A New Path Awaits!
Sometimes you need a good coach.
Sometimes you need a good coach.
A journey of 1,000 miles starts with a single step.
This phrase, which most people already know, is a quote from chapter 64 of Tao Te Ching, the seminal text of the Taoist philosophy and religion. As of yesterday, I’m starting a new journey as a student of George Thompson, a Taoist teacher, and I wanted to reflect on my time with the philosophy.
When I was 12, my mother bought our first Windows-based PC. I spent hours using Microsoft Paint to draw anything that came to mind — flags, logos, symbols, and trees, to name a few. I remember one specific sign; however, it was somewhat challenging to create — the yin-yang.
It’s important to remember that 1994 MS Paint wasn’t easy to use. Especially if you needed to bend a vertical line into a ‘S.’ So, in Paint, I had to color pixel by pixel until the bend looked just right. The drawing, long since destroyed by the terrible Gateway PC it was created on, was the first chapter in my relationship with Tao.
Understanding Through Forgetting
If you ask yourself, “What is this Tao thing anyway,” you’re not alone. Tao is impossible to explain fully, but I’ll foolishly try regardless. If raised Christian, you might think of Tao as “God’s will,” but without the God part. It flows from and is everything. If you’ve ever watched a Star Wars movie, think of Tao as the Force — it permeates everything and doesn’t exert any effort to be or do anything. It is simply itself.
The Chinese character for Dao (pinyin), 道, can be translated as “way, path, or road.” In a philosophical context, however, it is generally understood as the divine natural order of existence. For example, have you ever noticed that patterns seem to emerge in nature?
This mathematical form, called the Golden Ratio, can be created using the following equation.
The golden ratio can be found almost everywhere once you look around. It’s in the spiral arms of galaxies, the Eiffel Tower, a rose, and even your body.
The ancient Chinese noticed these patterns in nature even though they lacked the mathematical equation to explain them. They asked how this could be everywhere if nature were random. So, the idea of something was created. Something that had always been and would always be.
That idea of something begged the question, if there was a natural order to everything, could we live in harmony with it? And, if so, would doing so lead to less stress and strife, like riding a boat with the flow of a river instead of against it? After thousands of years, legend has it, Laotzi named it Tao and wrote Tao Te Ching to share his thoughts with a border guard when he decided to leave the country forever and retire.
Luckily, the border guard passed down the writings, and 2,500 years later, George and I found the same teachings.
I began taking classes with George Thompson nearly five years ago — usually one six-week course yearly. I missed one or two when the pandemic started, but I have generally kept up with his YouTube channel and community.
Since, then I’ve grown deeper with my understanding of Tao and the world around me. I find I’m more patient, calm, and collected. I still get mad, of course, lose my temper, and every now and then yell, but I’m getting better all the time.
Although, I can’t wait to dive deeper.
When I started those classes, I had now idea I would go on to create my own philosophical community through my publication, The Taoist Online. But with so many eyes now reading my thoughts and passions, I worried that I would need more training or at least someone to bounce ideas off of to mock the teachings.
Two weeks ago, I received George’s newsletter announcing that he would taken on a handful of personal students and I immediately applied. However, due to scrolling too fast, I made a mistake and missed the price which I couldn’t afford. After discussing the circumstances with him, we were able to come to an agreement.
So, as of today, October 16, 2023, I have officially begun my training under George as my coach. A new path awaits, and I’m excited to get going! I have much to learn from George and about myself and I’ll share any new insights with