Here is an editorial I found on the internet that I woudl like to share with all of you. It can be found at
http://dailybeacon.utk.edu/article.php/7208
Mr. T epitomizes true meaning of ancient Taoist doctrine
Though this may come as a surprise to many of you, I am a pretty big fan of Taoism. I enjoy the balance and the simplicity of the Way. While I appreciate that Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu are certainly the masters of the philosophy, I believe that there are a few individuals from our own time who could be thought of as true scholars of the Tao in their own right.
Let us begin with the Tao of T - Mr. T. that is. Mr. T. is in many ways the embodiment of Taoist teaching. He is clearly not concerned with his outward appearance since he has been wearing the same clothes with the same hairdo for nearly 20 years now. As
Chuang Tzu taught, Mr. T. has also mastered the art of uselessness while at the same time teaching us about inner harmony. When Mr. T. says he has no time for jibba jabba, what he is really saying is that he is not to be bothered by the trivial details of the outside world that could interrupt his goal of enlightenment. Likewise, when Mr. T. says that he pities the fool he is expressing his concern for those that do not know the harmony of the Tao. Mr. T.'s one drawback as a Taoist scholar is that he is too easily provoked into anger. A true Taoist would better understand that even crazy Murdock has a role in this world.
Another Taoist scholar for our age is the King of Monsters, Godzilla. Though he does not speak with the eloquence of Mr. T., Godzilla's actions teach us about the balance that we all strive for in our own lives. Godzilla is at peace with himself because he knows his place in the cosmos. He wants for nothing, he covets nothing. He simply is. Whether he is destroying Tokyo on one of his midday walks or protecting the city from an evil space monster such as Gamera, he is simply filling his role in nature.
Granted using that same standard, Dinobot leader Grimlock might also qualify as a Taoist. However, Grimlock would never become a true Taoist master because he would answer questions too simply. One thing that Taoist philosophers do not do is answer questions with a simple answer. In Chuang Tzu's writing an advisor ask a Taoist philosopher how to deal with a tyrannical prince. After two pages of stories about tigers, preying mantises, and (I am not making this up) horse piss, the philosopher finally tells the advisor to be careful. This sort of long-winded answer must prove especially tiring if you are the student of a Taoist philosopher.
Student: "Master, I am going to the grocery store. What do you need?"
Philosopher: "To need binds us to the earth. By erasing need we can learn to let go of ourselves. We must not let our need rule our life for it blinds us from our true path yet neither can we toss it aside carelessly for it is part of us. Oh, get me milk and some Oreos. By dipping the Oreos into the milk we can recreate our ..."
You can see now why Taoist scholars do not eat out much. The philosophical ponderings brought on by a question about salad dressing alone could take hours to answer. You would think that after years of that sort of thing the new Taoist master would not make his students sit through it again. It must be part of the tradition. I think if Mr. T. were the Taoist master he would cut through a lot of the red tape.
Student: "Master T., tell me about the path to inner harmony."
Mr. T.: "Fool! I aint got time for this jibba jabba. Get yoself some gold chains. Then you will know inner harmony. Man got enough gold chains he be at balance with his soul, fool! Gold centers a man's soul and bring out sparkle in his eye."
Student: "Did not Lao Tzu teach us that we are not supposed to desire material things?"
Mr. T.: "Fool, he did not mean gold. He was talking about crappy stuff like Celine Dion records or one of those singing fish. What type of fool don't like gold? I pity that fool."
Okay, maybe Mr. T. would not make that good of a Taoist after all. However, I think he still has a future as a guru or holy man or maybe even an oracle. Imagine the oracle of T where travelers from around the world would come to seek out the wisdom of the gold chained one. I think he would live at the top of a mountain and only come down once a year to deliver messages to the fools below.
Matthew Trail is a second year law student. He can be reached at Godzilla@elvis.com, and he plans on becoming a oracle after law school. [url][/url][url][/url]
http://dailybeacon.utk.edu/article.php/7208
Mr. T epitomizes true meaning of ancient Taoist doctrine
Though this may come as a surprise to many of you, I am a pretty big fan of Taoism. I enjoy the balance and the simplicity of the Way. While I appreciate that Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu are certainly the masters of the philosophy, I believe that there are a few individuals from our own time who could be thought of as true scholars of the Tao in their own right.
Let us begin with the Tao of T - Mr. T. that is. Mr. T. is in many ways the embodiment of Taoist teaching. He is clearly not concerned with his outward appearance since he has been wearing the same clothes with the same hairdo for nearly 20 years now. As
Chuang Tzu taught, Mr. T. has also mastered the art of uselessness while at the same time teaching us about inner harmony. When Mr. T. says he has no time for jibba jabba, what he is really saying is that he is not to be bothered by the trivial details of the outside world that could interrupt his goal of enlightenment. Likewise, when Mr. T. says that he pities the fool he is expressing his concern for those that do not know the harmony of the Tao. Mr. T.'s one drawback as a Taoist scholar is that he is too easily provoked into anger. A true Taoist would better understand that even crazy Murdock has a role in this world.
Another Taoist scholar for our age is the King of Monsters, Godzilla. Though he does not speak with the eloquence of Mr. T., Godzilla's actions teach us about the balance that we all strive for in our own lives. Godzilla is at peace with himself because he knows his place in the cosmos. He wants for nothing, he covets nothing. He simply is. Whether he is destroying Tokyo on one of his midday walks or protecting the city from an evil space monster such as Gamera, he is simply filling his role in nature.
Granted using that same standard, Dinobot leader Grimlock might also qualify as a Taoist. However, Grimlock would never become a true Taoist master because he would answer questions too simply. One thing that Taoist philosophers do not do is answer questions with a simple answer. In Chuang Tzu's writing an advisor ask a Taoist philosopher how to deal with a tyrannical prince. After two pages of stories about tigers, preying mantises, and (I am not making this up) horse piss, the philosopher finally tells the advisor to be careful. This sort of long-winded answer must prove especially tiring if you are the student of a Taoist philosopher.
Student: "Master, I am going to the grocery store. What do you need?"
Philosopher: "To need binds us to the earth. By erasing need we can learn to let go of ourselves. We must not let our need rule our life for it blinds us from our true path yet neither can we toss it aside carelessly for it is part of us. Oh, get me milk and some Oreos. By dipping the Oreos into the milk we can recreate our ..."
You can see now why Taoist scholars do not eat out much. The philosophical ponderings brought on by a question about salad dressing alone could take hours to answer. You would think that after years of that sort of thing the new Taoist master would not make his students sit through it again. It must be part of the tradition. I think if Mr. T. were the Taoist master he would cut through a lot of the red tape.
Student: "Master T., tell me about the path to inner harmony."
Mr. T.: "Fool! I aint got time for this jibba jabba. Get yoself some gold chains. Then you will know inner harmony. Man got enough gold chains he be at balance with his soul, fool! Gold centers a man's soul and bring out sparkle in his eye."
Student: "Did not Lao Tzu teach us that we are not supposed to desire material things?"
Mr. T.: "Fool, he did not mean gold. He was talking about crappy stuff like Celine Dion records or one of those singing fish. What type of fool don't like gold? I pity that fool."
Okay, maybe Mr. T. would not make that good of a Taoist after all. However, I think he still has a future as a guru or holy man or maybe even an oracle. Imagine the oracle of T where travelers from around the world would come to seek out the wisdom of the gold chained one. I think he would live at the top of a mountain and only come down once a year to deliver messages to the fools below.
Matthew Trail is a second year law student. He can be reached at Godzilla@elvis.com, and he plans on becoming a oracle after law school. [url][/url][url][/url]