“The noblest pleasure is the joy of understanding.”

– Leonardo da Vinci

FUNDAMENTALS: After completion, Comes new beginnings. To gain strength, Renew the root.

In music, the fundamental tone is the lowest, or root, tone of a chord.  Without its presence, no true character is established.  Our actions in life are as similarly varied and complex as music.  Without a thorough grounding, there is no harmony.

Followers of Tao emphasize cycles.  This must include a sound understanding of what to do whenever a cycle comes to an end.  New ones will begin: Some of them will be engendered by the old one, others may simply be in the background and will now come forward.  If we are to properly shape these new movements and if we are to prevent unwanted cycles from beginning, we must take stock and renew our basis in the fundamentals.

Everyone wants to be daring, creative, and original.  Everyone wants to do things in new ways.  But unless we return over and over again to the basics, we will have no chance to truly soar.  Do not forget the root.  Without it, we can never issue forth true power.

365 Tao: Daily Meditations
Deng Ming-Dao

“The only way to maximize potential for performance is to be calm in the mind.”

– Brian Sipe

“The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts.”

– Marcus Aurelius

“We have met the enemy and he is us.”

– Walt Kelly

“The arrogance of success is to think that what you did yesterday will be sufficient for tomorrow.”

– William Pollard

“Yesterday’s home runs don’t win today’s games.”

– Babe Ruth

“When an archer is shooting for nothing, he has all his skill.
If he shoots for a brass buckle, he is already nervous.
If he shoots for a prize of gold, he goes blind or sees two targets —
He is out of his mind!
His skill has not changed. But the prize divides him.
He cares. He thinks more of winning than of shooting–
And the need to win drains him of power.”

– Chuang Tzu

READINESS: A knife keeps its edge, Only with honing and proper cutting. A warrior’s virtue is readiness. A sage’s virtue is awareness.

This life is so competitive and challenging that one must remain in constant readiness for the problems and conflicts that come with each day. That is why followers of Tao meld the way of the warrior and the sage. They want the courage and preparedness of the fighter, the luminous perception of the wise. Each day, they dedicate themselves to maintaining their characters and perpetuating their development. But how does one maintain one’s edge without blunting?

There is a fable about a king who was watching his butcher. He was amazed that the man could dismember a whole ox without much effort and without dulling his knife. Seeking to learn, the king questioned his servant, who said that his secret was to insert his knife only in the spaces between muscles, thus parting the body along its natural lines. In this way, where an ordinary butcher had to grind his blade daily, he only had to sharpen his knife once a year.

From this we can learn that we must first hone ourselves to a sharp edge, but the proper use of our talents is equally essential. We must remember to take action along the basic lines and seams of the day. If we do this, we can never be opposed for long.

365 Tao: Daily Meditations
Deng Ming-Dao