Healing the Great Split...(The Tao Te Ching part 3) ~ by Adele Every being in the universe is an expression of the Tao. It springs into existence, unconscious, perfect, free, takes on a physical body, let's circumstances complete it. That is why every being spontaneously honours the Tao. In our third week of checking out the Tao Te Ching, we begin by reflecting back on what we’ve learnt so far… We’ve learnt that the theme of the Tao is ‘ effortless effort’ ….it just is, and everything is it. That it unfolds naturally, and we are already totally one with it. However, to become effortless, to relax into this ‘non-doing’, first takes quite a bit of ‘doing’. Hence the ‘effortless effort’! We’ve learnt that the Tao itself is undefinable and unnameable…although we can do our very best to describe how it feels. The combination of words ‘confusing-simple’, comes to my mind (which is so very Tao of me…!) As we

The Tao that can be spoken is not the Tao….  (Tao Te Ching part 2) ~ by Adele Last week, in our first session of exploring the  Tao Te Ching , we contemplated the meaning of ‘ Effortless Effort ’; the theme of Lao Tzu’s ancient text. This week, we play with contemplating the uncontemplateable….What is the ‘ Tao ’? Steve lets us know early on that our efforts to pinpoint the Tao might be futile, for the true Tao is unnameable and indescribable. Even Mr-Tao, Lao Tzu, can’t find the words himself! We can point to it, but ultimately  we have to find it within our own heart. The Tao is this place of naturalness we fall into when we let go…when choose to loosen the grip on the reigns and leave the world alone a little bit. Since we cannot taint this place with names or labels, we can choose instead to ask….how does this place  feel  for you? When you drop into that natural, expansive place within yourself... Spacious? Non-judgemental? Quie

Effortless Effort....(Tao Te Ching - part 1) ~ by Adele. When life asks you to throw a spanner in the works…you must answer the call! Throwing the good kind of spanner in the works, we follow Steve’s calling to bring in the Tao te Ching as our text for the next 9 weeks of our Living Wisdom course. A Chinese Taoist scripture attributed to Lao-Tzu (Laozi), is a peaceful and timeless text, thought to be written at around the fourth century BC. “Tao” meaning “the Way”, and “te Ching” translating to “book of virtue”, the title can be translated in one way as “ The Book of the Way ”. It is a profound teaching of understanding the laws of opposition, and in doing so, finding the middle path. Of recognising the unavoidable co-existence of sorrow and joy, anger and peace, hot and cold, night and day….and all of the opposing forces that make up this world. And tonight we just dip our yogi toes lightly into what we have to look forward to in the coming 9 week