Tao Te Ching Verse 35: Connecting with the Tao

The Tao Te Ching for Everyday Living

Guided Meditation at the end
Tao Te Ching Verse 35

translation by Xiaolin Yang
If you have the DAO, everything will come to you.
They come to you because they will not be hurt anymore, and they will become secure and peaceful.
Pleasant music and tasteful food will make even the passerby stop.
When being talked about, the DAO is tasteless.
When you look at it, you will not see it; when you listen to it, you will not hear it;
However, when you use it, it will never run out.
Photo by sergio souza on Unsplash
The Tao and Synchronicity
I’d like to introduce the concept of Synchronicity, first introduced by analytical psychologist Carl Jung, which holds that events are "meaningful coincidences" if they occur with no causal relationship yet seem to be meaningfully related.

Sometimes I’ll refer to it as serendipity - you know, times when things just work out. Like I’ll be thinking about so and so calling and an hour later they call or I see them randomly. Or I’m thinking about how it would be cool to be of service to someone and later that day, an opportunity pops up. Or when I’m wondering about something and all of a sudden I see the answer, either in a sign on the road or someone says something that is directly related to what I was wondering about.

These are really awesome moments for me, if only because they show me that I am not alone, that somehow, the Tao responds to my requests.

For me, I began to notice synchronicity in the beginning part of my journey. Just little moments of which I became aware. At first, I thought they were mere coincidences but still pretty cool. Then, as I got more comfortable with the idea that perhaps something larger was at play, I started noticing that these moments were occurring more and more often. I thought they were pretty cool, so I kept on paying attention. One day, I realized that this kind of stuff is actually happening all the time; the question becomes whether or not I am paying attention.

After getting better at observing, for about a year, I started wondering if I could make requests of the Tao and observe their realizations later. I found that indeed, I could! I have been careful not to make requests for money or specific situations to arise; rather, I sense what I need from the Tao in the moment, ask for it, say thank you, and forget about it. Most of the time, I ask the Tao to help me remember to seek Harmony with it. I’ll ask to see a situation differently. I’ll ask for a service opportunity.

This is how I receive the gifts of the Tao: Stillness, Intuition, Creativity, Healing, and Oneness. I simply ask, thank, observe, and receive, knowing that I am not the provider, that the Tao is.

So if you’re down with this, I would encourage you to begin an awareness practice. Daily meditation in addition to your awareness practice will help immensely.