For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.I believe these two passages highlight another important difference between Christianity and philosophical Taoism. Christians view the world through the lens of hierarchy. God/Jesus is at the top of the ladder. Next comes the angels or spirits. On the next rung down comes the ministers of the word who are followed by [heterosexual] husbands. Everybody occupies a specific place within the divine caste system.
~ King James version ~
He who follows the Tao
Is at one with the Tao.
He who is virtuous
Experiences Virtue.
He who loses the way
Is lost.
When you are at one with the Tao,
The Tao welcomes you.
~ from Verse 23 of the Tao Te Ching ~
For Taoists, since everything is part OF Tao, their is no inherent hierarchy. If all things emanate from one singular source, there is only one rung on the proverbial ladder.
If you're interested in reading more from this experimental series, go to the Tao Bible Index page.
Interesting. I never have read these bible scriptures before with the thought that the author was speaking about a hierarchy. My take has always been that human thoughts are limited and subjective, swirling around, not in accord with the higher Tao thoughts even though Tao has no thoughts. The author had to use a word as in thoughts, but a better description would be, "My no-thoughts are not like your thoughts".
ReplyDeleteSimilar to, my ways are not your ways. I don't translate that into a hierarchy picture either. Practice non-doing is a form of not living or doing it our way but rather going with a higher Taoist way. Tao means the way. There is a Tao way to live which implies that there is also a non-Tao way to live. “My way is not your way”.
I am not saying that you are wrong Trey. I just find it interesting how we both come up with different interpretations.
I understand the biblical passage as part of an overall call to repentance. The idea is that God is inscrutable. Much like Tao.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, hierarchy is part of Confucianism; the world works efficiently when everyone knows their place. Nothing specific to Christians, here.