Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Gu Shen (Valley Spirit)

"The Spirit of the perennial spring is said to be immortal, she is called the Mysterious One.
The Mysterious One is typical of the source of heaven and earth.
It is continually and endlessly issuing and without effort."
-   Translated by Dwight Goddard and Henri Borel, 1919, Chapter 6 


"The Spirit of the Depths is immortal; it is called the Azure Heaven and the Mother Earth.
The passage through which these Two Influences emerge and enter is called the root of the visible creation.
They are ceaseless in action as though permanent, and may be drawn upon without ever being exhausted."
-   Translated by
Frederic H. Balfour, 1884, Chapter 6  

"The valley spirit never dies.
It is the unknown first mother,
whose gate is the root
from which grew heaven and earth.
It is dimly seen, yet always present.
Draw from it all you wish;
it will never run dry."
-   Translated by T. McCarroll, Chapter 6    


"The valley spirit never dies.
It's named the mystic woman.
And the gate of the profound woman is the root that heaven and earth sprang from.
It's there within us all the while;
draw upon it as you will,
you can never wear it out."
-   Translated by T. Byrn, Chapter 6   


"The mystery of the valley is immortal;
It is known as the Subtle Female. The gateway of the Subtle Female
is the source of Heaven and Earth.
Everlasting, endless, it appears to exist.
Its usefulness comes with no effort."
-   Translated by R. L. Wing, Chapter 6 




"Departing from the Mysterious, entering the Female.
It appears to have perished, yet appears to exist.
Unmovable, its origin is mysterious."
- The Jade Emperor's Mind Seal Classic

"In the Recorded Sayings of Master Ta Ma it is said, "The Mysterious [hsuan] represents heaven, ching [essence], and the nose. The Female [p'in] represents earth, blood [qi], and the abdomen. Hsuan is the father of ching [jing], and p'in is the mother of qi. So that which departs from the father is ching, and that which enters the female is qi. Within each person there is the Mysterious Female. Everyone can create a spiritual embryo. The Valley Spirit refers to yang shen [pure spirit]; with just one drop of yang shen uniting with the ching and qi, the Spirit Embryo is born."
- The Jade Emperor's Mind Seal Classic. The Taoist Guide to Health, Longevity, and Immortality. Translated with commentary by Stuart Alve Olson. 2003. Index, bibliography, 216 pages. ISBN: 0892811358. Reference, p. 139.

My Notes on the Idea of the Valley Spirit (Gu Shen)


"Know honor,
Yet keep humility.
Be the valley of the universe!
Being the valley of the universe,
Ever true and resourceful,
Return to the state of the uncarved block."
Tao Te Ching, #28, Translated by Gia-Fu Feng and Jane English


"The Mysterious Gate has many names.  In Confucianism, it is called the altar of wisdom.  It embodies limitless compassion.  It is a consciousness without thoughts and it reflects the way of heaven.  It is intuitive knowledge and reflects the way of earth.  In Buddhism, the Mysterious Gate is the spirit mountain, the empty consciousness of original mind, or nirvana, the realm of the Amitabha Buddha.  In Taoism, it is the Golden Palace, the realm of t'ai-chi, the domain of the Three Pure Realms, the root of existence of all things.  Although it is given different names by the three religions, it is nonetheless the same thing.  In Confucianism, when this gate is opened, the sage emerges.  In Buddhism, when this gate is opened, the Buddha emerges.  In Taoism, when this gate is opened, the immortal emerges."
-   Cultivating Stillness:  A Taoist Manual for Transforming Body and Mind, p. 18, Translated by Eva Wong, 1992.
 


My Notes on the Idea of the Valley Spirit (Gu Shen) 


"The valley spirit never dies
Call it the mystery, the woman.

The mystery,
the Door of the Woman,
is the root
of earth and heaven.

Forever this endures, forever.
And all its uses are easy."
-  Translated by Ursula K. Le Guin



"The Valley Spirit never dies
It is named the Mysterious Female.
And the doorway of the Mysterious Female
Is the base from which Heaven and Earth sprang.
It is there within us all the while.
Draw upon it as you will, it never runs dry."
-  Translated by Arthur Waley


Chapter 6 of the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

Gushen Grove Sacred Circle Garden in Red Bluff, California

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