Wisdom in Living

WISDOM IN LIVING

Life is simple, and so are its precepts, but living is not only complicated but also challenging. Therefore, to live well, you must have wisdom in living. 

Conventional Wisdom

To follow conventional wisdom in living may be easy: after all, it has been tried and tested by many over centuries, and it may well be a blueprint for many, if they follow it to the letter. 

What is conventional wisdom? According to conventional wisdom, you must live your life based on the following:

Life Purpose

Most experts agree that life has a purpose, and living is to identify that life purpose and then follow a pathway to attaining that purpose. 

Life Goals

The next step is to set clear and achievable goals with a timeline for each in order to bring one’s life purpose into fruition.

Life Priorities 

To achieve your life goals, you must set priorities, and adjust them accordingly as life proceeds.

Life Passion

A life well lived must be a life of passion. Follow your heart: instead of following anything or anyone. 

Thinking Success

In addition to passion, you must think success. Success in any endeavor in life has to do with the mind, which creates the attitudes for success.

Empower your mind with knowledge to take right actions; discipline your mind with right attitudes to overcome challenges and difficulties.

But conventional wisdom may not make your life "extraordinary." In life, if you want more, your must be more. You need more than just "think out of the box"; you must create your own box of thinking. Conventional wisdom may become a crutch for you, especially if you hold on to it as if it is the only way to living well. There is nothing wrong with it, if you are prepared to accept life as it is. However, if you want more, conventional wisdom may not be sufficient. In other words, you must not accept conventional wisdom at the expense of your own personal growth and development. According to an old adage: "If you are not growing, you are dying."

Wisdom is the product of intelligent thinking. But conventional thinking is more a science than an art because it focuses more on specialized knowledge than on humanized knowledge, such as wisdom in common everyday living.

Another drawback or imperfection of conventional wisdom is that you tend to rely too much on the general and popular precepts of living, instead of your own; after all, it is your own life journey, and uniquely yours.

The Ancient Wisdom of Tao

The ancient wisdom of Tao from China is succinctly expressed in “Tao Te Ching” (“Te” means “virtuosity” and “Ching” means “classic”) an ancient Chinese classic. The fact that this book written around the 6^th century B.C. by the sage Lao Tzu (meaning “Old Master”) has become one of the most translated works in world literature is a strong testament to its popularity and the profound wisdom expressed in the book. 

For centuries, Tao has been regarded as The Way to enlightenment. It is the embodiment of wisdom that shows an individual the pathway through ideas and concepts to closer alignment with the natural order of life and living. Literally, the word “Tao” means a “road with direction.”

Non-Attachment

Tao wisdom cannot be expressed in words, because it is nameless. In Tao, once anything has a name, it assumes an identify, and thus involving attachment. Non-attachment is a key factor in understanding the profound wisdom of Tao. To live well, you must have no identify, no ego-self; any attachment will result in being judgmental, in expecting certain outcomes in life. Likewise, you have no attachment to material things; any attachment will result in refusing to let go. Attachment is the root cause of all human miseries.

Spontaneity

Since there is no attachment, no judgment, and no expectation, spontaneity becomes natural, and living becomes stress-free. 

Non-Doing

In Tao, “nothingness” is paradoxically everything. The wisdom is that when you are in the middle of nothing, you are actually in the presence of all things, because everything originally came from nothingness, that is, before the Creation—the nothingness is God. That also explains why Tao is beyond words, because words are finite and are created by man, while God is infinite. 

Living in the Present

With spontaneity, living becomes effortless. With no expectation of any outcome, the mind becomes at ease. With no judgment, there is no emotional pain. With Tao wisdom, living in the present becomes only natural—the ultimate goal of Tao wisdom.

Ancient wisdom is the absolute truth that exists in the inside of an individual, and therefore one has to look inside to find that wisdom. Tao is nameless, goes beyond distinctions, and transcends any language. Tao must be lived and experienced in order to appreciate and understand its wisdom

True Wisdom

Philosophy is not wisdom: philosophy is a concept, and a philosopher is merely a lover of that concept.

What is true wisdom?

True wisdom is an understanding of the priorities of the important things in life, of how best to go about getting them, and in the process of how to be a better person with the right conduct.

Knowing wisdom and practicing wisdom are not the same.

Nowadays, people are respected for their skills, knowledge, wealth, fame and power. They are seldom admired for being wise; wisdom has become an attribute of the old, the unfashionable, and the unrevered.

The Book of Life and Living: This book is full of wisdom based on the author's extensive research and personal experience. In this book, you will learn the following:

(1) Eliminating unproductive thoughts, overcoming chaotic struggles in your inner world and outer life to enhance health and performance, master stress, and deepen appreciation of life.

(2) Understanding the essentials of contemporary wisdom and ancient wisdom to help you contemplate and internalize their respective meanings and values in your own daily life.

(3) Harnessing mind power to integrate the acquired knowledge into your daily activities. 

Also, visit my websites: Wisdom in Living, and Health and Wisdom Tips.

Stephen Lau

Copyright ©2018 by Stephen Lau