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BREATHING IN TAO CORE
WAFTS IN/OF/AS
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4:09 AM-6/20/17
From William Martin
June 20
Stop trying to be good and holy,
and find that your heart is pure.
From Tao Te Ching, Chapter 57
June 20
Stop trying to be good and holy,
and find that your heart is pure.
From Tao Te Ching, Chapter 57
“Be good!” has echoed
down the corridors of my mind
as long as I can remember.
It was the imperative of imperatives;
the sine qua non of all commands -
as if the basic quality of my being
were a matter of my moral choice.
“Be holy” adds yet another layer of suffering.
Now it is some god out there
whose expectations I must meet
in order to be acceptable.
To know that my heart is naturally pure -
whole, clear, genuine, and real -
that is happiness.
down the corridors of my mind
as long as I can remember.
It was the imperative of imperatives;
the sine qua non of all commands -
as if the basic quality of my being
were a matter of my moral choice.
“Be holy” adds yet another layer of suffering.
Now it is some god out there
whose expectations I must meet
in order to be acceptable.
To know that my heart is naturally pure -
whole, clear, genuine, and real -
that is happiness.
The problem lies in the slippery usage of the words.
The admonition to “be good,” implies a degree of forced morality,
either by an external or an internal judge.
If it were phrased as, “learn to act with compassion,”
I could understand it as a sage and helpful guideline.
Guidelines are helpful in steering our inherent goodness
along wise and mindful pathways.
Assuming that I am basically, “good,”
allows me to learn and mature in my choices
without the pressure of being either bad or good.
But believing that goodness is some sort of moral achievement
puts me always at the mercy of the voices,
internal and external,
that want me to behave a certain way for their own ends.
Perhaps a gentle admonition might be best stated,
“Continue to grow in wisdom and compassion
because your heart is good and pure!”
William Martin
daybydaytao.org
www.taoistliving.com
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