Why Is Nature An Example For Us?The Tao Te Ching often refers to nature as an example of the expression of the Tao. Why is nature held up as an example? Can’t we express the Tao just as well as nature can? The short answer is that of course...

Less Knowledge Is a Good Thing? “In the pursuit of knowledge, every day something is added. In the practice of the Tao, every day something is dropped.” (Lao Tzu) Knowledge calls for analyzing things, separating them into parts, n...

Flow versus InterferenceWe’ve all heard the phrase “to go with the flow.” It generally refers to going along with whatever is happening around us. “Interfering,” on other hand, is not going along with it, typically because we have a better idea in mi...

Flow versus InterferenceWe’ve all heard the phrase “to go with the flow.” It generally refers to going along with whatever is happening around us. “Interfering,” on other hand, is not going along with it, typically because we have a better idea in mi...

Act Without Expectation?“The Master doesn’t seek fulfillment. Not seeking, not expecting, she is present, and can welcome all things.” (Lao Tzu) This suggests that whenever we seek and expect, we fail to be present. We are off som...

The Tao Is Like...This newsletter is going to be about words. We use them to distinguish things from each other, and they work very well. Calling different things by different names means we all know what we’re talking about. But what...

Need Approval From Others?“The Master does his job and then stops… Because he is content with himself, he doesn’t need others’ approval.” (Lao Tzu) We tend to do our job and then look over our shoulders. Who noticed? Are they impr...

Need Approval From Others?“The Master does his job and then stops… Because he is content with himself, he doesn’t need others’ approval.” (Lao Tzu) We tend to do our job and then look over our shoulders. Who noticed? Are they impr...

Mindfulness and the Tao Te Ching“Mindfulness means maintaining a moment-by-moment awareness of our thoughts, emotions, bodily sensations, and surrounding environment with openness and curiosity.” There are lots of definitions out there, and this...

Restoring the Balance“Be aware when things are out of balance. Stay centered within the Tao.” (Lao Tzu) What we do depends on where we’re coming from. Step back far enough, and we’re always centered in one of two places: our selve...