Daoism Flashcards
Ying and Yang
-Ying: Cold, winter, frozen, passive, quiet, feminine, wet (black side)
-Yang: hot, fire, loud, active, masculine, dessert, summer (white side)
-Ideal place is in the middle (spring and fall)
Laozi
-Creation Story
- Was trying to escape, the guard would only let him escape if he wrote down his wisdom –> CREATION STORY
Daode Jing
-“Classic of the Way and the Virtue”
-First half on dao, second half on de
-Written by Laozi
-One can best harmonize with life by being receptive and quiet
-Go with the flow
Dao
-Ineffable, can’t wrap our minds around it
-Nurturing, soft, flexible, powerful, impenetrable
-Like water/mother
-MAKES NO DEMANDS OF YOU
-Qi - composed of ying/yang, the “stuff” which all things are composed of
-Wu-Wei - go with the flow
Wu-Wei
-do nothing and nothing is left undone
-Dao carries me through
-Lay down in stream and succumb to it, rather than fight it
-less anxieties
-Go with the flow
Du
-if your preserve your Qi
-Merged with Dao
-Can have LONGEVITY and IMMORTALITY (not likely)
Zhuangzi
-must accept the transformation
-must follow Dao to become one with nature
Spiritual Beings
-Have reached Du, achieved their Qi
-immortals
-ancestors
-gods
Immortals
-can fly
-live in mountain tops
-power of universe
-can inspire us to reach our longevity
Ancestors
-realms of heaven and hell, can move up and down in ranks
-whether you fall or rise depends on living decedents
Shen
-happy ancestor
-in heavenly realms
-Will protect you, like a guardian angel
Egui
-“hungry ghost”
-angry ancestor
-forgotten about - nobody prays for them
-can posses and try to kill you
gods
-bribe them to watch over ancestors
Three Pure Ones
-3 most important deities
-Lord of heaven - lives in head
-Lord of the earth - lives in the chest
-Lord of Humanity - lives in abdomen, most important, where Qi entered and can escape
Rituals to create Qi
- Jiao
-Zhai
-Embryonic Breathing
-Holding the ones
-Taiquan (Tai-Chai)
Jiao
-the rite of cosmic renewal
-once a year or after a tragic event to reset the energies of the atmosphere
-Paper money is burned, food offered, all names in the community are read by the priest then scroll is burned after
Zhai
exorcism
Embryonic breathing
lie in dark room, tongue to back of mouth, focus on abdomen, warm and flush feeling = Qi moving
Holding the ones
Once a year in spring after first thunderclap
three pure ones come down with 10,000 chariott horsemen, 3 breaths and a god goes in your mouth each breath
Taijiquan (Tai-Chi)
Daoist gymnastics
Cut through the energy of the cosmos and channel it into your body
