Naturally

 

Live naturally by just living naturally within the Dao. There is nothing special you have to do. There are no dues to be paid, no promises to keep. Your alters and beads are nice but they are no more important than the grass under your feet. Do not use artificial means of trying to live naturally. It is not that hard. Appreciate the wonder of nature, the wonder of the Dao, and the wonder of you. Anything else is superfluous.

Just Being

There is nothing more to just being than just being. One does not need a guru or a five hundred page book to just live. One does not need the acceptance of some group. Accept yourself instead. No hidden agendas, no burning desires, no master plans. Live deliberately. Be the calm of a gentle January late night snowfall. Rest in peace by detuning your mind from the clutches of society.

Farther To Go

I climb the tallest mountain, I have so much farther to go. I sail across the oceans of the world, yet I have not arrived. I rocket through the stars, yet I have only touched the surface of the infinite. When you stop trying to conquer, you can be one with the Dao. Do what has to be done and then rest. You can go as far as you want, but you wind up in the same place.

Settle

Resist the urge to try to know everything. Not only is it not possible, but you miss being in the present if you are analyzing, computing, and trying to figure everything out. Enjoy a beautiful painting, do not assess what it might be worth. Relax to a calming sunset, do not waste words trying to describe it. Settle your mind like a feather coming to rest within the Dao and let all things come to you in their full natural state.

ist's

 

Karl Marx did not consider himself a Marxist even though he is credited with founding Marxism. So what exactly is a Daoist? The problem with anything –ist is that you are expected to confine yourself to a set of man-made rules if you are aiming to seen as a true follower of anything. Do not aim to be an –ist. Aim to follow the Way of the Dao, through your actions, your words, and your thoughts and leave the –ist’s to others.