The Chuang Tzu – Where is Tao?

The Chuang Tzu – Where is Tao?

What are the common struggles and victories in addiction recovery? This conversation from the Tao of Our Understanding Alcohol Recovery Podcast centres on a single Chuang Tzu story, "Where is Tao?", and uses it to question how people in recovery relate to a Higher Power and to everyday life.

Buddy C and the group read Thomas Merton’s version of the story, where Chuang Tzu says Tao is in an ant, in the weeds, in a tile, even in a turd, challenging the idea that some things – or some people – are more spiritual than others. From there, the chat moves into how this perspective can soften rigid thinking, especially around good vs bad, success vs failure, and "good" vs "bad" people.

As Drew puts it, "things happen to people. There are no good things. There are no bad things. There are no good people. There are no bad people." You’ll hear the group tie Taoist ideas directly into 12-step recovery: powerlessness, surrender, and the serenity prayer all show up as tools for seeing life as "what is" rather than something to control.

Libby links verses from the Tao Te Ching to the steps, describing how suffering and resentments become the path rather than the problem. Kate talks about seeing Tao as a Higher Power present in everything, even rocks and the ocean, and how that outlook reduces her urge to argue or label others.

There’s humour too, like the running joke about never praying for patience before going to a busy supermarket queue, and honest talk about fears of financial insecurity and people-pleasing. The episode also touches on A Course in Miracles as another way of questioning what’s truly real. If you’re curious how ancient Taoist writing can sit alongside modern recovery tools, this relaxed, thoughtful chat may give you fresh language for your own idea of a Higher Power and your day-to-day sobriety.

How might seeing "Tao in all things" change the way you respond to your next difficult moment?