ChiDragon

Chapter 3 Rule with Wu Wei. 1. Dejectedly recruiting intelligentsia, 2. Discourage people from conflicts. 3. Not to value hard to obtained goods, 4. Prevent people from being thieves. 5. Not being seen desirable, 6. People won't become perturbed. 7. With sagacious ruling, 8. Emptied one's heart, 9. Solidified one's belly, 10. Weaken one's volition, 11. Strengthen one's bone, 12. Always keeping the people innocent without desire, 13. Thus presumptuous people cannot commit their acts. 14. Adapting the concept of Wu Wei, 15. Then, nothing that couldn't be handled.

Yes! I think ZZ, in the previous section, was using the hats showing that they have a purpose in one location but not the other. However, in this section, ZZ was using the defective big tree to show that it does not meet the purpose of a carpenter. In the other hand, the tree had met the purpose for being a good shade for someone to be relaxed underneath it.

Thank you for your advice. I will try not to insult my own intelligence by believing in something without researching and comprehension. "Lao Zi points to things that go beyond rational thought and ideas" is because the way it was written paradoxically in Classic. It was not the way it seems. BTW I would like to have some fine details explaining how meditation can be helpful in this matter. Thanks!

Please don't..........!!!!

What a coincidence, the ancient Chinese and Western ideas are the same. Somebody seems want to deny it.

.....and that is why we are mentally separated from Nature anyway.......!!! Ref: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nature

I am glad that you ask. This subtlety was only a philosophical idea that I must accept, in order, to continue with the study of the TTC for it to make sense. Lao Tze's wisdom is one of a kind which is very difficult to be grasped. The TTC is a piece of stand alone document. It cannot be just interpreted by using some inductive reasoning intermingled with other external philosophical thoughts.

Go ahead insult someone as long it is me..........???

I am glad that you have mentioned the word "intentional". Nature has no intent but it just does it naturally. I grant you that "a man uses a match to start a small & well-controlled campfire but suddenly a storm blows in". In this scenario, the man has no intend to burn down the forest. The final act was done by Nature. However, lightning strikes a nearby dead tree and, rather than directly starting a forest fire that was only natural. If human was intended to light a fire to burn down a forest, then it wold be unnatural. The scenario you had brought up is a good example of a natural cause. Sorry, "it requires nature to be intentional" is not a valid statement because Nature does not think like human. You have not distinguish the difference between "intentional" and "unintentional". An intentional act is not Wu Wei or being unnatural. An unintentional act is considered to be Wu Wei or being natural.

Please read the rest of the content with an open mind. Read what it says before any hasty rejection.

Good question. I'll let Lao Tze answer this one. In the Tao Te Ching, Lao Tze was always using four entities in his illustrations. The four entities are, Human, Earth, Heaven and Tao. Human follows Earth, Earth follows Heaven, Heaven follows Tao, Tao follows its natural self. LaoTze had made human as the point of perspective of an observer for Nature. As far as Lzo Tze was concern, Earth and Heaven is the Universe. For that being said, Lao Tze had made human as a separated entity from Nature in order for him to explain his philosophy about Wu Wei. From the beginning to the end, human is always following Tao. The action of Tao is being natural to everything, thus human follows whatever is natural which is Nature. In regarding to your comment about "harm" There are two kinds of "harm". One is the natural disaster by Nature and the other is by human. The flood and forest fire by lightning are natural causes by Nature. If a human lights a match to cause a forest fire, then it is interfering with Nature because the fire was not called for by Nature. Natural causes cannot be prevented but human causes can. Any situation is out of control by human is considered to be natural and caused by Nature. By Lao Tze' philosophy, any action was disrupted the course of Nature with or without harm by human is considered to be interfering with Nature. However, if there was any harm done to Nature was considered to be not being "Wu Wei". In the contrary, if the interference with no harm done, then it was consider to be not violating the concept of "Wu Wei". Lions and other animals are part of Nature. They can kill us human beings because they couldn't careless. That is how Nature is, Nature couldn't careless However, human have a choice to kill them or not because human does care. If human killed an animal, it will cause harm to Nature due to the interference of wild life. When we make these philosophical analysis, we have to have to draw a line somewhere. If we made it too gross, then we are just going around circles and leads us nowhere.

In the previous section, ZZ used the hats to illustrate its usefulness/useless by location. However, in this section, he uses the big tree to indicate the usefulness/useless by purpose.

1. Is taking antibiotics to kill a bacterial infection considered interfering? The bacterial infection is causing you harm, it is natural for you to save yourself. Therefore, it is not interfering because no harm was done. However, it would be debatable if you say killing the bacteria is interfering with its life. 2. What about treating your head for lice? Are you cause harm to your head.....??? 3. What about putting someone on life support until they can get an organ transplant? it was interfering for the good with no harm done. Therefore, it did not violate the concept of Wu Wei. 4. What about using chi to heal someone, if healing them has to eradicate a virus? Again, it was interfering with no harm done. Therefore, it did not violate the concept of Wu Wei. 5. What about mowing the yard or starting a campfire? Mowing the yard cause no harm to Nature. However, if one starting a campfire to cause a forest fire, then in would be considered to be interfering because there was harm done to Nature. 6. What about removing a tick from your dogs ear? It caused no harm but a good deed for the dog, therefore, it was not interfering. Again, debatable. I can think of a bunch more if you would like. Keep coming....if you would like...!!!

Okay! just from the philosophical point of view, when you are interfering and when you are not....??? Can you give me some examples.....??? Thanks...!!!

I know it is hard to get the point across. Lao Tze was putting emphasis on "interfere with harm". I had been flagged "harm", with red many many times, and you still miss the point. If you think you are part of Nature, then there would be no Wu Wei to begin with. It is because there was no one, here, to interfere nor non-interfere with Nature. In the TTC, Lao Tze was treating that all humans are not part of Nature. He was suggesting that humans have to be coped with Nature. Humans are wearing clothes during cold weathers. If humans were stay naked and died(due to cold temperature) was considered to be part of Nature, then no human will be left on earth. If a madman built an atomic bomb to blow up the whole world, is it natural because he is part of Nature.....???

Sorry, the trigrams start with the top line as the youngest; and the hexagram starts with the bottom line as the youngest. I will make the corrections accordingly. Thank you....!!! It has been for a while since I had studied the Yi Jing......

The term "daughter" was only used for the explanation in studying the trigrams. Each trigram is designated with a given name. 1. The name of this Trigram is known as "Marsh"; and described as the "youngest daughter" --- --- -------- -------- The the broken line represents "Water" is flowing on top of high lands. 2. This is known as "Fire" (the second daughter) --------- --- --- --------- The broken line in the middle represents "Fire" burning in a cooking brick stove. 3. This is known as "Wind" (oldest daughter) --------- --------- --- --- The broken line at the bottom represents "Wind" blowing beneath the sky. Let's analyze the hexagram with the "Mountain" trigram on the top of the "Marsh/lake" trigram: A mountain is on marsh land which means the soil is very loose and weak to hold a big mountain. Hence, the mountain tends to fall. If we say a mountain is on top of a daughter, then the interpretation would be a female is buried underground. Edited to add: Thank Tao that we are still having the edit function at all times......

Yes, I had interfered with no harm but good. Have I violated the concept of Wu Wei.....???

Yes, I can understand. However, but sorry, it will not hold water for all the interpretations. No exceptions....!!!

FYI When one interprets the hexagrams, the proper way is use the names of the trigrams. In this case, "lake/marsh" should used for the bottom trigram instead of "daughter".

Temporal interpretation: 　惠施对庄子说：“我有一棵大树，人们把它叫樗。这棵大树的树干长着凹凸不平的大疙瘩，无法打上墨线，它的小枝又都弯弯曲曲，不合乎木匠的规矩，生长在道 路上，木匠连看也不看它一眼。现在你说的那些言论，都是大而无用的，所以大家都弃你而去。” 庄子说，“先生你没看那野猫和黄鼠狼吗？它把身子伏在地上，以 等候那些来来往往的小动物。东西跳跃，不辟高低，踏中机关，死于网罟。现今的牦牛，它的庞大的身驱象挂在天上的云彩，这头牛能力很大，然而不能捕鼠。现在 先生有这棵大树，却忧虑它没有用处，为什么不把它栽到什么也没有的地方，以及那无边无际的旷野，然后来往徘徊在它的旁边，自由自在地躺在它的下面，使它遭 不到斧头的砍代而夭折，也没有什么东西来侵害它。它没有什么用处，又哪里会有什么困苦呢？” 7b: The useless treeMaster Hui said to Master Chuang, 'I have a large tree, which men call the Ailantus. Its trunk has grown unevenly with swells out to a large size; its smaller branches are knotted and crooked; it cannot even allow to apply construction line on it; it does not meet the standards for carpentry. It stood along the road side, the carpenters don't even take a glance at it. You have been saying that the large things are useless. Therefore, the people had abandoned you and left. so that the disk and square cannot be used on them. Though planted on the wayside, a builder would not turn his head to look at it. Now your words, Sir, are great, but of no use; – all unite in putting them away from them.' Master Chuang replied, 'Have you not seen a wildcat and a weasel? They lies and crouching on the ground wait for the little creatures to approach; east and west it leaps about, avoiding neither what is high nor what is low, till it is caught in a trap, or dies in a net. Again there is the Yak, so large that it is like a cloud hanging in the sky. It is large indeed It's abilities are great indeed, but it cannot catch mice. Now, Sir, you have this large tree and are troubled because it is of no use; – why do you not plant it in a tract where there is nothing else, or in a wide and barren wild? There you might saunter idly by its side, or in then have the enjoyment of untroubled ease sleep beneath it. Neither bill nor axe would shorten its existence; there would be nothing to injure it. What is there in its uselessness to cause you distress?'

This question has been addressed to me many times. Is natural to see a baby drowning in the river....??? It is a matter of how people understand the definition of "Wu Wei". If people have understood the true meaning of Wu Wei, then this question would have had been asked again and again. Wu Wei(無為) is to let Nature take its course without any interference to cause her any harm. Now, let's ask ourselves two logical questions: 1. If we've saved the baby from drowning in the river, are we causing any harm to Nature....??? 2. If we have not save the baby from drowning, are we causing any harm to Nature......??? What are your thoughts based on the above definition of "Wu Wei"........???

It's not nice to fool with mother Nature. This is a classic example of not being Wu Wei.

Dagon... You welcome and thank you....!!! The symbol you have shown is a phonetic symbol for the Japanese languages. I think...

It means exactly what it says. Your breath is vital. As long as you are breathing, the body will function normally. If you breathe more, your body will even function more efficiently. The body functions include the body growth, development and self healing by metabolism and mitosis. Learn to breathe, learn Chi Kung.