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In this 5-part Big Think Mentor workshop Edward Slingerland teaches you how to apply the ancient Chinese concept of Wu-Wei to your everyday life. Following the teachings of four philosophers (Confucius, Laozi, Mencius, and Zhuangzi) you will learn strategies for attaining the seemingly paradoxical state of “effortless action.” In other words, you will learn how to cultivate your inner spontaneity – how to try not to try. Slingerland is an expert in Chinese thought, comparative religion, and cognitive science. This workshop is an accompaniment to his latest book “Trying Not to Try: The Art and Science of Spontaneity” (http://goo.gl/p59V7N).
This first video lesson is an introduction to idea of effortless action, the concepts Wu-Wei and De, and the four philosophers that will be covered in the workshop.
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When i practice wu wei, I bring forth the idea in my mind: controllessness. I then try to feel controllessness of my hands, or …of my feet, or …of my mind. Etc etc. If i add enough things together i'll start to feel giddy and will smile. It feels very nice, refreshing and is a great way to kill time. I also add anything that is painful or tense and it just fades away.
I'm a space alien.
Another definition of "Wei" is "govern", and "We" can mean "without", so another accurate translation would be "without governing". This meshes with "effortless action" well, but may be easier to understand for average people. To act without governing your actions would be to act without "self-control", which implies that your natural state is something to be fought against and changed through conscience effort. I think this can cause internal conflict or self-delusion. To act freely, without conscience governing of oneself, is the goal, and a very healthy one at that. ZERO STRESS!!!
i like the try not too hard, seems just right for me 🙂
I am trying not to try without starting the free trial. I think Yoda said do or do not. There is no trying.
circuntance is always changing, that why people change strategy. there is no general formula that solve all problems. not yet knowed. the paradox of all powerfull, omnipotences. and the science is also, fragmented.
i didn't pause or say the wrong thing at the second word. i just unfocused my eyes so everything was blurry and said red when i saw it. Is that cheating?
isn't Charles Bukowski's life strategy "don't try"?
… and be an alcoholic?
why is the stroop test so popular
OK no lie but when he said that he wanted the color not the word, that was a dead give away, so when the word green came up I immediately knew to go right for the middle of the word past the black lines, to easy.
Jiddu Krishnamurti’s – ”Detachment” – has been one of my most effective tools…
Try to master methods of Wu-Wei through use of methods of Wu-Wei, mix and match in different orders & problem solved.
Makes sense!
I remember myself being naturally interested in learning how to play the guitar. Spending 5-6 hours every day, without noticing it, very effective and easy. So this was carving and polishing, but with no effort. And then, when I could let myself play without thinking I could experience the Zhuangzi , for I could empty my head and just let spirits in me play and write songs.
But now, when I realize I MUST do, I Must learn, I must move, everything became so much slower and harder. What if you know who you want to be, but you're not sure you are able to be?
with out god, life, your life, and your child's life is meaningless, and despair is all there is. That is what godlessness has to offer, emptiness and despair. Lions tigers and bears do not care about being better, justice, equality, why do humans?
Become a wu wei master without even trying!
Consciously choose to stop trying?
You know. Some of these advertisements YouTube allows are pretty messed up. Y'all are suppose to be better than that. Kinda disappointed
Effort was trying to understand the "cognitive science perspective".
Doing not- doing is not non-caring – Indifference and the inability to bring fully focused mental and physical effort to the task at hand – unattached to specific outcomes – are principal problems and obstructions to functionality in the world. Attaining the state Doing-not-doing takes a lifetime of training and dedicated effort. It is not some kind of New Age quick fix or academic theory.
an western thought can not understand "wu wei". As he did not.
You can't change the result without changing the terms.
enforcing the terms may not yield good results.
Ask for your heart, wait for the road to take you
Let the road take you away from where you want
do not to force it. because the result may be worst.
Traditionally Taoists wear their hair long braided in a knot. My question is, is this hairstyle a necessary essential to be a true Taoist? Or if I simply live following the Taoist principles of Simplicity, humility, frugality, balance, non-interference, naturalness, etc….
I can sincerely call myself a Taoist no matter what hairstyle I wear?
Thank you all for any insights please.
Laozi lazy
How bout neither is wrong nor right
Excellent explanation
He looks like he doesn't have a hair brush.
If you are even trying, you are missing the point. All these talks about Wu Wei are all totally missing the point. Why do you want to master Wu Wei? To achieve a certain goal? After that what's next? What is the next hottest topics that need to be conquered? Enlightenment? So have to go out and master meditation? So what's next after Enlightenment? What else to achieve? In the deepest depth of most people's consciousness, Enlightenment is the most scary thing because there is NOTHING after Enlightenment (actually there is NOTHING in the first place, not even Enlightenment which is a concept). And because there is NOTHING, it scare the shit out of most people although they don't realize it on the surface level of consciousness but deep within they sense it subconsciously. All these talk about Wu Wei is trying to do NOTHING. Still trying to do something except that something is NOTHING. That is why the saying, those who understand it, don't understand it while those who don't understand it, understand it and talk about it like what I am doing right now.