Chapter 187: Don’t Lose Yourself
Play is play, and jokes are jokes, but don’t lose yourself.
Cultivation is not about becoming someone else, but about finding your original self and becoming the best version of yourself.
Once you become yourself, you are your true self, that is called the true self. The true self is truly me.
To hear the Dao in the morning and die in the evening is acceptable. It means becoming yourself; only then is this life not lived in vain and can you live with understanding.
It’s not about becoming the god in your heart, the immortal in your heart, or the Dao in your heart. You are already inherently god, immortal, and Dao. You have simply forgotten.
If you don’t live as yourself, then isn’t your life in vain? Looking back when you are old, you might exclaim, “Damn, this whole life was lived for others, and I didn’t do many things I wanted to do or accomplish the things I wanted to accomplish.” Then you won’t understand the meaning of this life.
Damn! If you haven’t lived for yourself, then doesn’t it feel meaningless? Live for yourself! Let go of those self-righteous pressures, let go of those self-righteous troubles, and live the way you want to live. Can your life still be in vain?
Some people say that oneself is the root of everything. That’s definitely true!
The meaning of this saying is that all the trivial things you agonize over are ultimately nothing when you leave this world. It’s just that you are too serious, putting your heart into those miscellaneous matters, and thus haven’t lived as yourself, ending up with a lifetime of regret. When you live as the best version of yourself, all those problems you previously considered important will be easily resolved.
If you worry about whether your child will have a promising future, you might as well worry about yourself having a promising future. If you have a promising future, why would you still worry about that?
If you worry about what to do when your parents get old, you might as well worry about whether you have put in enough effort. If you put in the effort and your life improves, can you still worry about that?
Your heart is in the wrong place, constantly running wild on other matters. Gather yourself, shift your focus back to yourself, move upward, and everything will be resolved.
When you hear what others say, it’s like crossing a river with a little squirrel. Everyone is coming to the mortal world for the first time. The squirrel tells you the water is deep enough to drown you, and the old ox tells you the water is shallow, only reaching your ankles. If you don’t walk it yourself, you will never know if you can cross it.
Because everyone’s path is different, even making pancakes, two people will make them taste different. Why do you say you can’t do it? Even with radishes and cabbage, people have their preferences. You don’t need everyone to like you, and you don’t need others’ approval. Just be the best version of yourself, and people who like you will naturally appear.
Why do boys never learn how to chase girls? They firmly believe that by becoming more and more excellent, someone will naturally like them.
Otherwise, why would he be so popular? Look at how some people chase girls, taking them to movies, buying them flowers, and so on. He doesn’t chase them like that; he just makes friends and eats meals with them, and people naturally like him. What has he learned? He’s talkative, humorous, can sing, has a naturally uninhibited and rascally demeanor, and is also kind to people. What girl could resist that? He has stability when needed and can be uninhibited when appropriate, knows a lot, and possesses childlike innocence. He usually doesn’t cause trouble and isn’t afraid of trouble. Don’t just say girls like this kind of person; if I were a girl, I would like him too!
With his mischievous look, when he starts singing, wow, let me tell you, he’s like a changed person in an instant.
During the company’s annual performance, he registered to participate. Everyone else was diligently practicing dancing and singing, but this guy was playing around, not paying any attention to anything else. He already loved singing before, so even singing casually, he was better than most people. That’s why he was so confident.
Wang Fei asked him, “Everyone else is practicing, why aren’t you practicing?”
Guess what this kid said? “I’m such an awesome person, if I practiced, wouldn’t that be too unfair to others? Even without practicing, I’m already quite formidable!”
On the day of the performance, this guy stopped showing off. He sang his chosen song a few times.
When he arrived, a colleague asked, “Why didn’t you come earlier? You should have practiced. Others came early and practiced for a long time.”
The boy smiled and said, “Haha, it’s nothing.”
However, he wasn’t putting on an act. When he got on stage, he asked if he had time to practice. Someone jokingly said, “I can tell you’re good, you don’t even need to practice. Besides, it’s about to start, and there isn’t enough time.”
The boy thought, “That’s true. Why would someone as awesome as me need to practice?” He didn’t dwell on it.
What happened in the end? While others’ performances were chaotic with the audience making noise, when the boy performed, as soon as he opened his mouth and sang the first line, the entire audience instantly fell silent.
Are you kidding me? This guy always sings for fun when he has nothing else to do. In such a situation, even with hundreds or thousands of people, isn’t it still easy for him?
Maintain your composure and don’t panic; just perform steadily. The elder sister in the audience was so moved that she wanted to rush forward to give the boy flowers. So, just think about it? Damn, even the shopkeeper and leaders were clapping enthusiastically. Do you know why?
The sound system for the performance wasn’t suitable for singing. When others sang, it sounded terrible, but when he sang, it was completely different. If people didn’t know the boy had a partner, many would have pursued him – married women and girls already in relationships looked at him with admiration. Who could resist him? He had stability when needed and could be uninhibited when appropriate, knew a lot, and possessed childlike innocence. He usually didn’t cause trouble and wasn’t afraid of trouble. Don’t just say girls like this kind of person; if I were a girl, I would like him too!
So, some younger brothers, just strive to become more and more excellent, and then you won’t have to worry about not finding a partner!
He speaks knowledgeably, understanding astronomy and geography, the Five Elements, Bagua, and Two Principles, and he even knows about sow postpartum care, hehehe.
The main point is being able to brag and also being able to accomplish what you brag about. Then it’s not called bragging anymore; it’s called ability.
Be steady and down-to-earth, learn while working hard, carve a path through mountains and build bridges over water. If there’s no road, forge one yourself and walk it.
No matter how old you are, you only have a chance at success if you dare to think and dare to act. Life is a constant struggle; win against yourself, and you will succeed.
Don’t think about gambling it all away with one big gamble. You can strive, but don’t gamble. Ten gambles are often fraudulent; it seems like a 50/50 chance, but in reality, the odds are one in ten or even lower.
If you have a gambler’s heart, you will likely suffer a gambler’s fate. Slow down your steps a bit, slow down your mind a bit. Keep learning, learn steadily, and save money for yourself. When the time is ripe and the opportune moment arrives, carefully observe, grasp the opportunity decisively, and seize the wind. If you don’t succeed the first time, don’t be discouraged; wait for the next chance.
Everyone will have a few major opportunities in their lifetime, and there are many small opportunities in life. The more anxious you are, the more you need to be steady and think calmly to survive. When your mind becomes anxious, you’re prone to doing foolish things and falling into a big pit.
Courage alone or wisdom alone is useless. If you possess both courage and wisdom, along with spirit, why worry about not being able to carve out your own territory? Never giving up is the necessary condition for your success. Study hard now, and in ten years, you will surely thank yourself for the decisions you made today.
