The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.This one of the most famous and quoted passages in the Bible. It offers a brief capsule of the ultimate beliefs for Christians.
~ King James version ~
Tao is the source of all and everything ultimately is part of AND returns to its source.
~ possible Taoist alternative ~
While there are a wide variety of Taoist alternatives I could have offered, I decided to offer this one sentence of what the underlying message of philosophical Taoism means to me.
What Taoist alternative to Psalm 23 would you offer, if any?
If you're interested in reading more from this experimental series, go to the Tao Bible Index page.
This is from the Hebrew Bible, and hardly a "capsule of the ultimate beliefs for Christians" --that ultimate belief would be the resurrection, and the capsule summaries found in the creeds (Nicene and Apostle's).
ReplyDeleteYou could substitue TAO for LORD here and it would be a fairly compatible Taoist statement. (The shepherd image is a desert metaphor --just as the Jade Emperor is for Taoists).
Again, an apple and orange comparison, rendered futile by literal interpretation. If you were to compare, say, "The Daily Communion with the Jade Emperor" and this Psalm, you might find much congruity, completely compatible with "philosophical taoism", even though it is what you would regard as a "religious" passage (a prayer).
It's all metaphor for spiritual centering.