In The Tao of Pooh, Hoff writes about The Vinegar Tasters which is a traditional subject for Chinese painting and religious and philosophical allegories.
In the painting, we see the founders of China’s three major religious and philosophical traditions -Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism - before a bowl of vinegar.
We are told that Confucius, Buddha, and Laozi have each tasted the vinegar (essence) of life. It is said that we can see their reactions on their faces. (Personally, I don't see that.)
Confucius finds it sour. The Buddha finds it bitter. Laozi finds it satisfying.
Buddhism, as describe by Siddhartha Gautama who became aware of all the ugliness in the world, finds the vinegar for what it is - bitter.
Confucius soured on life. He wrote rules to correct our errors and was disappointed with a present that did not have reverence for the past of our ancestors and their traditions. For Confucius, vinegar was a sweet wine gone sour.
Laozi (Lao Tzu), writing in his Tao Te Ching, (Tao Virtue Book) saw harmony between heaven and earth. The laws of the earth are the same as those of heaven, as opposed to any laws that men make.
With a philosophy that appealed to many more modern people, Laozi felt that human interference with the natural balance of the universe disrupts the universe's natural harmony. Laozi wanted us "to join the dust of the world” rather than isolate ourselves.
He taught that everything in the universe follows the Tao, “the Way.”
The Way can not be adequately described in words. Other religions may teach that likewise God can't be described adequately because of God's unlimited power and the limits of the human mind. But we can know that The Way exists and understand its nature.
Hoff writes that from the Taoist point of view, "sourness and bitterness come from an interfering and unappreciative mind. Life itself, when understood and utilized for what it is, is sweet. That is the message of The Vinegar Tasters.”
They never watched "The OA." Lol.
ReplyDelete