The hearing that is only in the ears is one thing. The hearing of the understanding is another. But the hearing of the spirit is not limited to any one faculty to the ear, or to the mind.
ZhuangziRead
Where can I find a man who has forgotten words so I can have a word with him?
Interpretation
This quote highlights the importance of simplicity and the limitations of language in conveying true understanding.
In this quote, Zhuangzi suggests that the complexities of language can obscure deeper truths. He yearns for a person who has transcended the confines of words, implying that true communication and understanding may often lie beyond verbal expression. It reflects a philosophical contemplation on the relationship between language, thought, and perception in the quest for wisdom.
In practice
During a philosophy seminar discussing the nature of reality and perception.
The hearing that is only in the ears is one thing. The hearing of the understanding is another. But the hearing of the spirit is not limited to any one faculty to the ear, or to the mind.
Either in conflict with others or in harmony with them, we go through life like a runaway horse, unable to stop.
When people do not ignore what they should ignore, but ignore what they should not ignore, this is known as ignorance.
The true man of the past waited upon Heaven when dealing with people and did not wait upon people when dealing with Heaven.
The mind remains undetermined in the great Void. Here the highest knowledge is unbounded. That which gives things their thusness cannot be delimited by things. So when we speak of 'limits', we remain confined to limited things. The limit of the unlimited is called 'fullness.' The limitlessness of the limited is called 'emptiness.' Tao is the source of both. But it is itself neither fullness nor emptiness
All the fish needs is to get lost in the water. All man needs is to get lost in Tao.
Prayer is to the skeptic a delusion, a waste of time. To the believer it represents perhaps the most important use of time.
Catastrophes come when some dominant institution, swollen like a soap-bubble and still standing without foundations, suddenly crumbles at the touch of what may seem a word or idea, but is really some stronger material source.
Remove the Ego and Avidya (Ignorance) is gone. Look for it, the ego vanishes and the real Self alone remains.
In every war zone that I've been in, there has been a reality and then there has been the public perception of why the war was being fought. In every crisis, the issues have been far more complex than the public has been allowed to know.
'Melancholy' is prettier than 'depression'; it connotes a kind of nocturnal grace. Makes one feel more innocently beleaguered.
I, place economy among the first & most important republican virtues, & public debt as the greatest of the dangers to be feared
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