The Art of Not Trying
Struggling Against the Natural Flow
In life, most of us try our best, and we try our hardest to achieve what we want; this often leads us to act in a counterproductive way, frequently force ourselves into constructed mental boxes, and forget the natural way in which All move about. Our efforts backfire and in our yearning, we become blind to the real path which takes us to the goal. We try to mould and improve the world to our liking but often find that by altering nature's path we do not utilise its inherit power, but rather push against it. This creates new problems and we can observe this everywhere in our daily lives. Our demand for cheap and available clothing which we can swap out daily, comes at the cost of the environment and human life, our need for food but our unwillingness to grow it, care for it, and supply ourselves leads to excessive use of harmful chemicals, exploitation of other humans and at the cost of nature itself. In our search for comfort and ease we funnily enough struggle more than any other dwelling creature on earth. I recall an interview with an older woman who lived alone in a simple cabin in the woods. The interviewer asked, when he saw her struggling to carry the logs and make a fire in her hut if she wouldn't much rather move to a city and have a regular job so she wouldn't have to carry the wood and make a fire every day. She replied: asking him - why he would want to work 9 hours a day just to not have to carry logs and make a fire every day.
Truth is that life is rife with struggle and tribulations, there's no getting past that. Whatever your circumstances and whatever your life there will always be problems you will have to face, no amount of money, no amount of free time, and no amount of work can ever truly set you free from that fact. The way you choose to deal with these things and how you choose your life will determine not only the strength of your spirit but also the amount of difficulties you will face. It is easy to be lulled by the false sense of security our modern world offers: buy this product and you will be loved. Work in these fields and be recognised by your peers. Do this and do that and finally, your life will amount to something and you will be rid of the struggle you have felt in your heart since the day you were born. On every corner stands charismatic salesmen, selling the latest cure-all wanting the same as you, peace of mind, and the financial freedom that will finally liberate them from themselves. These false prophets are no different from cult leaders who sell you an unachievable dream, a vista of utopia hidden behind a paywall. Not all, but most desires and struggles arise from our struggle against life itself.
We refuse to accept things as they are; we invent psychology, science, and religion all to aid us in our battle against reality. We overcome our natural shortcomings by ideology and biochemical alteration, refusing to accept ourselves for who we are. Yet some of us know this fact, perhaps not intellectually but rather in our hearts; they know how to go with the natural flow and life existential surfers they ride the waves of life, even as they come crashing down. Anyone who has ever pursued any of the arts with their heart knows this fact and knows the struggle of trying to fight against the flow. Whatever it is you're doing, whether it be painting, writing, or playing music - if you overthink and tense up against the creative flow whatever you do will not reach its full potential until you let go and let the process lead you where it wants to go. This brings us to the next section, not an all-around solution to all our problems, but a way to approach and deal with most of them in a more peaceful and productive way.
What you resist persists.
The Art of Not Trying
Wu Wei (無為) is an ancient Chinese concept translating roughly to "effortless action", it has been mentioned and used in several branches of Chinese writing and is most commonly known in its prevalence in Taoism - a religious and philosophical movement that includes famous work like "Tao Te Ching" by Lao Tzu; a legendary and perhaps mythical and fictional Chinese philosopher and writer. Taoism seeks harmony with the "Tao" - generally understood to be a mystical, impersonal process of change and transformation ultimately underlying all of reality. From a more Western, mystical point of view, the Tao can be understood to be God, or perhaps God's creation - ever-changing and eternal. Wu Wei is the core principle of Taoist thought and it seeks to aid people in search of the natural way and to avoid forcing or rushing the natural order of things to prevent false development and mistakes.
So it's that simple right? We just stop trying and lay around on our sofas all day and life will automatically give us everything we need, well of course not - the art of not trying really means that we align ourselves with the will of something larger than ourselves. Rather than to fight the hurricane which sweeps us up - we let it carry us to where it sees fit. It often seems like the more we strive for something the more we are pulled away from it. The late Alan Watts spoke about a "law of reverse attraction", this very concept that the more we want something the further away it gets until we finally let go, then it comes to us. This is prevalent in my own artistic work, where if I absolutely feel the need to write or paint the more impossible it seems. Indeed my most creative work seems to happen spontaneously when I have no desire to create. We have to learn how to let go and once inspiration comes, to let it lead us to the end. Another example of this is something I'm sure is relatable to most people: if we know we have to wake up early the next morning and we need a certain time of sleep it suddenly becomes impossible to sleep. Instead of resting and preparing for the early rise we just lay awake thinking about how important it is that we fall asleep. If we let go off these self-imposed pressures we will soon find ourselves drifting in dreams.
If we're attracted to someone we try our best to impress, and this often leads us to not being genuine, and in our façade we make a fool of ourselves. If we let go of trying and focus on just being all these things seem to fall in place. The problem in most of these cases isn't our ability or knowledge, we may have rehearsed a song 100 times, but when it comes to performing it to a live audience we stumble and play the wrong notes. The problem is us getting in the way of ourselves. The mind tries too hard to control the situation and analyse every small part of it. We tense up and in this tension, we become rigid and unable to move with the flow. By relaxing, lowering our shoulders, and staying present we will find whatever it is we are trying to do much easier. Sometimes a solution to a problem doesn't come immediately and dwelling on it and letting it occupy all your happiness and time isn't productive. Leave it aside for now and focus on other things, focus on what you can do now, and soon enough you will find your mind coming up with a creative solution to the original problem you could never have dreamt of.
By being flexible and adaptive we embrace the Wu Wei, and Lao Tzu wrote:
"Those who are stiff and rigid are the disciples of death, those who are soft and yielding are the disciples of life. The rigid and stiff will be broken. The soft and yielding will overcome." - Tao Te Ching, chapter 76
We cannot control life, we can only move with it or against it. Wu Wei is a paradoxical action of non-action, it is the choice to be soft and embrace whatever comes our way rather than to curse it and fight against it. It means to take up our cross and carry our burdens, not with sorrow but with love in our hearts. Instead of trying to rule every single detail of our lives like a dictator, we can embrace the French term "laissez-faire" - roughly translated to "let do", meaning with minimal interference we rule over our lives like a gentle leader, somebody who oversees and keeps us focused on the right things, without getting mixed up in things we can't change or trying to fit a square into the hole of a triangle. This means developing trust and humility. Trust that we will do the right thing, that we are doing the right thing, and that we will overcome that which we are struggling against.
Try to Not Try
By trying not to try - we take on flexibility and adaptability to overcome the challenges we face, we remain unbroken and whole because no matter the strength of the stream we go with it rather than against it. We perform better and more gracefully if we take a soft approach and put our trust in the process. By silencing our inner critic and not overanalysing everything we do can keep focused on the task at hand and we have to try less to accomplish what we truly want. If we instead of going with the stream of life; which we have absolutely no power over, we instead go against it we find ourselves struggling and constantly getting in our way. Hindering us from achieving what we want. Learning to let go of our deep desires we find that they come to us easily instead. Everything falls into place when we learn to take action through non-action. All action is reaction and how we react and deal with things is our greatest asset.
We try to force incompatible puzzle pieces, we cling dearly to relationships that we don't know are working and we are woefully ignorant of the natural order of things. We suffer due to our impatience, our laziness, and our never-ending hunger for more and more. Alas if we can find within ourselves the power to let go of these delusions, holding us back we can be liberated from so many of our struggles. Simply trusting the process and letting life take its course, through the path of resistance we may reach new heights. Instead of steering your ship against the storm let it fill your sails and lead you to your destination.
“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?" - Matthew 6:25-26
