48.  Conquering the World by Inaction

The student of knowledge (aims at) learning day by day;
The student of Tao (aims at) losing day by day.
   By continual losing
   One reaches doing nothing (laissez-faire).
He who conquers the world often does so by doing nothing.
When one is compelled to do something,
The world is already beyond his conquering.

As I mentioned in the last blog, planning out action steps for the future seems completely at odds with the principle of Wu Wei or not doing.

Here is part 2; I will answer that and my question at the end of part 1: “How do we act without acting?” The simple answer is that we don’t.

I said in my last post: Even if we agree that the Tao can sustain us, the problem is that we still have to act to do that. We cannot sit and expect food, clothes, money, and all the rest to appear out of thin air. I suppose some masters have spent decades in deep meditation and can manifest everything they need, but that is not true for most of us.

All this goes back to who we really are, where we came from, and why we came here. It also has to do with this physical plane and the rhythm of the Tao.

As I have said, we are immortal consciousnesses that I call our “true selves.” These consciousnesses inhabit the astral plane, nearest the physical plane, and the higher planes of existence. They also live in the physical plane when they incarnate into bodies.

I will discuss all this in detail in future blogs.  For now, know that our true selves are the driving force of why we are here,

So, turning now to the problem of doing while not doing, we must first acknowledge that our body/mind package has needs that must be met (air, food, water, etc.). These needs and desires must be addressed if we want to do anything. For the most part, this “package” must act to obtain the needed things.

In the last post, I said that the Tao provides us with what we need. However, as I said above, we often have to act to manifest what we need. The Tao may give you money to get things, but you must still go shopping. The same goes for all your needs and “wants.” Your package (body, mind, and ego) has needs and wants. Our true selves drive some of those.

As I said in an earlier blog, the Tao has a flow or rhythm. It has high points and low points, ebbing and flowing like water.

To follow Wu Wei, we must be in tune with the ebb and flow of the Tao. That means doing what you are doing and acting with awareness and acceptance. If things are good, enjoy them, knowing they will not last. If things are bad, accept that, knowing that they, too, will not last.

Follow the seasons. Live each day. Plan and do as always, focusing on what your life is telling you at that point. Living each day often involves making plans. Remember, everything you do here is part of a web. We are all connected. Taking a vacation is not just a break for you; it impacts many other people (i.e., true selves).

There may be times when the Tao tells you to move to another city, change jobs, get married, or any other change. When that happens, many people resist the change. They cling to the past and what they know. That goes against Wu Wei because you must change when it is time.

Few people can just suddenly and spontaneously jump up and change. However, when you receive messages that it is time to move on, take them seriously. Develop a plan of action. If you are supposed to get a new job, write your resume. Look for job postings and interviews. In other words, do what you must to secure a new job.

It’s the same with moving. Plan where you want to go and follow through with that plan.

The more you are in tune with the Tao, the faster your plan will go. Things fall into place without much effort. Also, if your plan is going badly, stop. That’s the Tao telling you that you are out of sync. It’s time to step back, reflect on your plan, and see if that is what you should be doing.

It’s like driving across town. You get on the road some days, and the lights are with you. You get to the destination in record time. Sometimes, you get stuck in traffic and crawl across town. Then, waiting patiently to get where you need to go would be best.

There is always a reason for the delay or the quick, effortless trip. Accept it for what it is, and don’t get frustrated or upset. Remember that getting angry at a traffic jam will not speed things up.

These are all examples of “going with the flow.” That doesn’t mean drifting like a leaf on a river but being in harmony with the Tao in everything you do.

Like farmers who plant in the spring, cultivate in the summer, and harvest in the fall, you must also live with the “seasons” of your life. Not just the seasons of climate but the flow of your life.

People in tune with their true selves and the Tao act and move with fluidity. Not without effort, because these acts may require a lot of work, physically or mentally, but with the knowledge that that is what you’re supposed to do.

I have been watching roofing crews in the neighborhood lately. These crews work together as a team, each with a job to do. A good crew can remove an old set of shingles, repair and prepare the underlying roof surface to receive new shingles, and then put the new shingles on in neat patterns in a matter of days. It looks like a complex dance.

Like the roofers, you should focus on each thing you do, whether planning or executing the steps. That is the essence of Wu Wei: acting and working on a job as a team or individually, working on a project in ordered steps from start to finish, taking things as they come, like weather for roofers or a change in a project in office work and doing each thing for itself as best as you can.

That’s a lot of doing, yet when done right, it is in accord with the Tao, which makes it not doing.

Namaste.

Michael Tavella, author of

“Break Through To Your True Self”

Yourtrueself.blog