One of the most basic elements of human life is the act of questioning. Each time we encounter a new experience, we make sense out of it -- or at least TRY to -- by seeking to engage or embrace it in an inquisitive fashion. We compare the current thing or circumstance with other things or circumstances in order to try to discern similarities or differences. By approaching life in this way, we seek to derive answers.
Not all questions are equal. Most share the quest to pinpoint something specific or tangible. Who said that? What are those? Where are we going? How did you know?
These types of questions lead to quantifiable or qualitative answers. Who said that? It was Mike. What are those? Plantains. Where are we going? To the beach. How did you know? I read it in the newspaper.
There is one question, however, that genuinely cannot be answered. Asking it only begins a never ending process in which each answer only leads back to the same question. Why?
Despite all our advances in the sciences, the why of life is still beyond human comprehension. We can describe processes, quantify data, and sometimes predict outcomes, but we can't answer the most fundamental of questions. Why?
While religion seeks to make vain attempts at answering this question, it really ends up no better than science. To answer why by saying God, still begets the question of why God?
The myriad answers to why are tantamount to the grains of sand on an ocean beach. There's no way any of us can count these grains of sand. While we begin our count, some grains are washed to the sea, while others are freshly deposited on the shore. If we each spent the entirety of our lives on the beach counting these grains, we would be no nearer done once our lives came to an end.
One of the central messages of Taoist thought is that why is a question that need not be asked. The Tao is the way of the way of the Way. Why it is that it is should not concern us. If it could be explain to us, we wouldn't understand it anyhow.
Rather than ask why, we should simply embrace this mystical force like the flowers, rivers and clouds do. By eschewing the search for the answer to why, we will find the answer to the question unasked.
Not all questions are equal. Most share the quest to pinpoint something specific or tangible. Who said that? What are those? Where are we going? How did you know?
These types of questions lead to quantifiable or qualitative answers. Who said that? It was Mike. What are those? Plantains. Where are we going? To the beach. How did you know? I read it in the newspaper.
There is one question, however, that genuinely cannot be answered. Asking it only begins a never ending process in which each answer only leads back to the same question. Why?
Despite all our advances in the sciences, the why of life is still beyond human comprehension. We can describe processes, quantify data, and sometimes predict outcomes, but we can't answer the most fundamental of questions. Why?
While religion seeks to make vain attempts at answering this question, it really ends up no better than science. To answer why by saying God, still begets the question of why God?
The myriad answers to why are tantamount to the grains of sand on an ocean beach. There's no way any of us can count these grains of sand. While we begin our count, some grains are washed to the sea, while others are freshly deposited on the shore. If we each spent the entirety of our lives on the beach counting these grains, we would be no nearer done once our lives came to an end.
One of the central messages of Taoist thought is that why is a question that need not be asked. The Tao is the way of the way of the Way. Why it is that it is should not concern us. If it could be explain to us, we wouldn't understand it anyhow.
Rather than ask why, we should simply embrace this mystical force like the flowers, rivers and clouds do. By eschewing the search for the answer to why, we will find the answer to the question unasked.
The 'simple embrace' seems to be the most difficult thing for most of us. We want answers! I will always remember the first time I read this thought from Ayn Rand of all people. She said simply: "existence exists". I struggled with that for many years and only in the last few years have I finally been able to 'embrace the mystery' with equanimity and yes, even joy, partly due to some things I have read on your site.
ReplyDeleteTrey,
ReplyDeleteYour last comment there:
"Rather than ask why, we should simply embrace this mystical force like the flowers, rivers, and clouds do. By eschewing the search for the answer to why we will find the answer to the question unasked."
I found it very interesting and very nearly contradictory ;-)
As I see it...there's no purpose to my being here..I just AM. I am not ready to embrace the timeless eternity yet, so I fill my life with other things: wushu, work, computer games, reading, etc.
Lao Tzu had the following to say:
Fourteen
Look, it cannot be seen - it is beyond form.
Listen, it cannot be heard - it is beyond sound.
Grasp, it cannot be held - it is intangible.
These three are indefinable;
Therefore they are joined in one.
From above it is not bright;
From below it is not dark:
An unbroken thread beyond description.
It returns to nothingness.
The form of the formless,
The image of the imageless,
It is called indefinable and beyond imagination.
Stand before it and there is no beginning.
Follow it and there is no end.
Stay with the ancient Tao,
Move with the present.
Knowing the ancient beginning is the essence of Tao.
Questions are eternal as: one question will always lead to the next.
ReplyDeleteSeeking the Tao thru questions seems one path, of science... yet its a path not a destination
being told of the Tao thru religions is a dogma, yet in the end its our own acceptance which is the key to unlocking the Tao.
Both Religion and science are powerful tools and as such will never fully go away
Yet the Taoist will always be smiling under the sun, smelling the flower as others debate
the endless questions. Its a quest that never ends for some, and for some that is their Tao.
Peace Trey, I liked your entry it made me ponder under the sun, even if its raining in Olympia this morning
Casey
Interesting post about questioning.
ReplyDeleteHaving been been raised Jewish, I was taught that questioning and debating was a good thing, a religious thing, a way to get closer to God - the story in Genesis of Jacob wrestling with an angel has been interpreted as symbolic of this. Likewise, the major work of Rabbinic Judaism, The Talmud, is a massive collection of questions and interpretations and debates.
Not judging or taking a side. Just contrasting.
I've written it before and will write it again many times over: This is what I love about blogging, the richness of comments. I so look forward, both on this blog and others, to the heartfelt comments and thoughts of my fellow travelers (even JustaDog's) as we explore what it means to be.
ReplyDeleteRon: I agree that the embracing part is hard to wrap our minds around. By the way we are trained by society, it seems counter-intuitive. Yet, when we are able to let go of our preconceptions, we find it's much easier than we imagined.
Floundericiousmi: Yes, it DOES appear contradictory, but it's much in line with the point you shared from Lao Tzu. I think one of the messages is that what may seem contradictory to the rational mind is not at all contradictory in Tao.
Casey: I'm still reading your book. I like it. And yes, it's raining here in Aberdeen too!
Howard: Of course, there certainly are a myriad of approaches for discovering one's path. In certain situations, I think debate and exploration are not only good things but essential ones. For me, I believe that the point of the Taoist sages is that, from the standpoint of ontological exploration, the answers we seek are too far beyond us. We can only glimpse the answers once we reach the destination.
Kewl
ReplyDeleteI am glad you are liking a Personal Tao. No rush , it has taken me 5 years to write that much and it will take me a few more years to polish to be like a pebble in a river.
Having said that
I am looking forward to feedback,as I love the ideas that get generated .
best till laterz
Casey