The trap of Doing nothing part 2

In my last post I talked about the paradox of "doing nothing". The idea is that we must surrender to the tao (the universe, god, the force or whatever you wish to call it) if we are to be at peace, or to gain understanding, or to reduce our problems, etc.

As I said in the last pose, however, surrendering, does not necessarily mean "not doing". On the contrary, the Tao requires us to act. The idea that we can-or should- simply sit back and let our lives just happen is simply wrong. The story from the last post is an example of that. In the story the may is seen bobbing in the river happily letting the river take him where ever the river wants to take him. The idea being that the river knows where it is going and will take the man where he is supposed to be.

The problem with that kind of thinking is that the tao (universe, force) has no mind. Contrary to popular belief, it has no plan for you or me. Rather, it is an energy that can be used to make things happen. Going back to the man in the river, the river has no mind to carry the man. It flows in a direction. It is up to the man to use the river to get to a destination. Now, here is where it gets complicated. You see, desire does not fit into the flow of the tao. Yet, it does. To say one must be desire-less is somewhat disingenuous. THat is because as humans, we have real needs. We need food,water, air, protection from the elements, etc. So, does wanting these things put us at odds with the tao? Not exactly. First of all, obtaining needs is in conformance with the tao. All creatures in nature survive by going out and getting what they need. So acting to provide food, clothing and shelter is in accordance with the Tao.

The problem arises when we seek to obtain things that we do not have the internal power to have. This causes strife, frustration and suffering. Also, when we desire something sooner than is possible for us to have it, we suffer.

Acting in accord with the tao takes awareness. Awareness of your needs, an awareness of the timing for when we need those needs. It also requires an openness and a readiness to act when the tao delivers what we need to us.

Many people suffer because they do not see the new opportunities open to them. They so not comprehend that it is time to move on. Staying in a job, a relationship or a place after it has given us what we need can cause problems. When the universe wants us to move to the next place we are supposed to be, and we don't recognize it, the suffering we experience may be be seen as a message to move on. Thus, we suffer.

This is an example of just "going with the flow" like the man in the river. Some see the suffering as some kind of lesson and allow it to continue because they assume that is acting in accord with the universe, even though it is the opposite.

I think it is clear that knowing how and when to act is difficult. It is not as simple as just letting things happen. It is also not blindly setting goals and launching ventures that come to nothing and leave us frustrated and burned out.

Learning how to read the universe is part of the training that one undergoes. It is part of the process. Some people never learn (or at least learn very slowly). For them, life can be a struggle from beginning to end.

But there are others who seem to have everything and get it almost miraculously. We sometimes ask what about me? Why is that guy doing so well and is so rich while bust a gut working for chump change and am not getting anywhere?

I will discuss that situation next.

Mrt