(The picture above is taken after reaching the summit of Yellow aka Huangshan Mountain in southern Anhui province in China. It is considered to be one of the five most sacred mountains in Taoist history. I have been to the summit of all five. Once reaching the summit and looking out over the horizon often the only question that remains is what could be found next on the journey ahead.)
It’s always as though we are conditioning ourselves for the next step forward up the mountain of our lives… Unsure of the results of our actions as we proceed affecting everything we touch as everything affects us as well. We shape our environment as our environment shapes us as well. Something I wrote many years ago that had a profound impact on my thinking was the idea that “there can be no rush”. I wrote about this below and again later in my manuscript “My travels with Lieh Tzu”. As we come closer to identifying with our true sense of self and identity there seems to be an inherent need or desire go further into what appears to be unknown that we really have always known but forgotten.
The commentary of what I wrote thirty years ago now coming not only from what I have seen and heard that lies outside, but a review of what I have learned internally that is meant to propel further along the path. or way. It’s like your eternal memories trying to mesh the old with the new expressed in the previous entry beyond bricks and mortar, to how we shape the path going forward knowing we will be happy with the results. In writing things down it’s like repeating the same thoughts and phrases that are meant to instill and remind us that our actions are simply meant to replicate memories stored within us simply waiting for the chance to spring forward when the time is right… when we are ready to listen.
I often wonder asking are we here only to shape ourselves for the journey ahead, others we meet, or both. It’s like reaching the summit or mountaintop and now asking, ok I’m here what am I to do next? Do I simply return and stay with my memories and what I have learned about myself to the valley below, or do I expand my knowledge myself to the next highest mountain to see where it will take me unafraid of what I am here to learn or where I am to go next. For the present what should my role be as conveying my own nature as a teacher knowing that there can be no rush to see glimpses of what is yet to become.
Voices of the Dragon Part 2 Number 13
Raining Ecstasy
You are constantly reminded that there can be no rush. That everything has its place and time.
Learn to have patience and simply become a part of the events swirling around you. Come to know the essence of being yourself. Find comfort in the connectedness of everything and the silence that surrounds you.
Azure Temple at the summit of Mount Taishan considered to be the most important mountain in Chinese history located north of Qufu. Every emperor for over a thousand years had to stop here after paying homage the Confucius in his hometown of Qufu. In Taoism it was/is considered the most important mountain as it was furthest East and you could be the first to see the sunrise.
As the rain falls on an April morning delays your own plans, know that the falling rain is much more important to the renewal necessary to continue than any seemingly simple sense of self-importance you may have on your own agenda. As you come about outside simply enjoying the oneness the rain brings to all things, merely find the satisfaction of being a part of it all.
Essential to the journey is not to challenge the balance of nature. But to simply know your place within the elements. While you may have seen all of this before, with every step the window of opportunity opens a little wider letting the breeze blow and the light shine on path you have to follow.
My second favorite mountain is Qingcheng Mountain north of Chengdu and Shangqing Palace, the largest and most important Taoism temple on Mount Qingcheng. This temple complex comprises several halls, courtyards, and pavilions, showcasing the rich spiritual heritage of Taoism. The main hall, Yanqing Hall, features a statue of Lao Tzu, the legendary sage and author of the Tao Te Ching, the foundational text of Taoism.
Remain as the shaman and reclusive sage keeping the dragons and immortality as the uppermost dimension of your eternal spirit. Be as one with the crane and tortoise and come to know peace and longevity along the way. Keep to the lower clouds as the immortals wish and be prepared to simply look up feel the rain falling on your face and know true ecstasy. 4/16/94
The five Taoist mountains most revered in Chinese history are three noted above Yellow aka Huangshan Mountain, Mount Taishan in Shandong, Qingcheng Mountain north of Chengdu in Sichuan, Songshan, in of the center, Henan province, and Huashan, Taoist Mountain of the west, in Shanxi province. I have visited more, but these are my favorites.
Probably the most famous and most instrumental mountain I have visited is Mount Laoshan. The development of what was to be known as Quanzhen (Complete perfection) Taoism, the Longman Dragon Gate lineage. was located at Laoshan Mountain north of Qingdao. It is known as one of the birthplaces of Taoism.
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