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Posted by gossamer
on 11/11/2008, 4:47 pm, in reply to "Re: "The Spirit of Life" vs. "The Valley Spirit""
12.203.52.X
Here's a post from over at Nina's DIO Forum.
I thought that it might help explain my feelings about Laozi's "Valley Spirit".
Dear Nina,
I cross posted about this subject, both here, and at 'Tao Speaks'.
I hope that that's OK.
I used to live in a place called "The River Valley".
It was at the Southern end of The (Cherokee's) Trail of Tears.
I first learned about the Valley Spirit here, and how the Valley could (spiritually) 'absorb' water (which of course is very near to Dao) which flowed from hundreds of miles away, from the highest part of the Rockies.
Now the water did not stop there, but it caused a community to develop there, and offered itself to agriculture, and in turn to education, as a college community.
It was a very Yin place, but it was also a very old Native American place of power.
And where the Eastern Band of Cherokees crossed by ferry into what was then 'Indian Territory'.
A hunting ground for the Osage, a fertile Valley for agriculture since before the White man came.......a kind of 'womb', a kind of 'spiritual vagina'.
There was a sense of the Eternal in this Valley, that matched EXACTLY to the words of Laozi's 'Valley Spirit'.
I know that this may sound strange, but this place "befriended me" because I held it in Honor.
I STILL DO. And I miss it greatly.
It knew that that I held it as a Sacred Place, both in my heart, and in my mind.
And it was in a reciprocal in relationship to me, almost like a Lover.
I hope that you understand what I'm saying here, it's not the easiest thing to describe, or talk about, but the land knew that I Honored it as "The Valley Spirit".
It Nourished me like a child, and like a Lover, in return.
Who can speak about things so deep that they lack words in the English language?
Peace, gossamer
--Previous Message--
: I'm going to blame on a board member here.
: lol
:
: About two or three weeks ago, I asked
: someone here (either Steve or Butch, I
: think) which were their favorite
: translations of the DDJ, and Richard Alan
: Dale was one of those translators.
:
: -----------------
:
: T'wasn't I, gossamer. Must have been Butch.
:
: (Even if it wasn't, let's blame him anyway.
: ;-)
:
:
106
"The Tao is basically utterly open. Utter openeness has no substance. It ends in endlessness, begins in beginninglessnes".
-Li Daoqun
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