On show 13, the ever-studious Tod Perry presents a book report on the first half of the seminal Taoist text Inner Chapters by Chuang Tsu. Here, we uncover the mystery of Tzu’s famous butterfly dream and discuss his timeless humor, insightful parables, and importance in the Taoist cannon.
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Hear Dr. Totton’s recent appearance on the “Inspire Me Show.”
Peaceful greetings, I am curious about the last line in the Chuang Tzu dream story. What is meant by the transformation of material things? Of course, we don’t literally turn from a butterfly into a man and back again. It’s a perceptual phenomenon. But he ends by saying it is a material transformation. Is it that we realize the observing eye of original nature can see in so many ways? And when we wake up we realize we are this original nature that can see beyond the material world?