Don't Force Anything - Alan Watts
Summary
TLDRThis thought-provoking transcript delves into the profound concept of 'wu-way' from Taoism, exploring its essence of non-forcing and aligning with the natural flow of life. The speaker invites listeners to suspend preconceived notions and approach the world with childlike wonder, embracing the inherent weirdness and vastness of existence. Through vivid examples and analogies, they encourage letting go of contrived virtuosity and instead cultivating spontaneity, attunement to the present moment, and a willingness to inhabit the mysterious void that underlies all reality. Ultimately, the script beckons us to rediscover our true selves by shedding habitual ways of thinking and perceiving.
Takeaways
- 😀 Wu wei (effortless action) is the principle of not forcing things, but acting in harmony with the natural flow.
- 😐 Forced or artificial performances lack authenticity and fail to resonate as genuine.
- 🧘 The Taoist concept of wu wei does not advocate pure passivity or laziness, but rather timely and appropriate action.
- ⚔️ Like in judo, wu wei involves using effort only at the right moment when the opponent is off-balance.
- ⛵ Wu wei is likened to the art of sailing, going with the flow, rather than the art of rowing against the current.
- 🌳 True virtue or spontaneity arises without intention or conscious effort to be virtuous.
- 🔮 Trying too hard to be spontaneous or follow rules in reverse is still bound by societal constraints, missing true spontaneity.
- 👶 To rediscover true spontaneity, one must regain the childlike sense of wonder and openness to the mystery of existence.
- 🌌 The vastness of space, the infinite nature of time and existence, evoke a sense of awe and bewilderment in children.
- 🧘♀️ To truly understand wu wei, one must temporarily suspend preconceived notions, logic, and habitual thinking patterns.
Q & A
What is the principle of Wu Wei mentioned in the transcript?
-Wu Wei is the principle of not forcing in anything that one does. It emphasizes action at the right moment and in harmony with the natural course of things, rather than through force or effort.
How is Wu Wei illustrated through the example of judo?
-In judo, Wu Wei is exemplified by using muscle only at the right moment, when the opponent is off balance, which demonstrates acting in accordance with the natural flow and not forcing actions.
What does the transcript suggest about the common misunderstanding of Wu Wei?
-The transcript suggests that a common misunderstanding of Wu Wei is equating it to laziness or passivity, while it actually involves knowing the right time for action and aligning with the natural world.
How does the concept of Wu Wei relate to the saying by Laozi regarding virtue?
-The concept relates to Laozi's saying that superior virtue does not act with the intention of being virtuous and thus is truly virtuous, highlighting Wu Wei's principle of effortless action without force or artificial intent.
What mistake do people make when trying to embody Wu Wei, according to the transcript?
-People mistakenly believe that realizing they are the Tao or acting spontaneously without constraint is Wu Wei. However, merely acting in opposition to societal rules or seeking spontaneity for its own sake misses the essence of Wu Wei.
How does the transcript describe the approach to truly understanding what one wants?
-It suggests that to understand what one truly wants, one must become very quiet and listen inwardly, indicating that clarity and direction come from a place of calm and openness, rather than forceful thinking or acting.
What analogy is used to describe our existence on Earth according to the transcript?
-The Earth is likened to a spaceship, and heaven to the vastness of space or the void, illustrating the concept that our existence is part of a larger, incomprehensible vastness that surrounds us.
Why is becoming like a child important for understanding the world, as mentioned in the transcript?
-Becoming like a child is important because children are open to the wonder and mystery of the world without preconceived notions, which is essential for rediscovering the true nature of existence and reality.
What does the transcript say about societal rules and spontaneity?
-It suggests that merely acting against societal rules or seeking spontaneity as an end in itself does not lead to true spontaneity. True spontaneity is not bound by societal rules or the mere opposition to them.
How does the transcript propose one should approach their perceptions and thoughts to experience reality differently?
-The transcript proposes suspending all preconceived notions, opinions, and logical frameworks as an experiment to experience reality without the filter of language or societal constructs, encouraging a direct, unmediated engagement with the world.
Outlines
🧘♂️ The Principle of Wu Wei (Non-Forcing)
This paragraph discusses the concept of 'Wu Wei' in Taoism, which is often mistranslated as 'non-action' or 'doing nothing.' The speaker clarifies that a more accurate translation would be 'non-forcing,' as it refers to the art of acting effortlessly and in harmony with the natural flow of things. The paragraph uses examples from various art forms to illustrate the difference between a forced and a natural, effortless performance. The speaker also explains that Wu Wei is not about cultivated passivity or spontaneity, but rather about being in tune with the natural rhythm and timing of events.
🌌 Rediscovering the Childlike Wonder
The second paragraph encourages the listener to approach the world with a childlike sense of wonder and curiosity, free from preconceived notions and societal conditioning. The speaker suggests that children have an innate ability to perceive the world as a strange and fascinating place, unbound by conventional thinking. To truly understand the nature of reality, the speaker advises the listener to temporarily suspend their beliefs, opinions, and logical frameworks, and instead approach the world with an open mind, like a child experiencing everything for the first time. The paragraph emphasizes the importance of letting go of habitual thought patterns and engaging with the present moment without judgment or preconceptions.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Wu Wei (Non-Action)
💡Tao (The Way)
💡Spontaneity
💡Space (Void)
💡Childlike Wonder
💡Habit Energy
💡Suspension of Views
💡Anti-Intellectualism
💡Presence
💡Interconnectedness
Highlights
There is a principle called 'wu-way' or 'not forcing' in Taoism, which means not using force or excessive effort but rather going with the natural flow of things.
Wu-way is about knowing the right moment for action, like in judo where you apply force only when your opponent is off-balance.
True wu-way is not about cultivated passivity or spontaneity, but about realizing that you don't know what you truly want until you are quiet and allow it to arise naturally.
We are already in heaven, as the Earth is a spaceship traveling through the void or 'kung' of space.
Space, which appears to be nothing, is the foundation of the universe.
To understand wu-way, one must become like a child, curious and open to the wonder and strangeness of the world.
Children naturally question fundamental ideas like God, time, and death, and love to explore the world in strange ways.
To rediscover wu-way as an adult, one must temporarily suspend their ideas, opinions, logic, and ways of categorizing the world.
One must view the world without the habitual thoughts and labels, treating them like passing shapes in the sea spray.
This is not an anti-intellectual view but a temporary suspension of logic and reason to understand the world in a more direct, intuitive way.
Close your eyes and listen to what you truly and honestly hear, without preconceptions.
Superior virtue has no intention to be virtuous, and inferior virtue cannot let go of virtuosity.
Trying to be spontaneous by breaking societal rules is still running by those rules in reverse.
The child wonders about the vastness of space and the infinite nature of time, with no beginning or end.
Thinking deeply about death and non-existence gives a "funny feeling" that reveals the strangeness of existence itself.
Transcripts
there is a principle called way
means none or not no
negation
way
has a combination of meanings it can
mean action
making
but the best translation I have found
for it is forcing
and so Louis is the principle of not
forcing
in anything that you do now we know when
we watch any performance of an artist be
it a dancer
or a an actor
or a musician
we know immediately when the performance
is forced
and we say it doesn't ring true it's too
artificial it doesn't seem to be natural
many people who study the Taoist
doctrines think that way means do
nothing
in the sense of laissez-faire be lazy
always be passive it doesn't mean that
there is a Time for Action when you
study Judo
[Music]
you use Muscle only at the right moment
when your opponent is hopelessly
overextended and off balance and you add
a little muscle to it and you throw him
across the room
but only then
you never use Muscle
at the wrong moment
for a Shakespeare knew perfectly well
there is a tide in the Affairs of men
which taken at its flood leads onto
Fortune
and so wu-way is based on knowledge of
the tide
the drift of things
get with it
wu-way is the art of sailing rather than
the art of rowing
[Music]
so one of the most famous sayings of Lao
in the laozer book
is superior virtue
has no intention to be virtuous
and thus
is virtually
inferior virtue cannot let go of
virtuosity
and thus is not good
so one could also say
the real woo way
[Music]
is not intentionally
and so is wool way
but inferior will we
so tries to be woo way that it isn't
in other words this is say is not a
matter of cultivated passivity
or even of cultivated spontaneity
because there are people
who think that they are released
[Music]
that they have realized that they are
the Tao
as all of us in fact are or that you are
to put it into vedanta terms every one
of us is the Brahman
the Eternal self of the universe beyond
all description or classification or
thought
and say okay baby I'm that now I'm gonna
have a ball
well what kind of a ball do they have
well what they do is they look up the
rules
on which society runs and do the
opposite
well that's still running by the rules
of society and it's the mirror image in
Reverse that's not spontaneity
you have to be able to realize that you
don't know what you really want to do
until you are very quiet
and it tells you
see we are in heaven now
because the Earth is a spaceship
and Heaven is space
what is called in Chinese kung Japanese
goo
the void
that's what is important
most of us
don't know this
space it comes down to space always
space
which nobody can Define nobody can
imagine appears to be nothing
is the foundation of the universe
but
you have to become again as a child to
see that
are Europe go back to your childhood
what were the fascinating things
what's out there
what's beyond the stars
how long does it go on
and Mama Said
it goes on always and always and always
the child wonders it's excited
that this is something that never ends
then the child asked about time
how long ago is long ago
well the Bible says that in the
beginning God created the Heaven and the
Earth but what did God do before he did
that
well as one person said he sat up
thinking punishments in hell for people
who asked silly questions
[Music]
ill that is only a joke and the the
child thinks of God going back and back
and back forever
never beginning
so in the same way you think about death
go to sleep and never wake up never
why it would be as if you never had
existed not only you but everything else
which is of course the way things were
before you were born
you know about how about waking up after
having never gone to sleep
that's quite a thought and something
fishy about it all
so we get a funny feeling when we think
those questions really through
very funny feeling
and children you see love to get into
that funny feeling children know all
kinds of weird things they like to spin
around as fast as possible so they watch
the suddenly they're all the ground goes
tilting into this thing with their eyes
and make faces and test out their bodies
in all sorts of funny ways
because they know from the beginning
that the world is weird
a strange thing because everybody knows
what it's all about only they won't
admit it
being brought up is being taught not to
admit it
as you know very well
what's going on
but in order to find out once more is an
adult you have to become again as a
child so what does that involve
means ladies and gentlemen would you
please check your ideas and opinions at
the door
all your philosophical and religious
views all your logic
[Music]
because I say check it at the door
advises it because you can pick it up
again when you go out if you feel unsafe
without it
[Music]
I'm not trying to argue you out of your
opinions and views
I'm merely suggesting that for the sake
of an experiment with temporarily
suspended and
view what is
as if you didn't even know how to talk
red is not red blue is not blue
heart is not hard soft is not soft
male is not male female is not female
there is just this Jazz it will not be
possible to compel yourselves into this
way of looking at things because what
Buddhists call habit energy is going on
on on on and as I talk to you you will
find yourselves thinking in a compulsive
and habitual way this is read this is
green this is something this is nothing
this is solid this is space all right
but treat those thoughts that are going
on in your head
in exactly the same way as if they were
maybe below see
that's all they are
like shapes in the spray as the sea
breaks on the rocks
now please don't get agitated that this
is an anti-intellectual point of view
this is undermining the value of logic
and reasons on that we will bring all
that back later when we need it but just
for the time being
let's simplify
close your eyes
listen
what do you really and truly
honestly
here
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