Meditation I

Chapter 6

don't let your actions aimless

What happens within according to its natural nature is easily influenced and swayed by events that have taken place, and can easily merge into the nature of things and things that appear before it.For, under certain conditions, it can achieve its ends without any given means, and can even get means from things that compete with it, just as a fire needs to be constantly thrown into its flames. It is the same reason that fuel can continue to burn.Because when the fire is too small, if you put things into it, the fire may be extinguished quickly; but when the fire is very strong, it can quickly swallow the things piled up on it, and the flame will burn more and more vigorously.

Don't let your actions be aimless, your actions should obey the rules of perfect art.

People are looking for a way to retreat for themselves, looking for a life of seclusion in the countryside, by the sea or in the mountains. You are so envious of this kind of secluded life.However, this idea of ​​retreat is a common feature of mortals, because whether you choose to live in seclusion is entirely within your own ability; Gain more peace and be free from all worries, especially when such thoughts happen to be in his mind.In other words, as long as he thinks this way sincerely, he will be able to obtain 100% peace in the next moment.What I firmly believe is that inner peace is a state of order in the mind.You can allow yourself to "retire" from time to time, and allow yourself to gain a new spiritual outlook; your rules can be brief but don't forget the fundamentals, and when these rules resurface in your mind, your heart can be fully purified, Throw away all your dissatisfaction and all kinds of complaints about the rewards of fate.What are you dissatisfied with?Is it the moral corruption of people?Please keep this conclusion in your heart: We humans, rational animals, exist for each other. Self-denial and patience are an integral part of human justice. Even if people make mistakes occasionally, they do so unconsciously. out.Recall again, how many people have lost their lives through mutual enmity, suspicion, hatred, brute force, and returned to eternal silence.

—Even if you have a grudge against the part of the gift that the universe bestows on you—please compare these two diametrically opposed options: the origin of the world is either God’s will or the atomic structure itself, and atoms are composed of everything through chance or please bear in mind the proven assertion that the whole world is a political community, so finally calm down. — but something tangible may grab you — please take a step further and consider that no matter what method you take, silently or violently, once your mind is freed from the body and finds If it loses its own power, then it will no longer be integrated with the physical body.If you reflect on what you have seen and heard and the joys, sorrows and joys you have experienced, then your mind will finally be at peace. ——But, maybe the hard pursuit of fame and other desires is still tormenting you——Look at how almost everything will be forgotten in an instant, and look at what kind of chaos exists in the endless time at both ends of the present , look at the voices of praise and criticism in the world will be empty, and false flatterers are like grass on the wall, they will only make praises according to the direction of the wind, so finally calm down.Even the huge earth is just a small dot in the universe, and you who live in it are so small, and what we have is really nothing to mention. If this is the case, think about what it will be How many people will say good things about you?
The rest keep this in mind, namely: remember to retreat back to the inner realm where you are, and above all don't distract yourself or overwhelm yourself.Let yourself be free and act like a man in all things, remembering your role as a human being, a citizen in this country, and a mortal in the world.When faced with a lot of things, you should choose to do the urgent work at hand first, and put the others aside.Among other things that are not in a hurry, they can be divided into two categories: one is things that do not touch the depths of a person's soul, that is, things that belong to the category of things outside the body, which are often fixed, while the endlessness in our hearts The troubles all come from the uneasiness of the inner soul; the other kind is things that cease to exist after you just saw them and become fleeting in an instant; you must always keep in mind that you have seen many of these ever-changing things up.The universe is in constant flux, and life depends on your own perception.

If our rationality is the common wealth of human beings, then for rational subjects like us, our rationality itself should also be a common attribute; if the above inference is true, then what orders us to do or not to do something Reason itself is also common to all people; if the previous inference is true, then there should be common legal rules; if the previous inference is true, we are all subjects ruled by reason; if the previous inference is true, we They are all members of some kind of political community; if the previous inference is true, in a sense, the whole world is the same country.So, who says that the group of all human beings belongs to another political community?The further inference drawn from this is that our rational thinking ability, logical reasoning ability and even the ability to make laws all come from this political community; if not, where does it come from?Just as my physical body is partly derived from a certain earth element that gave me the outer shell, so the liquid substance is based on the function of another element, and a special source of matter provides it with heat and fire ( Things cannot be created out of nothing, and nothingness will always return to its original zero state), therefore, human wisdom must have an ultimate source.

Death, like life, is a mystery of nature; life is the synthesis of the same elements, and death is the decomposition of the same elements; but the process of life and death, none of us need to feel ashamed, because this objective process cannot bury us The nature of being rational animals also cannot deny the rationality of our organizational structure.

It is also a certainty that these things must be done by mere mortals; and if a man does not even know this, he cannot make the fig tree sap.But, do remember this: at the flick of a finger, you and he will both be dead; and soon after, your names will be forgotten.

As long as you put aside your prejudices and dissatisfaction, then you will no longer have such complaints: "I am hurt." And as long as you put such complaints behind you, the hurt you have suffered will eventually disappear.

What did not make a man bad before, certainly does not make his life worse.It neither harms his outer physical body nor destroys his inner mind.

The reason why this nature can reach the point of being universal is also a last resort.

It is better to establish the point of view: everything that has happened has happened in accordance with the principle of fairness.If you observe with your heart, you will find that this is indeed the case.I am not talking only about the coherence of series of things, but also about the substance of fairness, as if someone had already assigned a specific value to each thing.Continue the observation you have begun, integrate all that you do with it, and use it to maintain a good nature.In this sense, man is usually rightly understood as a good generation.Remember to always maintain this true color in all your behavior.

Do not approach things with the opinion and point of view of the person who has offended you, nor with the attitude he wishes you to have.You have to look at them with a realistic attitude.

The following two rules should always be kept in one's mind: first, do what is in the interest of the people as suggested by the rational system of the governing body and the legislature; second, if you are corrected by those around you, And revised your opinion, then follow his opinion.However, the change and revision of this view must be based on fairness and justice or public interests, not just for temporary pleasure or to gain fame.

Are you rational?The answer is I have.So why don't you put it to use?Is it because reason makes you go this way, and you're after something else?
Your existence is only a part of the whole.So, you are almost invisible in the whole that gave birth to your body.In other words, you will also be included in the endless cycle of life through the transformation of the universe.

On the same altar is a large pile of frankincense: some sprinkled in front, some behind.But they don't make any difference.

Those who now see you as a beast and a monkey will see you as a god in less than ten days, if you will only renew your reverence for the principles of reason.

Never live under the assumption that you yourself can live to ten thousand years.The god of death is always watching you.So, while you are still capable, do good deeds actively.

Don't try to find out what your neighbors say, do and think. You only need to care about your own behavior, because doing so can save unnecessary troubles, and it is in line with the original meaning of justice and purity; or, if As Agathon ⑤ said, do not bother to pay attention to the words and deeds of those who are morally corrupt, continue on your righteous path, and you will not have troubles.

Those who pay special attention to the posthumous fame never imagine that even those who can remember his name will soon return to the west; it is precisely through these blind worship that the reputation of a person is also wiped out in the end It was spread by the secular people, and even the descendants of these communicators also have to face death.Of course, we can also assume that people who can remember their famous names are immortal, and the memory of their famous names can also be immortal, but what does this mean to you who have already been buried?Even if I don't mention the meaning for the dead, what is the meaning for the living who are still alive?If praise and compliments to people have long since lost their practical meaning, then why is there any need for them to continue to exist?What you are doing now is tantamount to unreasonably denying the gift of nature, and caring about other unimportant things...

True beauty comes from your own inner beauty.All the reasons for this beauty come from itself, and external praise cannot be the reason for its beauty.Nothing is made better by people's praise, nor worse by people's belittling.I am sure that even the most commonplace objects and even the most crude handicrafts are a thing of beauty to the country savage.True beauty needs no foil or embellishment other than law, truth, benevolence, and humility.What is more beautiful when others say it well, or uglier when others say it badly?Can an emerald go bad because no one admires it?Or what about gold, ivory, purple robes, lyres, short daggers, flowers, and bushes?

If the soul survives death, how does the finite air contain it? —and how did the land preserve the countless bodies buried so long ago?The principle is that these corpses will decompose after being stored for a period of time, no matter what they become, they will be decomposed, so as to leave enough space for other dead bodies; After being kept in the air for a period of time, it will mutate and then dissipate in the air.Moreover, the soul will be accepted as the wisdom root in the universe and get the fire nature in nature.In this way, the air makes room for a new soul.This is one answer one can give to the hypothesis of the continued existence of the soul.However, we can't just pay attention to the number of buried bodies, we also need to pay attention to the number of other animals eaten by us humans and carnivores. They are buried in the bodies of the people who eat them. !But our earth still holds it, because the corpse can be transformed again into blood, air element or fire element, etc.

How can the truth be obtained through the exploration of such things?The method is to decompose the material and external factors of things.

Don't be clueless when doing things, all our words and deeds must obey the way of justice, and we must have the ability to understand and comprehend all superficial phenomena.

Ah, the universe!Everything that is in harmony with you is also in harmony with me.Whatever is neither too early nor too late for you, is timely for me.Ah, of course!The products you bring to us throughout the year are all the fruits of heaven for us.Everything in the world is derived from you, and everything conceived by you will eventually return to you.The poet sings, dear city of Cyclops; and shall I sing: dear city of Zeus?
(End of this chapter)