Tao
From SourceryForge
Tao (Dao) is the name given to the symbol of Taoism, but it also refers to a very broad philosophical notion.
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Tao is...
Tao has been thought to mean:
- Nature
- Reality
- Cosmic (mystical Tao)
- Union of Good and Evil
- The Absolute (compare: God)
- The First cause (compare: Prima materia from Alchemy)
- Some form of Nonduality (Advaita) or the opposite of Dualism, compare with Advaita Vedanta
- Chi or some form of Energy. (Esoteric Tao). Related: Esoteric Taoism.
The literal translation from the Chinese means "way" or "path." To talk about the tao of this or the tao of that is not particularly inaccurate, though certainly cliche. For the Chinese, there are many Taos. Taoism is only one of many paths.
What Tao really is
Tao is everything. Everything is Tao. Tao is nothing. Nothing is Tao. But above all else, Tao is a name. A word or name which we apply to anything is not the thing in ipso, but only a verbal representation of that thing. As the famous Buddhist teaching says, it is only a finger pointing to the Moon. The "Tao" we describe cannot fully be described.
Lao Tzu says that the way that can be discussed is (by definition) not the true way. Everything we say, do, or think, is one action or product of our lives, which are in turn only a few of the infinite processes of the underlying reality, Tao. What is Tao? Tao is all around you. It is inside you. There is nothing that is not Tao, but Tao can never be summed up or examined. If you understand it as the Way, the Source, or Reality, you can understand part of Tao, but you will not have apprehended it fully. Any attempt to quantify Tao, to examine it, define it, and understand it, will never be 100% successful, because all those actions are part of Tao.
Consider the concept of taiji (the yin yang diagram). Taiji represents duality; however, the duality is only apparent. In truth, yin and yang are both part of Tao, and the difference only arises from our minds. In truth there is no good or evil; but good and evil exist. They do not exist, and yet they do. Logical paradox and confusion are inevitable when considering the Tao. For logic and nonsense are another duality, but they arise from the same source: Tao. Action and thought, internal and external, matter and energy, light and dark these only exist because of Tao. Fundamentally they are the same; fundamentally, a mountain and the river are one. But there is snow on the mountain and fish in the river. Where is the Source?
Is Zen a form of Tao?
Zen Buddhism originated in China as Ch'an; the Japanese, when they acquired this, translated it as Zen. While Taoism combined with Buddhism to become Zen Buddhism, Zen has acquired meanings all its own.
Tao or Dao?
The correct pronounciation sounds, to Western ears, a lot like "Dao." Chinese is a very different language from English, and no transliteration will capture the exact nuances of the Chinese word; "Tao" is an older transliteration, and most people still use it for convenience, as it is well-understood by the greatest number of people.
