December Blog #3: The Tao of Pooh, by Benjamin Holt, published 1982

I am now finishing up the Tao of Pooh, which will sit upon the shelf of my fave books for a long time to come, I do believe. I am currently doing the Tao, as Ms. Embry would say.

I've learned a lot. I've learned of the Uncarved Block, of which Pooh is undoubtedly a great example. Not the greatest. Greatest isn't much of a Taoist idea.

The basic idea of the Uncarved Block is that things reach their most beautiful state when they reach their simplest. I've used the words simple a lot when talking about Taoism, and that may be a slightly underwhelming term. It also probably doesn't capture the essence of Taoism. Let's see, if I had to choose one word to describe Taoism, it would probably have to be acceptance. I guess.

Let me use the Tao of Pooh to help illustrate, using the example of an old painting called "The Vinegar Tasters." In the painting, 3 men are tasting vinegar from a bowl. The first man, Confucius, has a sour expression, for this vinegar is unsuitable. The second person, Buddha, carries a bitter expression. You see, he would much rather taste some vinegar from the spiritual realms. That vinegar would be much better.

But the last person, Lao Tse, is smiling. He accepts the vinegar for what it is. The vinegar can't do any better, right?

Mind blowing, for me at least.