The Best Dao De Jing Website

  A typical webpage created by Mike Garofalo for each one of the 81 Chapters (Verses, Sections) of the Tao Te Ching (Daodejing) by Lao Tzu (Laozi) includes over 25 different English language translations or interpolations for that Chapter, 5 Spanish language translations for that Chapter, the Chinese characters for that Chapter, the Wade-Giles and Hanyu Pinyin transliterations (Romanization) of the Mandarin Chinese words for that Chapter, and 2 German and 1 French translation of that Chapter.  

Each webpage for each one of the 81 Chapters of the Tao Te Ching includes extensive indexing by key words, phrases, nouns, verbs, adjectives and terms for that Chapter in English, Spanish, and the Wade-Giles Romanization.  This is the most extensive Concordance of the Dao De Jing available online.  

The Best Dao De Jing Website

Each webpage on a Chapter of the Daodejing includes recommended reading in books and websites, a detailed bibliography, some commentary, research leads, translation sources, and other resources for that Chapter.  

Each webpage includes a Google Translate drop down menu at the top that enables you to read these 81 webpages in over 100 languages.

The Most Complete Daodejing Website

Chapter Indexing, Concordance, for the Tao Te Ching

English Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Spanish Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices

Taoism: A Selected Reading List

Concordance to the Tao Te Ching 

One Old Daoist Druid's Final Journey  

The Most Useful Tao Te Ching Website

Tao Te Ching  Chapter Number Index Standard Traditional Chapter Arrangement of the Tao Te ChingChapter Order in Wang Bi's Daodejing Commentary in 246 CE Chart by Mike Garofalo Subject Index
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20
21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30
31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40
41	42	43	44	45	46	47	48	49	50
51	52	53	54	55	56	57	58	59	60
61	62	63	64	65	66	67	68	69	70
71	72	73	74	75	76	77	78	79	80
81

Tao Te Ching, Chapter 20

 Dao De Jing, Laozi

Chapter 20 

"Give up learning, and put an end to your troubles.
Is there a difference between yes and no?
Is there a difference between good and evil?
Must I fear what others fear? What nonsense!
Other people are contented, enjoying the sacrificial feast of the ox.
In spring some go to the park, and climb the terrace,
But I alone am drifting, not knowing where I am.
Like a newborn babe before it learns to smile,
I am alone, without a place to go.
Others have more than they need, but I alone have nothing.
I am a fool. Oh, yes! I am confused.
Others are clear and bright,
But I alone am dim and weak.
Others are sharp and clever,
But I alone am dull and stupid.
Oh, I drift like the waves of the sea,
Without direction, like the restless wind.
Everyone else is busy,
But I alone am aimless and depressed.
I am different.
I am nourished by the great mother."
-  Translated by Gia-fu Feng and Jane English, 1989, Chapter 20   

"Renounce learning, it brings loss to the Inner Life.
How slight the difference between Yes and Yea!
How great the difference between Good and Evil!
That which men fear is indeed to be feared.
When men give themselves up to disorder it never stops.
Many men rejoice and rejoice over a supply of good food, over being in a high and exalted position.
I am calm, I do not feel the slightest emotion, like a new-born child which cannot yet smile at its mother, without attachment to anything, returning always to the Inner Life.
Many men have superfluous possessions.
I have nothing that I value; I desire that my heart be completely subdued, emptied to emptiness.
Men of wealth are in the daylight of prosperity.
I am in the dark.
Men of wealth are endowed with penetration.
I appear confused and ignorant.
Suddenly I am, as it were, on a vast sea, floating on the sea of Inner Life which is boundless.
Many men are full of ability.
I appear to be stupid and rustic.
Thus I am different from other men.
But I revere the Mother, Sustainer of all beings."
-  Translated by Isabella Mears, 1916, Chapter 20 

"When we renounce learning we have no troubles.
The (ready) 'yes,' and (flattering) 'yea;'
Small is the difference they display.
But mark their issues, good and ill;
What space the gulf between shall fill? 
What all men fear is indeed to be feared;
But how wide and without end is the range of questions asking to be discussed!
The multitude of men look satisfied and pleased; as if enjoying a full banquet, as if mounted on a tower in spring.
I alone seem listless and still, my desires having as yet given no indication of their presence.
I am like an infant which has not yet smiled.
I look dejected and forlorn, as if I had no home to go to.
The multitude of men all have enough and to spare.
I alone seem to have lost everything.
My mind is that of a stupid man;
I am in a state of chaos.
Ordinary men look bright and intelligent, while I alone seem to be benighted.
They look full of discrimination, while I alone am dull and confused.
I seem to be carried about as on the sea, drifting as if I had nowhere to rest.
All men have their spheres of action, while I alone seem dull and incapable, like a rude borderer.
Thus I alone am different from other men, but I value the nursing-mother Dao."
-   Translated by James Legge, 1891, Chapter 20   

"Leave off fine learning! End the nuisance
Of saying yes to this and perhaps to that,
Distinctions with how little difference!
Categorical this, categorical that,
What slightest use are they!
If one man leads, another must follow,
How silly that is and how false!
Yet conventional men lead an easy life
With all their days feast days,
A constant spring visit to the Tall Tower,
While I am a simpleton, a do-nothing,
Not big enough yet to raise a hand,
Not grown enough to smile,
A homeless, worthless waif.
Men of the world have a surplus of goods,
While I am left out, owning nothing.
What a booby I must be
Not to know my way round,
What a fool!
The average man is so crisp and so confident
That I ought to be miserable
Going on and on like the sea,
Drifting nowhere.
All these people are making their mark in the world,
While I, pig-headed, awkward,
Different from the rest,
Am only a glorious infant still nursing at the breast."
-  Translated by Witter Bynner, 1944, Chapter 20

A typical webpage created by Mike Garofalo for each one of the 81 Chapters (Verses, Sections) of the Tao Te Ching (Daodejing) by Lao Tzu (Laozi) includes 25 different English language translations or interpolations for that Chapter, 5 Spanish language translations for that Chapter, the Chinese characters for that Chapter, the Wade-Giles and Hanyu Pinyin transliterations (Romanization) of the Mandarin Chinese words for that Chapter, and 2 German and 1 French translation of that Chapter.  Each webpage for each one of the 81 Chapters of the Tao Te Ching includes extensive indexing by key words, phrases, and terms for that Chapter in English, Spanish, and the Wade-Giles Romanization.  Each webpage on a Chapter of the Daodejing includes recommended reading in books and websites, a detailed bibliography, some commentary, research leads, translation sources, a Google Translate drop down menu, and other resources for that Chapter.   

Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu: Introduction, Bibliography, Commentary, Chapter Index  

Chapter 20 of the Dao De Jing by Laozi: Text and Commentaries  

Index of English Language Translators of the Tao Te Ching 

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices  

Chapter and Thematic Index to the Tao Te Ching

Studying Classic Texts

The task and daily practice of studying classic philosophical, spiritual, or religious texts is called "Svadhyaya" by B.K.S. Iyengar and others from the Hindu, Pantanjali, Raja and Hatha Yoga texts, sources, and traditions.

It is the education of the self via the wisdom literature.  

"To make life healthy, happy and peaceful, it is essential to study regularly divine literature in a pure place. The study of the ancient books of the world will enable the sadhaka to concentrate upon and solve the difficult problems of life when they arise.  It will put an end to ignorance and bring knowledge.  Ignorance has no beginning, but it has an end.  There is a beginning but no end to knowledge. By svadhyaya the sadhaka understands the nature of his soul and gains communion with the divine.  The sacred books of the world are for all to read.  They are not meant for the members of one particular faith alone.  As bees savor the nectar in various flowers, so the sadhaka absorbs things in other faiths which will enable him to appreciate his own faith better."
- B.K.S. Iyengar, Light on Yoga, 1966, p. 39

Pantanjali
Gonardiya or Gonikaputra
The Yoga Stura
Circa 200-400 CE

Ashes to Ashes

Palm Sunday--
heroes smiling,
people cheering

Mardi Gras and 
Shrove Tuesday's
debaucheries--
reasons for repenting.

Cleaning out
the fireplace--
Ash Wednesday

Ashes to ashes--
yet departed Guides
live on

Forty days
of austerities--
questioning demons

Buds emerging 
on leafless branches--
metaphors of
Rising from the Dead.

Devastating EARTHQUAKES--
Nature
does not care.  

Ash Wednesday

Origins of Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday

By T. S. Eliot, 1930

"The silent sister veiled in white and blue
Between the yews, behind the garden god,
Whose flute is breathless, bent her head and signed but spoke
no word

But the fountain sprang up and the bird sang down
Redeem the time, redeem the dream
The token of the word unheard, unspoken

Till the wind shake a thousand whispers from the yew

And after this our exile


V
If the lost word is lost, if the spent word is spent
If the unheard, unspoken
Word is unspoken, unheard;
Still is the unspoken word, the Word unheard,
The Word without a word, the Word within
The world and for the world;
And the light shone in darkness and
Against the Word the unstilled world still whirled
About the centre of the silent Word.

O my people, what have I done unto thee.

Where shall the word be found, where will the word
Resound? Not here, there is not enough silence
Not on the sea or on the islands, not
On the mainland, in the desert or the rain land,
For those who walk in darkness
Both in the day time and in the night time
The right time and the right place are not here
No place of grace for those who avoid the face
No time to rejoice for those who walk among noise and deny
the voice"  

The Best Tao Te Ching Website

 A typical webpage created by Mike Garofalo for each one of the 81 Chapters (Verses, Sections) of the Tao Te Ching (Daodejing) by Lao Tzu (Laozi) includes over 25 different English language translations or interpolations for that Chapter, 5 Spanish language translations for that Chapter, the Chinese characters for that Chapter, the Wade-Giles and Hanyu Pinyin transliterations (Romanization) of the Mandarin Chinese words for that Chapter, and 2 German and 1 French translation of that Chapter.  

Each webpage for each one of the 81 Chapters of the Tao Te Ching includes extensive indexing by key words, phrases, nouns, verbs, adjectives and terms for that Chapter in English, Spanish, and the Wade-Giles Romanization.  This is the most extensive Concordance of the Dao De Jing available online.  

The Best Tao Te Ching Website

Each webpage on a Chapter of the Daodejing includes recommended reading in books and websites, a detailed bibliography, some commentary, research leads, translation sources, and other resources for that Chapter.  

Each webpage includes a Google Translate drop down menu at the top that enables you to read these 81 webpages in over 100 languages.

The Most Complete Dao De Jing Website

Chapter Indexing, Concordance, for the Tao Te Ching

English Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Spanish Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices

Taoism: A Selected Reading List

Concordance to the Tao Te Ching   

One Old Daoist Druid's Final Journey  

The Most Useful Tao Te Ching Website

Tao Te Ching  Chapter Number Index Standard Traditional Chapter Arrangement of the Tao Te ChingChapter Order in Wang Bi's Daodejing Commentary in 246 CE Chart by Mike Garofalo Subject Index
1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20
21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30
31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40
41	42	43	44	45	46	47	48	49	50
51	52	53	54	55	56	57	58	59	60
61	62	63	64	65	66	67	68	69	70
71	72	73	74	75	76	77	78	79	80
81

Dao De Jing, Chapter 19

Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

Chapter 19

"Abandon holiness,
discard your plans,
and the people will improve.
Let go of duty,
and the people will find devotion.
Renounce learning and ceremony,
and the people will find peace.
Ditch your clever schemes and thirst for profit,
and thieves will disappear.
Better yet,
just return to the purity and simplicity,
of raw silk or unworked wood.
Lose your self-consciousness
and ease yourself away from desire."
-  Translated by Crispin Starwell, Chapter 19 

"Get rid of "holiness" and abandon "wisdom" and the people will benefit a hundredfold.
Get rid of "altruism" and abandon "Justice" and the people will return to filial piety and compassion.
Get rid of cleverness and abandon profit, and thieves and gangsters will not exist.
Since the above three are merely words, they are not sufficient.
Therefore there must be something to include them all.
See the origin and keep the non-differentiated state.
Lessen selfishness and decrease desire."
-  Translated by Charles Muller, 1891, Chapter 19  

"Stop being learned and your troubles will end.
Give up wisdom, discard cleverness, and the people will benefit a hundredfold.
Give up benevolence, discard moral judgments, and the people will rediscover natural compassion.
Give up shrewdness, discard gain, and thieves and robbers will disappear.
These three false adornments are not enough to live by.
They must give way to something more solid.
Look for what is simple and hold onto the Uncarved Block.
Diminish thoughts of self and restrain desires."
-  Translated by Tolbert McCarroll, 1982, Chapter 19 

"It is better merely to live one's life,
realizing one's potential,
rather than wishing 
for sanctification.

He who lives in filial piety and love 
has no need of ethical teaching. 

When cunning and profit are renounced, 
stealing and fraud will disappear. 
But ethics and kindness, and even wisdom, 
are insufficient in themselves. 

Better by far to see the simplicity
of raw silk's beauty
and the uncarved block;
to be one with oneself, 
and with one's brother.
It is better by far 
to be one with the Tao,
developing selflessness,
tempering desire,
removing the wish,
but being compassionate."
-  Translated by Stan Rosenthal, 1984, Chapter 19 

絕聖棄智, 民利百倍.
絕仁棄義, 民復孝慈.
絕巧棄利, 民有無賊.
絕巧棄利, 盜無 ?者
此三者以為文不足, 故令有所屬.
見素抱樸.
少私寡欲.  -  Chinese characters, Tao Te Ching, Chapter 19


chüeh shêng ch'i chih, min li pai pei.
chüeh jên ch'i yi, min fu hsiao tz'u.
chüeh hsüeh ch'i li, min yu wu yu.
chüeh ch'iao ch'i li, tao tsê wu yu.
tz'u san chê yi wei wên pu tsu, ku ling yu so shu.
chien su pao p'u.
shao ssu kua yü.
-  Wade-Giles Romanization, Tao Te Ching, Chapter 19  



"If the people renounce self-control and reject wisdom,
Let them gain simplicity and purity
If the people renounce duty to man and reject right conduct,
Let them return to filial piety deep, deep in the heart.
If they renounce skill and leave off search for profit,
Let them rob and by violence take possession of spiritual life.
These three things do not help our progress.
Therefore now let us seek
To perceive simplicity,
To conserve beauty in the heart,
To curb selfishness and to have few desires."
-  Translated by Isabella Mears, 1916, Chapter 19 


"Prescribe la sabiduría, descarta la santidad,
y el pueblo se beneficiará cien veces.
Prescribe la bondad humana, descarta la moralidad,
Y el pueblo será abnegado y compasivo.
Prescribe la habilidad, descarta el provecho,
y así bandidos y ladrones desaparecerán.
Pero estas tres normas no bastan.
Por esto, atiende a lo sencillo y genuino,
reduce tu egoísmo, y restringe los deseos."
-  Translation from Wikisource, 2013, Tao Te Ching, Capítulo 19   

"If men would lay aside their holiness

And wisdom, they would gain a hundred-fold,

And, if benevolence and righteousness,

Parental care and filial love would hold;

If they would drop their cleverness and gain,

Robbers would cease to trouble, as of old.   

Here are three things where decorating fails,

Let them again embrace reality,

Let them restore the purity of old,

Let them return to their simplicity,

Curb selfishness, diminish their desires,

And in the genuine find felicity."
-  Translated by Isaac Winter Heysinger, 1903, Chapter 19 

"Terminate 'sageliness', junk 'wisdom'
the people will benefit a hundred-fold.
Terminate 'humanity', junk 'morality'
the people will respond with 'filiality' and 'affection.'
Terminate 'artistry', junk 'benefit'
thieves and robbers will lack 'existence'.
These three
taken as slogans are insufficient.
Hence, leads us to postulate that to which they belong.
Visualize simplicity and embrace uncarved wood.
Downgrade 'selfishness' and diminish 'desire.'
Terminate learning and you will lack irritation."
-  Translated by Chad Hansen, Chapter 19 

"For thirty years of His life on earth,
The Word was silent before the people.
For fifty centuries the world had waited for the word that its
   Maker could speak.
And finally, with the people before Him
On a sloping meadow overlooking a lake,
The Word spoke His word.
The Way revealed His way.
And He Who had taken the lowest place
Spoke to His creatures of lowliness, saying:
"Blessed are the meek,
The poor in spirit,
Blessed are you who weep now."
He Who had come not seeking praise, said:
"Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you."
These were the first words that the Word spoke to mankind,
Being meek, being Himself reviled,
And weeping with those who weep."
-  Interpolated by Hieromonk Damascene, 1999, Chapter 19
   An Eastern Orthodox interpretation of the Dao and Christ



"Abandon holiness
Discard cleverness and the people will benefit a hundredfold
Abandon the rules of "kindness"
Discard "righteous" actions
and the people will return
to their own natural affections
Abandon book learning
Discard the rules of behavior
and the people will have no worries
Abandon plots and schemes
Discard profit-seeking
and the people will not become thieves

These lessons are mere elaborations
The essence of my teachings is this:
See with original purity
Embrace with original simplicity
Reduce what you have
Decrease what you want."
-  Translated by Johathan Star, 2001, Chapter 19




"Trying Too Hard: Ease up and don’t worry

Give up wisdom. Discard knowledge.
Then people will benefit a hundred fold.
Give up benevolence. Discard justice.
Then people will return to brotherly love and kindness.
Give up scheming. Discard profit.
Then there will be no bandits and thieves.

These three sayings, as principles, are not enough.
Therefore we must add the following:
Be natural and embrace simplicity.
Reduce selfishness and have few desires.
Give up learning and don’t worry."
-  Translated by Amy and Roderic Sorell, 2003, Chapter 19



A typical webpage created by Mike Garofalo for each one of the 81 Chapters (Verses, Sections) of the Tao Te Ching (Daodejing) by Lao Tzu (Laozi) includes over 25 different English language translations or interpolations for that Chapter, 5 Spanish language translations for that Chapter, the Chinese characters for that Chapter, the Wade-Giles and Hanyu Pinyin transliterations (Romanization) of the Mandarin Chinese words for that Chapter, and 2 German and 1 French translation of that Chapter.  Each webpage for each one of the 81 Chapters of the Tao Te Ching includes extensive indexing by key words, phrases, and terms for that Chapter in English, Spanish, and the Wade-Giles Romanization.  Each webpage on a Chapter of the Daodejing includes recommended reading in books and websites, a detailed bibliography, some commentary, research leads, translation sources, and other resources for that Chapter.  Each webpage includes a Google Translate drop down menu at the top that enables you to read the webpage in over 100 languages.

Chapter 19, Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

Chapter Indexing for the Tao Te Ching

English Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Spanish Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices

Taoism: A Selected Reading List

Concordance to the Tao Te Ching (2018 Project)   

One Old Daoist Druid's Final Journey  

Limping Towards Recovery

I was making steady progress on recovery from my cryo-balloon heart ablation on 2/2/2023.  I was walking for over 6,000 Steps per day, practicing my Taijiquan, and doing some light stretching.  

Last Sunday, while getting up carelessly and quickly from a 14 inch high low bench, I twisted my right leg.  Immediate Pain!  My right knee buckled and hurt, my hamstring hurt, my quadriceps hurt.  I could not walk without serious pain.  I was slowly limping around the house.  I began treatment: rest, ice, compression, gentle massage, elevation of my right leg.  Then, I sprained my right foot on Tuesday.  More pain, more limping, more discouragement.  

This is a rare series of leg injuries for me.  Very discouraging and disappointing setback to my normal exercise routines, and my heart recovery.  I've not injured my hamstrings or quadriceps since my baseball playing days when I was 40.  

I am now studying and implementing the recommendations for slow recovery found in the excellent book:

Built from Broken. A Science-Based Guide to Healing Painful Joints, Preventing Injuries, and Rebuilding Your Body. By Scott Hogan. Salt Wrap, 2021, index, reference, appendices, 341 pages. VSCL. 

Strength Training for Seniors

For Spiritual Encouragement, I am rereading and studying the valuable book:

Light on Life: The Yoga Journey to Wholeness, Inner Peace, and Ultimate FreedomBy B.K.S. Iyengar.  With John J. Evans and Douglas Abrams.  Rodale Books, 2005.  Index, 282 pages.  ISBN: 1594862486.  VSCL.  Contrary to some critics of popularized "gym" yoga, blaming Iyengar; his books reveal his spirituality through the practice of yoga postures, breath work, self-discipline, positive psychology, and meditation.  In short, Raja Yoga and Hatha Yoga combined.  

Spiritual Practices for Self-Transformation

How to Live a Good Life: Advice from Wise and Respected Persons

I checked out three books from the Fort Vancouver Regional Library System:  

Tibetan Yoga: Magic Movements of Body, Breath and Mind.  By Alejandro Chaoul.  This yoga practice requires instruction from a qualified teacher.  The book provides theory, ancient texts, and very brief descriptions of the movements.  There are no pictures or illustrations of the specific movements.  The use of shaking the body between movements, asanas, and postures are similar to Qigong systems.  For experienced Yogis.

Accessible Yoga: Poses and Practices for Every Body.  By Jivana Heyman.  Beginner's Yoga and for people with health problems.  Good photos to illustrated modified poses.  

Both books tended to stress the incompleteness and inadequacy of popular Western hatha yoga practice in gyms and yoga studios.  They take issue with the goals of flexibility and athleticism in common yoga; and, its not making yoga accessible to different body types or sub-cultures, or for those people seeking spiritual development via Yoga practices.  

In my view, different strokes for different folks.  I'm OK with slim, young, beautiful, athletic, Christian females doing rigorous 'gym' yoga; or, male lamas doing Tibetan yoga on three month retreats; or, old Bigger men, like me, seeking a modicum of fitness without injury via yoga and strength training.  Some folks are into the 'spiritual' dimensions of Raja Yoga, others not so much so.  Everyone benefits from these Yoga practices if they Practice Daily.  

I've been doing some light stretching using a chair or table for support.  

Chair Yoga: Sit, Stretch, and Strengthen Your Way toa Happier, Healthier You.  By Kristin McGee.  William Morrow, 2017. Index, 271 pages. Basic instruction in many exercises you can do while supporting yourself with a chair.  There are numerous books on the market for Chair Yoga.  For beginners and seniors needing alternatives.  VSCL. 

Yesterday, I felt comfortable and safe enough to resume walking, Taijiquan, and gentle stretching, and even some strength training.  I walked 3,400 Steps.  My goal is to walk over 3.500 to 5,000 Steps per day for the next five days.  

B. K. S. Iyengar and Yoga

Iyengar, B.K.S.  1918-    Yogacharya Iyengar

The renowned Yoga Grand Master (Yogacharya) B. K. S. Iyengar was born in Bellur, Karnataka, India on December 14, 1918; and died at the age of 96 on August 20, 2014..  He has taught in Pune, India, since 1936; and all around the world.  "Bellur Krishnamachar Sundararaja Iyengar, (B. K. S. Iyengar)  is the founder of Iyengar Yoga. He is considered one of the foremost yoga teachers in the world and has been practicing and teaching yoga for more than 75 years. He has written many books on yoga practice and philosophy, and is best known for his books Light on Yoga, Light on Pranayama, and Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.  Iyengar yoga classes are offered throughout the world, and it is believed that millions of students practice Iyengar Yoga." 

Light on Life: The Yoga Journey to Wholeness, Inner Peace, and Ultimate Freedom  By B.K.S. Iyengar.  With John J. Evans and Douglas Abrams.  Rodale Books, 2005.  Index, 282 pages.  ISBN: 1594862486.  VSCL. 

Light on Prānāyāma: The Yogic Art of Breathing  By B.K.S. Iyengar.  Introduction by Yehudi Menuhin.  New York, Crossroad Pub. Co., 2012.  Originally published in 1985 in English.  Index, glossary, appendices, 296 pages.  ISBN: 9780824506865.  VSCL.

Light on the Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.   By B. K. S. Iyengar.  Foreword by Yehudi Menuhin.  London, Thorsons, 1993.  Index, 337 pages.  ISBN: 1855382253.  VSCL. 

Light on Yoga: Yoga Dipika.   B.K.S. Iyengar.  New York, Schocken Books, 1966, Revised Edition 1977, 1979.  Glossary, index, 544 pages.  ISBN: 0805210318.   Subtitle: Yoga Dipika.  I own the revised paperback edition, 1979.  VSCL.   

 
Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health  By B.K.S. Iyengar.  London, Dorling Kindersley, 2001.  Index, glossary, appendices, 415 pages.  ISBN: 0789471655.  Lavishly illustrated compendium of essential poses, routines, prop use, and yoga routines to help specific health problems.  VSCL.   

 

                

 

Books by "Iyengar Yoga" Teachers

Yoga: The Iyengar Way.  By Mira Silva and Shyam Mehta.  New York, Alfred A. Knopf, 1995.  Index, appendices, 192 pages.  ISBN: 0679722874.  A very good reference tool for the study and practice of yoga poses.  VSCL. 

Iyengar Yoga Institute of San Francisco

 

   

Forms are Full, Fullness begets Forms

Waves of Reflections at the Bandon Jetty

By Michael P. Garofalo
January 2023

The immense Oceans are undrinkable, and
in some ways unthinkable.  
No fresh water begets death, and 
Water is Life.

Words from the Heart Scripture went unsaid, and
the Bodhi Tree flourished in Life's Garden.  

Something evolves from Something Else, and
nothing evolves from nothing.

Beings emerge from Beings, and
emptiness disappears into emptiness.

"Nothing" is not a noun-thing, and
"Somethings" are dependent relationships.

Forms are Full, and
Fullness begets Forms.

Somethings created my body-mind, and
my body-mind created somethings.  

The Dao marries Yin-Yang, and
some of their step-children are Black Holes. 

Chaos is not emptiness, and
the Void provides Space for Somethings.

Somethings are transitory, ephemeral, and
They are Not empty illusions or unreal. 

Time is the crux of the matter, and
Somethings come and go, appear and disappear.  

"Nothing" is the absence of Something
we desire, and
not the presence of something.  

Somethings are Appearances, and
Appearances are Somethings.

Is or is not, true or false, real or unreal,
something or nothing, be Careful, and
sometimes choose the Middle Way of Maybe So.

Pointing to Nothing, and 
slogging through a muddy muddle of Mu.

Come Closer, Come Closer, and
Open the Door to Wonderous Beings.

Come Closer, Come Closer, and
Embrace Body-Mind-Spirit.
Cast off emptiness and the void.  

Gate Gate Parasamgate Bodhi Svaha, and
some Lotus plants died in a drought.  Oh No!

Words from the Heart went unsaid, and
the Bodhi Tree flourished in Life's Garden.  (5) 

Waves of Reflections at the Bandon Jetty
By Michael P. Garofalo
January 2023

 The Heart Sutra and The Threefold Lotus Sutra.  

Emptiness and Forms

Experiences of "emptiness" are often a case of not finding something we desire in the complex world of Somethings.  Something desired seems or is missing.  We want a drink of water and the glass is empty.  We wanted wheat, and a drought destroyed the wheat crop and brought nothing we wanted.