The perfect world

      The Tao teaches us that great perfection seems flawed, yet it functions without a hitch.  This statement is the bedrock of the universe.  Somehow, man with his world view, believes this universe was made for man, or humans, and that some deity has ordained that man must make sure the universe functions "properly."  This is a flawed view. 

       Nature is not broken.  I repeat, nature is not broken.  It will carry on without a hitch.  All of the problems which we ordain are in need of fixing, have been caused by man.  Every one.  For instance, millions want to live in western deserts, where there is little water.  However, they wish to live, not as desert dwellers, but as if they are living in some big city, near a giant lake, where water is plentiful.  Because there is little water, the population feels cheated, they may see the lack of water as a problem of nature that must be fixed.  Efforts to supply water to the new desert dwellers is seen as a great beneficial endeavor, but it will only disrupt nature.  Thus the problem.

        The Tao's teaching, ages old, provides a view of the world that puts us in harmony with it.  As you go through life, as you look around, do not view nature as flawed, as some unreasonable obstacle in your path.  The ancients knew this and passed on their understandings.  Somewhere in our western world view, we have not given much attention to this wisdom.  We have adopted a world view that views the earth as a "vale of tears," a place where we are put for a test and then we move on to another place, where the true value and meaning of our existence will be manifest.

        The earth, in this world view, is like a bus that is giving us a ride to the next place we are going to.  The rider, who is focusing only on the place where he or she is going, cares little for the bus or the scenery, and upon their departure from the bus, could care little whether it is clean or dirty, their focus is beyond.  However, the devoted bus driver knows the bus will be fine, because he or she will clean it up, re-fuel it, and get ready for the next load of passengers. 

         Nature does not need our help to be perfect.  It is so.  All we can do is disrupt that perfection by our present way of living.  We should try not to disrupt that perfection, that unity of purpose that the ancients knew so well. 

April 18, 2011

             The Tao teaches me that true virtue is like a valley.  The immaculate seems humble.  Extensive virtue seems insufficient.  Established virtue seems deceptive.   The face of reality seems to change.  The great square has no corners.  Great ability takes a long time to perfect.  Great sound is hard to hear.  The great form has no shape.  The Tao is nameless and hidden.  That is why the Tao is good at developing and perfecting.  I can think about these things, but I cannot explain them.  The Tao is nameless.  I am content with that.  For it is said that those who think they know, do not know.

            The country is certainly in a mess right now.  A consumer economy is similar to an obese person.  You can only consume so much.  In world history and in world events, it has been difficult to predict the future.  Events can transpire that can make our country much different than it was in the past.  There is no guarantee that we will recover from this financial crisis without major changes to our way of life.  I hope people can accept this idea.  We must change our way of life.  Spending, buying, and consuming material “things” is a dead-end road.  I believe we are close to that dead-end.  So, where do we go from here?

            Frankly, the opportunities are endless.  With our experience and our wealth we can lead the way in this century to re-connect with the universe; unify our cultural heritages; look to culture and arts for guidance, instead of being lead around by financial wizards.  I think, initially we will seek that which we believe brings us security.  And that would be a desire to get things back where they were.  We need to resist this feeling.  For as the old sergeant once said, “the army is not like it is used to be, and it never was.”   We need to be bold, venture out and re-establish our human connection to the world around us.  A new adventure will be a great challenge.

            On the economic side we can do several things. For instance, instead of having GM put back together so that it can resume building big trucks, (you know the ones with big macho names that can climb mountains, ford rivers, and jump through walls of fire) why not restructure GM to lead the world in advanced technology to produce cars that are energy efficient and in harmony with our surroundings.   Why not lead in this area.  It can be done, and this is just one example.  Another, why not take the lead in energy efficient housing.  Why not replace every window in this nation with energy saving windows produced by American workers in this country.   It can be done.             We need a leader who will talk “turkey” to the people and set a path of recovery that leads us to a way of life that is not merely focused on buying things and having fun.

            As far as what we can on a personal level, that is a subject for another day.