It is a difficult question to say about the understanding and learning of Taoism, and many people ask how they want to learn, and let me introduce the introductory classics, but I also feel that it is difficult to introduce them.

When I talk about this issue here, I am actually not talking about getting started with the classics, but how to get started, how to look at Taoism, how to recognize Taoism, how to want to learn Taoism, what exactly Taoism is, and what does Taoism mean? I hope that this article can give some friends the most basic understanding, establish a basic concept of Taoism, and recognize the cultural core of Taoism, instead of chasing the magic spells that are manifested as Taoism, and chasing the cultivation of immortals, alchemy, and foundation.

Then back to the question of the beginning, why is it not easy to introduce the introductory classics as a Taoist, because Taoism is not a brainwashing religion, not an immutable religion, there is no fixed model, no fixed format, and even no fixed immortals, even if it is a high Taoist, it cannot be said that it is exhaustive, what you should learn, what you must learn, you can only recommend it to you based on your own experience.

Taoism is a religion that links theory with practice, a religion that faces life and the future, and is more of a philosophical group than a religion. In order to separate traditional culture, many scholars or researchers of Western religions insist that Taoism is not Taoism, Taoism has nothing to do with Taoism, this is like saying that a person, your body has nothing to do with your soul, Taoism and Taoism are a whole, the relationship between spirit and body, the relationship between soul and body, you put yourself on the operating table, let the doctor separate your body from your soul, you say, "I don't want my body anymore, I just want my great soul, and my body is an obstacle!" If you have the courage and practical spirit, I agree with your concept, of course, if you have to be a vegetative person or a ghost, I can't help it.

Taoism is different from other religions, suing sù what you should do and what you must do, but suing you how you can do it and how you should do it.

Taoism does not let you know the world with blind superstition, it does not let you live according to any rules, but it allows you to understand the world rationally, so that you can understand how you can live a more wonderful life. Some time ago, I attended a training course, and the training teacher said: "You people are superstitious, how can there be gods and ghosts in the world, and there is theism, if you have the ability, you can call Taishang Laojun, if you have the ability, you can call the Buddha, if you have the ability, you can call God, and if the phone is connected, I will believe you, and I will believe in you and believe in religion with you." "Naturally, it has been collectively despised by the five major religions.

This story is not about attacking who is not against whom, but empathy, when you treat us in this way, we can deal with it in the same way, when you look at the problem with colored glasses at the beginning, when you perceive the world from a negative perspective at the beginning, the world is always not good in front of you. You can't say that I'm reasoning with you, you're playing with me, I'm playing with you, you say I'm breaking the law, right?

Taoism has never been a simple idealism, nor is it a simple materialism, from a macro point of view, Taoism is actually atheism in the bones, Taoism's theism, is the establishment of Taoism on the basis of theism, its foundation is like Yin and Yang Taiji, inclusive materialism and idealism religion, materialism talks about the truth of inner nature, idealism talks about the cognition of the world, materialism is to look at nature from a rational point of view, idealism is to look at life from a perceptual point of view, materialism is the basis.

Taoism does not worship immortals, not immortals or perfection, but because of the "Tao" Whether it is a mountain spirit or a demon, as long as it conforms to nature and conforms to the existence of the Tao, it will rise to the gods, and the immortals must be morally complete and meritorious, not necessarily immortal or inevitable; in Taoist cognition, the immortals are also calamity, and they will be eliminated if they cannot conform to the trend of the times.

Taoism's immortals are democratically elected, chosen by the people's hearts, and the calamity of the gods is the people's hearts, just as Taoism has produced many immortals, but also forgotten many immortals, to put it simply, the god of wealth that our ancestors worshipped in the Shang and Zhou dynasties could not be Fan Li or Guan Gong, right? Taoism is a religion that conforms to the trend of history, and the current situation has been divided because of historical reasons, so it is considered by some people to be an old-fashioned religion.

Broadly speaking, religion is also democratically elected, and many Greek gods and goddesses have perished in memory. In religious beliefs, Taoism is the most inclusive, in folk beliefs, many of the so-called side doors, most of them under the banner of Taoism, in my understanding, in fact, these are also tolerated by Taoism, Taoism can be accommodated, can make Taoism understand cognition, can better promote life and let more people understand the power of nature.

Taoism did not have the Crusades, the violent promotion of the Ashoka era of the Mauryan Empire, the unity of Islam and religion, and the long-term rule of Tibetan Buddhism. If from the metaphysical theory, in my understanding, religion exists in two kinds, flickering and not flickering, I have not seen who became an angel, nor have I seen anyone become a Buddha or at most become the incarnation of the Buddha in the world, some religious gods and Buddhas are destined, five hundred Arhats are still those five hundred Arhats, angels are still that group of angels, but the immortals of Taoism, from ancient times to the present, are constantly increasing, are constantly appearing, just like the people of the Han Dynasty will not respect Lu Zu, because Lu Zu was cultivated into an immortal during the Tang and Song dynasties, Taoism gives you the possibility of cultivating the Tao to become an immortal, instead of you blindly worship the angel Buddha, Taoism tells you, you meet the requirements of the Tao, you can also become an immortal, you can also reach this state.

In the face of this world, everyone has their own views and cognitions, Taoism is a means for you to understand the world, why do we want to cultivate Taoism, and what is the purpose of cultivation? The purpose of cultivation is first of all to understand who you are and what you do, not to say that superstitious scriptures and superstitions about the Buddha and do whatever others tell you to do, but you have to think about why I want to do this, why do I want to believe in Taoism.

From another point of view, religious belief should also play the good side of human nature, the various elements of human nature or good or evil in different environments and different spaces, will be released, the environment you give good is good, and the environment you give evil is evil, the social groups and environments we face may be different, but, on our land, on the same fertile soil of China, the ancestors created a brilliant civilization and proud history, why can't we? The key lies in the human heart, in how we want to do it, the environment is the reaction of the collective consciousness of all of us, not that we can't do it, it's not that we can't make our environment better, but our inertia puts us in such an environment.

The study and cognition of Taoism must establish a complete self-awareness and concept, and must be able to start from theory and practice, first of all, to be wise about one's own heart, not to superstitious anyone, not to lose oneself, but to figure out whether oneself is willing to learn Taoism, whether it is willing to make oneself more wise to understand life.

Taoism has never had a fixed immortal, only a person who represents the Tao and represents the truth of the universe, if you can better interpret the courage and benevolence than Guan Yu, you can better interpret compassion and purity than the Cihang Taoist, and you can better interpret the inner face of the Tao than the Sanqing, then, the Taoist church respects you more, you are the god of the new era, not that Taoism does not give you this opportunity, but how much you have done, how much you have really realized. You can better influence the world, your merits let the world worship you, then the world will also set up a statue for you to spread your glory, Taoism has always been inclusive, has always been a religion that flaunts true morality, not an immutable religion, not a feudal and backward religion, your interpretation of the Tao and contributions to the Chongyang Patriarch, your courage and mind exceed the Qiu Chuji Patriarch, and after a few hundred years, the disciples and grandchildren of Taoism will also enshrine you in the temple, because you interpret the truth, interpret the Tao, of course, there is no ingenuity in the temple, only what you really do, not how much wealth and power you have, Those are all passing clouds, only if you really get recognized, get the test of people's hearts, can you be qualified to sit there, Wei Zhongxian was also established by many people, when he was alive, he was enshrined, once he lost power, all of them were passing by; Lao Jun has not been an emperor, in the palace, talking about the Qin Emperor and Han Wu may talk about it, but to really bow down, it is Laojun, Emperor Guan, Yaosheng, Lu Zu, not King Zhou, Emperor Han, Emperor Tang.

Why do we pray to the gods? Prayer is a respectful plea to the gods to help us, it is to ask the ancestors who have attained enlightenment to help us guide us, and when we are not able to do so, we ask the gods to protect us who are looking for the way on the confused road.

The rituals and practices of Taoism have always been rule-based, and the gods and spirits invited are all real people who practice the Tao, not so-called nihilists. Then in our society, it is impossible for everyone to become immortals, there is a saying called Tao talks about this life, not so much that cause and effect are pinned on the afterlife or go to heaven after death, not in this life and this life to practice well, let yourself live more clearly, we talk about good and evil, people will encounter many problems in their lives, not that all the people you meet are good people and your path is smooth, but when you meet a wicked person, can you pass guò your perception of the Tao in your interaction with him, pass guò your influence on him, pass guò your efforts, let him show the good side of human nature。

There are no good people for granted, and there are no bad people for granted, the so-called good and bad are just what people as individuals show you. Cultivation means that we try our best to show our positive side, avoid our decadent side, and pass on more beauty and happiness. No matter how many Taoist classics there are, no matter how irritable the form of Taoism is, no matter how complex the environment we are facing, we have a truly wise heart, not materialism is wrong, not idealism is right, but from the perspective of perceptual and rational, grasp our true inner self, it is possible to learn better, do not ask what Taoism should learn or what is the introductory book of Taoism, when we have a wise heart, any book can be used as an introductory book, because everything is the embodiment of the Tao, look at the concept of the Tao in Western philosophy is the Tao, look at quantum mechanicsTaoism is an inclusive system, a system that allows you to grow better, not a system that excludes dissidents, and is not an outdated system.

On this road, I also move forward with my apprentices, my apprentices know Taoism, and they don't understand it from the beginning, I told them, what I give you, may not teach you how much things, how much knowledge you teach, you can only say that it is a way to get started, it can only be said that it is a learning attitude, how much you will learn in the future, how much you can recognize, it all depends on yourself, I can't decide your future path, I can only point out to you a path that is as correct as possible, so that you can take as few detours as possible, and live as much as possible to be a little more clear and comfortable。

Learning Taoism, wise, good, abandoning prejudice, looking for self is the best entry brick, your way to explore the truth, in fact, is the way to enter the Tao, the way you learn, in fact, is the way to enter the Tao, the Tao has no fixed form and no fixed concept, Taoism is just the carrier of the Tao, there is a heart, positive face to the future, positive face life, you and I move forward together.

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