Expert: Joe McSorley - 12/9/2007

Question
Hello,
I am currently in a World Religions class and I am writing a reflective paper on Taoism.  I am really interested and I would like to know more about Taoism.  I just went to Borders and bought "The Tao of Pooh" because I've heard of it before.
My question is regarding churches.  What kind of a church practices in regards to Tao?  Is there a "Church of Tao" or anything?  I tried looking it up on the internet but I couldn't find an absolute answer so I was hoping you could help.  What kind of a church would I go to to learn more about Tao?  
Thank you,
--Jeff

Answer
Hi Jeff,
  Taoism is not a religion like there is here in the West.  It does not worship any creator nor does it have those types of beliefs.  This is why you can’t find a ‘church’ of Taoism.  The Tao of Pooh really has nothing to do with Taoism at its core.
         To try to define Taoism or the Way  immediately creates a problem.  It’s a problem because it is not a particular thing or way.  There are no tenets, dogma, belief or laws and no central authority.  Tao is often understood as the way nature works or the natural order of things but its meaning is really deeper than that.  I would say that the central theme of Taoism is the ‘interpenetration’ of things.  Many might say harmony with nature but this would not be a deep enough understanding. Many talk about following the tao (way) which is the natural order of things but that is an anthropomorphic concept.  By this I mean that it is a construct of human thought trying to say what is natures’ way and what is not natures’ way.  How can humans speak for all of nature? Taoism has many articulations but if you look into the heart of Lao Tzu and Chuang tzu what you find is the emphasis on interpenetration.  What this means is that things are co-originating, intertwined and mutually defining.  This is the meaning of the yinyang/Tai Chi symbol which I am sure you have seen.  The black and white swirls in the circle with the dots of opposite colors in them.  What this icon symbolizes is that opposites actually define one another;  that the foundation for darkness is light and vice versa.  Thus in the dark field you have a white dot and in the white field you have a black dot.  Each is the foundation for the other and cannot be separated from the other.  All being is defined by non-being.  Life is life precisely because you can die and without life there is no death they are mutually defining and existing.  This is the heart of Taoism.
 So all nature is the expression of the Tao and Tao is the expression of all nature.  In the West we have a split that is God/Man/Nature, all separate but in the East it is Man=Nature=Man, not split so this is why nature is integral to Taoism.
  There is no particular place of worship for Taoist though there are temples and monasteries such as the famous Shaolin temple that kung fu supposedly comes from.  You don’t need a building or a place to be one with nature.  For the individual the everyday practice of Taoism is everything from eating a good diet and exercise to practicing kung fu, chi qong ( breathing exercises) and  meditation.  For the most part it is trying to still or quiet the mind so that one may see ‘what is’ beyond human thought and thus live harmoniously.
  All of us are expressions of nature or the Tao and all of us can become awakened to the Tao as the foundation of our being.  You don’t need a church or priests to do this; we need only to seek within to see what is already there.
 I hope this helps you.  Take care,
  
             Joe