Part Four: The Practice

Tao of Heaven vs Tao of Mankind. Which one should be practiced first?

One who emphasizes his practice of Tao on his True Self and his life, and takes on the mission of bringing salvation to the world is the one who follows the Tao of Heaven.

One who emphasizes on ethics, morality, and five virtues of Tao is one who follows the Tao of Mankind. The Tao of Mankind is the basis of the Tao of Heaven. Thus, whoever practices Tao should start with the Tao of Mankind.

Filial devotion, brotherly love, loyalty, trustworthiness, propriety, righteousness, integrity, and feeling shame are the eight most important attributes of one’s character.

God constantly evaluates people’s hearts and observes people’s actions. For those who do not respect their parents, do not love their brothers and sisters, work and act perfunctorily, do not keep their promises, have no propriety, have no justice, have no integrity, or have no shame, their practices will not benefit them.

If one does not behave according to the Tao of Mankind, how can he follow the Tao of Heaven? Thus, to practice Tao, one must fulfill the Tao of Mankind first. Confucius said,

“By learning the Tao of Mankind,
a practitioner of Tao can extend it to the
Tao of Heaven.”

Thus, when one perfects the Tao of Mankind, he is not far from the Tao of Heaven.

.

.

---

64. What is the meaning of “He who attains One is a Saint”?

Wu-ji ^{9, 11} is the origin of Tao, and Tao is the origin of One. When Wu-ji changes from the ultimate quiescence, One is generated. This One then multiplied and evolved into the cosmos and everything within.

So when Heaven has One, it becomes clear and pure.
When Earth has One, it settles quietly.
When a man has One, he becomes a Saint.

The five great religions
all emphasize One.

Buddhism emphasizes on brightening the heart to see the True Self so that all Dharmas return to One.
Taoism emphasizes on cultivating the heart to refine the True Self so that one embraces the Origin and maintains One.
Confucianism emphasizes on holding the heart to cultivate the True Self so that one can hold fast to the center and pervade One.
Christianity emphasizes on purifying the heart to align with the True Self so that one can pray in quiescence and be close to One.
Islam emphasizes strengthening the heart to stabilize the True Self so that one is purified and return to One.

The Saints of the five religions preached the practice of returning to One. Returning to One is the same as returning to the Heavenly Kingdom of God.

One is the Absolute Truth.

When human is bestowed with the Truth, he possesses the original eternal True Self. His body and his growth rely on One.

Before a human is delivered into the world, his True Self is bright and full. His True Self is the Truth. It needs neither food nor water, and it has no thoughts or worries. Every breath is synchronized with that of the mother, and there is only one circuit for circulation in Qi.

Upon his birth, the yin Qi and yang Qi rush into the body through the mouth and nostrils. This event breaks the circuit of Qi into two. In Xian-tien ¹⁰ there is only the True Self. In Hou-tien ¹⁰ there is an additional life.

The True Self is yang and the life is yin. In Hou-tien the True Self is li and the life is kan. However, in Xian-tien the True Self is qian and kun. Qian symbolizes Heaven above and kun Earth below.

Qian and kun interact to give birth to man. When a man is born into this world, qian (☰), which is yang, loses the One in the middle and becomes li (☲); while kun (☷), which is yin, loses the One in the middle and becomes kan (☵).

So when the True Self is divided into li and kan, each loses the One in the original centers. Qian loses one and becomes li.

Li in Chinese means separation.

Once separated, things tend to become scattered, then dispersed. So when the True Self is divided into li and kan, as a man is born, the spiritual energy is dispersed throughout the body. Whatever is dispersed to the:

• eyes knows to see;
• ears knows to hear;
• nose knows to smell;
• mouth knows to speak and eat;
• limbs knows to move;
• skin knows to sense pain and itch;
• pores know to sense different temperatures;
• internal organs knows to feel fullness and hunger;
• heart generates six desires;
• mind generates seven emotions.

All these senses, emotions and desires cause the soul to wander around. Living through a befuddled life, the soul becomes dim and contaminated and endangers itself into sinking to Hell. That causes kun to lose One and become kan.

Kan means dent.

In Chinese, it means being trapped. In other words, when the True Self is divided into kan and li, the soul is trapped by seven emotions and six desires, ²⁸ drowned in alcohol, lust, greed, and temperament, which lead to the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth. When the soul is trapped in the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth, it cannot return to the Origin.

The True Self is the Truth.

So if the True Self loses One, it gets buried. There is a saying,

“He who walks with the Truth
travels far and wide.
He who does not know the Truth
finds difficulty even taking one step.”

This is why Heaven, Earth, and mankind all have to observe the Truth.
If Heaven loses One, disorder arises among the planets and stars.
If Earth loses One, mountains collapse and oceans flood.
If a man loses One, he is trapped in the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth.

These show the significance and difference between attaining and losing One. If one attains One, he can return to the Origin and restore his True Self. The cosmos will be within his reach and he becomes a Saint. This is the meaning of he who attains One is a Saint.