As The Tao of Aging opens, we encounter a strange old, sage-like Chinese philosopher and raconteur who claims to actually be Zhuangzi (ChuangTzu) - the second most important originator of Taoist thought after Lao Tzu. Zhuangzi now lives in San Francisco and is known simply as "Z". As it turns out, over 2000 years after his exploits in ancient China, "Z" is still rambling about the world - trickster to the bone - tinkering with the way we look at what we call reality. He insists that he is not some mythical Taoist Immortal whose condition is due to an alchemical elixir but rather an ordinary man who pays attention to the Laws of Nature. "I am not the Zhuangzi you have read about in books...wallowing in the mud all day. Stuck in the mud really, if you believe what you read, which you shouldn't. There are those who will say that the ideas I am telling you about now are not those of Zhuangzi - that they are different from Zhuangzi's teachings - contrary even. But if they were not freethinking - even heretical - they would not truly be Zhuangzi's - MY - ideas... ...And so you ask about some Tao of Aging? First, there is no Tao OF anything...just Tao. And Tao is not a noun, Tao is a verb. But even Taoing is not Tao because Tao has no name, even though I have just named it. Then, look for yourself. What you call your body may change in a way you call aging, but do 'you' age? Does your awareness get wet when it rains? Does your awareness turn into wearoutness over 'time'? I think not! Just think of yourself as a constantly changing field of energy and potential...swirling and twirling with the Tao..." Is "Z" the real thing? Our conclusion by the end of our encounter with him...MAYBE...
Charles Webb owns and operates a film, video and digital media production company in San Francisco. He has written, produced, directed and photographed projects in the United States, Europe and China that encompass diverse genres, including national TV commercials; documentaries (The Black Panthers/ "George Jackson Lives", "The Grateful Dead Movie", martial artists in the People's Republic of China, etc.); and nationally released independent features. Charles Webb also holds a masters degree in psychobiology from the University of Pittsburgh with a specialty in sensation and perception. He was a published researcher in this field before moving into media production. Charles Webb created the "reality handling" method known as Cinemorphics, which uses film and theater techniques for the re-writing, re-directing, re-producing, etc. of one's persona...ego...self.
