Taoists routinely achieve stress reduction and inner peace by aligning their actions with the Tao. Their approach is strikingly different from other philosophies because Taoists place themselves on equal footing to the rest of the universe.
In contrast to Christians as personified by Tomas of Aquinas (1225-1274) and Augustine (354-430), Taoists don’t place God or society above themselves. They regard themselves as part of the universe, not superior to others, but also not inferior.
While other philosophies and religions promise supernatural rewards for good behaviour, Taoists expect nothing of the sort. They distrust the hyperbolic promises of religionists and gurus, and pay little attention to their threats of ostracism.
Lao-Tzu and exaggerated words
In Chapter 81 of the Tao Te Ching, Lao-Tzu commended us to distrust exaggerated promises, flattery, and all types of self-serving messages. In the short term, they play sweet music to our ears, but the aftermath is bound to prove disturbing.
When promises prove false, our stress will increase. When sweet words turn bitter, our peace of mind will go away. When flattery is revealed as larcenous, our serenity will be disrupted, undermined, and wiped out. That’s what Taoist want to avoid.
For Chuang-Tzu, mendacious words and actions are totally incompatible with the Tao. He meant human mendacity, not the inconsistent actions of animals such as monkeys or horses.
His teachings contain many anecdotes in which humans use trickery to manipulate animals. If a monkey trainer can achieve better results by manipulating his monkeys, so be it. If a horse can be domesticated more easily by employing some kind of trick, that’s perfectly legitimate.
Chuang-Tzu and self-reliance
Human interactions are a different story altogether. Taoists demand high levels of honesty from themselves and expect the same from other people. When confronted with dishonesty or abuse, Taoists will take note and avoid the mendacious person in the future.
I regard Chuang-Tzu’s prescription as the most crucial rule for reducing stress and achieving inner peace, namely, the need to avoid dishonest people and shady situations. I mean a steady and systematic avoidance of duplicitous people and situations.
It requires a robust self-discipline to say no to acquaintances that may prove useful in the short-term, but detrimental down the road. On those occasions, Taoists operate from principle. In spite of the short-term advantages, they will rather address the problem while it is still small.
Chuang-Tzu was once offered a high post at the royal court, but he rejected the offer right away. He knew that acceptance would bring him sizeable short-term rewards, but those would render it even harder for him to quit.
If Chuang-Tzu had said yes, he would have experienced too much stress and lost his serenity. Even if the job had given him substantial rewards, the losses would have been enormous. For a Taoist, peace of mind possesses more value than gold.
Yang-Tzu and harmony
Yang-Tzu stated that he would not sacrifice a hair of his to save the world. The statement is clearly a hyperbole, but relays the general Taoist rejection of self-sacrifice. The individual has the right to be respected, and so does society.
Based on this principle, Taoists look for harmony. None of us should be short-changed in his exchanges with society. The principle applies materially (trade, enterprise, investment) and immaterially (serenity, peace of mind, happiness).
When it comes to securing their peace of mind and reducing stress, the followers of Lao-Tzu, Yang-Tzu and Chuang-Tzu are extraordinarily determined. They greatly value serenity in all areas of life, professional and private.
For this purpose, Taoists will observe the prescription given in Chapter 64 of the Tao Te Ching, namely, that to secure great values, we need to protect their small roots day after day.
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