Tuesday, 08. November 2005
Stan Rosenthal’s Tao Te Ching

A number of problems arise when translating any work from a written language, such as early Chinese, into twentieth century English. One such problem is the difference between the written forms of the two languages, another is the difference between the two cultures, and a third is the time which elapsed between the writing of the original work, in this instance, some time between six hundred and three hundred years before the Christian era, and the compilation of the textual arrangement by Wang Bih, dating from the third century A.D., used today.

The mind should not be filled with desires. The individual who is at one with the Tao is aware of the distinction between that which is needed as a sufficiency, and that which is a desire, or merely wanted rather than needed.

It is the manner of the Tao that even though continuously used, it is naturally replenished, never being emptied, and never being as full as a goblet which is filled to the brim and therefore spills its fine spring water upon the ground. The Tao therefore does not waste that with which it is charged, yet always remains a source of nourishment for those who are not already so full that they cannot partake of it.

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Introductory Notes by Stan Rosenthal. (English)
A preface and introductory notes in which Rosenthal explains his intention and strategy.

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THE CREATIVE PRINCIPLE OF TAO
The creative principle unifies
the inner and external worlds.
It does not depend on time or space,
is ever still and yet in motion;
thereby it creates all things,
and is therefore called
'the creative and the absolute';
its ebb and its flow extend to infinity.
We describe the Tao as being great;
we describe the universe as great;
nature too, we describe as great,
and man himself is great.
Man's laws should follow natural laws,
just as nature gives rise to physical laws,
whilst following from universal law,
which follows the Tao.


Tao Te Ching Translation by Stan Rosenthal. (English)
Best for the first-time reader
Category: Religion & Early Cultures |




Hot News or Hoax?

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Planet Venus: Earth's 'evil twin' by BBC News. (English)
The Babylonians called it "Ishtar". To the Mayans, it was known as "Chak ek", which translates as "great star". Some ancient astronomers believed it was two separate objects: a "morning star" and an "evening star". Venus is the brightest object in the sky except for the Sun and Moon. As such, the second planet from the Sun has fascinated humankind for millennia.

Energy vampires do not need fangs to live by Pravda. (English)
Russian parapsychologist, Sergei Nikodimov, an expert of anomalous phenomena, is certain that energy vampirism is a part of every-day reality. "Numerous research works conducted by specialists of bioenergetics all over the world showed that all people can be conditionally divided into two major categories - vampires and donors.
Which are you?

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Israeli archaeologists said Saturday they have discovered what may be the oldest Christian church in the Holy Land on the grounds of a prison near the biblical site of Armageddon.
Earliest Christian church found in Israeli jail by Telegraph. With Pics. (English)


Some news-links do not last long. In this case please send me a note.
Category: News & Stories |




Abducted : How People Come to Believe …

If you're going to read just one book about alien abductions, make it this one. And if you think alien abduction stories aren't worth considering seriously, Clancy will convince you otherwise. A postdoctoral fellow in psychology at Harvard, she follows the dictum of William James to "take 'weird beliefs' seriously but not literally." Thus, she considers that the belief that one has been abducted by little gray beings with large, black catlike eyes, subjected to intrusive and painful physical examinations and exploited to create hybrid human/alien babies serves the deep human need to find meaning in one's life.

Susan Clancy - Abducted:
How People Come to Believe They Were Abducted by Aliens.
(Amazon US and UK).

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Here is an interesting article to give you some background.
Alien abductions: The Real Deal? by Psychology Today. (English)
Summary: What leads people to believe they've been abducted by aliens?

A review by Slate:
Is there any consensus about the psychology of alien abduction? Prior research has yielded a few insights, some of which are hardly surprising: People who believe they've been abducted tend to be fantasy-prone and eccentric, for one. On the other hand, they don't tend to be crazy. Most abductees are regular Joes, with decent jobs; though they have varying levels of education, they are predominantly white and middle class.

Beam Me Up, Godly Being: Is alien abduction real - or a creation of Hollywood? (English)

Elsewhere:
Why they think of aliens by The Washington Times. (English)


UPDATE 09.12.05 @13.11 Uhr

An interview with Susan Clancy, author of Abducted: How People Come to Believe They Were Kidnapped By Aliens.

"It's really so boring after you've heard one. For the most part they're all the same. I was in my bed and someone took me out of my bed and then I ended up on some kind of table (a black table usually) and then there are these creatures looking down at me and then they did so and so to me. The plot is always the same."

The Truth Is In There by Reason. (English)
Category: Books & Magazines | Ufo's & Aliens |


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