Observations of Modern Day Ancients: The Outlaw

Stair Step Falls, GNP
Photo Credit: Meena Rose

Today, we will explore the eighth Taoist observation of the way of the Ancient. Please look below for the other articles in the series.

Throw away holiness and wisdom,
and people will be a hundred times happier.
Throw away morality and justice,
and people will do the right thing.

The Ancients did not fret over rules and laws and they never bothered with contrived ethics and morality. To an outsider, it may appear that their actions seem oblivious to what is deemed acceptable by the society in which they live. In reality, the Ancients lived in the flow of the moment and acted upon their natural urges in a given situation. Their intentions were virtuous and in complete harmony with the Tao. They subconsciously acted to the highest morals.

The Ancients will inevitably break the law of their society if they deem it unjust and without compassion. The more and more such unjust and unfair laws exist in a given society, the more at odds the Ancients will be. Despite their desire to remain detached from the political processes of the land, they will become politically involved albeit quite reluctantly. The Ancients will always search for the most amiable solution.

The man who is truly wise and kind
leaves nothing to be done,
but he who only acts
according to his nation’s law
leaves many things undone.

The Ancients once engaged on a course biased towards action will leave nothing undone. Each “i” will be dotted and each “t” will be crossed. Nothing will be limited or confined to a given society’s agenda, hidden or otherwise, for when the Ancients become involved, it will be towards achieving harmony with Tao.

The greater the number of laws and restrictions,
the poorer the people who inhabit the land.
The sharper the weapons of battle and war,
the greater the troubles besetting the land.
The greater the cunning with which people are ruled,
the stranger the things which occur in the land.
The harder the rules and regulations,
the greater the number of those who will steal.

The Ancients, though seeking detachment from the day to day actions of society, will watch the ways of the land from their distanced view. Nothing will slip their observation. This way, when the Ancients are approached by the people, they will always be able to act within the moment and allow the Tao to guide their actions.

If the people are not afraid of death,
they have no fear of threats of death.

If early death is common in the land,
and if death is meted out as punishment,
the people do not fear to break the law.

To be the executioner in such a land as this,
is to be as an unskilled carpenter
who cuts his hand
when trying to cut wood.

It should come as no surprise that the Ancients are not afraid of death. When they are moved to action, they will do what they are called upon to do. Even though the Ancients will always try to seek an amiable solution to any problem, they will stand against that which comes between them and the object of their compassion. Given their natural alignment to the harmony of Tao, they will dedicate themselves to restoring the balance without concern for their own personal life. In that way, the Ancients become efficient at dealing with such issues due to their own natural distaste for politics.