Taoism: The Road to Immortality

The author explains the main points of Taoism in a thorough and easy to understand way. The main points of Taoism each has it's own section so the reader is not confused with overlapping of information. This book on Taoism is more inclusive than most introductory books on Taoism.

B+

Best ever on Taoism

Obviously written in 1976, this book had been published originally in 1978. I have read the print of 2000. If you have ordered this version, make sure you haven't got a misprint: In my book, the last chapter is missing, instead the end of another book was included. Accordingly, this review is based on the first 9 chapters only.I do not know the next best thing about Taoism. I am interested in mysticism in all branches of religion, as mysticism is virtually identical, no matter where you look. The title suggested mystic content, and indeed, it gets included. Yet, not as extensively as I had hoped. Of course, there are other reasons to read this book. Obviously, the author himself wasn't that much interested in mysticism or intended his book to be more general about Taoism, i.e. for a broader readership. Besides somewhat more blunt words of mysticism in the beginning and the end, in between, you have to know mysticism already to catch some hints. I am not even sure, the author meant these as hints or wether he wrote them "accidentally", while describing Taoism. (Occasionally, he writes that he isn't sure himself wether he interpreted everything as intended by the Tao masters.) These "mystic hints" include indirect references to the non-existence of the separation of genders, no dualism, but oneness, no individual existence and no death.Yet, when he writes about immortality, he takes that issue rather "literally", in the sense of longevity, with some Tao masters supposedly having lived some 130-160 years. Mystics know, of course that this is NOT meant with immortality. Additionally, on first glance such a life as advertized appears to be rather dull. Imagine 160 years of no sex, no spices in your food, no emotions, no tear running laughter, etc. In 2006, the Scandinavians made a film sounding similar to this: "The Bothersome Man". Paradise to some, it appears like hell to the protagonist. I say: As death does not exist to mystics, it is irrelevant, how long the individual body functions, i.e. it isn't necessary to deprive oneself from all the joy of living in a body in order to live "longer". I catch, what the author and the Taoist teachings are getting at. Yet, these guidelines aren't necessarily meant to be under-taken by all levels of believers/mystics. And as European mystic Master Eckhart once said, we aren't meant to be in a state of completely lived oneness with God 100% of the individual's lifetime. Just don't forget that automatic state while you are living.There's a special point in this book about not having sex, especially spilling a certain male fluid. Though the author is rather describing some Tao approaches to that, it seems that he is agreeing. Spilling the seed isn't viewed as evil, but life-shortening. (Which again should be irrelevant to a mystic.) "When the oil is used up, the light goes out!" Nice adage, though it doesn't work: A lamp isn't reproducing it's oil by itself and the oil doesn't go dead/unusable in some 5 days, when not used and isn't reabsorbed by the lamp after that, if not used. This is rather another meme pool of misguided religious sex hostility (all religions are linked). Proof of that is the author's notion that all of the abstinence talk would apply to women as sick. He doesn't know from any Taoist text, but naturally assumes as much. So it isn't about some loss of life fluid after all, but dusty morals "explained" via superstitions/lacking knowledge.The author's personal quest about a branch of Buddhism, the  Bodhisattva of Compassion: The Mystical Tradition of Kuan Yin (Shambhala Dragon Editions)  was more lively and accessibly written, yet, if you are interested in Taoism in a general way, this is probably a good start.

While I must agree with Lao-tzu that the Tao in words is not the real Tao, I hardly believe one could find a better introduction to Taoism, in all, than we have here. This book is a treasure, a gift, meant to be savored, and read with the care and sensitivity which thankfully produced it. As noted, Blofeld is a wonderful writer, a sedulous scholar, a first-hand observer, and a gifted story-teller.

This book presents a beautiful view of the Taoist landscape. There is more original writing than translation of other sources in this book and Blofeld writes very well. It is almost as though he were of the very tradition of Taoist alchemy to which he alludes - culling, refining and transmuting materials of the Tao to produce a pill or an elixir it may do us well to sample.

This great book has presented the Taoism in such great details that for the first time I gain understanding about Taoism. The book combined the reasoning, narrating and story telling, which make me constantly smile during the reading. Wisdom and humour are intimately woven together that makes me think that wisdom is humour, and more, wisdom is humour full of love that nobody would be hurt by it. Taoism is a free way to develop the higher understanding, no special rules, no special teaching path, no restrictions. Each follows his/her own way.

Ein Buch über den Daoismus ist sicherlich schwer zu schreiben - er hat keine Dogmen, wie sich ein Gläubiger zu verhalten hat, was gut und was böse ist, und welche Rituale einzuhalten sind. Der Gläubige Daoist ist frei, nach seinem Gutdünken in Einklang mit sich selbst und der Natur zu leben. Was also gibt es da groß zu schreiben?Eine Sache ist aber nun doch sehr beschreibungswürdig. Jeder Daoist sucht letztlich die Wiedervereinigung mit dem Dao, und dazu gibt es doch einiges zu sagen, was Blofeld in diesem Buch mit viel Energie und Begeisterung tut. Die unterschiedlichen Strömungen des Daoismus, von der Volksreligion mit unzähligen Göttern, daoistischer Magie und geheimnisvollen alchemistischen Experimenten bis hin zum asketischen, nach innen gewandten Mystizismus, werden sehr bildlich beschrieben. Gemäß dem Motto des Daoismus, dass man nicht durch das geschrieben Wort, sondern nur durch eigene Erfahrung lernen kann, verschwendet Blofeld auch nicht viel Zeit (oder Kapitel) auf abstrakte Kriterien dieser Religion, sondern geht direkt nach zwei recht diffusen Einführungskapiteln dazu über, durch Anekdoten, Geschichten und (was ich besonders apart finde) Gedichte die Ziele und Wege dieser Religion dem Leser nahezubringen. Durch diese Methode, und durch den wirklich begeisterten Schreibstil des Autors ist dieses Buch an keiner Stelle trocken oder schwer zu lesen, und trotzdem höchst informativ, da viele Einsichten aus erster Hand stammen.Überraschend klar und deutlich bezieht der Autor auch Position gegenüber dem wohl bekanntesten Ziel des Daoismus: Der Unsterblichkeit. Für Blofeld ist selbstverständlich, dass schon seit extrem langer Zeit mit Unsterblichkeit nicht die des Körpers, sondern des Geistes gemeint war, und dass die Sucher, die ersteres suchen, fehlgeleitet sind. Durch diese Position wird allen Kritikern des Daoismus, die darin oft genug eine sowohl nur pseudoreligiöse (weil zu sehr aufs materielle und folkloristische bezogene) als auch pseudowissenschaftliche (weil alchemistische) Bewegung sehen, das Wasser abgegraben.Ein sehr interessantes, inzwischen nur etwas angestaubtes Werk über eine interessante Religion.

book delivered from US and it looks pretty ordinary like local printing.

Arrived quickly in perfect condition as always with amazon. This is an excellent read on immortality. I found it easy to read and enlightening.

very enlightening