The Tao Te Ching For Astrologers: Verses 15 & 16

Transcript:

Hey everyone, this is Acyuta-bhava from Nightlight Astrology and today we are going to continue our study of the Tao Te Ching. And we are looking today at two new verses verse 15, and 16. The purpose of the series is to look at this ancient wisdom from the Tao Te Ching in relation to our study of astrology. I think it is really important for us to, you know, be regularly anchoring our tracking of planets and transits and talk of all of the signs of the planets with a careful study of the spiritual foundations that that ancient astrologers had. Now, the ancient astrologers weren't Taoists per se. But the Tao Te Ching compares very closely, for example, to many tenants of stoicism compares very closely to many of the things that you'll see in the Hermetica and other wisdom traditions like the yogic tradition in India. So, for me, I'm sharing this with you guys because this is one of the cornerstone texts of my life and of the way that I tend to write and organise my many of my talks, you guys will often hear me referring to the eaching you will often hear me weaving meditations on the planets into my talks that come directly from morning readings and reflections from the Tao Te Ching, so I thought it would make a great series to dive into this classic work, break it down two verses at a time, and with every couple of verses reflect on them actively as astrologers.

So, as always, if you're new to my channel, or if you've been here for a while, I always appreciate you liking these videos. Subscribe if you haven't yet to the channel, share your comments in the comment section and click that notification bell for updates. Once you subscribe you get notification when I go live. You can get a transcript transcripts of my daily talks on my website and the blog page that's nightlight astrology.com. Before we dive in, I also want to remind all of you that my new class ancient astrology for the modern mystic starts on June 5. I'm super excited about that class. Here it is if you go to my website, which is nightlight astrology.com. You go and click on the Courses page click on the first year course in particular scroll down you can learn all about it 30 classes on the year they're all recorded. So if you can't make it live to the webinars, you can always watch the recordings you get to download and keep all the content. There's interactive group forum discussions with paid tutors that are there to help you you can email me anytime throughout the year. We have 12 guest lectures that come in outside of those 30 classes. And then we also have breakout study sessions. If you need extra help with tutoring, we actually have tutoring meetings that we hold tonnes of bonus lectures and material throughout the course. It is a great programme really deep, comprehensive study of Hellenistic ancient astrology. And if you want to sign up, there's a few ways you can use the earlybird payment and save $500 off that's the best bang for your buck. There's a 12 month payment plan if you need it. And then I really highly recommend for those of you who need any help and taking the programme if it's out of your budget for whatever reason, especially if you are experiencing financial hardship or difficulty, make sure that you take advantage of that tuition assistance option that is there for you know for everybody to hopefully benefit from so we have plenty of need based tuition scholarship spots still open. So you know, be sure to use that happy to make sure that nobody's ever priced out of studying astrology if you have a desire to do so. You have any questions about the course by the way, after you look over the material there you can email us info at nightlight astrology.com. If you're a year one student already enrolled, don't forget year two and horary programme begins June 11 and 12. So you can check those out as well need based option is open for those too, if you need it.

Today, we are going to look at the 14th and 15th verses. And so in order to do that, I am going to go full screen mode and we're going to take a look at those right now. So the way that I do this is I'm going to read through the two verses. And then we'll go back to the first verse, read it over, offer some reflections. Go back to the second verse, read it over offer some reflections. And then I'll have at the end some final takeaways that I think really relate back to our study of astrology. Okay, so let's begin with verse 15. By the way, I've mentioned this in every episode so far, but we use the Tarcher Cornerstone edition of the Tao Te Ching, which is translated by Jonathan Star. So this is the textual version that I'm using. Verse 15:

"The Masters of this ancient path are mysterious and profound. Their inner states their inner state baffles all inquiry. Their depths go beyond all knowing. Thus, despite every effort we can only tell of their outers. Science, deliberate as if treading over the stones of a winterbrook. watchful as if meeting danger on all sides, reverent as if receiving an honoured guest. Selfless, like a melting block of ice, pure like an uncarved block of wood, accepting like an open Valley. Through the course of nature, muddy water becomes clear. Through the unfolding of life, man reaches perfection. Through sustained activity that supreme rest is naturally found. Those who have Tao want nothing else, though seemingly empty they are ever full, though seemingly old they are beyond the reach of birth and death."

Verse 16: "Become totally empty, quiet the restlessness of the mind. Only then will you witness everything unfolding from emptiness. See all things flourish and dance in endless variation. And once again, merge back into perfect emptiness. See all things flourish, and dance in endless variation, and once again merge back into perfect emptiness, their true repose their true nature, emerging, flourishing, dissolving back again, this is the eternal process of return. To know this brings enlightenment. To miss this process brings disaster. Be still, stillness reveals the secrets of Eternity, Eternity embraces the all possible, the all possible leads to a vision of oneness. A vision of oneness brings about universal love. universal love supports the great truth of nature. The great truth of nature is thou, whoever knows this path, whoever knows this truth lives forever, the body may perish deeds may be forgotten. But he who has Tao has all eternity. Beautiful verses."

Let's go back to 15. And now we'll offer some reflections on each verse. And I would also love to hear your reflections in the comment section as always, the masters of this ancient path. It's interesting, first of all, to me that you can't be master of a thing, but a path which implies that the people who are masterful upon this path are still walking it, it doesn't stop. It's a way it's described as a way throughout the Tao Te Ching. When I think about what we're studying as astrologers, it's also a way because the planets never stopped moving. Plato said, Time is the moving image of eternity. The path of the soul is an eternal path. And so it's like we're learning how to walk. It's like we're learning how to flow along in alignment with something divine. And not that we're becoming masters of a thing or a static state. We're learning a path. Their inner state baffles all inquiry. Their depths goes beyond all knowing this, despite every effort we can only tell of their outer signs. This is the inner state of a sage. It's really inspiring.

Deliberate as of treading over the stones of a winterbrook watchful as if meeting danger on all sides Reverend as if receiving an honoured guests selfless, like a melting block of ice pure, like an uncarved block of wood, accepting like an open Valley. And these are just the outer signs. I know that on my best days when I meditate and pray, and then reflect on the astrology of the moment, and maybe give a talk on it, and then watch as the planets come through and express themselves. That there is a growing sense inside of me that I'm on a path and I'm learning how to walk walking with the planets in everyday life is like a walking meditation, it's like a moving prayer. Through the course of nature, muddy water becomes clear through the unfolding of life man reaches perfection through sustained activity that supreme rest is naturally found. I like this idea that, you know, the experiences that I watch and track everyday with the planets that we all do together if you watch this channel regularly, or if you watch any kind of astrology regularly. I like the idea that it is through the course of living a life with this reflective attitude. That is planetary watchfulness. That muddy stuff becomes clearer we start to understand we start to see things differently. And it's a path isn't it? It's a way. And it's slowly purifying us, perfecting us. It's slowly changing us somehow we can feel it.

I love that this last part of the verse says those who have Tao want nothing else. Isn't it true that when you're in the zone, when you feel like you're walking along the path of life in this way, there's nothing you want for and yet there's nothing that you're really holding on to it's your empty but full at the same time. I'm telling you right now that to me, what the Tao Te Ching is saying is not at all different from what I experience by combining meditation prayer and watching the planets and letting them be my allies and friends every day.

Verse 16, become totally empty, quiet the restlessness of the mind. Only then will you witness everything unfolding from emptiness. This is why it's so important. I wanted to make sure that my channel includes time for reflection, that isn't just about unpacking transits and describing or predicting things. That this is a meditative practice. This astrological learning. See all things flourish and dance and endless variation. That's what I love about the planets too is that it's like another kind of weather that I can appreciate. I'm already someone who you know, sometimes I get bummed out by long winters, but I appreciate all the different types of weather I like variation. I love living in a place where there's four seasons, for example, because I like the variation. And the planets helped me to see that too and appreciate it as divine as this this one thing that's fluctuating through many things.

Once again, merge back into perfect emptiness, their true repose, their true nature, emerging, flourishing dissolving back again, is that not what planets point two in their cinematic cycles and they're going out and returning and they're Retrogrades and stationing and returning to know this process brings enlightenment to miss this process brings disaster didn't ancient astrologers tell us that. By studying these movements, we become wise we grasp we seem to not study them were grabbed, which is why I always use that hashtag. Be still stillness reveals the secrets of Eternity, Eternity embraces the all possible the all possible leads to a vision of oneness. A vision of oneness brings about universal love. universal love, supports the great truth of nature and the great truth of nature is Tao. Wow, it's like what comes out of this, what comes out of tracking this beautiful flow. This these, this dancing mandala, of the one and the many love, love is the byproduct. And love points back to the truth behind all things which is dow this movement, this intelligence this being whoever knows this truth lives forever the body may perish deeds may be forgotten, but he who has Tao has all eternity. Is that not why we do astrology at the end of the day, right? It's not so we can have something perfect something it's not so that we just know what's coming or that we have the best words to describe our personality or some event. Isn't it just building within us some deeper love and appreciation?

You guys know me, watch my channel. I just burn for this stuff. And it feels so good. To feel like life and reality and experience is a friend. Sometimes as a lover, as a child, as a community, so many so many different kinds of relationships that I feel like I have because there's this mood that the ancient astrologers had that I feel like I've somehow been fortunate enough to bring into my life in some small way. And that's this mood of watchfull reverent awe and wonder. And of course I get drawn into like, What the hell is going to happen and what is it and you know, that kind of astrology is compelling to me and I love knowing the ups and downs because, you know, I'm also in the soap opera of my life and that's, you know, some kind of a dance between the engagement with the planets as the descriptors of all the plotlines were so invested in and then stepping back and letting astrology be this the spiritual form of contemplation.

So three takeaways from for us as astrologers today. Remember, ancient astrologers were mystics, they could offer agnostic occasions they could predict the future they could describe things through the planets brilliantly. But the reason that they studied astrology was also for the purpose of spiritual enlightenment. Astrologer saw let's call it the Tao even though again ancient astrologers might have been stoics or Platanus, or Yogi's or something like that. But astrologer saw the Tao this divine intelligence Manilius talks about it in the opening paragraphs of his book, The Astronomicon, famous Roman poet/astrologer, he says, it's nice to know about the planets but it's even nicer through the planets to know the heart of the sky itself. This is the Tao, that intelligence that way that path that's moving in through all things. And astrology paired with contemplation and meditation gives us something far more than description or prediction. And that's why we do this series is to bring ourselves back to that intention. This is why I study this is why watch this is why I learned this is the true gift of any of the experiences I have astrologically to bring me back to this path. All right, that's what I've got for today. As always, appreciate your like your subscribe, share your comments in the comment section. All of that helps the algorithm to notice the channel and help it grow. Really appreciate all of that. And yeah, look forward to more astrology tomorrow. Take it easy, everyone. Bye.