The Tao Te Ching is an ancient Chinese book of wisdom attributed to the ancient sage Lao Tzu. It formed the basis of Taoism, the philosophy/religion that gave us the Yin Yang Symbol.
Like Hermes, Lao Tzu claimed to have discovered an underlying Intelligence back of creation.
This work is comprised of 81 short, direct, and non-denomination chapters that summarize the way Lao Tzu found this Intelligence to work.
Align yourself with the flow of of this Intelligence, Lao Tzu taught, and life will become infinitely easier and more meaningful.
Continue to swim against the tides of life, however, and suffering will remain your reality.
Though not technically a Zen master, Einstein came to an understanding of the universe that mirrored Zen concepts.
In short, through his studies Einstein said that he had come to realize the existence of a universal intelligence back of all forms and process of this world. He said he couldn't quite put his finger on this intelligence, whatever it was, but he was certain of its existence.
For me, Einstein's quotes (like "Reality is but an illusion, albeit a very persistent one") put the concepts of Taoism, Buddhism, and Zen into a modern framework, which helped me to better grasp what the masters of old were attempting to get us to understand in their works.
The Tao Te Ching 201 is a result of the deeper understanding I obtained as I continued my journey.
The quotes of Einstein and other Nobel Prize winning scientists (like Niels Bohr, Erwin Schrödinger, Max Born, Werner Heisenberg, and others) contributed greatly to this advancement in understanding. Their contributions are reflected in this work.
Tesla, for example, said, “If you want to find the secrets of the universe, think in terms of energy, frequency, and vibration.” This concept opened up new vistas for me.
The first Gospels on the life, teachings, and sayings of Jesus were written about sixty five years after Jesus' death. Until then, they were passed on and around by word of mouth.
As you can imagine, word of mouth resulted in a variety of transmissions ... quite a bit of disagreement on what Jesus said and what he actually meant occurred. As a result, many Gospels and versions of each Gospel circulated in the original Christian communities. (For example, once the Gospels began being written down, there were originally over fifty different Gospels, and around three hundred different versions of Mark alone.)
The early church chose the four they liked best (Mark, Matthew, Luke, and John), the versions of those four they preferred, edited them to their liking, attributed them to Jesus' disciples (Mark, Matthew, Luke, and John were originally anonymous), and outlawed the remainder. The punishment for owning or even reading a copy of the forbidden texts was severe.
Among the forbidden texts were the "Gnostic Gospels". Many claim one such text, The Gospel of Thomas, to be the original teachings of Jesus. It is believed that where the other Gospels stray from The Gospel of Thomas indicates the points where the early church strayed from Jesus' original teachings.
The Gospel of Thomas, which Jesus Christ, Zen Master is based on, reads like a work of Zen. In it, Jesus' teachings are devoid of the dogma and outer observances of the church. It focuses all but exclusively on the inner journey that leads to enlightenment (or in Christian terms, salvation).
Explore the Bhagavad Gita book, which is part of my Hindu Enlightenment series.