I’ve read from a daily reader by Deng Ming-Dao called 365 Tao faithfully since it was first published in 1992. I must be on my third copy now. After about a decade the books just fall to pieces. This particular book has brought me a lot of comfort and joy. The daily passages have been a constant reminder to keep my mind open to the mysteries and synchronicities of life.
My daily reader rotation has been fine-tuned these last few years and is as follows: 1.) Spiritual Diary by Paramahansa Yogananda; 2.) 365 Tao; and 3.) The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday. I’ve found this trifecta of books pretty much covers all of the spiritual, esoteric, and practical bases that helped me navigate the heydays, the hard days, and everything in between.
There’s something special to me about each of these books but 365 Tao has a way of speaking to my inner child in a way nothing else does. I’d go as far as to say that at nearly 55 years of living it’s kept that inner child alive. It’s also been a gentle reminder to follow my gut instincts. The passages spark the same feelings that a good poem, engaging work of literature, or inspirational piece of art does. Parting the veil to reveal an intelligent universe that seems to be working in conjunction with our intentions instead of against them. Some days the passages are so eerily relevant to what I’m going through they give me goosebumps and other days they offer answers to questions I didn’t even know I had.
So many of us speak of how different the world is now after 2020, I know I’ve done my fair share of writing about it. The post pandemic world seems to be one of a completely different frequency than the world before it—lonelier, less fun, more harshly divided.
Yesterday, March 11th, the passage in 365 Tao read as follows:
Independence
A solitary crane
In winter snow
Needs no jewels.
A single crane standing unconcerned in the falling snow is the very image of independence. It needs no one, it is secure in its environment, and it is capable of going through life alone. Its independence stems from self-sufficiency.
It needs no clothing, no building, no wealth, no status. It is content, even glorious in its naked identity. So too with ourselves: There is no need for dazzling clothes, an impressive career, an awesome temple, nor a bejeweled master. What we want is something far beyond such externals.
What facets of your personality are encumbrances? What personal aspects prevent you from being independent? These are the areas that will define your self-cultivation, for you must strive to stand alone. This doesn't mean that you won't ever join with others, but you will do so as an individual who will cooperate just as much as is necessary. In this way, you will never be lost in a group, and you will never fear being alone.
(Passage from 365 Tao.)
That seemed to speak to my soul in a way that only a message delivered in the right time and at the right place could. It's a reminder that deep down inside buried under all the anxieties, fears, and misunderstandings we're whole and complete.
Then this gem from Timothy Leary came across one of my other social media feeds and stitched it all together. We can all agree that the pandemic severed vital human connections that have never truly healed. Those months and years of seclusion and fear made us become far too cautious of one another.
We desperately need to open ourselves back up again, to stop looking at strangers with skepticism but with genuine interest and as prospects for opening up doors to other ideas and new perspectives. It's time to shake off the worst case scenarios, to make peace with ourselves and the past, reclaim our power, and find each other once again.
All for now. Thanks so much for reading.
I love the passage from 365 Tao. I do see myself in that, and I don't. Owning stuff has never been an issue with me. I don't become attached to things, or care about them much, unless they remind me of a person (like my mother) who is gone. However, I am very attached to those I love. Probably more than most people. I don't see myself so much as a single unit but as part of my family.
As for Leary's recommendation to reach out and have a conversation: I do that compulsively. I strike up a conversation with just about anyone. Sometimes that is a disquieting experience.
By the way, I'm enjoying your book. It is relatable. So much of what you write about has resonance with me. I see you on a path, well along in life, coming to realizations. There is commons sense, and yet profound insight in some of them. I read them before I go to sleep--not every night, but most nights.
That book makes a good bedside companion. Actually, as I write these words I think that will definitely be in my review.
I swear each passage is this deep, or deeper. If I had to choose just one daily reader it would probably be this one but the other two provide some balance. I used to be such an introvert when I was younger but the older I get the more I've become like my father, he didn't have a shy bone in his body and would talk to anyone. IMO life is better this way.
I'm glad you're enjoying the book and it's relatable. So much has changed for me in these past few years since I began writing full-time. It was something I worked towards for so many decades. Sometimes I feel a little melancholy for those early years but I wouldn't want to go back to swimming in all that uncertainty. I really appreciate you writing that review. I think you'll be my first for that book! Sales for this one weren't what I expected. I hope you enjoy the weekend. We have a pretty major snowstorm that's supposed to descend on us in a few hours—anywhere from 12" to 31". I really hope they're wrong.
Very beautiful image and interesting reflection, Eric. Without a doubt, the post-pandemic world is different, because we have changed. Precisely, on a day like today, March 13, in the year 2020 we were confined. I don't have a daily reader, but I remembered that for many years I liked to consult the I Ching from time to time. I am amazed at the ability that Asians have to say so much in so few words. Hugs
Thank you, Nancy. It's funny you mention 3/13. I noticed in Facebook Memories last week—I think on Wednesday—that it was anniversary of the beginning of the Covid lockdowns for us. I keep a copy of the I-Ching too! I read it years ago and have kept it on my bookshelf. This 365 Tao is profound in the same ways the I-Ching is...almost otherworldly. Hugs to you and I hope you enjoy your weekend. We have up to 3 feet of snow coming for us in the next 24 hours. Hopefully this will be the last major snowstorm of the season.
I have daily reader that I got a long time ago when I was younger. It's called "My Utmost for His Highest". It has been around for a long time, but a lot of pastors reference it. I haven't looked at it in a long time, but I might have to go back to it at some point.
Oh cool! I notice my days are genuinely better when I keep to my schedule of reading from these books.
Interesting, I don't have a daily reader. I guess for me it is daily conversations with my wife that play that role...
That's so lovely. 💕
Very nice! Whatever helps is what counts!
Being open is so important. I have a naturally open personality and a refusal to let the world close me down. Perhaps that's partly why we stay on Hive - we allow vulnerability in our writing and find ourselves connected to others.
I think I try harder to connect to people now as an act of resistance. It's hard as I'm reasonably introverted (with a facade of confidence that saps energy and frazzles my nervous system) but it's like I feel I need to be an example of what human beings should be, I don't know, I'm not saying it well. Like I want people I meet to then go and smile at the next person because they've just been smiled at, you know?
That book sounds perfect. I used to love Rumi for this, and lately this one:
https://www.amazon.com.au/Radiance-Sutras-Gateways-Wonder-Delight/dp/1604076593
The power of little reflections!
For sure. Remaining open is the key to keeping that connection with our inner child. The minute we become bitter and closed off that inner child walks away from us. Hive is very much that for me. It's a place of comfort where I, to a greater or lessor degree depending on engagement, feel heard—kind of the antithesis of other SM platforms.
I'm glad you still engage and connect face-to-face. It's so very important to make eye contact, smile, and speak, even if it's just a hello. There are a lot of lonely people out there. That short point of contact might make all the difference to them. Isn't it amazing when you can shift a person's energy for the better? Sometimes a genuine compliment will do that too, just totally shift their energy.
The book is just a really good fit for me, I connect with it because it's so poetic I think. I LOVE Rumi.
You are a person who loves reading. It's not everyone who
These daily readers are usually books that just have one short passage to read per day, most often just one paragraph.
If the prices of books are reduced, it is beneficial for those who buy them because if interesting books are expensive, no one will buy them. If the prices are reduced, everyone will buy them and learn something. There should be some things that a person does regularly and then it becomes a habit, like reading books.
Most books can be found free to read on the internet now (in PDF form).
https://archive.org/
Thanks alot for the information.
You're welcome.
#hive #posh
Congratulations @ericvancewalton! You have completed the following achievement on the Hive blockchain And have been rewarded with New badge(s)
Your next payout target is 250000 HP.
The unit is Hive Power equivalent because post and comment rewards can be split into HP and HBD
You can view your badges on your board and compare yourself to others in the Ranking
If you no longer want to receive notifications, reply to this comment with the word
STOP