Frank4zen Newslog: 365 Tao: Daily Meditation ALTAR    
 365 Tao: Daily Meditation ALTARfrank4zen
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picture20 Jun 2010 @ 21:43

ALTAR

Each day I forge my body into steel
And fold in bright strands of consciousness.
Piling up ripe fruit and fragrant flowers,
Lighting red candles and incense,
Serving tea, rice, and wine.
Anointing with aromatic oils,
Offering heart and bones,
The altar is my anvil, sun and moon the coals,
Discipline the hammer, lungs the bellows.


Followers of Tao have private altars in their homes. The pious see
an altar only for supplication; the skeptical see the altar as false and
insincere. Actually, devotional effort is absolutely necessary for those
beginning on the path.

True spiritual cultivation begins with the premise that you already
have a pure spirit and only need to clear away obfuscations. Thus one
must work on both the physical and mental levels in order to achieve the
quickest results. Such varied efforts need a strong center. By focusing
on the altar as the platform for all practices, you will keep yourself
strongly on your path. The outward acts then pile up like offerings
after offerings, and the outward votive furniture becomes your means of
memorializing your efforts. Then your body itself becomes a steel altar,
an unshakable monument to spiritual devotion.



365 Tao: Daily Meditations
Deng Ming-Dao


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