In 2008 when I was teaching in China at Huinan University one of my students took me to her village of Guoyang which happened to be one of the 2 disputed birthplaces of the famous Chinese philosopher poets Lao Tzu who wrote the Tao Te Ching.
The town itself was unremarkable insofar as it was like many other Chinese towns but within the walls of the town there was an amazing history of Chinese history.In between dining out with my guests from the local school and getting horribly drunk as a result and making an idiot of myself doing Tai Chi in the town square I was quite amazed by the atmosphere of this quite unknown place an definitely not on the normal tourist route for tourists.
Here are some of the pictures from the amazing temple museum to Lao Tzu fro Guoyang. For a reader and lover of Tao it was much like a wish fulfilled dream. My student Lavender took me there to meet her father a teacher. It was only after I left and returned to the university that I was able to take it all in. Some travels are like dreaming aren't they. They far exceed ones expectations and imaginings. Life sometimes exceeds our expectations of reality in its surprises and beauty.
In the middle of the entrance walk was a huge yin yang symbol in the tiled path. Everything in the temple was buperbly handcrafted with great dexterity, love and care. It was akin to entering a religious space.
Around the walls of the various buildings was a pictoral and written narative of the sages life from birth to when he passed on. There was beautiful caligraphy in various styles that just took you breath away.
The fine lined drawings of Lao were breathtaking in their sense of poise and calm. The subtlety of colour and use of subdued colour was wonderful.
History of Lao Tzu go here;
http://www.notablebiographies.com/Ki-Lo/Lao-Tzu.html#b
The town itself was unremarkable insofar as it was like many other Chinese towns but within the walls of the town there was an amazing history of Chinese history.In between dining out with my guests from the local school and getting horribly drunk as a result and making an idiot of myself doing Tai Chi in the town square I was quite amazed by the atmosphere of this quite unknown place an definitely not on the normal tourist route for tourists.
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| Guoyang Temple museum |
In the middle of the entrance walk was a huge yin yang symbol in the tiled path. Everything in the temple was buperbly handcrafted with great dexterity, love and care. It was akin to entering a religious space.
The fine lined drawings of Lao were breathtaking in their sense of poise and calm. The subtlety of colour and use of subdued colour was wonderful.
History of Lao Tzu go here;
http://www.notablebiographies.com/Ki-Lo/Lao-Tzu.html#b
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