top of page

Newsletter - December 2024

​​​​The Center of the Circle

​​

“…just stay at the center of the circle and let all things take their course." (Lao Tzu)

 

Doesn’t that reduce our role to that of passive spectators? No, unless we choose not to act. But, when we act, what matters is where we’re coming from. When we come from thought and desire, we’re on the edge of the circle—separate and apart. The Tao Te Ching (Chapter 19) reminds us that when we come from the center of the circle, we become part of all things taking their course.

 

Most of us tend to be uncomfortable letting things “take their course.” We’d rather be in control so that things take the particular course we happen to have in mind. We’re brought up to set goals and then do what it takes to achieve them. And, when we do that, where we’re coming from is our desired version of the way we want things to be. This newsletter explores the fact that this is not the only place we can come from. An alternative is to come from what Lao Tzu calls “the center of the circle.”

 

So, what’s wrong with goals? Nothing. After all, any great work of art, architecture, literature, or music was once a goal in the mind of its creator. Artists don’t sit on the sidelines and watch their art take shape. They actively create it. What’s more, regardless of whether we’re artists, on an ordinary everyday level there are groceries to buy, people to be cared for, things to be fixed. And, of course, there’s the work we do for a living. If we let these things “take their course” what would happen?

 

Yes, all this is true. But I think Lao Tzu simply asks us to consider whether our desired version of things is the only place we can come from when we act. And he suggests the answer is no.

 

Whenever we chase our desires it’s like we’re coming from the edge of a circle—and we’ll never be done. When we let go of ourselves and our desires, it’s like coming from the center. At the center of the circle, there’s nowhere we need to strive to get to. We’re home. “The Master sees things as they are, without trying to control them. She lets them go their own way, and resides at the center of the circle” (chapter 29). "The Master keeps her mind always at one with the Tao; that is what gives her her radiance” (chapter 21).

 

Well, that’s nice. But does the Master get anything done? Who buys her groceries? Does she just reside at the center of the circle being radiant all day? (Said with all due respect, of course.)

 

Time to smile. And then to slow down and dig a little deeper. Hmm. Is buying groceries really the same as chasing desires? No, not really. Is being radiant the same as doing nothing? No, not really. So what’s going on here? How are Lao Tzu’s words relevant to my everyday world?

 

I think what’s at the center of the circle is awareness of the Oneness/Wholeness of everything. Yes, that’s an awkward phrase. Lao Tzu struggled with it too. “There was something formless and perfect before the universe was born. It is serene. Empty. Solitary. Unchanging. Infinite. Eternally present. It is the mother of the universe. For lack of a better name, I call it the Tao” (chapter 25). Okay, let’s call it “the Tao.”

 

I can kid myself and see myself as separate from the Tao. When I do, it’s easy to come up with my version of the ways things should be. Let’s call this version “my desire.” When I do this, I’m “coming from” my self, as it were (desire always springs from the self). And satisfying desires always calls for action of one sort or another as I attempt to impose my will.

 

When I let go of myself, I reside in the Tao. I still act, but my actions are responses to the Oneness/Wholeness that’s already there. I’m not striving to make anything different. I’m simply contributing to something that’s unfolding anyway. Where I’m “coming from” is the Tao, not my self.

 

Back to the image of the circle. When we come from our selves we’re on the edge, striving to be somewhere else, chasing our desires. When we come from the center, we’re aware there’s nowhere we need to strive to get to. Our actions are simply responses in natural harmony with something that’s already there. “Open yourself to the Tao, then trust your natural responses; and everything will fall into place” (chapter 23). The difference is that our actions are “natural responses” rather than attempts to impose our will.

 

Does this matter? Yes, it turns out this makes all the difference in the world. In the following quote Lao Tzu refers to the Tao as “the source.” “Empty your mind of all thoughts. Let your heart be at peace. Watch the turmoil of beings, but contemplate their return. Each separate being in the universe returns to the common source. Returning to the source is serenity. If you don’t realize the source, you stumble in confusion and sorrow” (chapter 16).

 

What we’re talking about is the difference between confusion and peace, between turmoil and serenity. And it’s all a matter of where we come from when we act. In other words, when our actions spring from the Tao they’re coming from the source, not from whatever desires we happen to have in mind at that moment.

 

Let’s bring all this down to earth. Can I reside at the center of the circle and buy my groceries? Yes. Can I reside at the center and chase after my desires? No. Are there really only two places I can come from? When you scratch below the surface I think the answer is yes. Is it always easy to be aware of where I’m coming from? No, it isn’t. In fact, I think much of the time it’s quite difficult—mainly because we tend to live on the surface. But hold on a moment, this is just what I think. What’s your take on all this?

 

Do you see some (or many) of your actions as attempts to impose your will and satisfy desires? Do you see at least some of them as responses to something bigger than whatever you happen to have in mind. It really doesn’t matter what we call this “bigger” thing. You can call it the source, or the center of the circle, or the Tao, or anything else for that matter. What ways have you found to reside at the center of the circle?

 

If you have any thoughts you’d like to share, you can get in touch with me by:

  • replying to this e-mail (which will include this newsletter)

  • sending me a new email, i.e., without this newsletter

Send new email

 

Thanks for reading. Please feel free to share this newsletter.

 

Francis

 

IN OTHER NEWS...

 

Past newsletters are here: www.francispringmill.com/newsletter-archive

 

In Harmony with the Tao: A Guided Journey into the Tao Te Ching is available here. There Is No Somewhere Else: Insights from the Tao Te Ching is available here.

 

Synopses and reviews for both books are on www.francispringmill.com/books

 

If you have enjoyed my books and have a spare couple of minutes, I'd love it if you could leave an Amazon review so more people can discover them. (The customer review link for In Harmony with the Tao is here, and for There Is No Somewhere Else is here.)​

bottom of page