Understanding Mystic Taoism: The Best Tips
Understanding Mystic Taoism: The Best Tips
Ziran, detachment and mindfulness in the Tao te Ching
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A 4 - Minute Read
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Ziran or tzu-jan is a key concept in Taoism that literally means "of its own; by itself" and thus "naturally; natural; spontaneously; freely; in the course of events; of course; doubtlessly". This Chinese word is a two-character compound of zi ("nose; self; oneself; from; since") and ran (然) "right; correct; so; yes", which is used as a -ran suffix marking adjectives or adverbs (roughly corresponding to English -ly). In Chinese culture, the nose (or zi) is a common metaphor for a person's point of view.
A great path to spiritual health is the study of ziran. In fact, many students of Taoist counseling and spiritual wellness have found the teachings of Lao Tzu (Laotze), especially ziran to be a great entry point.
In the esoteric realm friends of mine who practice what they call soul healing with an interest in becoming a spiritual therapist love the Tao te Ching because it is the least dogmatic of the major sacred texts.
For the person trapped in a state of spiritual depression, ziran and natural law are just what is needed.
When studying mystic Taoism without the rites, rituals, and ceremonies we might associate with a spiritual narcissist we can get an authentic sense of how mind, body, and spirit come together.
I have always thought of the teachings of Mystic Taoism as the perfect medicine for a spiritual emergency, a tool for healing the physical emotional mental spiritual
When we read the various poems in the book, it is as if we are tapping into nature’s sacred rhythms. Here, there is a spiritual awakening and, anxiety and a spirit of anger disappears
Yes, there is a spiritual awakening and depression dissolves as emotional and spiritual healing occurs through the process of ziran.
As I read the Deepak Chopra 7 Spiritual Laws of Success I was surprised at how much of it seemed to be drawn from Taoism and Taoist philosophy.
There are many translations of the Lao Tzu Tao te Ching. Some good, and others way off the mark. There is the popular Tao te Ching by Stephen Mitchell which I have real challenges with since it is not gender neutral (the approach of the original version), talks about God quite a bit, and defines, “virtue” and “Te” in ways that most translations would shy away from and rightly so.
Most people come across the word Tao in popular culture and the word is thrown around loosely these days. There are Benjamin Hoff’s The Tao of Pooh and The Te of Piglet, Tao of Yoga, Tao Tantra, the Tao garden, Tao yin, Capra’s Tao of Physics, and nail salons, and Bubble Tea Joints that use the word freely. I’m not being critical here. It’s just that most people have little or no understanding of what Tao is about, and these diversions may or may not make the journey easier.
There are many versions of the Tao te Ching online. Some who hope to link Taoist thought with that of the ancient Greek philosophers can seek out the Tao of Seneca.
If you are looking to read about the Tao in English, one of the best versions available is one I created over a forty-year period.
Here is the link to the book below:
https://www.amazon.ca/Tao-Ching-Meta-Analysis-Tzus-Classic/dp/1530288096
We also have a Mystic Taoism Group on Facebook. I hope you’ll join us there.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1007277182635973/about/
Origin
The word 'ziran' first occurs in the Tao te Ching (Entries 17, 23, 25, 51, 64). Though I don’t use that word specifically in my translation, the concept is presented, and refers to the structure of Tao, which cannot be referred back to anything else. It is generally accepted that the philosopher Lao Tzu author of the Tao te Ching, coined the term. Ziran is a central concept of Taoism, closely tied to the practice of wu wei, - detached or effortless action.
Ziran refers to a state of "as-it-isness," or pure mindfulness, the most important quality for anyone following Taoist beliefs, and who seeks to live a meaningful life. To become nearer to a state of ziran, one must become separate from unnatural influences and return to an entirely natural, spontaneous state. Ziran is related to developing an "altered sense of human nature and of nature per se". When it comes to sensibility of Taoism, and prepperism at its best, the moral import can be most found in ziran.
Contemporary Reinterpretation
Ziran has been interpreted and reinterpreted in a great number of ways over time. In traditional ”religious” Taoism it has been seen as a model that was followed by the Dao, Heaven, Earth, and Man in turn.
My more modern translation, and in our Mystic Taoism group on Facebook – we eliminate the logical flaw that arises when one considers that to model oneself after another entity may be to become less natural, to lose the 'as-it-isness' that ziran refers to. Whatever the translation may be ziran essentially refers to behaving perfectly in accordance with natural la. This interpretation reaffirms that the base nature of Tao is one of complete naturalness.
Some Taoist teachers explain ziran in this way: "It is so by virtue of its own". This brings up ziran's link to another Taoist belief, specifically that the myriad things exist because of the qualities that they possess, not because they were created by any being, even a divine being, to fulfill some purpose or goal. The only thing that a being must be when it exists in accordance with ziran is ultimately natural, unaffected by artificial influences.
Ziran and Tianran are related concepts. Tianran refers to a thing created by heaven that is ultimately untouched by human influence, a thing fully characterized by ziran. The two terms are sometimes interchangeably used. It can be said that by gaining ziran, a person grows nearer to the state of tianran.
Of course, for the Mystic Taoist, the concept of “Heaven” is unrelated to heaven as explained in the Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. To understand the concept of heaven in Taoism one needs to understand some of the fundamentals of the teachings.
Unlike the Christian notion of Heaven that must be taken on faith, the Taoist notion and its workings are obvious. They are all around us.
In the cosmology of Mystic Taoism Taoism there is no God residing in an otherwise inaccessible Heaven.
There is no creator operating as an independent agent watching existence unfold.
So, what does heaven refer to for the Mystic Taoist? Heaven and Earth is a metaphor to explain processes that work spontaneously, and through each other to produce the manifest world, including all sentient beings. It is said that Heaven covers all and that Earth supports or nurtures all. All of that which is created comes conceptually from the dynamic relationship of that which is called Heaven and Earth, or yin and yang.
Ziran is the middle point of all this. It can also be looked at from under Buddha's influence, "non-substantial". It is then believed to mean 'having no nature of its own'. In this aspect, it is seen as a synonym for real emptiness. The one that my friend, the great philosopher, and physicist Orest Bedrij refers to as “One”.
D. T. Suzuki, the influential Zen scholar who created a poem of the Tao te Ching, in a brief article penned in 1959, makes the suggestion of ziran as an aesthetic of action:
"Living is an act of creativity demonstrating itself. Creativity is objectively seen as necessity, but from the inner point of view of Emptiness it is 'just-so-ness,' (ziran). It literally means 'by itself-so-ness,' implying more inner meaning than 'spontaneity' or 'naturalness'".
For any student of the Mystic Tao and ziran the key is to achieve a state where the mind is empty. This is best done through meditation, mindfulness, and self-awareness, not by focusing on rites, rituals, ceremonies, clergy, sacred texts, religious dogma, so-called “occult practices”, or the dogma associated with formal religion.
]Author: Hey there. My name is Lewis Harrison, and I am a wellness coach, teacher, and prepper. I am a proponent of entrepreneurism and also a writer and seminar leader. The author of over twenty books, and numerous self-improvement, business success, and personal development courses, I am the former host of a talk show on NPR Affiliated WIOX91.3 FM.
I can be contacted directly for classes, courses, seminars, and online trainings in Transmodern Zen, at LewisCoaches@gmail.com
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