Understanding Reality

by Chang Po-Tuan

Book Overview

No Synopsis Available.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0824811399
• ISBN13: 9780824811396
• Release Date: December 1987
• Publisher: University of Hawaii Press
• Length: 176 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.6" x 8.6"

Customer Reviews

Why bother to talk of a dream in a dream?

"The body is just a lodging; the innkeepers name is Illuminator. The Illuminator neither comes nor goes, so we know it has no birth or death. If you ask what the Illuminator is like, any description is wrong; every act and everything we see is neither the same nor different. Seeing the acts and things, each one is a Buddha and a disciple." P.174This book is a guide for those experiencing the Tao as illuminator; it tells you what can happen along The Way by using highly poetic language, leaving you to sort out the meaning through your personal experience of the Tao. If none of that makes sense, this might not be the book for you, but then again ... If you value highly imaginative Asian poetry, you will enjoy the Chang Po-tuan text. "Quiet and clamor, speech and silence, are originally the same thing - Why bother to talk of a dream in a dream?" You might want to read his stuff first; it's spelled out in all CAPITAL LETTERS. The commentary by Liu I-ming was excellent, but it was sometimes jarring to read him right after Po-tuan's poetry. Jungians will find this book an interesting addition to their study of Alchemy, finding somewhat similar to The Secret of the Golden Flower. The Po-tuan text is rich will Alchemical poetry.Mahalo to the University of Hawaii Press for publishing this book, and special thanks to Tom Cleary for providing us with this translation.

Away scholars, approach practitioners!

One of the few texts translated into English from a Taoist master who pursued celestial immortality. Students of Taoism who internally steam their sexual energy in an attempt to give birth to the spirit often wish that they could compare notes with a master of a by-gone era. This is their opportunity! One must ignore the commentary beneath each verse, however, as it is provided years later by a Taoist Scholar who either doesn't have a clue as to the meaning of the verses of Chang Po-Tuan, or wishes to protect the information they contain. While talking in code, Chang Po-Tuan's work IS decipherable if one knows the actual physical and energetic practices. This knowledge is often labeled as the "Kan & Li work" by modern Taoists and can be learned from such contemporary masters as Mantak Chia.