation of Human Nature (Xing) and Fate (Ming) could remain rather Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-1758672769943633852014-02-18T20:39:00.000+00:002014-02-18T20:39:06.940+00:00Note on Hexagram 24 Fu / ReturnOn May 1, 2006 I have provided simple notes on Hexagram 24 Fu / Return and since regular readers could be a bit more familiar with the Circulation of the Light and the Book of Changes (I Ching / Yijing) what with the several articles written on the subject matter and of neidan (inner alchemy) over the years, it could be the right time to delve deeper into the meaning of its Judgment.
The Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-51459022908705064212014-01-18T20:59:00.000+00:002014-01-18T20:59:43.936+00:00Circulation of the Light and Hui Ming ChingHui Ming Ching or the Book of Consciousness and Life is a short Buddhist text written by Liu HuaYang, a Chan Buddhist. It is said that Liu started off as a Confucian scholar before he became a Chan Buddhist and subsequently ended up as a Daoist; therefore he could be more familiar than most with the Three Doctrines - Daoist, Confucian, and Buddhist. Liu co-founded Wu-Liu Pai with his Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-84988100041294620252013-12-16T07:18:00.000+00:002013-12-16T07:18:57.120+00:00Of students and masters (14)Over at the Taobums, of which I am no longer a member for about a year now, there are some interesting ongoing discussions on neidan (inner alchemy) and its related meditation.
A proponent - who claims to be a master of a new ‘Daoist’ sect – advocates sitting meditation (Dazou) which leads to enlightenment while his opponent – who claims to be a student of a Wuliupai teacher in China – suggests Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-69167549608619912022013-11-07T22:48:00.000+00:002013-11-18T08:18:38.640+00:00Circulation of the Light and Zah Yung ChingThe Zah Yung Ching or Classic of the Directory for a Day is the simplest and shortest of the translated Daoist texts made available on the Web. It contains only three stages for cultivators to return to Tao. While it is easy and simple to understand, without the necessary accompanying experience, few would actually know what the neidan (inner alchemy) processes - indicated therein - Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-30180540415699436862013-10-14T23:07:00.000+01:002013-10-14T23:07:13.045+01:00That great light from Heaven (3)Generations of Chinese sages, the wise, and the learned have had studied the Book of Changes (I Ching / Yijing) - down the few millennia of its existence - because the ancient classic is profound and contains much wisdom on human nature and fate, and on the cosmos. Their experiential and wise commentary - collectively known as the Ten Wings - on the Zhou Book of Changes (Zhouyi) also provide aAllanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-23381025102930112552013-09-08T23:12:00.000+01:002013-09-08T23:20:39.143+01:00Circulation of the Light and Tao Te Ching (3) – Use this lightScholars, sinologists, and translators who can read classical Chinese often try to figure out the meanings of what Laozi had wanted to say in the Tao Te Ching. It is good of the able – if they are so capable - to also translate this ancient Chinese classic into other languages for others to enjoy and read.
Since the Tao Te Ching is acknowledged as profound, what with generations of eminent Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-21473585671401206082013-08-04T10:18:00.000+01:002013-08-04T10:18:32.524+01:00Circulation of the Light and Tao Te Ching (2A) – Mysterious Gate(s)Tao Te Ching Chapter One
The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao,
The name that can be named is not the eternal name.
Nameless is the beginning of heaven and earth;
Named is the mother of myriad things.
Without desire observe the mysterious,
With desire contemplate the manifestations.
These two things are similar,
Only differing names for the profound.
Obscure and profound; (Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-39491430556904327162013-07-25T23:11:00.000+01:002013-07-25T23:11:58.429+01:00Circulation of the Light and Tao Te Ching (2) – Mysterious Gate(s) – (A)Of the tens of millions down the ages who have had read the Tao Te Ching or have heard of Tao, it could be fair to say that less than half would aspire to be scholars by trying to cultivate the Way. Of those who cultivate Tao, both the philosophical and mediocre scholars - those who tend to waver in their beliefs – would form the majority of these aspirants and who would either make little Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-34505994392429595642013-07-11T13:19:00.000+01:002013-07-11T13:19:18.573+01:00Circulation of the Light and Tao Te ChingTao is so vast and yet can also be so minute that it is beyond the intellect. However, since Tao is easy to know, readers of the Tao Te Ching down the ages – probably numbering in the tens of millions by now – could have had learned something from this ancient classic.
Per the Records of the Han Grand Historian, the Tao Te Ching is said to be written by Laozi more than 2,500 years ago Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-5718018103605878172013-06-20T10:02:00.000+01:002013-06-20T10:02:50.954+01:00That great light from Heaven (2)With our recent discussions on the Circulation of the Light, some Yijing aficionados may feel neglected since they think that the particular topic has no relevance with the studies of the Book of Changes.
Let me assure all readers that the Light has everything to do with the ancient Book of Changes; Heaven, Man, and Earth.
Similar to an omen, this Light is a phenomenon. And it could beAllanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695897.post-48173263067200702142013-06-07T20:37:00.000+01:002013-06-07T20:37:50.540+01:00Circulation of the Light and ZhuangziSeveral Daoist texts discuss the ancient practice of the Circulation of the Light and/or its confirmation signs. However, not many readers including translators of these ancient Chinese texts and scholars of Ancient Chinese Philosophy happened or would tend to see it that way. In line with the Tao Te Ching these readers are not alone; because since ancient times - upon hearing of Tao - Allanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07672893661330071037noreply@blogger.com0