The Seekers of Illumination

[Sinister]

I suppose I could go first, if need be, or if you wish to, Oskar.

Hmm...Religion or Philosophy? Obscure or...Established?

So many fascinating possibilities. A veritable realm of esoterica and detailed thought...

The easiest would be a mainstream religion...but pretty much everyone here knows those and if I go too esoteric and obscure, I risk envolving myself in cults...

Philosophies...Hrm... I could rock and roll this club with Transcendental Idealism...I've already ponied up with Solipsism in that one thread with Jintatsu... He was sold on it. Zen might be cool, but everyone might've heard of it already...><

I think I go on about Taoism so much that everyone is tired of hearing about it. I could go on Jainism or Sihkism. Jainism is a favorite I love the Svetambara and their Sky-clad Ahimsa. Very Altruistic to a fault...unto death, matter of fact. Not many of them left around, sadly...

I need to get it together...*sigh* So much to do...

It'll be a relief to write an essay that has nothing to do with plants ><,

-Sin

[T.G. Oskar]

*pops into thread*

Well, I haven't had a nice weekend as I thought I would have. I thought I would rest up a bit and take advantage of cable wireless modem, but I had a bit of a rough-in with Grandma. She almost gets Mum into trouble because she insists in living alone and far from home.

Fortunately, that's relatively solved. Thus, on to what's on schedule.

@Sinis: be my guest. You can make the first essay. It can give an example of how the essay should be constructed, how much of trust-able sources you should use, and the pro's and con's.

@Celtic: while it is natural that even families can have their differences, some differences grow into large rifts. And we are just growing into a family, or hopefully we are. Thing is, we've got a precedent we need to fix, circumvent, or prevent. Perhaps one person, by allowing too much freedoms, may feel uncomfortable, even alluded. So far, we are restricted by terms of mutual respect, which I believe is a way to prevent troubles. I do expect everyone in here to respect that, but eventually someone will have troubles with another, and neither will show respect for the other. I do wish that we can get over that nasty precedent that caused the disbanding of the former group, and that we may remain together.

But, after all, it is good to know that you eventually may consider us as a family. Anything we may do to help is more than encouraged. Anyone that may need help is encouraged to do so. That's what families are for, right? Regardless of the distance.

[Sinister]

Seeing I’m to be the first, I’ve decided to default on Taoism. I’ve decided to break up Taoism into “pillars” or fundamental concepts by which every Taoist lives and functions. I’m keeping it cut and dry since you have to walk before you can fly on dragon-back. So no theory is allowed and no philosophical bull. Just the religious views.

First off, Taoism is pronounced(Dow ism) and is unique in that it can be a Religion(Dàojiāo 道教) or just a Philosophy(Dàojiā 道家). It’s reliant on what your prediliction is. What you believe and what you can’t. There are three marked religious tomes of Taoism.

The primary text is the Tao Te Ching by the mysterious sage named Lao Tzu. This dates as the oldest of all of them, all the way back to 6th century BCE or BC if you prefer. The name translates simply as “Way, Virtue, Classic”.
Keep in mind that it was by no means Lao Tzu’s plan to write all of this down, even though what he did write down was cryptic and short. He was forced by a soldier to pen his teachings. Beware! Those who buy a copy of the Tao Te Ching will not understand it the majority of it unless you are initiated. It’s writted the way it’s written because Taoism cannot be summed up well, if at all.(which is not good news for me) Each passage is actually a sermon in-of-itself. So unless you already know the key terms, it will be of little use to you. Next are the Zhuangzi(named for it‘s author) and Daozang(or Tao Treasury).


So I suppose I should explain the Key Terms.

Tao (literally, Way) Is an amalgamation of several concepts. So many in fact, that it is impossible to tell you what the Tao isn’t. Tao means way and can mean nature, but it’s much more than that. You can’t say Tao is the universe because you exclude what isn’t the universe. You can’t say Tao is everything…because you exclude everything that everything isn‘t. Confusing? Nah. Not that bad.

Yin and Yang Tao can be described by two separate forces. Yin and Yang(Heaven and Earth). And they are quite literally that. Or more specifically, Matter and Energy. These are the forces that this particular existence operates. They intermingle and mix like clouds. Supposedly their intercourse can be predicted to some point. I personally find that difficult to believe, aside from the obvious.

Chi, Jian and Bugan wei tianxia Xian(or the three jewels of the Tao) These are the basic virues of Taoism. Compassion, Frugality and Humility. It is through these that people are able to begin cultivation of the Tao.

Te Inner strength and virtue is the degree to which you possess the above characteristics and how they are displayed in you.

Wu Wei Is a major tenet of Taoism that also helps in Cultivations. Wu Wei can be translated as “Without Action”. But that is not what it means. Lost in translation, poor term. It means to act without contemplation. Now you may remember your mother penalizing you for acting without thinking. Well guess what? It’s a virtue. But here’s the hang nail… You act without contemplating or scheming, but, unless you want to murder your cultivation of the Tao you act with Te. In otherwords they are saying that Virtue should be second nature to you now… Or wait…no…It should be your nature. You shouldn’t even have to think about it. You should just have to act.

Pu Is the uncarved block. The potential. The greatest power of all. The more you hone your strengths and your knowledge the more you detract from your potential. The less potential you have the weaker you will always be. The more limited your cultivation of the Tao will be. The more limited you will end up being. Eventually if you rack up enough limitations…you’ll just fade away into nothing…

Finally I’ll speak about the purpose of the religion. Immortality. There I said it. That is the goal. Few, if any, people reach it. Now they didn’t mean immortality as in longevity. Good Tao no. The way the Taoists look at it. People have two lives. One of Yang(matter) and one of Heaven(energy). In order to increase your material lifespan you can take vitamins, work out, eat healthy and so on. In order to increase your Yin lifespan you can cultivate the Tao.

That’s my essay. I only had to refer to my Tao Te Ching once. Yay!


Discuss!

[Furore]

@Celtic: while it is natural that even families can have their differences, some differences grow into large rifts. And we are just growing into a family, or hopefully we are. Thing is, we've got a precedent we need to fix, circumvent, or prevent. Perhaps one person, by allowing too much freedoms, may feel uncomfortable, even alluded. So far, we are restricted by terms of mutual respect, which I believe is a way to prevent troubles. I do expect everyone in here to respect that, but eventually someone will have troubles with another, and neither will show respect for the other. I do wish that we can get over that nasty precedent that caused the disbanding of the former group, and that we may remain together.

But, after all, it is good to know that you eventually may consider us as a family. Anything we may do to help is more than encouraged. Anyone that may need help is encouraged to do so. That's what families are for, right? Regardless of the distance.

What about an unspoken rule then maybe? Even if someone does dislike someone in the club for whatever reason they still show respect. We all will have different views on opinions on some subject or another, but that's what gives us something to discuss. When I mentioned 'freedoms' in my last post I was strictly speaking about the new way the club works. Everyone's welcome so long as they can explain why they see themselves as altruistic.

Differences do have the potential to create huge rifts, but from what I've seen we're all mature enough to respect each other.

@ Sinny. Nice post/essay on Taoism.
I must admit to not knowing much more than a few paragraphs from some text books so it was interesting to see some key terms I'd never come across before, mostly Pu. It warrants some further reading on my half.

[Sinister]

Now that I've hopefully sparked a little enlightenment, I feel the need to call to mobilize. To arms. RPB, training the few good rpers we have here to be competing material. Supposing that whoever loses this battle between the BoD and The Masters will need someone to step up and replace them. It's time for all serious RPers to step up and start training!

I'm fully commited. Anyone want to RPB? Training wise? Or even start plans on our next RP. Remember: "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing." -Edmund Burke(or that one scientist from the movie "Street Fighter")

-Sin

[T.G. Oskar]

Far as I know, the main instigator for the dissolution of the groups (the BoD, of course), by means of its highest command, has accepted that the war was so successful that there may be no need to dissolve any group in here. If that's true and honored (dunno about the true part, but I can trust they'll honor such agreement if it ends true), then we aren't pressed on to take arms. Yet, indeed, we need to begin training if we are to make a stand eventually.

I also need the training. I feel not only rusty, but unprepared. Tried to figure out what's wrong with my writing style, but without success. So, I'll be more than willing to accept the proposal, although we should first determine which characters to use (the official SoI characters are fine by me, but I'd need a drastic revision and improvement of the official character). If you want, please make a PM before making the thread, to discuss the general background of the RPB. I feel that we must hone our RPB skills a bit more than the RP. At least, I feel like it: having only...5 battles? (Kaitou, Anomaly, Taco, Kaitou again, and the failed attempt at the ToA which has prevented me from taking another action as I feel I did my best but ended up doing nothing at all), I feel a bit unprepared. And I feel like I need to define better the goals of my character (it definitely has a base on Paladin, but I often end up with a jack-of-all-trades character that focuses mostly on defense and support than attack) Almost all attempts on making characters in other genres often end up that way. Yet, as much as I desire a boost in magical prowess -- most especially White and Holy Magic -- I also feel that he should have a cinch of Alchemy added in it, perhaps the sudden mixture of chemicals and improvising alchemical and chemistry reactions to support the combat style. And, I've always sought to have a swordmaster with knowledge on dashing, multiple strike, and magic-empowered techniques.

So, I need to define how much of a percentage of skills can be added to follow a general trend, a glimpse of focus, and define an otherwise odd and overpowered set of skills. The moves of a Paladin and the magic of a Priest normally combine well, and the area of Swordmaster can be added with little difficulty, but how do I add the knowledge of Alchemy to the mix?

Perhaps, once I can figure that out (that doesn't mean that I won't accept the challenge, it's more on defining the skills of my character, which can be done via brainstorming), I can accept more general challenges (i.e. out-of-club challenges)

I still need to digest that essay, Sinis. It's pretty much simplified, but requires a bit of time to tie loose ends and understand how each part of the whole works in conjunction. But let me get this straight: by doing without thinking, thinking of nothing...you are supposed to be enlightened. Yet, rational thinking often allows to analyze the proper way to do so. Perhaps, the focus of the Wu Wei is to, at the moment of action, be free of thoughts, to be free of doubts. You act without thinking, for you have already thought of what to do. And that result of your thought is how you live your life. To achieve enlightenment, your path and the Tao should be one, or at least your path must be sustained by the pillars of the Tao (as in, there is no one specific Tao): once that's defined, further thought cripples the potential, the Pu, which is to be avoided.

Perhaps I shouldn't give it that much thought.

[Sinister]

As for RPBing...well, anytime. I'm going to stick with Jafar. He's one of my favorite walk-the-line type characters, which is pretty much me. He's sheet is prolly some where in the old OOC thread. I'll recycle it wordforword, pending any differences that you feel are necessary.

I'll be honest about it. I have a happy talent for composition. I really do. But I've never RPBed in my entire life. There, I said it. I can't imagine it's that different than an RP but I'm willing and ready to learn.


@essay: You've got it pretty much in the fact. Wu Wei serves as a guide when making decisions by saying that anyone in touch with the Tao already knows what to do.

It's like driving a car. Nobody THINKS about driving a car, they just do it. At first it takes commands of bigger actions and decisions...later on you just become the Tao. You act without having to think.

As for Pu, well...I went off the deep end on it. I learned until I could not possibly learn anymore, which supposedly will inhibit me in the end, by detracting from the potential. Which you can heal, by living a quiet life of peace, which I now intend to in my old age.

[T.G. Oskar]

RPB isn't that different from a forum RP thread, except that it's more...how to say, intimate?

Allow me to explain. In an RP, you collaborate with others to advance the story, by composing the action taken by your character and how he executes the action. The more elaborate and vivid the composition is, the more enjoyable it is to read. Each piece of the story becomes a jigsaw puzzle that blends into a whole story, as chapters of a book.

But I assume you know that. It's just for the purpose of placing a brief description to which to refer in case of comparison. Of course, one part of the RP that the RPB lacks is the presence, at times, of a moderating participant, which holds the reigns of the storyline, which determines what can be allowed, and what can be disallowed.

In an RPB, similar rules apply, but with certain differences. When I speak of "intimate", it's because only two people participate, and the entire flow of the small battle flows from the combination of both minds. One may define the boundaries of the story, but at the end, both people have the potential to alter the story as they see fit. The actions are purely the definition of a combat action, which may include, and are not limited to: flashbacks, lapses of thought, speech, and the movement in itself. Each action constitutes a turn, in which the action is responded as it deems fit. You can either take the hit, block/parry/evade or otherwise null the effect of the attack, apply a move to reduce its effects, or even a limited alteration of the move (this one can border on god-modding, and it should be agreed on both parts). The true degree of intimacy is on the discussion of the move. For example, say that I deal an attack with, say, a fireball: a very typical spell. Normally, you either take the blast, or block the fireball with either a physical or magical barrier. Yet, to really add the depth of knowledge and control, you decide that's better if the fireball explodes, yet the pressure wave and the flames swirl around you, as part of an effect of a protective ward placed upon you beforehand, or even as a reflexive action. You may think that such a move is possible (in the realm of one's mind, anything is possible), but the other person may not agree to such. Yet, if you discuss beforehand the effect of your ward, and that you may exert a bit of personal power to alter the effects of a move slightly, and the other person agrees, then the action becomes more fluid: both people agree to allow the move to be altered, and by no means it should be considered god-modding. Only the abuse of said privilege can turn into god-modding, or in the case where the person is simply undefeatable. One simple premise must be always followed: in the realm of RPB, no matter how cool your character is, he's always vulnerable to something. One of the infinite possibilities of moves of your character should be able to at least dent the defenses, and shake the confidence, of the opponent. If the person is truly undefeatable by some specific circumstance, then the battle becomes un-fun, an undesirable end.

One of the things that often works is that the RPBers often communicate via PM, or by instant-messaging programs, to gain feedback on the moves that will be executed, and how the other reacts to it. Communication is essential (one of the things that apparently seems to be a flaw of mine). Writing technique is also key: each person has its own writing style, which can cause conflict upon the other. In essence, the victor of an RPB often has the superior, or the edge, in the writing style. The way one describes the action, and how it affects the opponent and the background, eventually becomes the judgement by which a winner is declared.

And getting into the mood is essential: write while listening to music, think of ways to solve a particular problem every moment you can, and also think that the more glory you hog, the less entertaining the battle is. The battle should be a swing, a dance of actions, in which the other person can be granted a chance to shine, or else, the battle is abandoned, and the victory is sour.

That's mostly it. I think I get here, and I get inspired in writing one-hour long posts just for the heck of it. I tend to exaggerate the length of my posts with flair and long words.

As per Jaffar, well, the degree to which the skills should remain locked or not should be settled upon the discussion. I agree that, to reach the proper potential, your character should be free to undertake its own actions. Thus, it should be capable of executing all of its actions, and perhaps even add a few more. In the RP, since it should give the impression that they were beginning their journey, they had to begin at a lower level. Not in this case, where they should be facing at an equal degree of power, perhaps with a slight handicap if so desired and agreed. I'll explain more via PM, to determine if the idea running up my mind sounds right to you.