Beginnings

Genesis 1: 1-2 

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

And the earth was without form, and void;

and darkness was upon the face of the deep.

And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

Tao Te Ching

 Something unformed and complete

Before heaven and earth were born,

Solitary and silent,

Stands alone and unchanging,

Pervading all things without limit.

It is like the mother of all under heaven,

But I don’t know its name—

Better call it Tao.

Better call it great.

(TTC 25, Addisson)

The Ancient Beginning

Knowing the ancient beginning is the essence of Tao. (TTC 14, Gia-Fu)

Song in Chinese Border Sacrifice

“Of old in the beginning, there was great chaos, without form and dark.

The five elements had not begun to revolve, nor the sun or moon to shine.

In the midst (of the chaos) there existed neither form nor sound.

You, O spiritual Sovereign, came out in your presidency,

and first did divide the grosser parts from the purer.”

(Border Sacrifice dates to 2200 B.C.)

Jesus Sutras (Stone Stele in China, 781 A.D.)

In the beginning was the natural constant,

the true stillness of the Origin,

and the primordial void of the Most High.

Then the spirit of the void emerged as the Most High Lord,

moving in mysterious ways to enlighten the holy ones.

John 1:1

In the beginning was the Word,

 and the Word was with God and the Word was God.