I have long been a fan of the sci fi writer Ursula K Le Guin. Her writing has influenced me a great deal. She is a taoist and an anarchist and through her writings I have come to adopt both positions as something essential to my life. I find it quite hard because my partner is a liberal democrat and is always trying to get me involved in the party. Does anyone else have any affinity with anarchism/taoism or do people have other belief systems they cling to?
Taoism/Anarchism
- Thread starter Shevek
- Start date
Refused as fuck
"ethnic pakistani tosser"
Fuck taoism.
Refused as fuck
"ethnic pakistani tosser"
No spiritual nonesense for me, cheers. I'll have a nice cold glass of the material. If you're just in it for the martial arts that's cool with me, though.
DotCommunist
So many particulars. So many questions.
Ursula Le Guin is a fantastic author.
Particularly good with the short story.
Particularly good with the short story.
Refused as fuck
"ethnic pakistani tosser"
I concur.
Refused as fuck
"ethnic pakistani tosser"
Here, don't make me go wu-shu on your ass.
no but seriously speaking as a student of social anthropology every society has its own stories and belief systems. For example the prevailing ethic of soviet russia was materialist. The materialism of Marx was a guiding story to Soviet society. I am simply saying that other mythological systems exist. I am spiritual but I do not believe in churches or organised religion
kyser_soze
Hawking's Angry Eyebrow
This thread belongs in TV, Books etc or, to give it the love it really deserves Theory, Philosophy and History...
teuchter
je suis teuchter
When you say this, as lots of people do, what do you actually mean?
Yes I believe that in taoism the actual world is what is important rather than a supposed life after death. That doesn't mean that there isn't a place for spirituality. It simply means that spiritual life is accessible and something that can be directly experienced in this life.
DotCommunist
So many particulars. So many questions.
Not sure, however G.K chesterton is most emphatic on the subject of cheese, as seen in this essay
http://www.cse.dmu.ac.uk/~mward/gkc/books/cheese.html
camouflage
gaslit at scale.
Love the thread title, and am also a fan of Ursulas although I've never bothered with her fantasy stuff but I loved The Dispossesed and the Left Hand of Darkness. I'd say I may as well describe myself as a secular taoist as well but although I think anarchy would be a wonderful thing, (cat's for instance are fine anarchists) I don't beleive humans are truly capable of it, we're not really wired for anarchy, I suspect the habit of authority is complulsive amongst social beings like us.
kyser_soze
Hawking's Angry Eyebrow
This thread really won't get the treatment it deserves in this part of the board.
Ah well.
Isn't that more Buddhism? I thought the whole point of Taoism is...this world is fine...there is no need to look for deeper meaning in the spiritual/cosmic realm.
camouflage
gaslit at scale.
Taoism is not a spiritualist ideology, Taoism is The Way man... it's almost... Jedi, Yoda described it best.
Taoism, where patterns emerge from the infinate... Taoism is so cool, way cooler than buddism or anything like that. Taoism is also really just a word though, so... make of it what you wish.
bmd
Island in the stream.
camouflage
gaslit at scale.
I agree, hopefully a mod will assist...
camouflage
gaslit at scale.
"Isn't that more Buddhism? I thought the whole point of Taoism is...this world is fine...there is no need to look for deeper meaning in the spiritual/cosmic realm."
I'm not really looking for deeper meaning. I just think its the unconscious mind not god or spirits. I do tend to think the universe is fine the way it is.
I'm not really looking for deeper meaning. I just think its the unconscious mind not god or spirits. I do tend to think the universe is fine the way it is.
teuchter
je suis teuchter
I was kind of hoping you might provide a slightly more precise definition than that.
Anyway. Maybe a better question is:
By describing yourself as "spiritual" you imply that a lot of other people do not fit your definition of that term. So, in what ways do you believe you live your life or make decisions that are different from those which someone you would regard as "not spiritual" would?
teuchter
je suis teuchter
What is?
tangentlama
Nameless voices crying
I think you might be right
I admit many influences from Le Guin - from wanting to call my first girl-child Ursula, to having read my first Le Guin novel at the age of 8 (Guess which one(s) I read first...)
DotCommunist
So many particulars. So many questions.
Earthsea quartet I'm guessing
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