from Verse One Hundred Twenty-TwoThe Way of heaven is silent; it has no appearance, no pattern. It is so vast that its limit cannot be reached; it is so deep that it cannot be fathomed. It is always evolving along with people, but knowledge cannot grasp it. It turns like a wheel, beginninglessly and endlessly, effective as a spirit. Open and empty, it goes along with the flow, always coming afterward and never in the forefront.~ Wen-tzu: Understanding the Mysteries ~
The aspect of this passage that really speaks to me is the idea that the Way -- the great mystery -- is ever evolving. Unlike the Abrahamic religions which view the Godhead as a fixed and unchanging entity, Lao Tzu posits that, if the one constant in the universe is change, shouldn't the underlying force change too?
Stated differently, if our existence is based on the idea of continuous transformation, wouldn't it stand to reason that the energy that makes life possible is always transforming as well?
This post is part of a series. For an introduction, go here.
Stated differently, if our existence is based on the idea of continuous transformation, wouldn't it stand to reason that the energy that makes life possible is always transforming as well?
This post is part of a series. For an introduction, go here.
Maybe the mayor strands of Abrahamitic faiths view God in the way you posit. But many realize the futility of speculating the limits or nature of God. See Apophatic theology as an example.
ReplyDeleteI'll contribute an interesting quote following this line of reasoning:
ReplyDelete"Can a horse tell you what it means to be human? How can a horse get beyond the boundaries of being a horse and say what it means to be human? Why do we think a human being can say what it means to be God? And yet we’ve done that; we’ve done that and we said that we’ve got it so right that if you don’t believe it we’ll burn you at the stake. That’s a very strange idea." ~
John Shelby Spong.
Alan Watts said much the same thing 30 - 40 years ago.
ReplyDeleteI've read a few of Spong's books. You know, he's NOT very popular with the fundamentalist set.
I believe you there. Luckily for us, none of us are fundamentalists. :)
ReplyDelete