What is the Tao?

‘일음일양지위도(一陰一陽之謂道)’

According to the Book of Changes [주역, 周易], One action of Yin and another action of Yang make Tao.

In the nature, female meet male to accomplish the Tao, just like the heaven as a Yang and the earth as a Yin meet to accomplish. Two opposite energies combine to make a harmonized energy.

Human’s life is similar to this concept.

A man meets a woman and loves each other then gets marriage to harmonize Yinyang. Marriage is the training field where people learn the principle of nature by harmonizing Yin and Yang. After getting marriage, two people who had lived individually are being involved in the jumble of conflict and compromise. During this process, Yin and Yang roughly harmonize each other then go through the principle of nature in a practical way. This is why living together as a husband and wife is a difficult and tough travel to everybody.

When Yin and Yang harmonize, genesis is occurred.

All living creatures were born, because the Heaven (天) and the Earth (地) harmonized. In the same way, a man and a woman give a birth to their children by harmony. Would you be able to understand the big meaning of a family?

Kahlil Gibran (1883~1931) described the marriage as two strings in one of this books.  

When two strings make sound with harmony, it makes a beautiful music, whereas randomly plucked strings just make noise. A wife and a husband are Yin and Yang facing each other. The love of two people become a beautiful music then accomplishes the Tao, finally.

Without harmony between Yin and Yang, the Tao can not be existed.

The “marriage” in this section, however, does not mean the confine literal marriage. And the harmony of Yin and Yang does not mean physical love of men and women. Further, giving a birth to a baby is not the accomplishment of the Tao. The only thing we can say in this section is that we should follow the principle (道) of nature, since the Heaven (天) and the Earth (地) gave a birth to human being by harmonization.

We can not accomplish the Tao of nature without harmony of Yin and Yang, since the energy of Yin and Yang were imprinted on human being. When a man (Yang) and a woman (Yin) as harmonize, they give a birth to a baby. When a body (Yin) and a soul (Yang) harmonize, it completes genuine ego via enlightenment by overcoming agony. When the Heaven (Yang) and the Earth (Yin) harmonize, the ideal becomes the real.

Men and women can understand the others through their marriage, and can accomplish the best wonderful life through their conflict and compromise. And monks give a birth to “enlightenment” by getting marriage to themselves.

Marriage is a divine teaching of nature; human being as the children of nature should take after their parents.