Newsletter - April 2024
See The World As Your Self
“See the world as your self. Have faith in the way things are. Love the world as your self; then you can care for all things.” (Lao Tzu)
Typically we see the world as “out there.” We care for ourselves because we do not have faith in the way things are. But what if there were no separation? The Tao Te Ching (Chapter 13) invites us to drop the distinction between self and world. When we do, in caring for all things we care for ourselves.
Well, the quote sure sounds like a puzzle. You’d think loving yourself would mean the focus is on yourself and not on the world. People who do this a lot tend to get labelled as “selfish.” How can you be selfish and care for all things at the same time? It doesn’t make sense. What is Lao Tzu getting at? This newsletter explores an answer.
There are good everyday reasons why we typically see ourselves as separate from the world. We almost don’t need reasons because it seems so obvious. We’re on the inside looking out, and the world is something which is out there. We know we’re not looking at ourselves (unless we’re looking in a mirror) because we see all sorts of different things in the world. We know they’re separate from us because they look different so we give them different names. That’s how we refer to them. It’s how we distinguish one thing from another. That’s how we all know what we’re talking about. Good. For the time being, let’s consider we’ve got that established.
Now what about having faith in the way things are? Well, there are good everyday reasons why we don’t typically to do that either. After all, much of the time the way things are may not suit us very well. Let’s be realistic. Often things could use a little improvement, or perhaps even a lot. And so we get to work trying to rearrange the world out there into something which better fits what we think it should be. That’s the way it works, doesn’t it? Us on the inside with the world on the outside, and us trying to shape it to meet our desires. At least we can have faith in our ability to do that. Good. Let’s consider we’ve got that established too.
But not so fast. Here’s Lao Tzu slowing us down a bit. “Empty your mind of all thoughts. Let your heart be at peace” (chapter 16). “The ordinary man is always doing things, yet many more are left to be done” (chapter 38). “Therefore the Master concerns himself with the depths and not the surface… He dwells in reality, and lets all illusions go” (chapter 38).
Hello? Interesting ideas, but surely they don’t work in practice. First, how can I be at peace as long as I have unsatisfied desires? Second, is Lao Tzu suggesting that I’ll never be done? Third, is he suggesting that I’m distracted by the superficial and living in an illusion? What if the answers were as follows: desire is what’s standing between me and peace, no I’ll never be done, and yes I am living in an illusion. Well, I don’t know about you but I find that quite a tough pill to swallow.
Let’s look more closely at what Lao Tzu’s Master does. “She is good to people who are good. She is also good to people who aren’t good. This is true goodness. She trusts people who are trustworthy. She also trusts people who aren’t trustworthy. This is true trust” (chapter 49).
Sounds like yet more impracticality. But here’s what’s going on; the Master is simply not making distinctions. Can we understand where she’s coming from? No, we can’t. She seems either naïve or empty-headed. Lao Tzu anticipates our reaction in the very next lines “The Master’s mind is like space. People don’t understand her. They look to her and wait. She treats them like her own children.” Lao Tzu is right. We don’t understand her.
For a moment, let’s stand back—way back. Suppose, in eternal reality, everything is Oneness/Wholeness. When this is so, then there are no distinctions to be made. (“The name that can be named is not the eternal Name” (chapter 1) because, in the act of naming something, we distinguish it from Oneness.) Illusion starts the moment we see things, including ourselves, as separate from each other. When we do this, we not only give things different names, we also start to judge and form opinions. We think some things desirable and others to be avoided. We hope for the former and we fear the latter. And so this thinking underlies our actions. No, our minds are not “like space”—they’re full of thoughts, desires, hopes and fears, and all the things we think we need to do.
Here's Lao Tzu again. “Hope and fear are both phantoms that arise from thinking of the self. When we don’t see the self as self, what do we have to fear?” (chapter 13). When we don’t see the self as self, what happens is that we step outside the illusion. We stop making distinctions, just like the Master. And what do we do? We simply respond without holding on to any particular way we think the world should be. This is what it looks like when we “have faith in the way things are.” That’s not to say we do nothing. We simply don’t put anything in the way. This is how we can “care for all things.” What’s more, that’s what it’s like to live in reality as opposed to illusion.
However, let’s face it, it’s really hard to let go of the concept of our selves. So, I think, Lao Tzu gives us a helping hand when he says: “See the world as your self. Have faith in the way things are. Love the world as your self; then you can care for all things.” I think that’s his way of saying “You and the world are really one and the same, but if you must see them as separate then try seeing them as if they were the same. If you do this, then you’ll find you can care for all things, yourself included.” What’s more, remembering the earlier quote, if we empty our mind in this way then our hearts will also be at peace.
Well, that was an interesting journey. What does it mean to me? I think it means that, before I act, it’s worth asking whether I’m on the inside looking out and seeking to rearrange the world to better suit my self. If so, then it’s worth asking what would be different if I started by seeing the world as my self. How would I act then? If I did that, I think I’d become much more able to “care for all things” and discover that I’m caring for my self as well in the process. I think that’s what Lao Tzu is getting at.
What do you think of all this? It’s not easy stuff, is it? But if someone suggests we should let go of making distinctions and have faith in the way things are, then it’s definitely worth a second look.
If you have any thoughts you’d like to share, you can get in touch with me by:
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replying to this e-mail
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reaching me on Facebook at www.facebook.com/FrancisPringMillAuthor
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using the Contact page on my website www.inharmonywiththetao.com
Thanks for reading. Please feel free to share this newsletter.
Francis
IN OTHER NEWS...
Podcast - Here's an interview with GreatBooksGreatVoices host Diamond-Michael Scott having a conversation with me about my book In Harmony with the Tao: A Guided Journey into the Tao Te Ching. If you're curious, it's an easy 20-minute listen, he asked me some good questions, and we covered some interesting ground. I hope you enjoy it!
Audiobook - This came out in early March. If curious (you can listen to a sample), please click the link below as appropriate:
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Audiobook on Amazon US
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Audiobook on Amazon Canada
Formats - In Harmony with the Tao is also available as an e-book, or as a paperback or hardcover from your nearest independent book store, or from Amazon.com, or from Amazon.ca.
Reviews - If you have read and enjoyed this book, please consider leaving an online review. You can do so by clicking here.
Past newsletters - www.inharmonywiththetao.com/newsletter