Artificial Intelligence Issues

 

Tao Te Ching Chapter 40 Dao De Jing

Daodejing, Laozi
Chapter 40

"The movement of the Tao
By contraries proceeds;
And weakness marks the course
Of Tao's mighty deeds.
All things under heaven sprang from It as existing and named.
That existence sprang from It as non-existent and not named."
-  Translated by James Legge, 1891, Chapter 40    

"Reversion is the action of Tao.
   Gentleness is the function of Tao.
The things of this world come from Being,
   And Being (comes) from Non-being."
-  Translated by Lin Yutang, 1955, Chapter 40    

"In Tao the only motion is returning;
The only useful quality, weakness.
For though all creatures under heaven are the products of Being,
Being itself is the product of Not-being."
-  Translated by Arthur Waley, 1934, Chapter 40  


"Reversion is the action of the Dao.
 Softness is the function of the Dao.
 The myriad things under Heaven achieve life in existence.
 Existence arises from nothingness."
 -  Translation Richard Lynn, Chapter 40  



反者道之動.
弱者道之用. 
天下萬物生於有.
有生於無.
-  Chinese Characters, Tao Te Ching, Chapter 40  


fan zhe dao zhi dong, 
ruo zhe dao zhi yong. 
tian xia wan wu sheng yu you.   
you sheng yu wu.
-  Pinyin Romanization, Daodejing, Chapter 40   



"The movement of Tao in the course of time is to return to Simplicity;
 The working of Tao is so subtle that is ostensible effect may not be immediately noticeable.
 Myriad things and creatures on Earth were originated from something;
 This something describable by us was launched ultimately from nothing which is beyond our description."
 -  Translated by Lee Sun Chen Org, Chapter 40   



"Interaction of the opposites is the sphere of Tao activity.
The Highest Subtlety is one of the most important qualities of Tao.
It is opposed by coarse qualities of evil people. 
All the development of incarnate beings goes on in interaction of these opposites.
Yet, the very world of matter originated from the Subtlest Source."
-  Translated by Mikhail Nilolenko, Chapter 40    


"El movimiento del Tao es retornar;
El uso del Tao es aceptar;
Todas las cosas derivan del Tao,
El Tao no deriva de ninguna."
-  Translated by Antonio Rivas Gonzálvez, 1998, Capitulo 40

"The movement of the Tao is a returning,

And weakness marks its course, to our discerning,

But heaven and earth and everything from its existence came,

And existence, from the non-existent spurning."
-  Translated by Isaac Winter Heysinger, 1903, Chapter 40  

"Tao moves in cycles;
Tao functions through softness.
All is born of nothing.
Something is born of nothing."
-  Translated by Tam C. Gibbs, 1981, Chapter 40   

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 includes a Google Translate option menu for reading the entire webpage in many other languages.  Each webpage for each one of the 81 Chapters of the Tao Te Ching [246 CE Wang Bi version] includes extensive indexing by key words, phrases, and terms (concordance) 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, links, research leads, translator sources, and other resources for that Chapter.  

     A Top Tier online free resource for English and Spanish readers, researchers, Daoist devotees, scholars, students, fans and fellow travelers on the Way. 

Chapter 40, Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

Chapter and Thematic Index (Concordance) to the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

English Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Spanish Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices

Taoism: A Selected Reading List

One Old Daoist Druid's Final Journey  

How to Live a Good Life: Advice from Wise Persons

 

Dao De Jing, Laozi, Chapter 16

Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu
Chapter 16

"Attaining perfect emptiness
 Remain patient and sincere
 The myriad beings arise as one
 Through this we observe the return
 Of beings in numberless multitudes
 Each coming home to its root
 Return to the root means serenity
 It may be called a return to a higher order
 Return to higher order speaks of the enduring
 To comprehend the enduring speaks of clarity
 To not comprehend the enduring
 Is to recklessly create suffering
 To comprehend the enduring (is) tolerance
 Tolerance becomes justice
 Justice becomes sovereignty
 Sovereignty becomes celestial
 The celestial becomes the path
 The path is then continuous
 The death of self is nothing to fear"
 -  Translated by Bradford Hatcher, 2005, Chapter 16



"Bring about emptiness to the extreme.
Guard true stillness.
The ten-thousand things rise together.
I therefore observe their return:
Those ten-thousand plants—each plant—returns
Going back to its root.
Going back to the root is said to be stillness.
This is called returning to life.
Returning to life is called the Constant.
Understanding the Constant is called clarity.
Not understanding the Constant:
Reckless actions—misfortune.
Understanding the Constant, forgive.
Forgive, then be unbiased.
Be unbiased, then be whole.
Be whole, then be Heaven.
Be Heaven, then be Tao.
Be Tao, then be eternal.
Not having a body, there is no danger."
-  Translated by Aalar Fex, 2006, Chapter 16  


"Empty the self completely; Embrace perfect peace.
 Realize that all beings alike go through their processes of activity and life,
 and then they return to the original source.
 Returning to the source brings peacefulness and stillness.
 This stillness is the flow of nature, and signifies that the beings have lived their allotted span of life.
 Accepting this brings enlightenment and tranquility,
 ignoring this brings confusion and sorrow
 If one can accept this flow of nature; one can cherish all things.
 Being all-cherishing you become impartial;
 Being impartial you become magnanimous;
 Being magnanimous you become natural;
 Being natural you become one with The Way;
 Being one with The Way you become immortal:
 Though the body will decay, the Way will not."
 -  Translated by John Discus, 2002, Chapter 16   



致虛極.
守靜篤.
萬物並作.
吾以觀復.
夫物芸芸, 各復歸其根.
歸根曰靜.
是謂復命.
復命曰常.
知常曰明.
不知常, 妄作凶知常容.
容乃公.
公乃王.
王乃天.
天乃道.
道乃久.
沒身不殆.
-  Chinese characters, Tao Te Ching, Chapter 16

zhi xu ji.
shou jing du.
wan wu bing zuo.
wu yi guan fu.
fu wu yun yun, ge fu gui qi gen.  
gui gen yue jing.
shi yue fu ming.
fu ming yue chang.
zhi chang yue ming.
bu zhi chang, wang zuo xiong zhi chang rong.
rong nai gong.
gong nai quan.
quan nai tian.
tian nai dao.
dao nai jiu.
mo shen bu dai.
-  Pinyin translation, Daodejing, Chapter 16 

"Effect emptiness to the extreme.
 Keep stillness whole.
 Myriad things act in concert.
 I therefore watch their return.
 All things flourish and each returns to its root.
 Returning to the root is called quietude.
 Quietude is called returning to life.
 Return to life is called constant.
 Knowing this constant is called illumination.
 Acting arbitrarily without knowing the constant is harmful.
 Knowing the constant is receptivity, which is impartial.
 Impartiality is kingship.
 Kingship is Heaven.
 Heaven is Tao
 Tao is eternal.
 Though you lose the body, you do not die."
 -  Translated by Charles Muller, 1891, Chapter 16
  

"Vacía tu Ego completamente;
Abraza la paz perfecta.
El Mundo se mueve y gira;
Observale regresar a la quietud.
Todas las cosas que florecen
Regresarán a su origen.

Este regreso es pacífico;
Es el camino de la Naturaleza,
Eternamente decayendo y renovandose.
Comprender ésto trae la iluminación,
Ignorar esto lleva a la miseria.

Aquel que comprende el camino de la Naturaleza llega a apreciarlo todo;
Apreciandolo todo, se convierte en imparcial;
Siendo imparcial, se convierte en magnánimo;
Siendo magnánimo, se convierte en parte de la Naturaleza;
Siendo parte de la Naturaleza, se hace uno con el Tao;
Siendo uno con el Tao, se alcanza la inmortalidad:
Piensa que el cuerpo perecerá, el Tao no."
-  Translated by Antonio Rivas Gonzálvez, 1998, Tao Te Ching, Capítulo 16


"To arrive at ultimate quietness
Steadfastly maintain repose.
All creatures together have form;
I see them return again to their root.
The Master creatures come to perfect form,
Continuously they return to their root.
Continuous return to the root is called repose,
Repose is called the law of return,
The law of return is called eternity.
To know eternity is called illumination.
To ignore eternity is to draw misfortune on oneself,
To know eternity is to be great of Soul,
To be great of soul is to be a ruler,
To be a ruler is to be greater than all,
To be greater than all is to be conscious of Life,
To be conscious of Life is to endure.
The body shall disappear but not decay."
-  Translated by Isabella Mears, 1916, Chapter 16  

Chapter 16 of the Tao Te Ching

Chapter and Thematic Index (Concordance) to the Tao Te Ching

English Language Translators' Index

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices

Taoism: A Selected Reading List

A typical webpage created by Mike Garofalo for each one of the 81 Chapters of the Tao Te Ching (Daodejing) by Lao Tzu (Laozi) includes 20 different English translations or interpolations of each Chapter, 3 Spanish translations for each Chapter, the Chinese characters for each Chapter, and the Wade-Giles and Hanyu Pinyin Romanization of the Mandarin Chinese words for each Chapter; extensive indexing by key words and terms for each Chapter in English, Spanish, and the Wade-Giles Romanization is provided; recommended reading in books and websites, a detailed bibliography, some commentary, research leads, translation sources, and other resources for each Chapter are included.  

Text Art: Exhibit 9

Portrait of Murasaki Shikibu, Tosa Mitsuoki

Etchings #5, Roland Sabatier and Alain Satie

Lettrie a ouvrir des horizons nouveaux, Roland Sabatier

Palavras em Libertdad, Fillipe Martinelli

Nothing, Nico Vassilakis

Communicating Via Text
By Michael P. Garofalo
Concrete Poetry Website

Hypergraphie Infinitesmial, Broutin

TeXTArt

Concrete Poetry and TextArt Directory and Guide

Exhibits at the Cyber Garden Gazebo

Graphic Arts: Shape Poems: Lettrisme

Sunday TextArt Exhibits

Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu, Chapter 52

Dao De Jing by Laozi
Chapter 52

Returning to the Source, Great Mother, Soft and Small, Avoiding Misfortune, Study Origins, Humility, Listening, Seeds, Undying Nature, Examine Relationships,  歸元  

"All under Heaven has a generatrix, which we regard as the mother of all under Heaven.
Once one has access to the mother, through it he can know the child.
Once one knows the child, if he again holds on to the mother, as long as he lives, no danger shall befall him.
Block up your apertures; close your door,
And to the end of your life you will never be exhausted.
But if you open your apertures and deal consciously with things, to the end of your life you will never have relief.
To see the small is called "perspicacious."
To hold on to softness is called "strength."
Make use of its brightness,
But always let its brightness revert.
Never let one's person be exposed to disaster: this is a matter of practicing constancy."
-   Translation by Richard Lynn, Chapter 52 

"The world (t'ien hsia) has an origin (shih),
Which is the world's (t'ien hsia) mother (mu).
Having reached the mother,
(We) know her child.
Having known the child,
Return and abide by its mother.
(In this way) one loses the body without becoming exhausted.
Stop the apertures (tui),
Close the doors,
(In this way) one's whole life (shen) is without toil (ch'in).
Open the apertures,
Going about the affairs,
(In this way) one's whole life (shen) cannot be saved.
To see the small is called illumination (ming).
To abide by the soft is called strength.
Use the bright light (kuang),
But return to the dim light (ming),
Do not expose your life (shen) to perils,
Such is to follow (hsi) the everlasting (ch'ang)."
-   Translated by Ellen M. Chen, Chapter 52 

"If you trace problems in your relationship
back to the beginning
you will find their seeds
were sown and then ignored.
They grew unnoticed until their fruit
ripened and surprised you.
But if you can find
where the seeds were sown,
there you will find the roots as well.
And if you remove the roots
your problems will wither."
-   Translated by William Martin, Chapter 52

"When creation began, Tao became the world's mother.
When one knows one's mother he will m turn know that he is her son.
When he recognizes his sonship, he will in turn keep to his mother and to the end of life will be free from danger.
He who closes his mouth and shuts his sense gates will be free from trouble to the end of life.
He who opens his mouth and meddles with affairs cannot be free from trouble even to the end of life.
To recognize one's insignificance is called enlightenment.
To keep one's sympathy is called strength.
He who uses Tao's light returns to Tao's enlightenment and does not surrender his person to perdition.
This is called practicing the eternal."
-   Translation by Dwight Goddard, Chapter 52 

"The beginning of the universe, when materialized, is considered to be a mother.
When a man finds the mother, he will know the children, accordingly.
Even though he knows the children, he still clings to the mother:
Therefore, although his body wanes, he never perishes.
The person who shuts his mouth and closes his doors
Will never perish.
If he opens his mouth and increases his affairs,
He will never be saved.
The person who sees the tiniest thing possesses clear vision,
The person who adheres to the weak possesses strength.
Use your light, but dim your brightness,
In this way you will not do yourself any harm.
This is called following the eternal Tao."
-   Translated by Chou-Wing Chohan, Chapter 52 

"Everything begins with the Tao and ends with the Tao.
To know it retrace the steps of your life.
When you reach back to the beginning, the Tao lies herein.
Then you will realise there is no death.
Without desire your heart is at peace.
Without judgment your mind is clear.
See who it is that sees.
Witness thoughts come and go.
Turn the light around and find its source.
Practicing this leads to enlightenment."
-   Translated by David Bullen, Chapter 52 

"This world must have begun in certain way;
We may thenceforth consider it the origin (mother) of our world;
Once we manage to ascertain the origin, we could [apply it] to study its offsprings;
After we learn more about the offsprings, we may reciprocally eke out our knowledge about the mother (the origin);
This is my never-ending life-long quest.
If paths and openings of one's connections [to the outside world] are blocked, he will never be aroused to do anything in life;
If paths and openings of one's connections [to the outside world] are unlocked and he is properly motivated, he will never cease [from the quest described above].
One who perceives subtleties is brilliant;
One who maintains humility is strong.
One who would use [the light of Tao] to illuminate his [potential] brilliance will thus leave behind nothing that could cause misfortune to later generations.
A person, who achieves all of the above described fulfillment, is what I called the person with embodiment of the perpetual [Te]."
-   Translated by Lee Org, Chapter 52 

"The world had a beginning
And this beginning could be the mother of the world.
When you know the mother
Go on to know the child.
After you have known the child
Go back to holding fast to the mother,
And to the end of your days you will not meet with danger.
Block the openings,
Shut the doors,
And all your life you will not run dry.
Unblock the openings,
Add to your troubles,
And to the end of your days you will be beyond salvation.
To see the small is called discernment;
To hold fast to the submissive is called strength.
Use the light
But give up the discernment.
Bring not misfortune upon yourself.
This is known as following the constant."
-   Translation by D. C. Lau, Chapter 52 

“Realizing the interplay of the Tao way of life
and the virtue of nuturing all things under heaven
will introduce you to the primal mother
The mother of the world
resting peacefully with the mother
will introduce you to her sons and daughters
The sons and daughters of the world
these children can be exhausting
and though they mean no harm
trying to follow or control them
will only bring great danger to you
To be safe
rest peacefully with the mother
gently close your eyes
and look inward
softly direct your eyes
to listen within
lightly close your mouth
raise your tongue to its roof
and quietly savor the interior
gently lift your crown
sit firm with a relaxed hold
on your bodymind
and let her love
fill you up
you will never be empty
again
remember
chasing children
brings calamity
no matter
how hard
you try
to follow
or grasp them
the whole universe is in the palm
of your hand
but without
illumination
you cannot see it
the real world is not open
to the rational mind 
the ancient child asks
when you have rested sufficiently
in the arms of the primal mother
and you vision begins to clear
what occurs
it is an unexpected sense of making
that first arises within the bodymind 
then you are engulfed in a benevolent flame
that outlines rather than burns
and I do not know if I am
the source or the witness
the senses play
leaping to and fro
mischievously acting against their nature 
emotions of comfort and satisfaction swell
so that even the harshest rain
feels like a lover’s kiss
resting deeper
you fell as if an unseen enemy
has been vanquished
and life courses through you limbs
as the warrior’s belt collects you
the connection to the Tao source and way of life
becomes punctuated and definite
possessed of a wholly benevolent clarity 
language leaves you
and a light and sensitive energy collects at your
     crown
visions cascade upon you so rapidly
that it becomes impossible
to divide or discern
what we normally regard as real
death becomes impossible 
fire and force penetrate deeply
within you bodymind
and a new truth shapes you
into someone altogether different 
you begin to breathe
the Tao way of life
as true respiration
within a quickening
that shines out
for all to see  
spinning out of the quickening
you understand the mother’s children
you sing and dance
you paint and play
you look at the palm of your hand and 
you see 
you can still make mistakes
you can still be confused
you can still misstep
but you will always have the eyes of the Tao 
however
should you ever see yourself as separate from it 
you will cease
to see
altogether”
-  Translation and Interpretation by the Reverend Venerable John Bright-Fey, Chapter 52 

“All the universal things have a common origin.  We regard it as the “Mother” of all things. 
Gaining the mother, we can know its children,
Knowing how the children come into being, we can return to hold onto the mother.
Thus ensuring nor danger to life.
Closing the eyes and shutting up the mouth,
One can keep from sickness forever.
Opening the eyes to chase after desires and passions,
One can be helpless forever.
Watching less and less can be enlightened.
Holding onto the weak can be mighty.
Using the outgoing eyesight,
To turn to illuminate the inward,
Thus, there can be no disaster to the body.
This is called practicing enduring Tao.”
-   Translated by Hu Huezhi, Chapter 52

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

 

Chapter 52 of the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

 

Index of English Language Translators of the Tao Te Ching

 

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practice 

Chapter 50   The Value Set on Life, Value Life, Esteem Life, Become Invulnerable, Followers of Life, Accept Death, Esteem Life, Out of Harms Way,  貴生

Chapter 51   The Nourishment of the Tao, Virtue as a Nurse, Guiding, Creativity, Mystical Power, Freedom, Nature, Follow the Tao, Harmony, Honor Virtue,  養德 

 

Chapter 52   Returning to the Source, Great Mother, Soft and Small, Avoiding Misfortune, Study Origins, Humility, Listening, Seeds, Undying Nature, Examine Relationships,  歸元  

Chapter 53   Follow the Way, Avoid Shortcuts, Disadvantages of Wealth, Avoid Greed, Work, Be Diligent, Gaining Insight, Look at the Facts, Appearances, Thieves,  益証  

Chapter 54   Cultivating Insight and Intuition, Person, Family, Village, State, Cultivation, Views, Virtue, Observing the Tao, As Below So Above,  修觀   

Chapter 55   Mysterious Virtue, Sign of the Mysterious,  玄符  

Lusus: A Bud Sport, A Unique Offspring, A Transformation

"In botany, a sport or bud sport, traditionally called lusus, is a part of a plant that shows morphological differences from the rest of the plant. Sports may differ by foliage shape or color, flowers, fruit, or branch structure. The cause is generally thought to be a chance genetic mutation.

Sports with desirable characteristics are often propagated vegetatively to form new cultivars that retain the characteristics of the new morphology. Such selections are often prone to "reversion", meaning that part or all of the plant reverts to its original form. An example of a bud sport is the nectarine, at least some of which developed as a bud sport from peaches. Other common fruits resulting from a sport mutation are the red Anjou pear, the Ruby Red grapefruit, and the 'Pink Lemonade' lemon, which is a sport of the "Eureka" lemon."

In the photo below, foliage of a dwarf Alberta spruce (Picea glauca var. albertiana 'Conica'), with a branch showing reversion to the normal Alberta white spruce growth habit of larger leaves and longer internodes.

-  Wikipedia

Transformation

"Transformation isn’t sweet and bright. It’s a dark and murky, painful pushing. An unraveling of the untruths you’ve carried in your body. A practice in facing your own created demons. A complete uprooting, before becoming.”
-  Victoria Erickson

“Transformation literally means going beyond your form.”
-  Wayne Dyer

“Beautiful are those whose brokenness gives birth to transformation and wisdom.”
-  John Mark Green

Studying the I Ching

I have enjoyed using Tarot cards since 1974.  

I currently use the following deck of I Ching cards to study and reflect on how the I Ching might work to inspire me, entertain me, or motivate me.

Visionary I Ching Cards: The Book of Changes for Intuitive Decision-Making.  By Paul O'Brien.  Art by Joan Larimore.  64 Cards, 224 page guidebook.  Beyond Words, 2020.  $22.00.

The Complete I Ching.  By Taoist Master Alfred Huang.  Inner Traditions, 1998, index, 540 pages.  $22.00.  

For Tarot style tools for learning about the Tao Te Ching, I recommend the following: 

Tao Te Ching Cards: Lao Tzu's Classic Taoist Text in 81 Cards.  A New and Complete Translation by Chao-Hsiu Chen.  16 page booklet.  Marlowe, 2004.  I bought this back in 2005 for $25.00; it is now out-of-print and expensive.  There are other current less costly card style choices.

My favorite Tarot card deck is the Voyager Deck by James Wanless. $27.00.    

My relevant webpages on this topic include:

Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

Taoism  

Tarot

Try to Build It

"The only sensible goal, then, is to try to build a reality-tunnel for next week that is bigger, funnier, sexier, more optimistic and generally less boring that any previous reality-tunnel.  And once you have built that bigger, funnier, happier universe of thought, build a bigger and better one, for next month."
-  Robert Anton Wilson,  Prometheus Rising,  p. 226, 1983

Process Worldview: Twenty Key Ideas

Twenty Key Ideas in the Process Worldview

By Jay McDaniel 

Open Horizons

Process Philosophy

Twenty Key Ideas in the Process Worldview

"1. Process: The universe is an ongoing process of development and change, never quite the same at any two moments. Every entity in the universe is best understood as a process of becoming that emerges through its interactions with others. The beings of the world are becomings.

2. Interconnectedness: The universe as a whole is a seamless web of interconnected events, none of which can be completely separated from the others. Everything is connected to everything else and contained in everything else. As Buddhists put it, the universe is a network of inter-being.

3. Continuous Creativity: The universe exhibits a continuous creativity on the basis of which new events come into existence over time which did not exist beforehand. This continuous creativity is the ultimate reality of the universe. Everywhere we look we see it. Even God is an expression of Creativity.

4. Nature as Alive: The natural world has value in itself and all living beings are worthy of respect and care. Rocks and trees, hills and rivers are not simply facts in the world; they are also acts of self-realization. The whole of nature is alive with value. We humans dwell within, not apart from, the Ten Thousand Things. We, too, have value.

5. Compassion and Justice: Humans find their fulfillment in living in harmony with the earth and compassionately with each other. The ethical life lies in living with respect and care for other people and the larger community of life. Justice is fidelity to the bonds of relationship. A just society is also a free and peaceful society. It is creative, compassionate, participatory, ecologically wise, and spiritually satisfying - with no one left behind.

6. Novelty: Humans find their fulfillment in being open to new ideas, insights, and experiences that may have no parallel in the past. Even as we learn from the past, we must be open to the future. God is present in the world, among other ways, through novel possibilities. Human happiness is found, not only in wisdom and compassion, but also in creativity.

7. Thinking and Feeling: The human mind is not limited to reasoning but also includes feeling, intuiting, imagining; all of these activities can work together toward understanding. Even reasoning is a form of feeling: that is, feeling the presence of ideas and responding to them. There are many forms of wisdom: mathematical, spatial, verbal, kinesthetic, empathic, logical, and spiritual.

8. Relational Selfhood: Human beings are not skin-encapsulated egos cut off from the world by the boundaries of the skin, but persons-in-community whose interactions with others are partly definitive of their own internal existence. We depend for our existence on friends, family, and mentors; on food and clothing and shelter; on cultural traditions and the natural world. The communitarians are right: there is no "self" apart from connections with others. The individualists are right, too. Each person is unique, deserving of respect and care. Other animals deserve respect and care, too.

9. Complementary Thinking: The process way leans toward both-and thinking, not either-or thinking. The rational life consists not only of identifying facts and appealing to evidence, but taking apparent conflicting ideas and showing how they can be woven into wholes, with each side contributing to the other. In Whitehead’s thought these wholes are called contrasts. To be "reasonable" is to be empirical but also imaginative: exploring new ideas and seeing how they might fit together, complementing one another.

10. Theory and Practice: Theory affects practice and practice affects theory; a dichotomy between the two is false. What people do affects how they think and how they think affects what they do. Learning can occur from body to mind: that is, by doing things; and not simply from mind to body.

11. The Primacy of Persuasion over Coercion: There are two kinds of power – coercive power and persuasive power – and the latter is to be preferred over the former. Coercive power is the power of force and violence; persuasive power is the power of invitation and moral example.

12. Relational Power: This is the power that is experienced when people dwell in mutually enhancing relations, such that both are “empowered” through their relations with one another. In international relations, this would be the kind of empowerment that occurs when governments enter into trade relations that are mutually beneficial and serve the wider society; in parenting, this would be the power that parents and children enjoy when, even amid a hierarchical relationship, there is respect on both sides and the relationship strengthens parents and children.

13. The Primacy of Particularity: There is a difference between abstract ideas that are abstracted from concrete events in the world, and the events themselves. The fallacy of misplaced concreteness lies in confusing the abstractions with the concrete events and focusing more on the abstract than the particular.

14. Experience in the Mode of Causal Efficacy: Human experience is not restricted to acting on things or actively interpreting a passive world. It begins by a conscious and unconscious receiving of events into life and being causally affected or influenced by what is received. This occurs through the mediation of the body but can also occur through a reception of the moods and feelings of other people (and animals).

15. Concern for the Vulnerable: Humans are gathered together in a web of felt connections, such that they share in one another’s sufferings and are responsible to one another. Humans can share feelings and be affected by one another’s feelings in a spirit of mutual sympathy. The measure of a society does not lie in questions of appearance, affluence, and marketable achievement, but in how it treats those whom Jesus called "the least of these" -- the neglected, the powerless, the marginalized, the otherwise forgotten.

16. Evil: “Evil” is a name for debilitating suffering from which humans and other living beings suffer, and also for the missed potential from which they suffer. Evil is powerful and real; it is not merely the absence of good. “Harm” is a name for activities, undertaken by human beings, which inflict such suffering on others and themselves, and which cut off their potential. Evil can be structural as well as personal. Systems -- not simply people -- can be conduits for harm.

17. Education as a Lifelong Process: Human life is itself a journey from birth (and perhaps before) to death (and perhaps after) and the journey is itself a process of character development over time. Formal education in the classroom is a context to facilitate the process, but the process continues throughout a lifetime. Education requires romance, precision, and generalization. Learning is best when people want to learn.

18. Religion and Science: Religion and Science are both human activities, evolving over time, which can be attuned to the depths of reality. Science focuses on forms of energy which are subject to replicable experiments and which can be rendered into mathematical terms; religion begins with awe at the beauty of the universe, awakens to the interconnections of things, and helps people discover the norms which are part of the very make-up of the universe itself.

19. God: The universe unfolds within a larger life – a love supreme – who is continuously present within each actuality as a lure toward wholeness relevant to the situation at hand. In human life we experience this reality as an inner calling toward wisdom, compassion, and creativity. Whenever we see these three realities in human life we see the presence of this love, thus named or not. This love is the Soul of the universe and we are small but included in its life not unlike the way in which embryos dwell within a womb, or fish swim within an ocean, or stars travel throught the sky. This Soul can be addressed in many ways, and one of the most important words for addressing the Soul is "God." The stars and galaxies are the body of God and any forms of life which exist on other planets are enfolded in the life of God, as is life on earth. God is a circle whose center is everywhere and circumference nowhere. As God beckons human beings toward wisdom, compassion, and creativity, God does not know the outcome of the beckoning in advance, because the future does not exist to be known. But God is steadfast in love; a friend to the friendless; and a source of inner peace. God can be conceived as "father" or "mother" or "lover" or "friend." God is love.

20. Faith: Faith is not intellectual assent to creeds or doctrines but rather trust in divine love. To trust in love is to trust in the availability of fresh possibilities relative to each situation; to trust that love is ultimately more powerful than violence; to trust that even the galaxies and planets are drawn by a loving presence; and to trust that, no matter what happens, all things are somehow gathered into a wider beauty. This beauty is the Adventure of the Universe as One."  

Fecund, Powerful Beyond Measure

"Ask of Her, the mighty Mother.
Her reply puts this other
Question: What is Spring?-
Growth in every thing -

Flesh and fleece, fur and feather,
Grass and green world all together,
Star-eyed strawberry breasted
Throstle above Her nested

Cluster of bugle blue eggs thin
Forms and warms the life within,
And bird and blossom swell
In sod or sheath or shell."
-  Gerard Manly Hopkins, The May Magnificant, 1888 

"The festival of Floralia began around the year 258 BCE. Pagan Romans celebrated for six days, from April 27th to May 3rd, honouring their Goddess of Spring and of Flowers, Flora. Flora, known as Chloris to the Greeks, was a beautiful and serene Goddess, the Queen of Spring. She was married to Zephyrus, the west wind, and her temple is in Aventine.  Floralia was a time a great merriment and rejoicing in ancient Rome. During the festival, Romans would cast off their habitual white robes for more colourful garments, especially green ones. They would also deck themselves and everything around them in flowers then engage in all sorts of activities. There would be feasting, singing, dancing, and gaming. Offerings of milk and honey were made to the goddess Flora. Goats and hares meant to symbolize fertility were let loose in gardens and fields as protectors in Flora's honour. Singing filled the air and dancers stomped the ground to awaken nature and bring it back to life.  Ancient roman prostitutes in particular enjoyed this festival as they considered Flora their patron goddess. So Floralia was especially important to them. They participated in many events, from performing naked in the theatre to gladiatorial feats.  With the occupation of Rome in many countries of the western world at the time, especially in Britain and continental Europe, the festival of Floralia spread, with each country adding its own special touches to the festivities. And finally, Floralia became May Day. Many countries choose a May Queen to preside over the day's activities and children dance around the Maypole. Some collect flowers on May Eve for the next day and some couples even make love in their garden to ensure fertility. One belief that has been passed on is that one should wash one's face with the dew from May Day morn to obtain lasting beauty."
-  Linda Cassleman, Floralia  

The Month of May: Quotes, Saying, Poetry, Lore

"The force of Spring -
dancing,
forever moving,
mysterious,
fecund,
powerful beyond measure."
-  Michael Garofalo, Cuttings

Repost from 2016.

Process Philosophy

Process Philosophy   A hypertext notebook by Michael Garofalo including quotes, bibliography, links, notes, research, and related information.  

My summer reading list includes books on process philosophy by Nicholas Rescher, Alfred North Whitehead, Robert Mesle, Hank Keeton, and Elizabeth Kraus.  

"Philosophers who appeal to process rather than substance include Heraclitus, Karl Marx, Friedrich Nietzsche, Henri Bergson, Martin Heidegger, Charles Sanders Peirce, William James, Alfred North Whitehead, Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Thomas Nail, Alfred Korzybski, R. G. Collingwood, Alan Watts, Robert M. Pirsig, Roberto Mangabeira Unger, Charles Hartshorne, Arran Gare, Nicholas Rescher, Colin Wilson, Tim Ingold, Bruno Latour, and Gilles Deleuze. In physics, Ilya Prigogine distinguishes between the "physics of being" and the "physics of becoming". Process philosophy covers not just scientific intuitions and experiences, but can be used as a conceptual bridge to facilitate discussions among religion, philosophy, and science."  -  Process Philosophy - Wikipedia     

Process Philosophy - Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

Whitehead, Alfred North  (1861-1947)

Wikipedia     Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy  

Whitehead, Alfred North.  Science and the Modern World.  1926, 218 pages.  Kindle Version, VSCL . 

Whitehead, Alfred North.  Process and Reality.  Gifford Lectures delivered in the University of Edinburgh during the Session 1927-1928.  Published in 1929.  Free Press, 1979, 413 pages.  VSCL. 

Whitehead:  Keeton, Hank.  Dao De Jing: A Process Perspective.  By Yu Fu and Hank Keeton.  Susanna Mennicke, Designer.  Seeing Tao Pub., 2019, 296 pages.  VSCL. 

Whitehead:  Process-Relational Philosophy: An Introduction to Alfred North Whitehead.  By C. Robert Mesle.  TFP, 2008, 136 pages.  VSCL. 

Whitehead:  Process Philosophy: A Survey of Basic Issues.  By Nicholas Rescher.  University of Pittsburgh, 2000, 152 pages. 

Whitehead: Emptiness and Becoming: Integhrating Madhyamika Buddhism and Process Philosophy.  By Peter Paul Kakol.  D. K. Printworld, 2009, 432 pages. 

Whitehead:  Process Metaphysics: An Introduction to Process Philosophy.  By Nicholas Rescher.  SUNY, 1996, 240 pages. 
 

Whitehead:  Process Philosophy and Political Liberalism: Rawls, Whitehead, Hartshorne.  By Daniel A. Dombrowski.  Edinburgh University Press, 2019, 224 pages. 

Whitehead:  The Metaphysics of Experience: A Companion to Whitehead's Process and Reality.  By Elizabeth Kraus.  Fordham University Press, 2018, 256 pages.  Kindle, VSCL.