Chapter 7 - Selflessness

Heaven and Earth are everlasting

The reason Heaven and Earth can last forever

Is that they do not exist for themselves

Thus they can last forever

Therefore the sages:

Place themselves last but end up in front

Are outside of themselves and yet survive

Is it not due to their selflessness?

That is how they can achieve their own goals

What does this mean?

Concepts and ideas do not want to fulfill a base instinct.  They have no self.  All the things in nature follow their instincts to survive.  Due to nature's balance, each part is not in it for individual desire but for maintaining its own survival.  Life has lasted for millions of years.

At its core, it's simple: to be a sage, give up desires.  Live selflessly.  How far you take it is how much closer to the Tao you'll be.

Being a sage is accepting having enough.  You only need food, water, shelter and healthy social interaction.  Everything else is just desire. 

There is plenty of evidence for this.  

Look at biology.  Not getting what you want feels bad and stresses you out.  Stress can cause many health problems, including death.  That stress compounds if you think you need it or are entitled to it.

Examine our common psychologies.  We are surrounded by fancy toys.  We inhabit a culture of consuming.  We tell our young ones they can do anything.  How can we live with the Tao with all of these things that exist outside the Tao?  

Think how opposites work.  If your life is about having stuff and doing things, then you will never be happy because you will never have or do enough.  An opposite of excess is desire.

If living selflessly reduces your stress, alleviates responsibility of taking care of stuff you don't need and you have more time to do things you truly make you happy, the only painful part is leaving the comfort zone you currently live in.

How can I use this?

Practice gratitude.  We live like little gods.  We can travel span continents in hours, pick any kind of food we want to eat, and visit infinite worlds with TV, books and movies.  Most serious medical conditions can be treated and we can communicate with anyone, anywhere, instantly.  If we don't have what we want, we can have it shipped in days.  Modern life is amazing and wonderful.  Being grateful is the first step to realize you do not need it.

Analyze your goals to get things.  Do you have goals about just getting more things or the money to buy them?  Look them over and see if it is the thing that is a need.  If that end is just to satisfy your wants and not a need, you should meditate on it to see if it will truly satisfy you to have it.

Simplify clutter.  Beauty in art pulls your eyes to details but is not cluttered.  The most truthful thing in our lives can be simply stated but have great nuance.  Nature is simple until you complicate it.  If your life is filled with things you will not use or need, are not displayed beautifully and can be replaced easily, why keep it?  Value a beautiful display of things you keep.  Value the peace of mind free space brings.  Get rid and store piles of junk.

Do not start by giving up everything except the bare minimum.  Work your way there at your own pace.  

Living selflessly has profound implications but is very simple.  It is like learning to swim.  Very few can just jump in the ocean and not drown.  Most of the time, people start by wading in, holding onto the side of the pool, dunking your head underwater and so on.  They play with the concept of being in water.

So to start being selfless, we must play with selflessness to get comfortable with it.