THE CHINESE GNOSIS A COMMENTARY ON PART I OF LAO TZU'S TAO TE CHING BY JAN VAN RIJCKENBORGH AND CATHAROSE DE PETRI 1996 ROZEKRUIS PERS - HAARLEM - THE NETHERLANDS International School of the Golden Rosycross Lectorium Rosicrucianum Headquarters: Bakenessergracht 11-15, Haarlem, The Netherlands Translated from the Dutch first edition 1987 Original title: De Chinese Gnosis ISBN 90 6732 183 4 © 1996 Rozekruis Pers: Haarlem,The Netherlands — London, UK — Bakersfield, USA Contents Preface .................................................................................. 9 Introduction ........................................................................ 13 1 Being and not-being ............................................................ 23 2 Wu Wei ................................................................................ 31 3 Do not attach status to worthiness ....................................... 41 4 Tao is empty ........................................................................ 49 5 The All-Manifestation does not love as humans do 55 6 The spirit of the valley never dies ....................................... 65 7 The macrocosm lasts eternally ............................................ 71 8 The sage's heart is deep as an abyss .................................... 77 9 Do not touch the filled vase ................................................. 87 10— I He who subordinates the ego will rule the kingdom with love ........................................................ 97 10— II The sage abides in perfect tranquillity ............................ 103 10— III The mysterious virtue .................................................... 110 11 There is no empty space .................................................... 117 12 Sight, hearing, taste ........................................................... 123 13 Favour and disfavour are things of fear ............................. 129 14— 1 Look at Tao and you do not see it ................................... 137 14— II The thread of Tao ........................................................... 144 15— I The five characteristics of good philosophers ..................... 149 15— II The impurities of the heart ................................................ 155 16 The utmost emptiness ........................................................ 161 17 The people and their princes .............................................. 169 18 When Tao was neglected, humanism and justice appeared ................................................................. 177 19— I Abandon knowledge .......................................................... 185 19— II Renounce these things ...................................................... 191 20— I Abandon study .................................................................. 197 20— II The world has become a wilderness .................................. 200 20— III I alone am different from the common people .................. 205 21— I In its creation, Tao is indefinite and difficult to trace 209 21— II Tao, the great power at the heart of all things .................... 215 21—III Rebirth in Tao .................................................................. 221 22— I The four great possibilities ................................................. 227 22— II The sage makes himself into an example for the world 233 22— III The imperfect will become perfect ................................... 238 23— I He who speaks little is spontaneous and natural .................. 243 23— II Being one with Tao means to obtain Tao .......................... 248 23— III Not having sufficient faith means to have no faith at all 253 24— I Selfishness ........................................................................ 259 24— II The walls of Jericho .......................................................... 265 24— III Devotion to Tao ................................................................ 272 25— I Religion and theology ........................................................... 277 25— II Before heaven and earth existed, there was an indefinite Being ............................................... 283 25— III The fourfold law of Tao ................................................... 289 26— I Gravity is the root of what is light ...................................... 295 26— II The three crosses ................................................................. 301 26— III The threefold mastery ....................................................... 308 27— I The Only Good ..................................................................... 313 27— II He whose movement is good will leave no tracks 319 27— III He whose speech is good will not give cause for blame .................................................................................. 325 27— IV The sage always excels in caring for people ................... 328 27— V Being doubly enlightened ................................................... 331 27— VI He who attaches no value to power has attained supreme wisdom .............................................. 335 28— I The valley of the kingdom ................................................... 341 28— II The everlasting virtue .......................................................... 346 28— III The sage will be the leader of the workers .................... 353 29— I The holy, sacrificial vessel .................................................... 357 29— II The way to victory ............................................................... 363 29— III No one can serve two masters ......................................... 371 30— I Not by force of arms ............................................................ 375 30— II The person who is truly good strikes only once ............ 381 30—III When power has reached its peak, people and things become old ........................................ 388 31— I The finest weapons are instruments of disaster ............... 395 31— II The poisoning of the human life-field ........................... 403 31— III Love your enemies ....................................................... 410 31— IV The love of the gnostic magic person ........................... 413 31— V You are the salt of the earth ............................................ 420 31— VI The purifying salt ......................................................... 428 32— I Heaven and earth will unite ............................................. 433 32— II The people will enter harmony ....................................... 439 33— I He who knows himself is illumined ................................ 445 33— II He who overcomes himself is omnipotent ..................... 451 33— III He who dies, yet is not lost, will enjoy everlasting life ................................................................ 457 Preface In 1823 the first translation into a Western language of Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching was published by the French author, Abel Remusat. He made this ancient Chinese text known to the Western world, and since then, an almost unending stream of translations and commentaries have been produced in attempts to make its brief but very profound contents intelligible for Western people. Nevertheless, as far as we know, there has never been a commentary on the Tao Te Ching like the one you are now about to read, in which the Tao Te Ching is seen as a gnostic text and is interpreted on the basis of gnostic insight. This explains the title of the book: The Chinese Gnosis. What is Gnosis? In one of their earlier works, The Universal Gnosis*, the authors describe it as follows: `Originally, the Gnosis was the sum and substance of the ancient wisdom, the compendium of all knowledge having a direct relation to the original divine life of a truly unearthly divine human life-wave. The Hierophants of the Gnosis were, and still are, the messengers of the Immovable Kingdom. They convey the divine wisdom to lost humankind and point out the way to those who, as prodigal sons, want to return to the original land of the Father.' This description makes it clear that, contrary to what people often say these days, true Gnosis — the original divine Knowledge which gives access to the path of liberation — is never limited to one particular country or nation. Gnosis is universal and intended for the whole human race, and wherever in the world the Messengers of the Light may work, it * Rozekruis Pers, Haarlem, The Netherlands, 1980, p. 9. 9 PREFACE will always be revealed. That is why it was manifested not only in the Middle East, but also in ancient China, in the form of the Tao Te Ching, a book still treated with veneration in China today. The wisdom set down in the Tao Te Ching is every bit as relevant now as it was in Lao Tzu's time. Take this verse from chapter 31, for instance: The finest weapons are instruments of disaster. Those who possess Tao will have nothing to do with them. Or this verse, from chapter 33: He who overcomes others is strong, but he who overcomes himself is omnipotent. The authors' interpretation of this verse is as follows: `being omnipotent means unlocking and participating in the core essence, the nuclear power, of the Godhead'. In a few simple words, this summarises the whole, magnificent task underlying human existence. The Chinese Gnosis not only explains this task, but also shows how it can be accomplished. Then, say the authors, `we will see the whole world, the whole of humankind and the whole of our society change'. Those who from delusion's grasp break free, find the path to inner reality. Those who unto not-doing attain, are linked as one, forever, in the Chain. Rosycross Press 10 Introduction The sublime wisdom of Lao Tzu If you are a student of esoteric literature, you may have read about a remarkable mystery involving the medieval inhabi- tants of the South of France. There, in the land of Sabartez, the cradle of the Cathars — praised be their name! — a super- natural power was possessed, the power of the consolamen- tum. By means of the consolamentum it was possible to bring about a separation between animal-man and spirit-man, be- tween the human being of this earth and the original being, in the form it possessed before time began. The consolamentum was more than a sacramental seal. It was more than simply a magical outpouring of power, because for the Cathars it involved a definitive break with dialectical life. So those who had received the consolamen- tum were no longer inhabitants of the earth in the absolute sense. In the true sense of the words, they were in the world, but no longer of the world. Researchers have often wondered about the identity of the spiritual instigators behind this movement in medieval France. They could see quite clearly that this spiritual awakening, if it could have evolved without interference, would have embraced the whole of Europe in a way hitherto unknown. Who were the initiates who inspired the movement, and had such an effect on tens of thousands of people, that the church turned against them with a bloody and terrible hatred? These initiates were world-citizens in the best sense of the word, who literally loved the whole of humankind and who even now move and appear among us, wherever an opportunity presents itself. Their traces are to be found from east to 13 INTRODUCTION west, and from north to south. And if one studies world history, one can detect the connections between all the various events and developments they have brought about. Even so, from earliest times until the present, they have always remained in the background, cloaked in mystery. There is a hermetic veil between them and the masses, and all attempts of self-willed science to trace the source of the mys- tery must and will always fail. For the knowledge, the art and the abilities of the Cathars were universal. Their source was not to be found on earth, but only in the Immovable Kingdom itself. There are authors who deplore the destruction — or rather the apparent destruction — of the Cathars, and lament the loss of their wisdom and power. But this sorrow is misplaced, because any power, any sublime wisdom whose origin is the universal life itself, can never be lost. It is nothing less than the breath of God, which passes over human beings time and time again in its loving efforts to save them, withdrawing again whenever, in their hatred and blood-lust, material and mortal human beings attempt to violate it. We wanted to consider this European contact with the uni- versal power of love as a prelude to our reflections on a simi- lar divine contact that took place in the Far East — a contact embodied in the sublime being known as Lao Tzu. It is not known whether he really lived, or whether he was one person or several. Countless legends surround him like a veil. But one thing is certain — that he, in his wisdom, could have dispelled all the sorrow of the observers and researchers of that medieval drama in the South of France. Because the mystery of the consolamentum can also be referred to as the mystery of Tao. 14 INTRODUCTION Tao comes not and was not; Tao is! But, says Lao Tzu: People old in experience, who knew Tao Did not speak of this most secret sanctuary, Well-knowing that the profane incline towards darkness, Converting powers of life into destruction. If certain powers awaken in the human being And he becomes conscious of his great strength Without breaking away from his lower self-seeking, The fire smothers in its own cinders. So do not reveal the mystery to the profane; Is not the naked eye blinded by too much light? To govern a nation means to fulfil a great task: That of giving light whilst standing in the shadow.* It is said that the Cathars possessed secret books expoun- ding the true life and the Universal Doctrine, which were destroyed by the priesthood of those times. However, the true hidden book of the Cathars is the unwritten book, the same as the book of Tao, and the book `M' of Christian Rosycross, and the book sealed with seven seals mentioned in the Revelation of John. This book, this uni- versal knowledge, is unwritten and hidden from the pro- fane. But it is open, and revealed in fiery, radiant letters, to those who have broken away from their lower self- seeking. * The quotations used in this chapter are translated from the Dutch: Teh, universele bewustwording, 319 parafrasen op de Tao Teh King van Lao Tse, by C. van Dijk, Amsterdam, 1934. 15 INTRODUCTION That is why, for the Cathars, the consolamentum was pre- ceded by the endure. The endura is a `dying as to nature'; it means freeing oneself of the I-being and making oneself ready for rebirth. To the extent that you, too, are engaged in this process, you no longer need to waste time and energy searching for books and manuscripts on which you pin all your hopes of liberation. Tao can neither be spoken nor written. Tao, the way, the path, can only be experienced. This single sentence reveals the poverty of intellectual knowledge and understanding and the foolishness of the brain-consciousness, in all their nakedness. You can only know anything worth knowing, you can only possess any- thing worth possessing, you can only understand anything worth understanding, when you have died as to nature, when the so deadly I-delusion has been extinguished from your microcosm. Until you begin this process, you will remain profane, godless, immature, staring into the darkness of your reason and possessing nothing, nothing at all. What you will have, however, is the sorrow, the searing woe of life in dialectics, a terrible, raging fire that is repeat- edly smothered in its own cinders, only to blaze up yet again. To remain subject to dialectics means to be consumed by a hellish pain without end, from which you can only obtain freedom by following the path, the way, Tao. You need to pass through the endura, through the self-neutralisation of the lower nature. But you cannot do it alone, and neither do you need to, because the power you need to help you really does exist! And the liberating words really are there to be heard! If only you will leave behind everything you possess, then, like Lao Tzu, you will see: 16 INTRODUCTION The hidden power, 0 mystery, inviolate eternally, 0 clear and tranquil fountain, true life's source: In deepest essence, are we truly one with you; For, from the One, the multitude flows forth. Many pupils of the Spiritual School seem unable to see this one, true life, this one essential thing, even though they are searching and yearning for it. This must have a reason, and it can only lie in the fact that many are still clinging too tightly to the things of the old life, and expect divine revelation simply to penetrate the inner- most parts of their earthly being and awaken the one true life within their microcosms, without their needing to follow any process. But that is not so! If you want to travel to the new, pro- mised land, you yourself will have to cast off the many heavy anchors you have driven into the shores of your life. And the fact that this is possible is confirmed by the holy language, which says: `He that calls you is nearby.' Yes, even nearer than hands and feet. So: The pilgrim on the path to liberation from his lower self Casts off all his desires as useless ballast; Naked he enters the temple of the highest initiation: The tabernacle' s portal is the grave. As a pupil, or someone who is interested in the Gnosis, you know the need to become a freemason and build the holy cathedral stone by stone. The holy mountain, Mont Salvat, is invisible in matter, yet, by passing through the grave of the lower nature, you may enter there and join the master- masons as an apprentice. Learn, then, from Lao Tzu, your 17 INTRODUCTION fundamental impediments and the key to Tao: The highest knowledge is to acknowledge that we know nothing. This not-knowing makes us tranquil and devout. In letters we may know more than illiterates, But as to the profound mystery of life and death, we know not one jot more. Man's real illness lies in `not knowing that he does not know'. Yet you should not think Lao Tzu is recommending some kind of negative, mystical dependence, some kind of mystical rejection of the fruits of understanding. No, Lao Tzu is simply saying that the mentality is like a dam, preventing the flow of the spirit, and that is the reason why your way of thinking must be set aside. Just ask yourself what, in fact, you are doing with your thinking faculty. You are intellectualising gnostic thoughts and your heart is mystified by your emotional thoughts. In this way you erect a dam, preventing the influx of the spirit. Yet doesn't universal wisdom teach that heart and head must form a unity? Besides, as long as we refuse to acknowledge that we know nothing, the highest reality will remain, at most, a beautiful dream, and only we ourselves can remedy this lack of new consciousness. He who recognises this sick spot is already healed thereby. Recognition is the arcanum of this dark disease. The essence cannot be touched by intellectual thinking. Neither can the sublime ideal he attained by human deeds. Here is another concept pertaining to the new reality, 18 INTRODUCTION held by brothers and sisters throughout the ages, which has always been difficult to understand: the rejection of dialectical actions. These enlightened brothers and sisters knew of another mode of action than that of the dialectical human being, a quite different form of idealism, another humanity. They knew only the living, vibrant activity of life in the new reality, an activity which, to human beings of this earth, seems to be a limitless void, with neither purpose nor form. The many, hermetically, seal themselves off, And, though having eyes, they blindly go their way. For them, all roads lead from the cradle to the grave, Their lot in life is more a curse than a blessing. All who live in the twentieth century are conscious of experiencing life as a curse. But alas, the more accursed life becomes, the more people seem to cling to it and try to wring from it the blessings they desire. Understandably, though, the results are minimal. The blessings pass by like ships in the night, because the essence of the Universal Doctrine is not understood and, con- sequently, one is unable to act in the right way. That is why the sage of 2500 years ago says: One simple line will tell my teaching; My acts to it are strictly bound. Yet, interpreted in many ways by man, The core in one great tangle is obscured. And it is true, isn't it, that the one, simple, essential truth, the key to the true life, is so often obscured in a great tangle of pseudo-wisdom and verbosity. But Lao Tzu says: 19