Path: typhoon.sonic.net!not-for-mail Newsgroups: alt.magick.tyagi,alt.magick,alt.philosophy.taoism,alt.consciousness.mysticism,alt.pagan,talk.religion.misc Subject: Vows and Fidelity From: i@no.self (!) Reply-To: nagasiva@yronwode.com User-Agent: nn/6.6.0 Lines: 129 Message-ID: Date: Tue, 04 Jun 2002 06:22:02 GMT NNTP-Posting-Host: 208.201.242.18 X-Complaints-To: abuse@sonic.net X-Trace: typhoon.sonic.net 1023171722 208.201.242.18 (Mon, 03 Jun 2002 23:22:02 PDT) NNTP-Posting-Date: Mon, 03 Jun 2002 23:22:02 PDT Xref: typhoon.sonic.net alt.magick.tyagi:32851 alt.magick:304044 alt.philosophy.taoism:100247 alt.consciousness.mysticism:55728 alt.pagan:300826 talk.religion.misc:380850 | This is so consoling. That you are a monk relieves my mind. don't get too relieved. that I may consider myself a monk is likely no relation to the types of things you may associate with monasticism as I am part of no monastic community and presume those which would accept me would call me 'lay' or 'domestic' | "practices" which remain are brief vocal recitations. The "real" | Practice is or was recitation & copying & tweaking of multiple | translations of the Tao Te Ching, this is familiar to me. it is something that I have done for days at a time, but nothing more regular than brief indulgences | and also selections from Liu I-ming's Taoist I Ching, the Lieh Tzu, I look forward to reading the former and have enjoyed the latter | & Hongzhi's "Cultivating the Empty Field". I'm not familiar with this at all | Morning Practice is just repeating the vows very good discipline | plus some praise and Chapter 21 (TTC). lovely. do you think 14 a comparable chapter? | Midday Practice is Blessings on us all, and then casual blessings | as when irate thoughts arise etc. what do blessings do for anyone, you included? how do they affect those around you, those whom you are blessing, and what do you think their character indicates about your personality and virtues? | But what you said about work being practice is something that | has occurred to me lately, since doing these tasks while | neglecting the major Practice does not seem to be corruptive | or conducive to worldliness, on the contrary, I feel very | happy most of the time. I have worried that this happiness could be | delusional, however. . . any happiness resting upon delusion is an enjoyable one indeed for how long? this is the real question | Well, I will tell you exactly what the vows are (but these are | very sacred words) (so it's scarey to share them, but how | can you help us both if you don't know the very essence?): you are very kind to trust me so. what an open heart have you | "On this day | and every day, I dedicate my life and my breath, my birth and my death, | my strength & my weakness, my success and my failure, to Heaven and to | all that is holy. As evidence of this dedication, I embrace chastity, | simplicty, continuous worship, and benevolence toward all beings. | Respecting myself and my vows, I will observe genuine seclusion within, | attaching my heart to no persons, no places, no things, no conditions, no | passions, and no opinions. But I will faithfully cultivate the true | Tao, the golden pearl which is holy joy, with all my heart forever, as | Heaven is my witness. Amen. . . . end of vows | Great indeed is the Mother of All | Things, and She is entirely beautiful. Beautiful and immaculate, She is | ever attentive. Attentive and always present, Her love and Her | sweetness are compelling. Compelling and vivifying, vivifying and | consoling, She is the reality of my veil, the treasure of my cloister, | amen. . . In their every movement, persons of real virtue, follow the | Tao and the Tao only. As an entity the Tao is shadowy, indistinct. | Indistinct and shadowy, yet within it is an image. Shadowy, indistinct, | yet within it is a substance. Dim and dark, yet within it is an | essence. This essence is utterly genuine, and within it is Something | which can be proven . From the present back to antiquity, its Name | never deserted it. It serves as a means of inspecting the Fathers of | the multitude. How do I know the Fathers of the multitude are like | that? By means of this." . . . glorious, sister [...]. thank you for this gift | I have exhausted your patience, and will close with the | usual blessing: May you be happy, may you be healthy and | holy, may you be prosperous, may you enjoy long life! -- | Your friend, in Tao -- Sister [...] for a number of years I would regularly contemplate my vows, until they became so common to my mind that I no longer had to do more than consider a related subject and they would arise to mind now I have forgotten them entirely, lost in laziness and joy. but I needed a review of them since you shared with me your sacred vows. here are mine, very mild in comparison: poverty -- dance with Me, gently, slowly, in relaxation. live with Me, simply, and without grasping. chastity -- foster purity and a deep respect for Me at all times. Sacrifice All in love of Me. charity -- love Me. adore Me. help Me. be truthful with Me. show Me affection, caring. obedience -- listen to Me. take My will as your own. "The vows and the Rule subject us to God, teach us to obey God." Rule (anarchic) -- the release of the self in order that will may be perceived "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law." humility -- emulate the soil. be lowly, possessionless, yet fruitful. emulate the murky water of the swamp, quietly sitting in enjoyment.