May. 18, 2020

Living Without Striving

Give up learning and you will be free

from all your cares.

What is the difference between yes and no?

What is the difference between good and evil?

Must I fear what others fear?

Should I fear desolation

when there is abundance?

Should I fear darkness

when that light is shining everywhere?

In spring, some go to the park and climb the terrace,

but I alone am drifting, not knowing where I am.

Like a newborn babe before it learns to smile,

I am alone, without a place to go.

Most people have too much;

I alone seem to be missing something.

Mine is indeed the mind of an ignoramus

in its unadulterated simplicity.

I am but a guest in this world.

While others rush about to get things done,

I accept what is offered.

I alone seem foolish,

earning little, spending less.

Other people strive for fame;

I avoid the limelight,

preferring to be left alone.

Indeed, I seem like an idiot:

no mind, no worries.

I drift like a wave on the ocean.

I blow as aimless as the wind.

All men settle down in their grooves;

I alone am stubborn and remain outside.

But wherein I am most different from others is

in knowing to take sustenance from the great Mother!

20th Verse of the Tao Te Ching

(translated by Dr. Wayne Dyer)