Order and Chaos?

April 30, 2011 · Posted in Tao · 1 Comment

Rating: +2 (from 2 votes)

A well known Daoist view is that generally when we define something, it comes with an opposite: light and dark, up and down, good and evil, happy and sad. Chapter 2 of the Daodejing states, “When people see some things as beautiful, other things become ugly.” (Mitchell). So to be able to recognize order we must have chaos.

However I believe that chaos does not exist except as marker for our limits of understanding. We see chaos as disarray, following no predictable course. There is no order in chaos, right?

But really, can anything truly be chaotic? Are there things that are not subject to the laws of physics? When a star goes supernova, every single particle involved in that massive, seemingly chaotic explosion moves and reacts within a system rules and, knowing all the variables affecting any of the particles, we could say, “Yes, this is how we expect that to move”. But when we do not fully know all the variables and conditions, we cannot predict something with unerring accuracy.

What we think is chaos is simply things acting the way they will act, without us having a full understanding of everything involved.

The first thing that comes to mind when I think of a chaotic system (ok, well the second thing after the image of Jeff Goldblum in that dinosaur movie) is the weather. Despite all our fancy equipment and science, we cannot predict when and where a tornado will hit far enough in advance to always be prepared for them. But is the weather chaotic? No, it follows all the same laws of physics as everything else. The problem is that the Earth’s weather is a massive, dynamic system. There are more conditions than we have the capability to measure and track. Satellites and radar can tell us what’s happening, and we can tell the speed and general direction. We can even tell how heavy the rain within a storm. But all of this gives us only basic forecasting.

Yet the storm is most assuredly moving within the rules and parameters of physics. Rules we didn’t create and are still discovering. Order exists everywhere at all times. It’s not even order. Order only exists because we don’t fully understand it and have thus labelled those parts we don’t understand as chaos.

To me, this is Tao. The way things are. The way things flow. It’s the order we understand, and the order we don’t.

Tags: chaos, order

Desire and Contentment

April 30, 2011 · Posted in Self Improvement · 1 Comment

Rating: +1 (from 1 vote)

There is no greater mistake than following desire;
There is no greater disaster than forgetting contentment;
There is no greater sickness than seeking attainment

- Daodejing, Chapter 46, Merel Translation

A common process for finding contentment might go something like this:

Step 1: Desire something (a possession, wealth, a relationship, a job, etc.)
Step 2: Work to attain/obtain that which you desire.
Step 3: Experience satisfaction and/or contentment.

Tags: ambition, desire, success

The Secret of Life

April 11, 2011 · Posted in Self Improvement · 1 Comment

Rating: +1 (from 1 vote)

Everything we do has a limited window of time in which it has any relevance. Fame? Most of us can name several performers from the past 100 years. What about from the 1800′s? Or how about the names of the most famous gladiators in ancient Rome? The names and memory of billions of lives have been lost to time. They lived. They died. They were forgotten.

What is greatness in the scope of time and the universe? Has one thing done by anyone who has ever lived made an impact on the universe? We left some footprints on the moon. We sent some machines out into space where it will be thousands of years before having a chance to encounter anything else. Everything done on our little planet is of absolutely no importance to the rest of the universe.

The things we do are important for a brief speck of time and only to some of the living things on our planet. Beyond that, we too will be forgotten. Every trace that I as an individual ever existed will eventually fade. For most of us, the last we will be remembered for is a name on a genealogy search.

I’m not pointing this out to be depressing. In fact, it’s inspiration for the opposite. Let go of the need to make an “impact”. Unless you’re a fairly big rock from space, you won’t be leaving a lasting mark on the planet, so don’t make that a priority.

Your entire life is a one time production. Each moment you experience becomes a memory the next moment. What’s important is you enjoy as many of those as you can. Don’t rush from place to place without paying attention to what’s around you. Each empty moment is an empty memory. Cherish the simple things instead of always looking forward to the next big thing.

One day you will be at the end of the show, with more memories than moments. Will they fill you with happiness? Will they sustain the glow of your life as your moments dwindle? Or will they be dark, cold, fading memories of all the moments you never noticed?

Take notice of your life now. That’s what’s important. Feel it flowing through you.

The secret of life is to live it. The more you embrace it, the more it will stay with you. The more you rush past, the less you will keep.

Tags: simplicity