HANDBOOK OF THE PRACTICAL APPLICATONS OF TAOISM

 It contains skills and exercises that will assist you in learning to Live the Tao. Living the Tao or experiencing Reality at a fundamental level requires a process of change. Understanding it at an intellectual level, although stimulating, will not be sufficient. This is the companion book to Practical Applications of Taoism. Both books are essential in helping you understand and begin the process of change required to live the Tao. The first, Practical Applications of Taoism, explains the concepts and the process that is required to make the shift. A process of change is still required in order to Live the Tao.

 This book, The Handbook of Living, contains skills, exercises, and observations that will assist you in the transformation. Ideally, an interactive process with a qualified master is required. In this information-heavy world where, for many, time is at a premium, a self-guided approach is perhaps all most are ready for. The transformation is not intuitive and straightforward. Interacting with a master and a community that can get you there may not be feasible for most. The combination of this book and the first book, however, may suffice to give you a taste of what it means to live the Tao and experience the Reality beneath all things.

 Even though this book contains a wealth of exercises and skills you can use to experience Tao, it does not give a detailed account of what Tao is and what is required to live it. Together, both books will give you a chance to work towards it.  The most effective way of learning to Live the Tao is to be guided through a process of change by a Taoist community led by a qualified master. In this modern world, this is rare. Taoism is poorly understood by most, and it is not taught well. The author offers regular classes and workshops that will help you along the path. 

“Taoism is very poorly understood by most people. Most of what is written about it is confusing and misleading.”

                                                                  Suli Daniel Johnson, SBN

 Gaining a cognitive understanding of living the Tao is not that difficult. Many of the concepts may seem surprisingly simple. Connecting and understanding it on a level where you can live it is not so straightforward. To understand this, consider the following. You learn how to play the game of golf in five minutes. Learning how to actually play it and gaining insight as to what is involved in becoming proficient requires much more time and effort. In the end, the only way to really understand how to play golf is to play it. Learning to apply the Tao as a practical force in your life requires not only an understanding but a process of change.

 Master Johnson offers workshops and classes and has developed a community of people interested in living the Tao.  For more information on this, go to Selfmastery dot com or email him at daniel@selfmastery dot com.

I live the Tao, I have helped others to live it. The reason why it's so difficult to describe the Tao is that people are attempting to do so through the lens of cognitive understanding and science. The Taoist perspective is something completely different, and for this reason, it does not lend itself well to be described through science or logic. A thorough understanding of this can be found in Book 1, Practical Applications of Taoism. In attempting to cast Taoism in terms of logic or science, most of what makes it unique and effective is lost. In China during the Cultural Revolution, the ideas of Taoism were banned, and many intellectuals, including my master, fled the country. In order to understand the Tao, you need to live it. This sounds like one of those nebulous or illusionary things that you will find in many books on spirituality. In this case, the Tao cannot be explained.

 My motive in writing this book and its companion is to help people understand what it is and how it can be applied to making fundamental and powerful changes within your life. I teach aspects of this system to individuals and businesses. On the surface, the system is simple and fundamental. For this reason, many people are tempted to pass it off as being nothing more than insubstantial fluff. However, Taoism is much more than this. I will attempt in this book to explain what Taoism is. I will explain its different perspectives, how to experience it, and how to use it as a functional tool in your life.

 I will explain why it is incompatible with the system of logic and science that most of us have grown up with. This is not to say that Taoism is no less effective at defining the world and making you successful within it. It is merely a different approach. In order to understand Taoism and apply it, you have to stop trying to compare it to logic and science. You need to look at it from its very unique perspective. Within this book and the first one, I will also teach many skills and techniques to develop your Taoist insight. This will help you operate more effectively within the world around you.

I will teach you how to use it to make very pragmatic changes in your life. This can include things such as improving your lifestyle and developing better relationships with the people around you. It can also be applied to improving business skills and other applications within your jobs or careers. Its applications can span creativity to organizational development. When Taoism is practiced correctly, it is not just some strange esoteric philosophy. The Tao is something dynamic and intricate.