Foundation

How do you build a civilization?

What is the bedrock of a society?

My experience lately has cemented my understanding that for some people, patience really is a virtue.

I had to consciously force myself to slow down my actions. Place one foot here, place the second step here. Feel which muscles you’re tensing. Relax the other ones. It’s not patience precisely (although that is part of it), it’s more like granting yourself the permission to perform an action properly, perfectly; even if it takes longer or more effort.

「無欲速，無見小利。欲速，則不達；見小利，則大事不成。」

— 孔子 (Confucius)

Do you know why people say ‘my body is my temple’ (though often mockingly)? It’s because at a deeper level, a temple represents a holy but more importantly an enclosed space; like a castle.

This metaphor has been around for a long time: you (your soul; your consciousness or your mind, what have you) is the lord of your castle. All around you are other castles. Some are smaller but very well maintained and rich with resources — the people within live abundant and merry lives; others are much bigger but disorderly with internal wars raging all the time — the leaders of these big castles are more well-known and powerful; they have more of a voice in how the entire area of castles are managed.

Then there is that one castle on top of the hill; it’s much much bigger than any other castles near it. Yet its denizens have peaceful and content lives; they often have disputes but never let the problem affect the unity of the castle as a whole.