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Change your Thoughts—Change
your Life: Living the Wisdom of the Tao Block all the passages — 56th verse, Tao Te Ching
The legendary Lao Tzu was supposedly a man whose enlightenment led him to escape his society and its corruptions, its ‘unnatural ways’. In the poems, which he wrote down and gave to the gatekeeper of the city who asked him for teaching as he left his people behind, he records the tensions between living ‘naturally’ and living falsely. Like other prophets, he claims that there is a ‘ Way’ in which nature embodies the truth of existence, but that we are tempted to deviate from such truths in the normal course of life. He speaks of the Tao or ‘the way things are’ to show that it is evident around and in us, but that, for whatever reasons, we don’t necessarily recognise or live by it. What the poet/sage Lao Tzu refers us to is an older time when men were wiser, when the depths of the earth and the nature of life were better understood, and acted upon, when complications that separate us from the way of truth had not been put in place personally or politically. Dyer’s book Change your Thoughts is based on his year-long reading, research and meditation on the Tao Te Ching, which was probably written in the 6th century BC. He now offers a presentation for readers that speaks to life in the 21st century. His interpretation of the verses continues the tradition of the Tao as a valuable resource for achieving a way of life that guarantees integrity, joy, peace, and balance. Dyer’s book has 81 distinct essays on how to apply the ancient wisdom of Lao Tzu to the modern world. This work contains all 81 verses of the Tao, compiled from Wayne’s researching of 10 of the most well-respected translations of the text, which has survived for more than 25 centuries. These short passages describe a way of living that’s balanced, moral, and spiritual; and that works for all facets of life on the Earth. Each of the 81 chapters is designed for actually living the Tao or the Great Way today and concludes with a section called Do the Tao Now. Wayne encourages the reader to see these verses and ideas as insights into life and nature. It addresses how, through attending to the ideas of the Tao, it is possible to change one’s thoughts on some of the most profound questions and issues confronting us today—and how, by changing those thoughts, our lives will be changed and transformed into a sense of great peace and harmony. One of the concepts addressed is how to change your thoughts from ‘I want and need more’ to ‘I am living contentedly with what I have’—this is achieved by finding bliss everywhere, and in everyone. Readers will understand how, by emulating the qualities of water, they can change from being rigid and demanding to being humble and soft and so can bring about the dramatic achievement of living an unhurried life In addition, Wayne leads the reader through lessons to learn how to focus on understanding yourself instead of blaming others; rejoice in the stillness of the Tao; change the way you see the storms of your life; change your life by actively observing nature’s way; embrace oneness by seeing yourself in everyone you encounter and remind yourself daily that there is no way to happiness rather happiness is the way. The book provides simple steps that are easy to follow. It offers the reader an opportunity to internalise and experience the great wisdom of the Tao Te Ching and divine guidance on virtually each area of human existence. The appeal of the Tao in our own times beset as we are with materialism and often an increasing sense of doom and helplessness is indicated by the fact that it has been rated as an international bestseller. Altogether an amazingly positive reading experience in self-empowerment.
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