The Chuang Tzu – Tao: Finding the God of YOUR UnderstandingThe Chuang Tzu – Tao: Finding the God of YOUR Understanding
Tao of Our understanding Alcohol Recovery Podcast
Taoist ideas and 12-step recovery are brought together to question how a Higher Power is experienced rather than defined. The speakers share personal stories and practical reflections on choosing love over fear and finding spiritual connection in the present moment.
39:23•12 Oct 2026
Finding Your Own Higher Power Through Tao and the 12 Steps
Episode Overview
- Spiritual reality is better sensed than intellectually explained; the Tao is “apprehended” rather than “comprehended”.
- The phrase “God as we understood Him” points to a shared experience found through process, not a fixed mental image.
- Letting go of the need to be right and practising a brief pause can shift reactions from resentment to kindness.
- Choosing love over fear in small everyday moments gradually changes life and softens long-held resentments.
- Many spiritual traditions can act as different “fingers pointing at the same moon”, offering varied paths to the same awareness.
“Tao is beyond words and beyond things. It is not expressed either in word or in silence. Where there is no longer word or silence, Tao is apprehended.”
How do people find strength in their journey to sobriety? This conversation brings together Taoist philosophy and 12-step recovery in a way that’s both practical and gently mind-bending. Host Buddy C sits with Libby, Brian, Drew and Oscar to talk about Thomas Merton’s rendering of Chuang Tzu’s text on the Tao, especially the idea that "Tao is beyond words and beyond things" and can only be *apprehended*, not *comprehended*.
You’ll hear them wrestle with roosters crowing, dogs barking, and why even the simplest parts of life can’t really be pinned down by logic. A big thread running through the discussion is the 12-step phrase "God as we understood Him". Oscar links this to Taoist thought, suggesting that whatever image you start with isn’t the point; it’s the process – meditation, the steps, choosing love over fear – that allows a real meeting with a Higher Power.
The group joke about how meetings go off the rails when people argue over their personal concept of God, and instead emphasise that each person finds their own language for the same experience. Brian’s story of early sobriety – thinking his "life was a dumpster fire" yet still blaming everyone else – shows how painful it can be to let go of old ideas.
He and Buddy talk about that crucial 10-second pause where, instead of acting from ego and resentment, they choose kindness and ask, "How can I be helpful in this situation?" Libby’s synchronicity moment with a Native American poem about "the way" adds another layer, hinting that many spiritual traditions point to the same timeless reality.
By the end, Tao, God, love and the present moment are woven together as one experience: something you don’t solve like a puzzle, but touch through willingness, surrender and everyday acts of compassion. If you’re curious about a Higher Power but tired of arguments over definitions, this episode might nudge you towards a gentler, more spacious way of seeing things.
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