Monthly Chapter-59

For managing people’s daily affairs, there is nothing like frugality.
Only the frugal man is said to serve from the start.
Serving from the start he is said to deeply accumulate virtue.
Deeply accumulating virtue, as a rule he is said to be limitless.
Being limitless, as a rule no one knows his utmost point.
No one knowing his utmost point, he can have the country.
Having the origin of the country, he can long endure.
This is called deep roots, solid foundation,
Long life, enduringly watchful of the way.
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Limit: Translations, even my nearly literal one above, invariably lose some of the ancient ‘original intention’ due to the modern cultural context we bring to our language’s words… our ‘education’.Studying the Word-for-Word translation of the Chinese character’s many synonym-like meanings helps mitigate this. (Click graphic at right for on-line Word-for-Word.)

Third Pass: Chapter of the Month 9/8/2014

Archive: Characters and past commentary

Reflections:

The first two lines struck me today especially. These closely parallel chapter 16’s, “Not knowing the constant, rash actions lead to ominous results. Knowing the constant allows, allowing therefore impartial“. I’d say also, allowing therefore serving from the start.

Voluntary frugality, in contrast to frugality imposed by circumstances, arises out of knowing the constant. One obvious symptom of my lack of voluntary frugality is a rash dash to satiate current desires. The illusion pushing this urge is the sense that satisfying the urge will bring some measure of ‘heavenly’ satisfaction. I recognize this as the natural bio-hoodwink that keeps animals in the wild continuously hunting & gathering. Each success brings contentment… even bliss… yet, for only moments. Then it is back into the game of life’s fears and worries, needs and desires. Part of our problem is that we don’t live in the wild any more, yet we still inherit instincts that evolved to serve animals living a wilderness existence. Perhaps that is the basis for that old command, “Don’t be an animal!” The folly of that dictum is obvious; it is akin to telling a tree, “Don’t be a tree!” Good luck!

One aspect of knowing the constant, is simply knowing that this hunt & gather process is continuous, and that final bliss is illusionary and perhaps the most powerful bio-hoodwink in nature. Indeed, we will always tend to feel that we don’t have enough of whatever it is that we cherish. That naturally drives us to push for more and more, rather than return and constantly to serve from the start. Resisting that drive is not a decision born of so-called free will, no matter how much we wish it so. Only when we truly know ‘in our gut’ the trick being played on us, are we more capable of wiser actions and reactions.

Serving from the start he is said to deeply accumulate virtue.
Deeply accumulating virtue, as a rule he is said to be limitless.

The promise of ‘closure’ and an end to the stress that desire instills is the fuel that drives our rash rush forward. We feel that, “If we just accomplish that ___(fill in the blank)__, the stress will end and we’ll be at peace”. Certainly, that is true in the practical short term. If you have an itch, scratch it and it ends. However, living life this way, long-term, LIMITS life. ‘Closure’ is death in disguise, not Long life, enduringly watchful of the way. In other words, frugality makes space, space allows Being limitless, as a rule no one knows his utmost point. No one knows, including you! Yes, life feels a little less secure, but that really is just allowing your self to be a more truly natural animal rather than chasing your ideal storybook life.

Now, I’m not advancing a moral position here. Indeed, if seeking one’s storybook life actually worked, I’d say go for it. Alas, I’ve not seen it so. We just can’t circumvent the natural processes that drive all life on the planet, no matter how compelling our story. The constant is called the constant because it is just that. The actual character for the constant is Cháng (常) ordinary; common; normal; constant; invariable; frequently; often; usually. The constant way (chapter 1) is not some super-spiritual, otherworldly, transcendental, ethereal phenomenon. It is just nature at its constant normal! We have difficulty embracing nature’s entirety because we desire only the pleasant, secure, and comfortable aspects that nature has to offer us. As a result, we keep wastefully running away from ourselves, towards a cherished transcendental ideal. Yep, For managing people’s daily affairs, there is nothing like frugality.