Friday Poetry Corner Tribute to the Incalculable Tao

[scotspine]

and that which is isn't,
but that which wasn't might be
and that which was, er, is
and that which might be might still be.

[threaded]

The softest thing on the universe overcomes the hardest thing in the universe.
That without substance can enter where there is no room.
Hence I know the value of non-action.
Teaching without words and work without doing are understood by very few.

[AlfredJPruffock]

The Tao that can be told of is not the eternal Tao;
the name that can be named is not the eternal name.

[EternalOptimist]

I always liked this from Pink Floyd

The day the tigers broke free

It was just before dawn
One miserable morning in black '44
When the forward commander
Was told to sit tight
When he asked that his men be withdrawn
And the generals gave thanks
As the other ranks
Held back the enemy tanks for a while
And the Anzio bridghead was held for the price
Of a few hundred ordinary lives

And kind old King George sent mother a note
When he heard that father was gone
It was, I recall, in the form of a scroll
With gold leaf and all
And I found it one day
In a drawer of old photographs, hidden away
And my eyes still grow damp
To remember
That his majesty signed
With his own rubber stamp

It was dark all around
There was frost in the ground
When the tigers broke free
And no one survived from the Royal Fusiliers, Company C
They were all left behind
Most of them dead
The rest of them dying
And that's how the high command
Took my daddy from me

[threaded]

Truthful words are not beautiful.
Beautiful words are not truthful.
Good men do not argue.
Those who argue are not good.
Those who know are not learned.
The learned do not know.
The sage never tries to store things up.
The more he does for others, the more he has.
The more he gives to others, the greater his abundance.
The Tao of heaven is pointed but does no harm.
The Tao of the sage is work without effort.

[EternalOptimist]

Tribute to the incalculable Moody Blues

Between the eyes and ears there lie
The sounds of colour and the light of a sigh
And to hear the sun, what a thing to believe
But it's all around if we could but perceive

To know ultraviolet, infrared and X-rays
Beauty to find in so many ways
Two notes of the chord, that's our full scope
But to reach the chord is our life's hope
And to name the chord is important to some
So they give a word, and the word is...

OM

[threaded]

the incalculable...

εν αρχη ην ο λογος και ο λογος ην προς τον θεον και θεος ην ο λογος...

εν αυτω ζωη ην και η ζωη ην το φως των ανθρωπων

Uberegnelig...

I Begyndelsen var Ordet, og Ordet var hos Gud, og Ordet var Gud.

I det var Liv, og Livet var Menneskenes Lys.

[sasguru]

AJP

I have posted some incredibly fine poetry on the Test Please Delete thread.

[scotspine]

i see your manifest plainness and raise you a


To you men, I call! I send my voice to the sons of mankind.
You simple, understand prudence. You fools, be of an understanding heart.
Hear, for I will speak excellent things. The opening of my lips is for right things.
For my mouth speaks truth. Wickedness is an abomination to my lips.
All the words of my mouth are in righteousness. There is nothing crooked or perverse in them.
They are all plain to him who understands, right to those who find knowledge.
Receive my instruction rather than silver; knowledge rather than choice gold.
For wisdom is better than rubies. All the things that may be desired can't be compared to it.

[AlfredJPruffock]

Therefore let people hold on to these:
Manifest plainness,
Embrace simplicity,

Reduce selfishness,
Have few desires.


He who hoards most will lose heavily,
He who is contented suffers no disgrace.


Avoid overconsumption.






There is no calamity greater than lavish desires.
There is no greater guilt than discontentment.
And there is no greater disaster than greed.
He who is contented with contentment is always contented.

The courts are exceedingly splendid,
while the fields are exceedingly weedy,
and the granaries are exceedingly empty.

Elegant clothes are worn,
sharp weapons are carried,
Foods and drinks are enjoyed beyond limit,
And wealth and treasures are accumulated in excess.

This is robbery and extravagance.
This is indeed not the Tao

[scotspine]

a tribute to

the incalculable...

εν αρχη ην ο λογος και ο λογος ην προς τον θεον και θεος ην ο λογος...

εν αυτω ζωη ην και η ζωη ην το φως των ανθρωπων

[AlfredJPruffock]

There is a thing, formless yet complete.
Before heaven and earth it existed.

Without sound, without substance,
it stands alone and unchanging.

It is all-pervading and unfailing.

One may think of it as the mother of all beneath Heaven.
We do not know its name, but we call it Tao.


Planetary nebula NGC 6543, shells and jets of gas ejected from the death throes of a star one thousand years ago. Photo: J.P. Harrington and K.J. Borkowski, Hubble Space Telescope, NASA.