Change Your Thoughts-Change Your Life Part 17 of 20: Living by Remaining Low
April 21, 2009 by dr. lam · 4 Comments
The 61st Verse:
A great country is like the lowland,
toward which all streams flow.
It is the reservoir of all under heaven,
the feminine of the world.
The female overcomes the male with stillness,
by lowering herself through her quietness.
So if a great country lowers itself before a small one,
it wins friendship and trust.
And if a small country can lower itself before a great one,
it will win over that “great” country.
The one wins by stooping;
the other, by remaining low.
Two of the omnipresent symbols that Lao-Tzu uses are the feminine and water, which he enlists with great effect in this verse. The oceans rest lower than the streams so all the waters lead into the mighty ocean. Accordingly, when we quietly exert our presence, people and things are drawn to us. Similarly, the feminine or yin energy is a quiet and friendly one compared with the male-dominating yang. Oftentimes we are led to believe that to succeed we must leverage our yang energy but that oftentimes pushes people away from us. In history, when a leader would subjugate another people by force, it would lead to brutality, which would invariably lead to a returned brutality and self annihilation. Instead the feminine or yin energy leads by quiet example rather than forceful intervention. This type of leadership creates a more lasting and peaceful condition that continues to grow and mature rather than be fought and destroyed over time.
It is interesting because I radiate a very quiet yin energy, and I think that is why more women are drawn to me than men. I lead through a quiet presence rather than a forceful one. My staff and I are like a unified family rather than a totalitarian regime in which I rule by force of will. That kind of yang energy will be short lived and lead to mutual dissolution.
In some of the verses of the Tao Te Ching that I did not cover in this blog series, Lao-Tzu discusses how the yin energy is more in harmony with nature, which is a central tenet of his philosophical thesis. He looks at this “Divine Mother” as a life-giving source of all things. Being harmonious with nature means being in harmony with your yin energy. As you have progressed over this month (and many previous months), I have focused on many precepts that are of essence yin in nature. Today, quietly lead others by your yin energy and draw them to you like streams to an ocean rather than through force of will.
Change Your Thoughts-Change Your Life Part 2 of 20: Living Creatively
March 31, 2009 by dr. lam · 17 Comments
The 6th Verse of the Tao Te Ching:
The spirit that never dies
is called the mysterious feminine.
Although she becomes the whole universe,
her immaculate purity is never lost.
Although she assumes countless forms,
her true identity remains intact.
The gateway to the mysterious female
is called the root of creation.
Listen to her voice,
hear it echo through creation.
Without fail, she reveals her presence.
Without fail, she brings us to our own perfection.
Although it is invisible, it endures;
it will never end.
I particularly love this verse because I can relate to it so very well. I have a tremendously creative spirit that I feel is unbounded. I also have a great feminine sensibility about me, i.e., I am sensitive to people’s emotions and thoughts more than many of my male colleagues, peers, and friends. I am very much attuned to my creative and my “feminine” side. I think Lao-Tzu is focused on seeing ourselves as infinitely creative and who do not perceive boundaries to that creativity. I recall so many people seeing my paintings that I made that adorn the walls of my office and of my building and say, “Wow, I would never feel so confident to put any of my paintings for others to see.” I thought, “Why not?” It never even occurred to me that someone else’s judgment of my art even mattered.
I think as children we are infinitely creative and are rewarded for our creative input. As adults, we are so berated by other people about what is considered good or bad, that we become introspective and reclusive in our opinions and thoughts. I am not entirely immune to this, but I exercise a profound and unfettered creativity in my artistry as a plastic surgeon (obviously with your assent and consent) as well as in almost everything that I do.
Today when you go out look at a child and see how a child is unrestricted in his/her creative energy that is almost inexhaustible and not bound by societal dictates and constraints, by gender norms, or by arbitrary standards of quality. Then go out today and free your creative sensibility and get in touch with your feminine nature whether you are a man or a woman. It shouldn’t matter. Think of how you will express your own creative energy through a vibrant individualism that radiates to others. Live creatively.