Taosism Eastern Religion

Taoism philosophy has begun to weave its way into the Western way of life, be it in medicine, business, homes and our spiritual selfs. From Taoist teachings comes the idea of Tao and the Yin and Yang. Both of the principles are applied to Chinese medicine, and business practices, physical and mental well-being, like through Tai-chi as well as brought into many western homes through the art of Feng Shui.

The Tao (pronounced “Dao”) means the “path” or “way.” It is the way of the universe, the way of human life and the way of ultimate reality. “All meditation and spiritual exercise leads to the Way. The Way does not refer to peace only during meditational practices; it applies to peace in your general outlook when dealing with daily life. When you have found the Way you can find peace in all things. Violence and hostility shall disappear from your being to be replaced by love for all things.” (Kei, 1973). The key to the Way is to find peace and meditation in everything you do, from cleaning the house, paying bills, putting in a day at the job, playing an instrument or spending time with your family. The thought here is that no matter what you do you might as well enjoy it.

From the way comes The Yin and Yang, it is a philosophy that describes all phenomena and processes in the universe. The well-known Chinese symbol that you see in print material, for example Tai Chi is used to illustrate this philosophy. The outside circle represents everything and the black and white shapes inside of the circle represent an interaction of two energies, known as yin and yang which causes everything to happen. “Yin is the dark, receptive “female” aspect and yang is the bright, assertive, “male” aspect. Wisdom lies in recognizing their ever-shifting, but regular and balanced, patterns and moving with them.” (Fisher, p. 141). Nothing in life is completely black or white and yet black and white cannot exist without each other. Yin and Yang is about balance and to achieve balance in our life we have to go with the push and pull that happens in our daily affairs, yet remain in the Way (calm) through it all.

Chinese medicine is a common practice here in the United States. Traditional Chinese medicine is comprised of acupuncture, massage, herbal and nutritional therapy, meditation and restorative physical exercises. According to the website for the National Center for Complimentary and Alternative Medicine (2005) it is believed that “disease is proposed to result from the flow of “qi” being disrupted and yin and yang becoming unbalanced.” The further state that “traditional Chinese medicine is based on the concept of vital energy, or qi that is believed to flow throughout the body. It is proposed to regulate a person’s spiritual, emotional, mental and physical balance and to be influenced by the opposing forces of yin and yang.”

Another way Tao has helped in the medical practices is to apply the Tao philosophy to recovery from addictions such as alcohol and drugs. According to a publication “The Tao of Sobriety: Helping You Recover from Alcohol and Drug Addiction,” by D. Gregson and J.S. Efran they use the principles of Taosist and Buddhism and apply it to the modern life and recovery. They have fashioned their book after the “Big Book” of Alcoholics Anonymous and encourage the readers to “Let these mind altering