Daodejing - Other Voices
Tao is eternal, one without a second. Simple indeed yet so subtle that no one can master it. If princes and kings could just hold it, all things would flock to their kingdom. Heaven and Earth would rejoice with the dripping of sweet dew. Everyone would live in harmony, not by official decree, but by their own inner goodness.This post is part of a series. For an introduction, go here.
- The problem with peace is that we are individuals.
- To achieve worldwide peace requires everyone to let go of their selfish individuality
- What binds us to life is the individualistic desire to survive
- Peace cannot be enforced
Application: I realize the sad truth about bring about world peace. As long as someone is looking for power, there will be none. But peace comes to us as we leave our individuality. And peace is within us. Searching for peace outside of us in an individualistic world is pointless. I no longer believe that world peace can be achieved through war or political change. It can only be achieved through personal and spiritual change.
The world is nothing but the glory of Tao expressed through different names and forms. One who sees the things of this world as being real and self-existent has lost sight of the truth. To him, every word becomes a trap, every thing becomes a prison.
- Everything is already unified
- It is the perception of the individual which divides and categorizes
- We live in the world we perceive
- Reality is relative
Application: I have realized that when I think of the world, I usually think of the man-made world instead of the natural world. For example, I think of nations and cultures. I also think of cities and cars. All of that is not the world really. It is the product of our selfishness. When I think of the world I must think of it as humans, animals, plants, oceans, rivers, mountains, etc. The natural world recycles itself. Man-made world does not, but nature always finds a way...
~ from The Categories Within, author Jeremy, original post date: 8/4/06 ~
It is not that they seek power. It is the kind of power that they seek. Power is very dangerous, but it can also do good. If power is used to extend self, and to recognize the human species as one. Then power is most beneficial. Nature has the ultimate power. If we listen and heed to what it is telling us, we will survive and thrive in harmony. If we turn our backs to nature, then we will surely perish. Nature decides when, and how. We just go away.
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