Best of
Taoism

2013

Heavenly Streams: Meridian Theory in Nei Gong


Damo Mitchell - 2013
    It sits somewhere between Qi Gong, meditation and the lesser-known art of Shen Gong, and although it is known in China it has never before been written about in an accessible way in the West.Damo Mitchell provides step-by-step instructions on how to experience the various elements which make up the energy body, explaining how to identify and feel these, and how to diagnose imbalances and restore harmony. He describes the nature of the five elements, the meridians and the meridian points, inviting the reader to experience them through guided internal exercises using the body, breath and mind. Instructional drawings and photographs are included throughout the book.Connecting the fundamentals of Chinese medicine with the lesser-known spiritual and esoteric aspects of practice, this book will be of great interest to intermediate and advanced practitioners of Qi Gong, Nei Gong, Taijiquan and Chinese medicine.

The Tao of Christ: A Christian Version of the Tao Te Ching


Marshall Davis - 2013
    It translates this ancient work into concepts and language recognizable to Christians, while maintaining the integrity of the ancient text. The Tao of Christ bridges the gap between East and West. It sheds light on two great spiritual traditions. Those who love the Tao Te Ching will see Christianity in a new light. Christians who love Christ will see this ancient Chinese work as evidence of God’s wider revelation to all peoples.

Inside Zhan Zhuang: First Edition


Mark Cohen - 2013
    Filled with tips and tricks to help get more out of training than most practitioners ever thought possible, this book contains a number of concepts and techniques presented for the first time in English. Drawing upon his 7th generation lineage in Chinese Medicine and using straightforward and simple language, Mr. Cohen fills in the missing pieces of the puzzle formerly absent in Zhan Zhuang literature. These include such elements as special masterpoints to relax and release large sections of the body, methods which rapidly create whole-body linkage for any posture; techniques for working with light in the higher energy centers, mechanisms to correct many crucial health problems and special training to develop truly effective martial power. A fast track for beginners. Highly recommended for seasoned practitioners. Take your Zhan Zhuang and Tai Chi to the next level.

The Lunar Tao: Meditations in Harmony with the Seasons


Ming-Dao Deng - 2013
    From Taosim expert Ming-Dao Deng comes The Lunar Tao: Meditations in Harmony with the Seasons, bringing to life the Chinese Lunar Calendar via the prism of Taoism.In The Lunar Tao, each day of the Lunar year is represented with a reading meditation, beautiful Chinese illustrations, and interesting facts about the festivals and traditions, providing readers with the context that gives Taoism such depth and resonance.Ming-Dao Deng, the bestselling author of 365 Tao: Daily Meditations, shows how to bring the tenets of Taoism into everyday life.

The Still, Silent World: Poems of the Tao


Yu Jinghai - 2013
    A series of meditative poems written on the subject of the Tao

Unearthing the "Changes": Recently Discovered Manuscripts of the "Yi Jing" ( "I Ching") and Related Texts


Edward L. Shaughnessy - 2013
    The earliest?the Shanghai Museum Zhou Yi?dates to about 300 B.C.E. and shows evidence of the textOCOs original circulation. The Gui cang, or Returning to Be Treasured, reflects another ancient Chinese divination tradition based on hexagrams similar to those of the Yi jing. In 1993, two manuscripts found in a third-century B.C.E. tomb at Wangjiatai contained almost exact parallels to the Gui cangOCOs early quotations, supplying new information on the performance of early Chinese divination. Finally, the Fuyang Zhou Yi was excavated from the tomb of Xia Hou Zao, lord of Ruyin, who died in 165 B.C.E. Each line of this classic is followed by one or more generic prognostications similar to phrases found in the Yi jing, indicating exciting new ways in which the text was produced and used in the interpretation of divinations. This book details the discovery and significance of the Shanghai Museum Zhou Yi, the Wangjiatai Gui cang, and the Fuyang Zhou Yi, including full translations of the texts and additional evidence that constructs a new narrative of the Yi jingOCOs writing and transmission in the first millennium B.C.E."

The Tao and the Bard: A Conversation


Phillip DePoy - 2013
    It has been called the wisest book ever written, and its author, Lao Tzu, is known as the Great Archivist. Shakespeare, the Bard, was the West’s greatest writer and even invented human nature, according to some. The Tao and the Bard is the delightful conversation between these two unlikely spokesmen, who take part in a free exchange of views in its pages. Here, in his own words, Lao Tzu offers the eighty-one verses that comprise the Tao, and, responding to each verse, the Bard answers with quotations from his plays and poems. In sometimes surprising ways, Shakespeare’s words speak to Lao Tzu’s, as the two trade observations on good and evil, love and virtue,  wise fools and foolish wisdom, and being and the “nothing from which all things are born.” Here is a new take on an old dialogue between East and West, with the reader invited to take part—whether to parse the meanings closely or sit back and enjoy the entertainment.Lao Tzu: Is the world unkind?/Nature burns up life like a straw dog.Skakespeare: Allow not nature more than nature needs,/Man’s life is as cheap as beasts . . . (Lear, King Lear)Lao Tzu: Tao is elusive./Looking you never see,/listening you never hear,/grasping you never hold.Shakespeare: The eye sees not itself/But by reflection, by some other things. (Brutus, Julius Caesar)

A Scatter of Light in the Summer Sky: Poems of the Tao


Yu Jinghai - 2013
    A series of meditative poems written on the subjectof the Tao