There is a saying within Taoism called "the law does not pass on the six ears", which refers to the fact that when the master and apprentice teach the magic, they are usually taught in secret, and it is strictly forbidden for unrelated people to be present. The reason why the true way and the true law are passed on in such a special way has a lot to do with the righteousness upheld by Taoism itself.
Taoism believes that all things in heaven and earth contain the nature of the Tao, and although the Tao is truly the same, the state of expression in specific individuals is different. Taoist practice places special emphasis on the path of oneself, and even if there is no difference in what one sees and learns, the ways and methods of cultivating each other's path of enlightenment are special. Based on this, the secret transmission has two prerequisites:
First, only by first putting an end to the right and wrong comments of others can we concentrate on our own cultivation. When you preach publicly, you will inevitably be compared and discussed. If you lose the tranquility of your practice because of this, it is contrary to the Tao. Taoist cultivation is not about whose skills are more skillful, but about being able to maintain one's own nature in the ups and downs of the world. Only with one intention can the Tao and the Tao be effective. In order to achieve this, the Dao Ancestor told us that things such as the five tones and five colors can disturb the nature of tranquility, so the cultivator must learn to "close his eyes and ears" and deliberately ignore anything that has nothing to do with the cultivation of truth.
Second, practice is actually a very personal thing, and it must be based on the actual situation of each person, and the metaphysics that comes out of the process will also vary from person to person. Only oneself is the one who knows his own way best. In addition to this, the person who knows best about his own cultivation is none other than the teacher who preaches and teaches his profession. When the Master appoints an apprentice, he will choose the method of teaching according to his specific situation. At this time, if the teaching is intentionally learned by outsiders, due to the different circumstances of the practitioners, blindly learning may cause great harm.
Based on the above two points, many Taoist techniques adopt the method of tantric transmission, which is not only to teach students according to their aptitude, but also to be responsible for the teaching, scholars, and practitioners. The higher the Taoist, the more he tends to maintain some quaint old traditions. Because of the lack of understanding, the techniques learned can only become juggling, and even become a sharp weapon that harms people. People in the world always blindly seek how to be a master, rather than a Taoist, which is precisely the fate of the wood to seek fish. The more you seek, the more intense your desires become, and the easier it is to be devoured in the end. When passing on the Dao Dharma, the method of secret teaching is used precisely to avoid passing on non-human beings. It is better not to pass it on, not to spread it indiscriminately, and the spirit of belonging to the Taoist still exists.
However, there are also many people who disagree with the inheritance of Taoist teachers' secret teachings, believing that it is precisely because of such a relatively conservative learning method that more people are hindered from understanding the true nature of Taoism. This view also has a certain practical basis.
There are many immortal seekers in the world, most of them are suffering from running to no way, if the Taoist always maintains a cold face to treat the seeker, this will only make their own inheritance more and more narrow. With the development of the times, people have more and more ways to understand the world, and if Taoism and Taoism cannot become the shining point of the public's attention, they will soon be forgotten by the public. Therefore, if we want to promote religion and realize the religious ideals of the people of the world, we must fundamentally change the way of inheritance of the secret tradition, let more people participate in the study of Taoism and Taoism, and change the old precise teaching mode. The development of Taoism is not only to increase the number of believers, but also to enable those who study and cultivate to receive the correct guidance of their predecessors and avoid going astray. Therefore, when considering the spread of religion, it is necessary to require that Taoism and Taoism be able to spread all over the world.
The inheritance and dissemination of religion can also be understood as the religious responsibility of cultivating the truth in the seclusion and propagating the Dharma in the world, that is, the balance between self-discipline and self-discipline. One yin and one yang, which is right and which is wrong, is not the only result of choosing one or the other. Whether Taoism should be transmitted in the secret or in the open is not a difficult question for those who have attained enlightenment, but it is just a different conclusion deduced by different groups of people from different standpoints.
Inheritance is a proposition set for the internal group of Taoists, hoping that the things left by the ancestor will not be lost in their own hands, so they are often cautious when choosing successors; Communication, the main emphasis is on a sense of religious responsibility and mission. Among the believers, there is no lack of sincere love for the sect, and when they see the sect in decline, they all want to make their own efforts. Moreover, Taoism has a tradition of saving people since ancient times, so that more people can live a more peaceful and peaceful life due to the influence of Taoism, which is the greatest significance of Hongdao.
Taoism's secret transmission between master and disciple and its manifestation to the public have their own goals and starting points, and naturally there is no conflict between them. When the master and apprentice teach the Tao in secret, the master will always tell the disciple that the patriarch's Tao method is not to copy and copy, but to find a cultivation method that suits him. When preaching Taoism, the concept of non-action and pure meditation advocated by Taoism cannot be completely applied to specific life, but it is necessary to comprehend the spiritual essence according to one's own actual situation, and refine the unstained mind from promising things. Whether it is aimed at Taoists or the general public, although there are certain differences in the content of teaching, the core of Taoism with pure and quiet as the essence remains the same.
The patriarch once said that the nature is the same, and the number is two. Inheritance and dissemination, although the names of the two are different, the essence of the connotation of cultivation is the same. When we are content with our own duties and recycle the heart of outward pursuit to ourselves, we will realize that all forms and appearances are just means to attract people's ears. Cultivation is to teach us to see what life is as it is, to realize where the original intention of practice is, and then to rediscover what the true self is in life. If you understand me, you will understand the Tao. If the Tao is clear, why should we distinguish between the ways to learn the Tao?