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The Role of Philosophy Along the Path of the Integral Way
One of the most impressive features in the study of the Integral Way is the manner in which the ancient founders of this tradition viewed every aspect of life as an important art. They thus developed such wide ranging skills as physical and martial arts, health and medical arts, fung-sheui or the art of placement, predictive arts such as astrology and the Book of Changes, spiritual arts utilizing such tools as invocations and talismans, as well as the more widely recognized arts of music, poetry, painting, etc. All of these arts were founded on principals involving the dynamic balance of yin/yang forces in an ever changing universe. Right smack-dab in the middle of the physical arts and the spiritual arts – between grosser yin and most subtle yang – lays the mental arts of philosophy. While the great Masters of the Integral Way took pains to emphasize that conceptual understanding alone was not the same as actually walking the path of the Integral Way, conceptual understanding can be an important component toward guiding one’s feet toward and along that path.
No other work of philosophy was more central to the philosophic understanding of the Integral Way than Lao Tzu’s Tao Teh Ching. I am honored to have been asked to share my own limited insights of this classic teaching to this group. I first began my study of this classic in 1978 when I met and became a student of Master Hua-Ching Ni just as he was preparing his first books in English for publication. In the years since, I have read many other translations of the Tao Teh Ching and this has only made me that much more appreciative of Master Ni’s manner of translating that work. I sometimes can’t believe the good fortune that I have enjoyed finding such a teacher at such a young age that helped my mind eventually grasp philosophical concepts that remain elusive to so many. As I will attempt to share in this series of discussions, there is a consistent theme or thread of perspective that weaves itself throughout the teaching of this classic. This theme is based on the insights of the Ancients, handed down through this classic text and the tradition of the Integral Way.
A central aspect of the theme that underlies the Tao Teh Ching deals with the evolution of human perception or cognition – the manner in which we humans see the world around us and our place within it. This is why philosophy can play such a significant role in helping us seek the elusive balance between yin and yang. Hua Ching Ni’s translation of the Tao Teh Ching is one of two teachings of Lao Tzu’s that comprise the book titled “The Complete Works of Lao Tzu.” The second teaching of Lao Tzu’s in that compilation is the “Hua Hu Ching.” In the Hua Hu Ching, Lao Tzu mentions that in the future there will be two types of people who follow the Tao; one who understands it intellectually and can explain it well and another who actually lives it with their very being. Thanks to my long study with the best teacher possible, I slowly achieved some level of intellectual understanding. Of course, I can’t live it for you and still struggle to live it myself, but I hope I may be able to help you further your understanding.
This book discussion will be divided into ten sections. I originally thought to divide our consideration of this classic teaching into nine sections as this book, as is the case with many Taoist classics, is divided into eighty one chapters. I thought it would be helpful to divide this book into nine sections comprised of nine chapters each in order to underscore how numeric systems were used in the study of the Integral Way. I decided to add one more section as I will want to take some time considering the first chapter as this teaching is so central to everything that follows. I will be using Hua-Ching Ni’s translation contained in his “The Complete Works of Lao Tzu” and I look forward to sharing and interacting with all of you.
Matthew D. Bauer, L.Ac.
Matthew Bauer began his study of the Integral Way in 1978 when he took a class offered by Hua-Ching Ni on Lao Tzu’s Hua Hu Ching while he was preparing that work for publication. This teaching, together with the Tao Teh Ching, were published together under the title “The Complete Works of Lao Tzu.” Matthew became deeply impressed with both of these works and spent the next several years reading everything Hua-Ching Ni published and becoming involved with the organization that would eventually become the Integral Way Society.
Matthew is the author of “The Healing Power of Acupressure and Acupuncture; A Complete Guide to Timeless Traditions and Modern Practice” a book that explores the roots of Chinese medicine and Taoist philosophy and is currently working on a book about practice building for acupuncturists.
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