TAO vs. HARMONY

06. How to realize the equilibrium of substance and spirit?

Equilibrium is the natural and pacific state that there is no extreme. To oneself, excessive pursuit of substances will harm his own spirit, therefore he won’t not able maintain the equilibrium and peacefulness of his spirit. On the contrary, if one does not regard his own mind as base, but seek the outside for liberation, being obsessed in religious forms, exercising individual worship, etc., he will go to extreme of spirit and behavior, influencing life of family and his own, even affecting the progress and development of the society.

It is because one loses the Tao and its Attributes, losing his nature of mind, and being unenlightened that he becomes selfish and indulged. It is because of the inflating desires that all kinds of extremes are caused. Extremes ruin the normal state of things, and harmony. This is to say that inharmony is caused by extremes, extremes are caused by extreme behaviors, extremes behaviors are caused by indulgence, indulgence is caused by losing nature of mind, losing nature of mind is caused by not understanding the Tao and its Attributes and truths. Therefore, if the world is to be peaceful forever, if the Myriad Things is to be harmonious, we must start from returning to nature of our own minds and, returning to essence of the Tao and its Attributes.

By Orient Dawn
Date: Year 2001