Skip to main content

Chuang Random Page 1: 130

 Actionless action - this is what is approved by the scholar who retreats to the rivers and seas, who leaves this generation alone, who is in no hurry.

to lose everything and yet to have all; to drift calmly and endlessly... This is the Tao of Heaven and Earth.

The saying goes 'Calm, detachment, silence, quiet, emptiness and actionless action, these are what maintain Heaven and Earth, the Tao and Virtue (Te). The saying goes 'The sage rests, truly rests and is at ease.'

He ignores knowledge and nostalgia, following only the pattern of Heaven.

What is this advising us?

To do less, much less, as little as needed for a fulfilled and happy life.

To go to nature, be beside it, live beside it. To be by flowing water.

To minimise social contact.

To be in no rush, to take your time with everything.

To recognise that you need little to thrive, and that we probably need to get rid of vast amounts of things (and thoughts, memories, prejudices, opinions, etc)

To have no grand aims, but rather be satisfied and fulfilled with what is, with the basics of life, and deep connection with the flow of all existence.

These words should be our way of living: calm, detachment, silence, quiet, emptiness, actionless action, true rest, ease.

Ignore and let go of knowledge and memories, and plans too, preferring to accept and go with, the flow of all existence.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Lessons from The Book of Chuang Tzu - Part 5

The wise person does not hold onto life, nor do they fear death. They arrive without expectation and leave without resistance. They came calmly, went calmly, and that was that. They are not interested in what becomes of them. Their kindness enriches generations yet they have no great love for people. They do what they want. They are not judgemental. Cheerfully smiling, they are content. When calm, they appear to be one with the world. Their inner nature seems unknowable. They get on well with society. They follow the natural course of events. Death and birth are fixed. They are beyond the control of humanity. This is just how things are. People praise and criticise leaders and thinkers but it would be so much better if they just follow the Tao. To have a human form is a joyful thing but in a universe full of possible forms there are others just as good. The sage rests contented with all things. They take pleasure in early death, old age, in the origin and in the end, and sees them all ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Lessons from The Book of Chuang Tzu - Part 3

This temporary thing called human life is a gift. Accept what is given by the flow of the universe, including loss and death. Don't react against it. Death is as much part of life as life itself. Sickness is as much part of life and being well. If you accept and go with the flow of the universe then sorrow will not touch you. Don't get involved with the junk of this world, or the transient issues that seem so pressing in the moment. Try to stay on the true, simple, narrow path. With many paths comes confusion. Struggling for fame people destroy each other. They also destroy themselves. Have nothing to do with it. Knowledge is used for argument. Have nothing to do with using it for selfish or evil ends. Keep your advice for yourself and for those who want to learn. The powerful already assume they are right and won't listen to you. The wisest cannot manage these people. Don't try. Shun them. The Way is found in emptiness, in simplicity, in the mundane. Learn to bear what...
Post a Comment
Read more

On The Bible Part 1

Introduction So the chances are high that this won't last; a commentary of The Bible as I read it page by page. My ideas usually fizzle out pretty damn quickly, but I'm hoping The bible is sufficiently important to sustain my attention and stimulate my intellect and emotiojnal intelligence and mindfulness to keep me commenting on it until I've done the whole lot... and educated myself enormously in the process. Why do such a thing? Well, it is probably the most important book in human history as it has been the most influential, at least until thesecond half of the twentieth century. Even now, if you consider the influence of evangelical Christians in the USA, and the State of Israel, you can still see how strong an influence The Bible has in today's world. Yet most people, myself included, have probably only heard children's versions of some of the Bible stories, or those carefully chosen extracts read in church or school in our childhood. The vast majority of The ...
Post a Comment
Read more