Humans have wants and
desires which generate expectations that necessitate judging, picking and
choosing. Disappointments and frustrations are their byproducts. According to Lao Tzu, the
author of Tao Te
Ching, the ancient classic on human wisdom, everything in life is to be
welcomed and embraced, but not avoided.
“Everything that
happens to us is beneficial.
Everything that we
experience is instructional.
Everyone that we meet,
good or bad, becomes our teacher or student.
We learn from both the
good and the bad.
So, stop picking and
choosing.
Everything is a
manifestation of the mysteries of creation.”
(Chapter 27, Tao
Te Ching)
According to Tao
wisdom, the root cause of all human miseries is pride, which is to
satisfy the ego-self delusively created in the flawed human mind.
“The Creator is above,
and we are below
The Creator is in
front,
and we are behind.
Because this is the
nature of things,
humility is only
natural to us.
Yet many are desirous
of the top
fearful of lagging
behind.
Humility is the Way.”
(Chapter 66, Tao
Te Ching)
“Dependent on the
Creator,
our horizons broaden
and expand,
our souls inspire and
nourish,
our relationships grow
and flourish.
Everything around us
becomes oneness with the Creator.
Dependent on ourselves,
our horizons contract
and shrink,
our souls wither and
die,
our relationships
break and crumble.
Everything around us
becomes depleted and damaged.”
(Chapter 39, Tao
Te Ching)
Humility initiates the
process of letting go of everything that distracts us from our pursuit of true
human wisdom.
“Possessing little, we
become content.
Having too much, we
lose the Creator.
Having no ego, we
become humbled, and our actions are enlightened.
Having no desire for
perfection, our actions are welcome by all.
Having no expectation
of result, our actions are selfless and non-judgmental.
Having no goal, our
actions are under-doing and never over-doing.
Accepting what is, and
finding it to be perfect is not easy.
But that is the only
Way to the Creator.”
(Chapter 22, Tao
Te Ching)
Indeed, distractions
in modern life come in many different forms.
“Distractions are many,
in the form of riches
and luxuries,
They allure us from
the Way.
Accumulations are like
extortions of the poor.
They bring only
disaster and suffering.
Do not deviate from
the Way.”
(Chapter 53, Tao
Te Ching)
Letting go of control,
we no longer strain, strive, and struggle, and thus enabling us to live in the
present moment—which is a luxury to many in this day and age.
Stephen Lau
Copyright© by Stephen Lau
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