Mastery of the world is achieved by letting

things take their natural course.

You can not master the world by changing the

natural way.

Lao Tzu

Our civilization is in a state of ongoing

strivings, in which control seems to be the

highest virtue.

We don’t have to look far to observe this:

in the workplace, for example, employees are

more and more controlled and supervised, especially

now we have the technology to do so.

And governments put more effort into tracking

their citizens, whether it’s through camera

supervision or the proposal of a so-called

‘social credit system’.

Ironically, the latter is a Chinese invention,

that goes utterly against a philosophy that

emerged from the same soil: Taoism.

As opposed to a control-obsessed society,

Taoism revolves around letting go and going

with the flow.

At first glance, the act of letting go may

seem a form of weakness.

But according to the Taoists, by a correct

understanding of how the universe works, we

can approach life more intelligently, more

efficiently, and go with the flow, rather

than swimming against it.

Therefore, the power of letting go is a form

of strength that’s based on sophistication

rather than force.

The
Tao Te Ching, the main Taoist scripture, was

written by a mysterious sage named Lao Tzu.

There are countless ways in which we can interpret

this text.
One way is to see it as a guide for a ruler.

What characterizes the passages of the Tao

Te Ching regarding governance, is that Lao

Tzu puts emphasis on ruling by ‘not ruling’,

as he compared governing a country with frying

a small fish: too much poking spoils the meat.

He argued that when a ruler tightens his grip

on the people, all kinds of negative side

effects will occur.

We see that people become distrustful towards

one another when the government is too patronizing,

and when it’s too intrusive, people become

rebellious.

But when a leader is unobtrusive and acts

with integrity, then people will become whole,

as they’re granted the space to naturally

evolve.

It’s clear that Lao Tzu favors a passive

form of governance, which doesn’t just apply

to ruling a state, but also to the governance

of ourselves.

Because letting things go, is key to let nature

do the work, which applies to any level.

In this video, I’d like to show you several

ways in which Taoism shows us the power of

letting go.

The first one is the art of...

(1) Non-doing

The Taoist concept of Wu Wei can be explained

as ‘effort action’, or the so-called ‘flow

state’, but also as ‘non-doing’, or

‘knowing when to act and when not to’.’

When we take a critical look at ourselves,

we see that the need for control prevails

in many areas of life.

We feel the need to control our pets, our

children, our gardens, our video games, (in
some cases) our partners, and first and foremost:
our future.

Now, control isn’t always a bad thing.

In order to survive, we need to exert our

influence on the environment to some extent.

Especially self-control can lead us in a positive

direction.

Without control, human civilization would

probably never have occured.

But too much of it doesn’t get us anywhere.

It seems that we systematically underrate

the natural influences that lie at the basis

of our daily lives.

We can’t control everything, and many things

happen when we stop controlling them.

Let’s take a tree for example.

We can plant it, we can water it, we can add

some fertilizer, and make sure it’s exposed

to enough sunlight.

But any more intervention would only damage

the process because we interrupt nature from

doing its job.

Another example is attraction.

The first step to attracting someone is simply

showing ourselves, so that the person we want

to attract knows that we exist.

Then, attraction either happens or not.

When the attraction is there, one can easily

blow it by taking too much action.

Attraction is a natural phenomenon that is

beyond our control.

It absolutely cannot be enforced.

Instead, it has to grow, or erupt spontaneously.

And there’s only one way to let the seed

of attraction grow into a beautiful tree;

which is not intervening, aside from the occasional

watering.

Silence makes the heart grow fonder.

That’s why ‘letting go’ is vital in

relationships.

Because by letting go, we give space to the

forces of the universe to unfold.

After a fight, for example.

anger naturally erodes.

And when trust is breached, one cannot enforce

restoration: it has to grow back naturally.

So, letting go makes the difference between

controlling and allowing.

The second one is...

(2) Embracing change.

The Taoists were very aware that life unfolds

in a constant movement between opposites:

between high and low, light and dark, yin

and yang.

There isn’t much we can do about it, and

the most efficient way of living is simply

moving along with the waves of existence.

The flow of life and its transformations are

inevitable.

Yet, we see so many people cling to their

circumstances.

In the metaphor of the river stream, they

hold on tightly to a branch or rock, afraid

to let go, because they want complete control

over their position.

They simply don’t trust the universe.

And the consequence of this is a rigid lifestyle.

They see life passing them by, including many

opportunities for positive change, and they

miss out on a lot of fun.

As Lao Tzu wrote in the Tao Te Ching, and

I quote:
The living are soft and yielding;
the dead are rigid and stiff.

Living plants are flexible and tender;

the dead are brittle and dry.

End quote.

There are also those who swim against the

stream.

They’re the biggest energy wasters of them

all.

Perhaps they see honor and virtue in taking

an extremely non-agreeable stance in life.

But exercising a constant resistance to how

the universe unfolds, isn’t a very efficient

way to live, and most likely makes one worn-out

and miserable.

This non-acceptance of ‘how things are’

is also the cause of people fighting against

themselves.

Because of certain societal expectations,

people engage in a battle against their inherent

nature, instead of flowing along with the

attributes that nature has given them.

We could say: “follow your strength, instead

of trying to repair your weakness.”

Embracing change also applies to uselessness

and usefulness.

Taoist philosopher Zhuangzi observed that

usefulness depends on the circumstances, as

he told about a merchant that tried to sell

shirts to a tribe, whose members were covered

in tattoos, and always showed them off by

walking around shirtless.

To them, shirts are useless.

But to us, at least most of us, they aren’t

useless at all.

Usefulness and uselessness are relative and

are not to be treated with rigidity.

When you live in New York, for example, having

a car is less useful, then when you live somewhere
in the countryside where the next village
is fifty kilometers away.

So, we ought to be willing to let go of things

that are useless in one situation, and adopt

what’s useful instead.

That’s how we make change an ally, and not

enemy.

The third one is...

(3) Not focusing on outcomes.

Comparable to the Stoics, the Taoists observed

that the focus on future outcomes has a negative

effect on us.

Focusing too much on the future makes us anxious.

Our present endeavors become fueled by a desire

for an uncontrollable result, and the more

we crave that, the less we value the only

thing we have, which is the present moment.

Zhuangzi goes one step further, by telling

us that the more we value something external,

the worse we perform in the present.

He tells us about an archer that loses his

ability to shoot when he focuses too much

on the prize.

I quote:

He who is contending for a piece of earthenware

puts forth all his skill.

If the prize be a buckle of brass, he shoots

timorously; if it be for an article of gold,

he shoots as if he were blind.

The skill of the archer is the same in all

the cases; but (in the two latter cases) he

is under the influence of solicitude, and

looks on the external prize as most important.

All who attach importance to what is external

show stupidity in themselves.

End quote.
Now, this doesn’t mean that people that
want external things are stupid.

It means that when our minds are in the future,

we paralyze ourselves in the present.

This principle lies at the basis of the ‘flow

state’ that we see in activities like sports,

art, and dancing.

When we experience this flow state, we’re

so immersed in the task at hand, that we completely

forget about the future.

It’s like the dance dances itself.

The last one for now is...

(4) Letting go of excess.

In a society in which status is an ultimate

concern, everyone wants to be at the top.

Not because it’s necessarily the best place

to be, but because we’ve collectively decided

that high status is preferable and low status

is horrible.

This also comes with a collective pursuit

of the former, and a collective aversion to

the latter.

But the tallest trees catch the most wind.

And when we’re at the top, it takes a tremendous

amount of effort to stay there, because everyone

wants to take your position.

It’s stressful compared to the lower regions,

in which one lives more privately, with less

competition, less enemies, and, in general,

less effort.

The other extreme, however, is a place of

deprivation.

If we deliberately seek the absolute bottom,

we become ascetics.

Although in a different way, there’s still

a strong attachment; the attachment to deprivation.
The question we can ask ourselves is: what
do we truly need?

Zhuangzi observed that a bird that nests in

the forest, wants no more than one branch.

And that a mouse that drinks from the pond,

drinks no more than a bellyful.

So, if we aim for what we need, and let go

of excess, we prevent possessions from becoming

our prison cell, which allows us to travel

light.

Epicurus observed as well that the basic necessities

for life are easy to come by, and that living

moderately is the key to happiness.

It’s a path that’s easy, and sustainable.

As Lao Tzu wrote: “Those who use moderation

are already on the path to the Tao.”

End quote.

When we stop striving, we give nature space

to unfold.

In trusting the universe and accepting that

it’s ever-changing lies the opportunity

to become loose and supple, instead of rigid

and brittle.

The power of letting go means that we float

along the stream, without grasping for rocks

and branches, and that we cut loose dead weight,

so we can navigate through life with minimal effort.

Thank you for watching.