Change Your Thoughts—Change Your Life Page 5

  The implications of Emoto’s work are stupendous. Since consciousness is located within us and we’re essentially water, then if we’re out of balance in our intentions, it’s within the realm of possibility that our intentions can impact the entire planet (and beyond) in a destructive way. As our creator, the eternal Tao, might put it, “Water of life am I, poured forth for thirsty men.”

  Do the Tao Now

  Drink water silently today, while reminding yourself with each sip to nourish others in the same life-flourishing way that streams give to the animals and rain delivers to the plants. Note how many places water is there for you—serving you by flowing naturally. Say a prayer of gratitude for this life-sustaining, always-flowing substance.

  9th Verse

  To keep on filling

  is not as good as stopping.

  Overfilled, the cupped hands drip,

  better to stop pouring.

  Sharpen a blade too much

  and its edge will soon be lost.

  Fill your house with jade and gold

  and it brings insecurity.

  Puff yourself with honor and pride

  and no one can save you from a fall.

  Retire when the work is done;

  this is the way of heaven.

  Living Humility

  As the eternal Tao is in a continuous state of creating, it knows precisely when enough is enough. Deep within ourselves, we sense that this organizing principle of unconditional supply knows when to stop, so we don’t need to question the quantities that the Tao brings forth. The creative Source is beautifully balanced in the principle of humility elucidated in this 9th verse of the Tao Te Ching.

  The Tao has the capability to generate everything in amounts that would stupefy an observer, yet its gentle humility seems to know when there are enough trees, flowers, bees, hippos, and every other living thing. Excess is eschewed by the Tao. It doesn’t need to show off its unlimited capacity for creating—it knows exactly when to stop. This verse invites us to be in spiritual rapport with this characteristic of the Tao.

  Cramming life with possessions, pleasures, pride, and activities when we’ve obviously reached a point where more is less indicates being in harmony with ego, not the Tao! Living humility knows when to just stop, let go, and enjoy the fruits of our labor. This verse clearly analogizes that the pursuit of more status, more money, more power, more approval, more stuff, is as foolish as honing a carving knife after it has reached its zenith of sharpness. Obviously, to continue would just create dullness, and it is obvious that a keen edge represents perfection.

  Lao-tzu advises us to be careful about amassing great wealth and storing it away. This practice contributes to a life spent keeping our fortune safe and insured, while at the same time always feeling the need to pursue more. He counsels us to be satisfied at a level that fosters living with humility. If wealth and fame are desired, we must know when to retire from the treadmill and be like the Tao. This is the way of heaven, as opposed to the world that we live in, which is addicted to more.

  We can heighten our awareness that advertising is primarily designed to sell products and services by convincing us that we need something in order to be happy. Analysts might tell us that the economy is failing if it isn’t continuously growing, but we can realize that excessive growth, like cancer, will ultimately destroy itself. We can witness the results of overproduction in the gridlock on most highways: It now takes longer to go from one side of London to the other than it did before the invention of the automobile! We also see this principle at work whenever we shop. I call it “choice overload”—pain pills for backaches, menstrual cramps, headaches, joint pains, in the morning or at night, in a capsule or liquid or powder? And this is true whether we’re purchasing toilet paper, orange juice, or anything else.

  I believe that Lao-tzu sends the following modern advice from his ancient perspective:

  Come to grips with the radical

  concept of “enough is enough”!

  Make this commitment even though you live in a world addicted to the idea that one can never have enough of anything. To paraphrase Lao-tzu, do your work and then step back. Practice humility rather than ostentation and uncontrolled consumption. The obesity crisis in the Western world, particularly in America, is a direct result of not understanding (and living) the simple wisdom of the 9th verse of the Tao Te Ching. Eat, but stop when you’re full—to continue stuffing food into a satiated body is to be trapped in believing that more of something is the cause of your happiness. And this is true of overly filling yourself with any artificial symbol of success. Think instead of the infinite wisdom of the Tao, which says, “To keep on filling is not as good as stopping.” Enough is not only enough, it is in alignment with the perfection of the eternal Tao.

  Seek the joy in your activities rather

  than focusing on ego’s agenda.

  Ego wants you to gather more and more rewards for your actions. If you’re in a state of loving appreciation in each of your present moments, you’re letting go of the absurd idea that you’re here to accumulate rewards and merit badges for your efforts. Seek the pleasure in what you’re doing, rather than in how it might ultimately benefit you. Begin to trust in that infinite wisdom that birthed you into this material world. After all, it knew the exact timing of your arrival here. It didn’t say, “If nine months will create such a beautiful baby, I’ll extend the gestation period to five years. Now we’ll have an even more perfect creation!” Nope, the Tao says that nine months is perfect—that’s what you get, and you don’t need any more time.

  The next time you’re mired in a desire for more, stop and think of the Tao. This creation principle fully grasps the idea that when the work is done, then for God’s sake, it’s time to stop! As Lao-tzu advises, “This is the way of heaven.” Why ever choose to be in conflict with that?

  Do the Tao Now

  At your next meal, practice portion control by asking yourself after several bites if you’re still famished. If not, just stop and wait. If no hunger appears, call it complete. At this one meal, you’ll have practiced the last sentence of the 9th verse of the Tao Te Ching: “Retire when the [eating] is done; this is the way of heaven.”

  10th Verse

  Carrying body and soul

  and embracing the one,

  can you avoid separation?

  Can you let your body become

  as supple as a newborn child’s?

  In the opening and shutting of heaven’s gate,

  can you play the feminine part?

  Can you love your people

  and govern your domain

  without self-importance?

  Giving birth and nourishing;

  having, yet not possessing;

  working, yet not taking credit;

  leading without controlling or dominating.

  One who heeds this power

  brings the Tao to this very earth.

  This is the primal virtue.

  Living Oneness

  This verse of the Tao Te Ching examines the paradoxical nature of life on Earth. Lao-tzu encourages the attainment of comfort with the seemingly incompatible opposites of body and soul, which form the basis of our daily life. We are connected to the power of the eternal Tao, while simultaneously being in a mortal physique. As we take on this seemingly ambiguous stance, we begin to see the world revealed as flawless. Everything that seems to be absolute is an opportunity to recognize its paradoxical reality.

  This teaching takes the form of a series of questions: Can an adult body with all of the conditions inherent in the aging process—such as stiffness, soreness, limitations caused by aching joints, and so on—be as supple as a newborn’s? Is it possible to be someone who works and struggles and still be the feminine spirit, birthing creation? Can one succeed in these and similar ways and still be free of feelings of self-importance? Is it possible to stay true to the Tao without allowing ego to dominate, yet successfully function in an ego-dominated wor
ld?

  This 10th verse promotes a way of living that is guided by the power of “embracing the one” when the illusion of duality appears more powerful. Read Hafiz’s writing on this subject thousands of years after the Tao Te Ching was written:

  Only

  That Illumined

  One

  Who keeps

  Seducing the formless into form

  Had the charm to win my

  Heart.

  Only a Perfect One

  Who is always

  Laughing at the word

  Two

  Can make you know

  Of

  Love.

  Our origin cannot be split, yet we’re in a world that all too often seems to reject the perfect oneness that is the Tao. We can personally live the Tao by suspending our belief in opposites and reactivating our awareness of its unity—that is, we can surrender ego and be in this world, without being of it.

  This is my interpretation of Lao-tzu’s advice from his 2,500-year-old perspective:

  Embrace oneness by seeing yourself in everyone you encounter.

  Rather than having judgmental thoughts about those whom you regard as separate or different, view others as an extension of yourself. This will diminish self-importance and unite you with what Lao-tzu calls “the primal virtue.” Letting go of ego-dominated thoughts lets you sense the oneness that you share with others; thus, you give yourself the opportunity to feel a part of the all-embracing Tao.

  Practice inner awareness whenever you feel yourself about to criticize anyone or any group. News reports designed to encourage your sense of separateness or superiority in relation to others can be a perfect time to do this: Find yourself as one of them. In situations where you’re expected to hate an assumed enemy, stop yourself from these judgments and walk an imaginary mile (or two) in their shoes. Do so with all forms of life, even the plant world. See yourself in everyone and all creations, noting the Tao in this simple observation: We are the world.

  Take pleasure from what you possess without being attached to these things.

  Let go of your identification with your stuff and with your accomplishments. Try instead to enjoy what you do and all that flows into your life simply for the pleasure of doing and observing the flow itself. You literally own nothing and no one: All that is composed will decompose; all that is yours will leave and become someone else’s. So step back a bit and allow yourself to be an observer of this world of form. Becoming a detached witness will put you into a state of bliss, while loosening your tight grip on all of your possessions. It is in this releasing process that you’ll gain the freedom to live out what the Tao is always teaching by example.

  Do the Tao Now

  Today, practice seeing oneness where you’ve previously seen “twoness” (separation). Feel the invisible energy that beats your heart, and then notice it beating the heart of every living creature all at once. Now feel the invisible energy that allows you to think, and sense it doing the same for every being currently alive.

  Contemplate these words from the Gospel of Thomas: “His disciples said to him, ‘When will the Kingdom come?’ Jesus said, ‘It will not come by looking outward. It will not say “Behold, this side” or “Behold, that one.” Rather, the Kingdom of the Father is spread out upon the earth, and men do not see it.’” Today, know that practicing oneness thinking will help you see that Kingdom.

  11th Verse

  Thirty spokes converge upon a single hub;

  it is on the hole in the center that

  the use of the cart hinges.

  Shape clay into a vessel;

  it is the space within that makes it useful.

  Carve fine doors and windows,

  but the room is useful in its emptiness.

  The usefulness of what is

  depends on what is not.

  Living from theVoid

  In this thought-provoking 11th verse of the Tao Te Ching, Lao-tzu cites the value of an emptiness that often goes unnoticed. He explains this idea with images of the hole in the center of a hub, the space within a clay vessel, and the interior area of a room, concluding that “the usefulness of what is depends on what is not.” In other words, separated parts lack the usefulness that the center contributes. This passage invites us to live from the invisible void that’s at the core of our being; that is, to change how we think about it.

  Consider the paradoxical term nonbeing as you ponder your own beingness. You’re comprised of bones, organs, and rivers of fluids that are encapsulated by a huge sheet of skin molded to hold you together. There’s definitely a distinctive quality of beingness that is “you” in this arrangement of bodily parts—yet if it were possible to disassemble you and lay all of your still-functioning physical components on a blanket, there would be no you. Although all of the parts would be there, their usefulness depends on a nonbeingness, or in Lao-tzu’s words, “what is not.”

  Imagine lining up the walls of the room you’re presently in, with all of the elements present: Without the space of the center, it’s no longer a room, even though everything else is the same. A clay pot is not a pot without the emptiness that the clay encapsulates. A house is not a house if there is no inner space for the exterior to enclose.

  A composer once told me that the silence from which each note emerges is more important than the note itself. He said that it’s the empty space between the notes that literally allows the music to be music—if there’s no void, there’s only continuous sound. You can apply this subtle awareness to everything that you experience in your daily life. Ask yourself what makes a tree, a tree. The bark? The branches? The roots? The leaves? All of these things are what is. And all of them do not constitute a tree. What’s needed to have a tree is what is not—an imperceptible, invisible life force that eludes your five senses. You can cut and carve and search the cells of a tree endlessly and you’ll never capture it.

  In the first line of this verse, that hole in the center that’s necessary for the movement of the wheel can be likened to the void that’s vital for you to move through in your life. You have an inner state of nonbeing at your center, so take note of what is visible (your body) as well as the invisible essence that your existence depends upon . . the Tao part of you.

  The following is what I hear Lao-tzu saying to you regarding this concept of living in the void in today’s world:

  Your imperceptible center is your vital essence.

  Take the time to shift your attention to the so-called nothingness that is your essence. What does it beckon you toward? The space emanates from the invisibleness that’s responsible for all of creation, and the thoughts that emerge from your inner self are pure love and kindness.

  Your inner nonbeingness isn’t a separate part of you, so seek that mysterious center and explore it. Perhaps think of it as a space contained by your physical self, from which all of your thoughts and perceptions flow into the world. Rather than trying to have positive, loving notions, simply be sensitive to the essence of your beingness. The way of the Tao is to allow rather than to try. Thus, allow that essential center of pure love to activate your unique usefulness. Allow thoughts that emerge to enter your physical self and then leave. Allow and let go, just like your breathing. And vow to spend some time each day just being attentive to the awesome power of your imperceptible vital essence.

  Practice the power of silence every day.

  There are many individual ways of doing this. For example, meditation is a wonderful tool to help you feel the bliss that accompanies your connection to your inner void, that place where you experience the way of the Tao. Vow to be more aware of the “placeless place” within you, where all of your thoughts flow outward. Find your way to enter the space within you that is clean, pure, and in harmony with love.

  The difference between saints and the rest of us isn’t that they have loving, pure beliefs and we don’t; rather, they function solely from their essence, where the way of the Tao flows invisibly through their physical
being. This is the primary purpose of learning to meditate, or to be in the silence, inviting your essence to reveal itself and allowing you to live in the void.

  Do the Tao Now

  Spend at least 15 minutes today living in the void that is you. Ignore your body and your surroundings; let go of your material identifications such as your name, age, ethnicity, job title, and so on; and just be in that space between—that void which is absolutely crucial to your very existence. Look out at your world from “what is not” and appreciate that your very usefulness as a material being is completely dependent upon this void. Work today on befriending this “what is not” part of you.

  12th Verse

  The five colors blind the eye.

  The five tones deafen the ear.

  The five flavors dull the taste.

  The chase and the hunt craze people’s minds.

  Wasting energy to obtain rare objects

  only impedes one’s growth.

  The master observes the world

  but trusts his inner vision.

  He allows things to come and go.