To be a Taoist means many things to many people. To be a practitioner of Contemporary Taoism simply means to have realised that we are all minute parts of an indescribably large Whole (the Tao), and to choose therefore to 'Flow Like Water' and live in a spontaneous, natural manner. This blog is about: Personal Growth / Spiritual Development as guided by the principles of Eastern Philosophy, particularly modern philosophical Taoism; Developing constructive habits and achieving success with minimal effort; Meditation - Taoist, Zen or otherwise. See 'What In Lao Tzu's Name is a Contemporary Taoist?'

Tuesday, April 04, 2006

The Tao of Increasing Strength

Happy to report that I did rise at 5am and get to it with the meditation/Chi Gung and exercise (jogging, push ups, sit ups). And it felt great.

Just so as not to give the impression that I am (always) one of those freakishly disciplined people that most of us can only aspire to being like, I must point out that if you were to go over my past you would find many many more periods of my life where I was more inclined to self-medicate myself into a coma, and then stay asleep until late into the morning. Thankfully this is becoming less of a lasting pattern in my life, and indeed I am currently going through a very strong patch self-discipline-wise. I have every intention of remaining in this state.

I am actually working through the program suggested by Jost Sauer in his brilliant book ‘Higher and Higher’. I suggest you read it, especially if, like me, you have struggled (or still do) with substance abuse issues. It is a Chinese Medical/Philosophy take on the issue and is based on his own experiences as a drug addict, and subsequent recovery. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

During my morning’s Chi Gung meditation I enjoyed very vivid ‘Chi-Scenery’, that is I very clearly saw the movement and permeations of the primordial energy with my mind’s eye. This is because I have been off the booze, etc for over two weeks and practicing Chi Gung every day. Clarity – it is a sweet, sweet thing. Here's to the (very bearable and pleasant) Lightness of Being.

I did a ‘general guidance’ I Ching reading this morning and received 34 Da Zhuang – The Power of the Great, Increasing Strength, with a changing Hexagram of 14 Da You – Abundance. Sweet! Now I must go and get to work taking advantage of what is obviously a great day for me in terms of strong energy and plentiful opportunity.

Oh, and Australians, look out for the April edition of Living Now Magazine, as I have an article in it called 'The Science of Meditation'. The (paper) magazine is available in QLD, NSW, VIC and WA. I will most likely see to it that this article (in its newly edited form) is available online when the month is up.

Flow Like Water...

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