July 17th

Conservation


Don't let a thread fall without noticing it.
Don't rake dry brown leaves carelessly.
Think how difficult it was
For something to take this existence.

Frugality is lauded in almost every culture. Nearly all of us have been taught to conserve and save. Those who do not waste and yet do not become misers are most admirable.We can be aware of conservation every day. We should think whether what we discard can be reused or recycled. We should consider whether our expenditures are really necessary. We should be aware if we are wasting our time and efforts on frivolous activities. We should not abuse our environment with garbage, pollutants, and recreational activities.
Conservation is impossible without a sound understanding of the wholeness of cycles. Unless we remember how precious something is, how much effort it took for it to come into being, we will not value it. Unless we think about its proper transformation into its next phase -- a leaf withering, a flower browning, a lake drying up -- we will not know our relation to it. Everything lives or dies in its own time. We too are part of the same cycles, only we have the option of contemplating and acting within that context. To do so with grace and awareness is the essence of one who follows Tao.

Personal Interpretation


Whether we recognize it or not, we are part of the circle of life and each and every act that originates with us has an impact on the universe, which, ultimately, comes to impact us in turn. Nothing exists in isolation. We should work to conserve whenever we have the opportunity to do so. Why discard a thing that can be used again or undervalue a thing because its time on the Earth has come to an end? Decaying matter gives rise to new vegetation after all. When we conserve, we value all things, ourselves included. How are we to know where we stand in the universe if we can't understand and respect the other processes going on around us?

The fundamental frugality that is a defining characteristic of Tao can be applied to everything in our lives. It is best to conserve our strength for when we'll need it most. It is best to size up a situation before responding to it. In all things, let us practice frugality.