This and other experiences in Asia over the years gave me intimate insight into the lives of peasants. I was virtually one myself, at least financially speaking. Although I never worked long days in the rice fields, I had settled into what amounted to a peasant life style.

Fast forward about a decade to Sweden. There I settled into an area of Stockholm inhabited by the wealthiest Swedes (the King also lived in that area). I never settled into a Swedish life style though, my more peasant-like one being more comfortable. I couldn’t help notice and compare the lives of the upper class folks I came to know there, with the peasants I had lived among in Asia. One thing stood out like a sore thumb: these wealthy folks seemed no happier than poor Thai peasants. Odd to say, if anything, they even seemed a bit less so.

Looking back, I understand it better. Living creatures (including us) live out their days struggling against the inevitable (i.e., the entropic path in Buddha’s First Truth”…birth, growth, decay and death” ). The instinct to struggle (the survival instinct) is built into life’s DHA. In the case of peasants, the struggle instinct is fully engaged in the simple operation of basic survival. Not so for wealthier folk. On what does a rich person’s struggle instinct struggle? It certainly isn’t engaged in practical down-to-earth survival!

On the other side of this struggle instinct, in life’s equation, is the innate drive to seek ‘happiness’. I’ll call that the contentment instinct. Like the ‘fight or flight’ equation, each must find balance between struggle and contentment. On one hand we stir, move forward and work; on the other, we are still, return and rest. So far so good. When our struggle instinct engages itself in down-to-earth challenges, it is operating closer to the hunter gatherer circumstances of its evolution.

Wealth (i.e., more is better) promises us an escape from nitty-gritty challenges. Surly then we can live struggle-free, content in comfort and security. Actual success in achieving ‘more and more’ (we call it progress) has unintended consequences: What, pray tell, will one’s struggle instinct strive for then? Changing circumstances doesn’t delete DNA. The acquisition of wealth doesn’t neutralize the struggle instinct. Oops. Woe to him who willfully innovates while ignorant of the constant.

The striking thing I remember from Sweden was how wealthy folk worried about trivial things, like the selling of South African grapefruit in Sweden, while Thai peasants worry about practical challenges like the price of lard with which to cook. It appears that being spared from struggling on practical basics can easily lower overall contentment and happiness. Actual wealth delivers profoundly less than it promises. This more-is-better illusion is one of nature’s most potent hoodwinks. Instinct overrides reason, and we take the bait even though we think that we know that ‘money doesn’t bring happiness’⁽²⁾. As Christ said, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God“. So, be aware and beware!

⁽¹⁾ I had planned to settle down in Thailand. When money ran really low I went off to Vietnam to work and save money. The plan was to return with a grubstake and upgrade the bakery. That plan changed, but that’s another story. Suffice to say, at that tender age I lacked the experience to know that plans are little more than visions based on past experience. Life, on the other hand, flows out moment to moment into what is called indistinct and shadowy.

⁽²⁾ Wealth is relative! If you are starving and you find food, you are profoundly wealthier, at least until your food runs out. The Thai peasants were wealthy relative to the many folks I saw in India, Ethiopia, Niger, for example. A truer definition of wealth is found in the Tao Te Ching’s, He who knows contentment is rich, or as Henry David Thoreau put it, “A man is rich in proportion to the number of things he can afford to let alone”. From this standpoint, Mother Theresa’s view that America was ‘poorer’ than India holds more water. Mind you, it is not that people in India don’t want to be rich; they do. And when they succeed, they will be as ‘poor’ as us.

By the way, among other things, wealth ‘frees’ me to struggle at writing down as coherently as possible what I see. By the same token, wealth ‘frees’ you to struggle to see if there is anything coherent, even useful, in what I say. The struggle continues and we’re happy.

“We have learned how to use our words. It’s a fantastic thing – we humans are so easily trapped in our own words. The word time, for instance. We run into puzzles about the concept of time and then we say, ‘Oh what a terrible thing’. We don’t realize we’re the source of the puzzle because we invented the word.”

Of course, that applies to everything we are puzzled about, which is essentially everything in the end (isn’t it?). For more on the puzzle of time, see this recent article in Science News, Law & Disorder . One part stood out especially…

In this way, the high-entropy empty spacetime that existed before the Big Bang can always increase its entropy even more — by giving birth to a baby universe. Although the baby would have low entropy, the total entropy of the system (mother de Sitter space plus baby) would be higher, preserving the second law. After pinching itself away from the mother space, the low-entropy baby will expand and the second law will drive a direction of time as the baby’s entropy rises. Eventually, the baby universe’s entropy will reach a maximum, becoming just like its timeless de Sitter space parent. And then it could give birth to baby universes of its own.

“As time evolves, you pop universes into existence — a baby universe comes into existence, expands and cools, and for a moment, there’s an arrow of time,” Carroll said. “The moment is several trillion years.”

I see here a few telling parallels with the Taoist view. Here are a few examples: (1) The way is empty, yet use will not drain it; (2) It is empty without being exhausted; (3) Great fullness seems empty, Yet use will not drain it.

Although, my favorite is this one…

Turning back is how the way moves;
Weakness is the means the way employs.
The myriad creatures in the world are born from
Something, and Something from Nothing.

Sure, these ancient thoughts lack the rigorous details of modern science. In the end though, all we will ever see through science is the reflection of our own mind – how could it be otherwise? The benefit of the scientific process lies in how it favors a high degree of impartiality. The beauty of the Tao Te Ching lies in the impartiality achieved through means other than modern experimental science. Yet, they are both well in sync with each other in the big picture. Honestly, I suspect science is playing catch-up. The parallels will only increase over time, especially as science increasingly proves / recognizes the power of Nothing!

A recent chapter of the week opened up a curious dilemma. According to that chapter, when the way prevails in the empire, fleet-footed horses are relegated to ploughing the fields; when the way does not prevail in the empire, war-horses breed on the border. But, on the other side we have: The way is broad, reaching left as well as right, and of course, The way that can be spoken of is not the constant way. Here is one way to reconcile these seemingly conflicting views.

It is not the way that is not prevailing, rather, it is my perception of the way that is not prevailing. My perceptions are a reflection of my needs and fears, and so don’t meet the Taoist standard of impartiality. We are counseled to exhibit the unadorned and embrace the uncarved block, have little thought of self and as few desires as possible. So, how did this view that peace is literally more Taoist than war find its way into the Tao Te Ching? Who knows, but there are a few other places that reflect this more modern humanist view. In a Taoist world view, war and peace, like everything else, don’t exist in pristine independence. To paraphrase: War and peace, produce, complement, off-set, harmonize and follow each other.

Likewise there is a core connection between ‘wanting to gain’ (i.e., desire, lust, greed) and being content. It is odd how desire is always made the scapegoat for many of the problems we see (e.g., the desire for money is the root of all evil). Odd because it is actually the lack of contentment than sparks the flames of desire. When enough is enough, there can be no desire for more. It is much more helpful to see the desire for something – anything! – as merely a symptom of a lack of contentment. This is how nature works. Feeling hunger and thirst arises from a perceived lack of food and water. In humans these are also transferred symptoms of other forms of discontent. A desire (hunger and thirst) to travel is a symptom of not feeling content where you are, whether it is travel to the toilet to pee, or travel to an exotic place to play. Chapter 80 sums this up well:

Bring it about that the people will return to the use of the knotted rope,
Will find relish in their food, And beauty in their clothes,
Will be content in their abode, And happy in the way they live.

Although, how one is supposed to ‘bring that about‘ is beyond me. Is this another idealistic humanist angle on life? Feeling content is perhaps one of the most personally mysterious ‘things’ to do. You can’t just ‘do it’, because doing it comes from a lack of feeling a lack of contentment with the status quo. As the Christians might say, contentment comes “by the grace of God”. On the other hand, they say God helps those who help themselves. Can we buck the paradox and take any measures to feel more content with our lives?

Personally speaking, seeing in the broadest view possible helps. This means reflecting on what I have whenever feelings of what I lack arise. Of course, this is trying to un-fire the cannon; contentment has already begun to wane. But, taking inventory of my blessings gives another focal point for my mind. The difficulty here is having enough presence of mind to remember to count my blessings. Desire (from hunger and thirst on up) has a way of blinding presence of mind.

In the end, just knowing that the problem is constant, and solutions come and go helps. Although, you’d think it would be discouraging. Actually, fully accepting the dynamics of how life plays out fosters contentment. Buddha sure had his priorities right when he lay out his enlightenment program:

Kamakura Buddha, 1880's

The First Noble Truth is the existence of suffering. Birth is suffering; growth, decay, and death are suffering. Sad it is to be joined with that which we dislike. Sadder still is the separation from that which we love, and painful is the craving for that which cannot be obtained. If you really accept that, the rest takes care of itself!

Anyway, the debate ended in a stalemate and we went on with the day. Later I realized the problem: rather than saying ‘people don’t learn’, I should have said, what usually passes for learning is actually mimicry. As is often the case, words got in the way of communication… ha!

I then made a short list of correlations to show Luke the point I was trying to make earlier. He studied it for a moment, nodded and said like “Ah yes, that makes sense”. The point I was trying to make earlier, and in vain, became obvious through correlations. Of course, that comes with its own downside cost;  clear and perfect communication eliminates the fun… the tug of war give and take. Here is the set I showed Luke⁽¹⁾. See if it makes any sense to you:

⁽¹⁾ A correlation’s view of issues may work better within our family because I introduced the correlation process to my sons when they were knee high to a grasshopper. They are familiar with this process of boiling issues down to fundamental parameters. While it never offers a final answer, it does point towards one, in a fuzzy kind of way.

Chimp mother climbs a tree for food while carrying her dead infant.

There are a couple of articles in recent issues of Science News, Chimps may be aware of others’ deaths and Neanderthal genome yields evidence of interbreeding with humans, that challenge the universal myths of human uniqueness. Our uniqueness is expressed overtly as in the Christian ‘created in God’s image’, or simply implied by an attempt to nail down ‘origins’⁽¹⁾.

I suppose the Tao Te Ching’s disclaimers let us off that hook somewhat, e.g., ‘the way that can be spoken of is not the constant way‘… and ‘… one who speaks does not know‘, and finally, ‘… are you capable of not knowing anything?‘ Hmm?

See also this short CBS video, Bird Grooves to the Beat, for a delightful example of just how much fuzzier the line separating us from other species is turning out to be. Boy, if this keeps up we have to admit we are just another life form, not a special ‘created in God’s image’ one. That can’t happen too soon, to suit me! Alas, that’s certainly not about to happen in my lifetime. Oh well, it is always good to save something for tomorrow.

It is odd how driven we are to see ourselves different, special and superior. This is evident even in the most ‘high minded’ spiritual myths of our species. I suppose this is just a symptom of the survival instinct working its way up through the emotions, into the brain, and out our mouths. If ants could talk, I’ve no doubt they would see themselves a different, special and superior. And that just goes to show us how we are not so special after all. Now that’s comforting!

⁽¹⁾ See Creation Myths for an brief overview of human creation myths.

Grandma, 82, reading the paper

The use of chairs in the West is ubiquitous. One of the most important life style changes I ever made was giving up my use of the chair fifty years ago. Chairs (and sit down toilets) are good examples of my motto, ‘short term pleasure attracts long term pain; short term pain attracts long term pleasure‘. The physical ease a chair provides gradually robs the body of an important part of its natural capability. Over time that bring long term pain. This is easy to see, for example, by comparing older Western people with older Japan people.

The photo above is of my son Kyle’s Japanese friend’s grandmother. She’s 82 and much more flexible than many Western people half (or dare I say 1/4) her age. So, what is so good about being flexible? Oh the list is so long; I’ll spare you. Besides, I think the long term pleasurable benefits are obvious to most. I suppose people just don’t realize in their youth how the use of chairs will greatly exacerbate loss of flexibility.

Flossing, forward bending, and studying

The benefits of maintaining flexibility, subtle though they may be, add to the quality of life throughout life.  So, become more natural and animal like, and throw out your chairs. Take the lower position.

For another angle on this see also my recent post:  Bathtub Tai Chi