Being greedy is "not nice", we are being taught when we are kids. But without being a little greedy the boundaries of the selfhood seize to exist. That means that we as social beings have to maintain some sense of personal, "mine", and "yours". But do we really?
Of course, human history, as it is written in the school's naïve text books proves that there has been a lot of confrontation over the possession of goods, wealth, and property. People and states apparently has gone to war over such things as gold and mineral depositories, and other measurements of property and wealth.
However, I am pretty much sure that it hasn't always been like this, as people within the "tribal" communities have always shared the common goods, tools and other resources. It is the feeling of "other", the "otherness" that created a strong boundary between us and them, the enemy, who we must protect against. Fight and kill if necessary. This feeling amplified, and we get the common text book history of the word.
It seems like we, as humans often times don't know any better, and have to function within the very strict confinements of our own personal walls that we create, and reinforce with the objects of worth.
However, I have to argue that being truly human, a noble human in a sense of Chuang Tzu is a harder task, than just having a good read, as one has to think carefully before sinking his or her claws into another, just because they have transgressed the illusionary boundaries of the personal space. Being a "noble" man means that one remains calm and even equanimous, when shit around him is happening. He is not eager to act, as it was said that the "sage resides in non-doing and thus completes everything". What does that mean? That means just that - one prefers non-action, but it is non-action with the straight back, a chosen non-active form, which is full with energy, because it is a personal choice. Thus, one attempts to reach sagehood.
Another oldie but goody is "Sage has nothing, and thus has everything". I think this may be a Lao Tzu citation. How is that possible? Just the same - reside in the center of the wheel, be the empty axis, rather than only one of the spokes. Acting makes us spokes, as we has placed our choice on one of many infinite possibilities. Once that has been done, there is no way of resisting an urge to plunge into the situation at hand, and one has to be very savvy and artful in order to be able to do that.
Many questions arise....one is "how do I remain in non-action if someone is trying to rub me?" Or "how do I remain in non-action if someone is trying to threaten my life or the life of my loved ones?"
The answer cannot be one-sided, as obviously if the situation arises one must act. But it may not be so obvious that if there is such thing as the "mastery" of non-action, the threat may not seem so threatening. This is an ideal, but it is not unreal, as we in the art of Tai Chi, practice that daily, and as the stakes rise higher and higher with the greater amount of energy, the vigilance must rise also. But it is not vigilance against the other, it is vigilance against one's own old patterns, unresolved conflicts, "tensions" as they are ol' too simply classified in Tai Chi. On that level of contemplation pretty much anything that is not flowing like a river, is a rock to be flown over and around.
So, is there a greed in a world? Considering that everyone is fulfilling one's own will - no, but in the interaction between one and the other, what seems like "greed" is a lack of desire to accept the will of the other, that "that is just what they want". Once you accept that, you can start thinking about whether you really need to be protective.
No comments :
Post a Comment