Wen Tzu - Verse 135, Part I

from Verse One Hundred Thirty-Five

Yin and yang mold myriad beings; all of them are born of one energy. When the hearts of those above and those below are estranged, then energy evaporates. When rulers and ministers are not in harmony, the five grains do not ripen. Coldness in spring, blossoming in autumn, thunder in winter, and frost in summer are all products of destructive energy.

~ Wen-tzu: Understanding the Mysteries ~

In reading that last sentence, the thing that came to mind immediately is our problem with global warming. Across the globe, weather extremes are increasing in frequency and wreaking havoc everywhere. It seems that not a month goes by when some natural catastrophe punctuates the news -- forest fires, earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, blizzards, you name it.

All of these things are natural climatic events. More and more, however, they are occurring out of season and in unlikely places. And the intensity of such natural events seems to be increasing.

A few people believe that global warming is some liberal-based myth and that all these bizarre occurrences simply are part and parcel of the natural rhythms of our planet. The majority of the world's leading scientists, however, point to human activity as the prime culprit. As Lao Tzu makes clear above, when society itself is out of balance, destructive energy is created and, in the present case, it appears that this destructive energy is the engine for climate change.

This post is part of a series. For an introduction, go here.