When we look at the world of psychology, there’s an integrating Eastern philosophy into Western psychology. Through the counterculture of the beatniks in 1960’s, Asian practices are becoming increasingly prevalent such as: acupuncture, holistic medicine, Tai Chi yoga, and meditation are just a few of the Eastern practices gaining popularity in Western culture. Western psychology and Eastern philosophy have a mutual concern with liberating human beings from self-contradiction in thinking, feeling, experiencing, and acting. Thousands of years ago, Tao philosophy has been practicing their focus on wu wei, the none action approach as an effective solution to a problem achieved by patiently waiting for nature to present a solution, because nothing is accomplished by creating nonexistent difficulties or responding with overly elaborate measures. You don’t have to be a psychologist to be able to write “self-help” books as long as you understand human nature by being aware of your existence and the equilibrium of the universe. Western psychology integrated this brilliant Eastern philosophy into many of their coping techniques programs. Let’s take a look and see the similarities! Tao Te Ching said: “Whoever can see through all fear will always be safe” suggests us to face our fear which is significant concept of facing the reality. Acceptance is key for enlightenment as Lao Tzu said: “Accept yourself, Non-acceptance is the root of all trouble”; your reality is your existence so accept and do not fight against yourself. Lao Tzu not only said: ” Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished” but also said that “ Do you have the patience to wait until your mud settles and the water is clear? Can you remain unmoving until the right action arises by itself?” Using our intuition of the principles of universal structure is the utmost importance in Eastern philosophy. It teaches us that there is no need to control but just float with the current and give it time for situations to calm down while being gentle on yourself. The Taoist has an acceptance of reality because he believes the world is initiated by the interactions of opposites. The apparent and the potential are complementary, and constant change is expected. He possesses the ability to cope as his tolerance and inner strength allows him to see the possibilities for action without taking any of them to unnatural extreme. Clearly, you can see the similarity between Taoism which already began 400 B.C. and Western psychotherapy (particularly cognitive behavioral therapy). All plain and simple, goal cannot be achieved through purposeful actions and experiencing Tao is not about striving for what is not, but about acknowledging all that is present, in the Now, through non-action.
With respect to mental health, from a Taoist perspective, depressed individuals often seek some way to counter the sadness they feel by finding something to hold on to. They try to capture the truth, reality, or life in an effort to experience comfort and security. But it is in this search for fulfillment that one eventually realizes that nothing is ever secure enough. This results in a sense of hopelessness, which has been cited as one of the strongest predictor of suicide. In that moment, a person simultaneously experiences the anxiety of being and possibility of nonbeing. Depressed individuals often polarize the two, favoring one and disliking the other. This process is equivalent to Albert Ellis’s “all or nothing” thinking error. Experiences are either good or bad, and one tries to remove all that which does not fit into the concept of ideal life. But through such a process of discrimination one is removed from Tao. Whenever we try to get where we think we should be, or avoid what we think we ought to, we move away from our true selves. By cognitively removing all the negatively perceived aspects, authenticity is denied. As a matter of fact, it is neither of the body nor of the mind, it is of the total and the total transcends all parts. The total is not just a composition, a composition of the parts. It is something beyond the parts. It is something that holds all the parts into itself. It is a transcendence. You may be physically healthy, you may be psychologically healthy, but you may not be existentially healthy at all. On the contrary, when you are psychologically and physically healthy, for the first time you become aware of the existential anxiety, of the anguish inside. First he has to look after the body, and then he will think. Then he has to look after the mind, and then he will think. Body and mind, if healthy, will allow you for the first time to be really in trouble. And that trouble will be spiritual.
East is a standpoint and West is also a standpoint; it is not about geography. ‘West’ is a way of looking at things, ‘East’ is also a way of looking at things. When East looks at things it looks at the total, and when West looks at things it always looks at the part. The Western attitude is analytical so it analyzes. The Eastern attitude is synthetic so it synthesizes, it tries to find the one in the many. The Western attitude tries to find the many in the one. The Western attitude has become very efficient in analyzing, dissecting, taking things apart. The West really does not know what self-realization is, so anything becomes a self-realization. The West is not aware of what self-realization means. It means such an absolute silence that it cannot be disturbed by anything. Such absolute nonbeing; how can possessiveness, ambition, jealousy exist in it? With a no mind, how can you dominate, how can you try to dominate? Self realization means the complete disappearance of the ego. And with the ego, everything disappears. Western psychology up to now has not come to the point of non-ego. It is still thinking in terms of the ego: how to make the ego more strongly rooted, centered; how to make the ego more healthy, normal, adjusted. The East takes the ego itself as the disease; the whole mind is the disease. There is no choice about it; conscious and unconscious both have to go. They have to go and that’s why the East has not tried to interpret. Because if something has to go, why bother about its interpretation? Why waste time? It can be dropped. Look at the difference: the West is somehow trying to make an adjustment between the conscious and the unconscious and strengthen the ego, so that you become a more adjusted member of society, and also a more adjusted individual inside. With the rift bridged, you will be more at ease with the mind. The East has been trying to drop the mind, to go beyond it. It is not a question of adjustment to the society, it is a question of adjustment to existence itself. It is not a question of an adjustment between the conscious and unconscious, it is a question of the adjustment of all the parts that constitute your whole being. Eastern philosophy is spirituality’s approach to changing man. Western psychology’s aim is to fortify the individual’s ego so that he may become less neurotic, slightly happier and ultimately function ‘better’ in society. In the East, the goal is instead to dissolve the ego rather than strengthen it. The locked door is the ego, the key is meditation, and that outside is liberation from the self, spiritual freedom and self realization (enlightenment). Self realization is coming to no-self, coming to an absolute emptiness within, coming to the point where you are not. The drop has dissolved into the ocean and only the ocean exists.The house is empty, there is nobody. Losing of the ego and becoming enlightened is to being a rain drop that falls into the ocean – both become simply water, there is no separation.❤️
Well said. Wordy 😉but well said.😀As to emptiness, "A bowl is only useful when empty"
Lao Tzu.
Westerners have been brought up to believe that possessions, and wealth are the pinnacle of success. Thus the cause of much stress and competition. (A full bowl) Stress from striving to achieve and have material and social "wealth". All of which can be lost in a second.
Less is truly more.
Letting go of the ego is is like being a leaf floating on a river as opposed to being a rock in the river. The leaf, offering no resistance to change (the current of the river aka life ) having no ego, "goes with the flow" and is carried along by the river still whole and undamaged.
The rock steadfast and unyielding, is slowly worn away by the passage of the river until there is nothing left.
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Thank you Mr. Tao for taking interest in reading my post 😂. If those are words of wisdom, why change? 😉. Don’t accumulate wealth but richness. Richness is the totality. You have your leaf; i have my lotus flower that remains untouched in muddy waters. 😅 It all comes down to “Be, not to be”, don’t try to become somebody and case closed.☝️🤣😂🌈☯️🙏
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You're welcome.. Frankly after our other exchanges , I expected something a bit controversial . I like your reference to the Lotus.. the symbol of daily renewal.I think we for the most part in our philosophies . . "Case closed" MEH. Passive aggressive response.😉😊
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Controversial huh? Now you set the bar for me to reach with “expectation”. 😂😅 It is always more to what it appeals, just have to dig deeper. 🤣 Have to bring it back to layman term as we are currently in this dimension. 😊🙏
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Ooooooooky... Yup. I'll let you have this round. 😂🙏❤️☮️✌️
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Aweee thank u for letting me have it 🤣😂. Would love to have any enlightened comeback any day. 😊❤️☮️🙏
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LOL. Credit where credit is due.. That and for once I didn't have a "snappy" rejoinder. I must be either getting kinder in my old age or slipping 🤔🙄😏
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Tao won’t question this much, just go with the flow 🤣😂🙏
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Bless you child.🙏🕉️
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"Mr. Tao" Formality and a compliment. I'm honored.. thank you.
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Always show respect and credit to a man of wisdom🙏
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Awwwwe (blush) thank you.. And the same to you. Woman of wisdom.🙏🌈
who that knows of the empty bowl - doesn't love and desire the empty bowl!!!
but best not to desire the empty bowl... seek the empty bowl... or wait for the empty bowl to come to you.... or not.... which ever way the empty bowl floats along the river - this is the direction to follow - nay; not follow - to be taken along by... in pursuit of the empty bowl.... but not to chase... just flow together, and become one with the empty bowl. and empty into the river... be the river!
Mr Tao is currently out of the office right now. Let Koko take the message. 🤣😂 Again Rob? no seeking the empty bowl cuz all desires come down to objects. Better yet have a WILL. cuz it’s from your heart, your totality 😊🙏
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Geeze I think maybe you and Rob missed the message of the Empty Bowl...Do I have to explain it for you?
😀
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More like Rob but Yes please show me the crack 😅
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Crack? What crack? Crack in some ones logic? Never argue with ignorant or deluded people. It's like trying to teach a Pig to fly. It wastes your time and annoys the pig.
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It’s bacon business, even tried to make it non GMO but still pig based 😂😂😂😂 ( P.S. not you Rob, you’re vegan 👍)
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OY GEVALT! This thread is coming unraveled quickly!
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I can’t believe Oy Vey is part of your vocabulary 🤣😂😅
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Really? Ooooooooookay fine. lol
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Accept n let it go 🤣😂😅🙏
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done and done..
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Wait a minute 🤣😂🤣😂👍
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Okay. The minute has passed.. I waited... now what?
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Just float for now Mr. Tao 🤣😂😅. (I was joking to make sure you’re done 🙃) so you’re not done I see 🤣😅
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LMAO! There's no appropriate response to that!
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Things start to unravel here 🤣😂😂😂😅
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Threads tend to do that...😉❤️✌️
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Once again, thank you for your words of wisdom and much participation on my post 🥰☯️☮️🌈🙏
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You are welcome. I look forward to your posts. I enjoy discussing spiritually. Notice I said "discussing". Many times (passionate) people are misread as being angry and closed off to new ideas. The closed off types, don't like their comfort zone to be presented with challenges. Especially if their a glimmer of logic in the new ideas coming their way.
and.... grasshopper... with new knowledge comes new pain!!! 😉😉😉😉 it's the circle of life!! but as the circle progresses - the pain lessons.... or maybe we just acclimate to it... either way -- it's still a win!!
marshall... the pain you're experiencing from reading all that... is the pain of truth trying to sneak into your head!
at least - someone else's interpretation of truth. the best remedy for that pain is to keep reading. once you understand another's truth - you can better evaluate your own truths. when your truths come into finer alignment with real truths... the pain you're experiencing now - will go away....
... of course - it will be replaced with the new pain, of real truths... which are also painful. but we cannot address that pain until we recognize it!!! ☯️☯️☯️
now if only we could just do all of that.... well - more to the point - we need to do none of that... accomplish none of that - by doing all of that!!! then we can achieve nothing !!!!!! omg - to be able to achieve nothing!!!!
Very informative post all the way around❤. So glad you are giving great credit to the eastern mystics. Western self help writers have piggybacked on what the mystics have been saying for centuries. Which is great but let's give credit where it's due. I think some on HU need to acknowledge where these techniques come from and encourage people to learn from them as well😉
Credit where credit is due☝️Eastern philosophy is so pure, intelligent and exists 400 B.C. and common folks block themselves to the true essence. They are too narrow minded to open themselves to new knowledge and culture. They rather spend money to invest in those rip off self-help books that a little PR, some meditation yoga relaxing techniques and copycat some of the concepts of Eastern philosophy. Human loves 12 step program telling them what to do than doing research themselves to understand the core of the issue. That is why this world is still chaos. Human is still suffering and waiting to be saved when they are the only ones that can take themselves out of miseries, out of society conditions and live true to their authenticity. Thank you for taking interest in reading my post and resiliently walk the road of enlightenment. ❤️🌈☯️🙏
Self help books may help the one but not another. Everyone is different. Because of my nature my head is always full. I need to figure out how to empty the mind so the process works. Some can do it but others cannot.
That’s alright. I see the corner section of self help books all kind in Barns n Noble is always packed with folks from sunrise to sunset. 😂😂😂 Happy Friday GB2 🌈☮️🙏
I used to attend a Boarding School, way back in the1970's.... yes we DID have Brontosaurus Burgers- before you ask.....
We had a one Word Motto.... 'Pax', which means Peace. An 'Excellent' basis for a school.
AndrewT
Per your request
Peace of Pie
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Oh my you did all dat? 😅🙌 Martha Steward has to quit her day job now 🤣😂😋
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Yes I did... honest.. Martha Stewart! My muse! Be still my heart!😍
Brownies fresh from the oven
Alice B. Toklas, I love you....
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Yummmy 😋That should cover the entire village.😇
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Pretty much. That's just the first layer of frosting... I poked holes in while still warm to let the chocolate drain into the center.. Next up mooooore frosting. !
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Oh my I thought less is more Mr. Tao 😅 this is goodness overload 😂😋
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All things in moderation. However, what is moderate to me, is excessive to most. But who are they to judge?😀🙏❤️☮️✌️☯️
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No judging, just jelly cuz I ain’t having some 🤣😂🤣😅🙏❤️☮️
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Aw... I'd send you some, but it wouldn't be the same.☯️❤️😘
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Thank u but I prefer door to door delivery 🤣😂😅🙏☯️😘
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😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 What? I'm not Uber... besides.. You know where I live.. 😉✌️
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“If the Mountain won’t go to Mohammed, then Mohammed must come to the Mountain”. Sowie I’m so spoilt 🙃 😂❤️
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