The theme of this chapter can be summed up like this: Do not interfere.
One can rule a country with predictable justice
One can wage a war with unpredictable strategy
But one can harness the power of the universe only by non-interference
We don’t have to look far to see where interference, even well-intentioned, has caused more harm than good. In the southern United States, you can see miles of natural vegetation choked by the uncontrollable proliferation of kudzu, a non-indigenous plant introduced along roadways to prevent erosion. Or, on a more personal level, we might think of times when our efforts to “help” a friend or a situation had unanticipated and often unappreciated results. I know I can think of a few!
When we encounter some of those unanticipated results, we often feel an urge to “fix” things by interfering even more. One of the best Star Trek stories (from Voyager) involved an individual who figured out how to go back in time and change specific events. He used these “time incursions” to eliminate historical enemies of his species. However, these alterations allowed a plague virus to emerge which ended up killing his beloved wife.
His grief spurred him to go back over and over to try to re-establish a timeline that brought her back. Unfortunately, each effort shifted future trajectories in unpredictable ways, creating new worlds and civilizations and destroying others, creating chaos and eventually driving him mad. So there.
Coming back to the present time on this planet, I am struck by the timeless accuracy of this line from the next section of the chapter:
The more rules and laws we have, the more lawbreakers and criminals emerge
As a lawyer, I used to marvel at the endless library shelves stuffed with books full of laws. And new ones constantly arrived. Besides the laws themselves, there were even more books full of regulations detailing how the laws should be applied. And more books still, full of judicial opinions settling disputes about all the laws and regulations.
I can sympathize with that poor alien trying to use time incursions to create the reality he sought. Are we much different with our “law incursions”? I wonder.
Thus the sage says:
I refrain from forcing change, and people transform themselves
I abide in stillness, and people manifest their natural goodness
I refrain from interfering, and people themselves prosper
I live without desire, and people enjoy simplicity
The character for this last word is 朴 and means purity or simplicity, like an uncarved block of wood. This character is used throughout the Tao Te Ching to indicate our natural state of oneness with the universe, with infinite, undifferentiated potential. Like the concept of beginner’s mind.
In a curious quirk of the English language, “do not interfere” if said aloud, sounds just like “do not enter fear.” Hmm, something to think about.
"Enter fear". That is wise and clever. The "rules" saying reminded me of one of mt most used chestnuts. "Man makes a better mousetrap; God makes better mice."
ReplyDeleteThat's great, CW. Like "Man plans; God laughs."
DeleteYou always provide something to think about. I have a lot of experience in interfering and having it backfire with children. I have learned great lessons from it all.
ReplyDeleteI do know that we need laws but sometimes they are so complicated and therefore, I don’t see justice often preserved. I often wished we were in a more simplistic society.
With technology it has become even more complex. However, I do continue to see the good and the evil that comes from this.
I think, do not interfere is a good thing. Diffidently, thinking before ones interferes is a good thing to do.
Blessings and hugs!
Thanks, LeAnn. One thing to consider is that non-interference doesn't always mean sitting passively by the sidelines. It means acting in alignment with God/universe. I think that's where "do not enter fear" comes in handy. Am I interfering or acting in alignment? How to tell? Look underneath to see if the action is motivated by fear. If so, then it's less likely that your action is in alignment.
Delete"Do not enter fear . . ."
ReplyDeleteWow, Galen, this is so enlightening! Our sinful human nature seeks to control others, control outcomes, control our lives, and so much of it out of the fear of losing ourselves. Yet, Jesus tells us we must lose the self we think we are in order to attain real life in Him. As you've written here so many times, it's all about the letting go and letting be. The sooner we realize we have no ultimate control over events and people in our lives, the more at peace we will be.
Blessings, my friend!
Thanks, Martha. You and I use different vocabulary sometimes to say the same thing. I might say for example that our urge to control comes from fear rather than from a sinful nature. Either way, we use the same words to describe letting go and letting be!
DeleteFor some reason I thought of John Lenon's song 'Imagine' when I read your post. A song that speaks of non-interference from the worlds institutions and no need to control others in fear. In his dream all people live in peace, Love and harmony as one.
ReplyDeleteImagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion, too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace
You, you may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you will join us
And the world will be as one
Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine…
That's a wonderful song to go with this chapter, Brian. Thank you!
DeleteI keep your post in my inbox until I find a time to ponder what you have to say. This Sunday morning, your post fit right into the world I live in. And sometimes I wonder how it's possible that we can have mentors and friends who we will probably never meet who can bring us to another, higher level. Thank you, Galen, for this post today. :-)
ReplyDeleteThank you, DJan. I know, it's odd that we can establish such a closeness to people we will likely never meet. When I was a girl, having "pen pals" was enjoyable. Some of these earlier versions of cyber pals established deep and long lasting friendships. At any rate, I'm glad that we are connected, and since we really don't live that far away from each other, you never know!
DeleteI really enjoyed this post, Galen. We have an invasive plant over here called Japanese Knotweed which teaches the same lessons as your Kudzu. It was brough over here in the 1900s for its decorative forms and now runs rampant! We've all being interfering with nature for so long now, I worry about where it's heading and how the planet will survive it. And those repeated strategies to try and 'fix' the problems we created in the first place are literally getting us tied in 'knots' like the roots of the plants discussed. it would seem interference is second nature to man's nature and the concept of non-interference an 'alien' concept. And yet, when we leave things be to play out as they will, balance is frequently restored. And though it may be other than we envisaged, it still is balance. I think the lesson in your post is to take a moment, when we would normally react straightaway to something we find uncomfortable or which brings out our 'need to fix it' compulsion, and just sit with whatever it is without the judgment. Step back from the waves and leave alone instead of wading in and creating more waves.The waves which you are witnessing may just settle themselves.
ReplyDeleteI just looked up knotweed--it seems to be very much like kudzu. I love your observation about the name "knot"weed. So revealing!
DeleteYes, taking a breath, pausing, listening can all give us a chance to see the path forward. The path might call for action or might call for refraining from action, but when we are in alignment, the action or non-action allows the natural movement of energy without our interference. It doesn't put us on the sidelines as much as it puts us in the flow of the natural current.