Living the Tao-A Spiritual Podcast

In this subscriber-only episode (1-174), Taoist Master Mikel Steenrod explores the turtle as an organizing force within Taoist thought. Beginning with a classic teaching story of a turtle withdrawing beneath a storm, the discussion expands into the turtle’s deeper symbolic and practical roles across Taoist tradition. The episode examines how the turtle shell became an early tool for extracting order from chaos through divination practices that predate the I Ching, and how its structured form influenced cosmological thinking. Mikel also discusses the ancient Daoist board game Liubo, modeled after the turtle’s undershell, which functioned as both entertainment and a symbolic map for understanding movement through the universe. The turtle’s association with longevity, containment, and the preservation of qi is explored, along with its comparison to jade as a storage medium for essence. The discussion then connects these ideas to Taoist cosmology, including the emergence of differentiation from chaos and the need for ordering devices to understand reality. This episode presents the turtle as a model for survival, perception, and energetic containment, offering a practical and symbolic framework for navigating chaos while preserving vitality. Full episode available to subscribers, along with AMA access, commentary, and community discussion. 🎧 Listen to the full subscriber episode on supercast. Subscribe now at https://living-the-tao.supercast.com

Free will is usually treated as a human question — do we have it, or are we determined? In this Living the Tao Short, the discussion moves in a different direction entirely. Starting from a Taoist premise that everything is Dao, the conversation explores what that means for equality, change, and the nature of choice. If the Dao neither favors nor disfavors anything, then how does anything happen? The answer leads to a surprising conclusion: choice is the mechanism of change, and choice exists everywhere — not just in human thought. Along the way, this short episode challenges several assumptions: That humans primarily choose through rational thinking That free will belongs only to conscious beings That having free will means unlimited options That change comes from intellect rather than energy Instead, choice is framed as an energetic process expressed differently across all things. Humans experience it one way, but the same principle applies universally. Even a rock, in its own way, may be exercising choice. A brief conversation designed for reflection. 🌐 Explore more Taoist teachings: https://www.the-taoism-for-modern-world.com 🎧 Listen to more Living the Tao Shorts & full episodes: https://podcast.the-taoism-for-modern-world.com Access the video form of the episode here: https://youtu.be/-eeaty6QARM Intro music: “Finding Movement” by Kevin MacLeod — licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Source: incompetech.com

What if the feeling that you’re separate… isn’t real? In this episode of Living the Tao, Taoist Master Mikel Steenrod and Morgan explore one of the most powerful illusions shaping modern life—the belief that we are disconnected from nature, from reality, and from the Dao itself. At the center of this discussion is the concept of the social mind—a framework that creates identity, belonging, and meaning, but also introduces a false sense of separation. As it grows stronger, our natural connection to reality becomes harder to perceive. This episode explores: Why we feel separate from the world around us How the social mind creates and reinforces that illusion The connection between belonging, love, and identity Why systems of power often depend on separation A striking historical example showing how belief can shift under pressure Why Taoism has long been seen as a disruptive or “dangerous” philosophy At its core, this conversation points to a simple truth: You already belong. You always have. You don’t need to earn connection to the Dao—you only need to stop believing that you’re separate from it. Video episode is available on youtube here: https://youtu.be/iDRZ30EQ65M 🌐 Explore more Taoist teachings: https://www.the-taoism-for-modern-world.com 🎧 Listen to more Living the Tao Shorts & full episodes: https://podcast.the-taoism-for-modern-world.com Access the video form of the episode here: https://youtu.be/RnXn_V9ou2M Intro music: “Finding Movement” by Kevin MacLeod — licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Source: incompetech.com