Stress Comes from Resisting the Way of Dao (DaoDeJing 9)

Stress and troubles come from going against the natural Way (Dao) of creation. All things, including human beings are created for a purpose and with special operating instructions. Going against the operating instructions will create stress and leads to malfunction. If you want a happy and long life, you need to follow the Way. Here in Dao De Jing, Lao Zi gives us 5 lessons on saving our energy and enjoy the good life that we are created for.

Dao De Jing Chapter 9 is captured in the Mind-map below, together with the lessons that we can learn from it:

• Holding it to fill it to the full is not better than stopping in time (while it is still stable)

  持而盈之，不如其已；

  • Energy is go against the Way
  • It is easier & effortless to accept and follow the Way
• Hammer it to make it sharp will not be able to keep the sharpness for long.

  揣而锐之，不可长保；

  • Any forced change is only temporary. Continual spending of effort is needed to maintain it.
• When a house if full of gold and jade, there is no way to keep them safe.

  金玉满堂，莫之能守；

  • Hoarding of Wealth is to invite the theives.
  • Better to distribute them away to benefits others.
  • Giving and benefiting others is the Way
• Proud because of one's wealth and honor will only brings calamity.

  富贵而骄，自遗其咎。

  • Snobbishness/Pride is inviting seed of disaster
• Accomplish and leave is the Way of Heaven.

  功成身退，天之道.

  • The Cycle of Life - time to enter, to do it, to complete it, to exit
  • When your work is completed, and when you are no longer needed, please leave.
  • Over staying and claiming credits are inviting troubles
• Lessons
  • Going Against the Way need 

    Example 1 - Flying

    • 1 Spend Energy and Effort
      • e.g. To fly, you need to burn fuel to drive the jets
    • 2 Continue to spend the energy
      • The moment the fuel is spent or the jet fail to work, the plane will crash to the ground, its natural state of rest.
    • 3 Leads to harmful by-products
      • The burnt fuel creates global warming, emit CO2 and other pollutants.
    • 4 Quit when mission is achieved. Don't over-stay.
      • Land the plane as the destination is reached
      • Fly only when necessary.
    • 5 Applicable to physical goods and mental attitudes
      • The Way is to share and serve. So don't be selfish to hoard things nor proud to abuse and misuse others.
    • Eg 2 Clean Energy vs Nuclear Energy
      • How to store the radiation waste that has 1/2 life of thousands of years.

Challenges that we can manage and cope with do not produce stress for us but rather build us up. Those needful challenges are not stress but rather exercises that keep us healthy. Challenges that overwhelm us, where we don't know what to do, what to expect, and cause us to worry and depression are the real bad stress that causes us sickness and even death.

We can use the above map and lessons as a checklist to examine our lives. For those areas that we are stressed about, we need to dig further to understand where and how we have violated the natural order or natural laws. If we are so busy working and working, neglecting our family and health, we need to take a break and find the real reasons behind our workaholism problem. What are behind the forces that cause us not to lead a balanced and accountable life? What are our concerns, fears, and even greed for glory and money? Are we too proud to learn from others? Are we abusing or misusing others for our selfish gains? What do we really want in life? What does success mean to us? What should I be doing in this phase of my life? Have I overstayed my usefulness?

Remember Lao Zi shows us that the Way is about sharing and serving quietly without fighting for credits or gains. Such teaching may seem to go against our common wisdom, but we may need to question our common wisdom. Have a rethink to see how we can follow the Way.

See also: The Secret of Joy in Changes – I-Ching Hexagram 17隨 Following

Lim Liat (c) 20 May 2014

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