Don't Save the World

"Spirituality doesn't mean you have to save the world. The world is fine the way it is. But evolution never stops. You just have to move within its flow."

-- Leonard Willoughby. Everyday Tao, p. 32

Do gooders of the world, lighten up! If Jesus couldn't do the job, it's very unlikely that you will be able to do it either. The world cannot be saved. Mostly because it doesn't need to be. The world its what it is, in this moment. In the next moment it will be subtly different. Better to perceive the way in which it is changing and flowing than to impose your own ideas or vision upon it.

Why is the world the way it is? Who knows? That's part of the mystery of life. But when you don't like the way the world is, when you've judged it to be bad, wrong, unfair, or somehow less than ideal, it's easy to create overly simplistic reasons that superficially explain why what is, is. "The world's the way it is because people are not open and loving, " you say. And I agree. That seems to be part of the picture. But I'm not ready to start an Open & Loving Campaign. Or worse yet, enact laws that require us all to be open and loving.

You want a more open and loving world? Be more open and loving yourself. You won't save the world, but you'll surely improve your little corner of it.

Moving within the flow is the way of Tao. It is co-creation, co-evolution. Instead of trying to impose your well-intentioned, though ultimately ego-based, ideas upon the world, see and appreciate the world as it is. Embrace the paradox -- the world is fine the way it is, and yet it never stops evolving. Your role is to harmonize with the evolution, not to push the river. Or as James Taylor sings, "Gliding down, sliding down. Try not to try too hard. It's just a lovely ride."

Put down your crown of thorns. Slide into the evolutionary slipstream. The Tao is always now.