the inutility of words

In Tew's Day's mailbox . . .

The ego loves to use words, but the primary way we [truly] communicate . . . is by our presence. . . Understandably, many of us have come to rely on an impersonal medium like the printed word. But the only way words can have any effect on our lives is if a person is coming across through this medium. . . to let others encounter me in some real way. That’s the only experience that will make any of my words halfway believable. – Richard Rohr

Eastern philosophy is relentless with its bewildering koans. In some instances, insoluble riddles are a trick to elicit the realization of the inutility of words to reveal the true nature of reality. And, in other cases, their goal is to inspire deep analysis.

The highest virtue is not virtuous.
Therefore, it has virtue.
The lowest virtue holds on to virtue.
Therefore, it has no virtue.

– Verse 38 from the Tao Te Ching

Those who wear their virtue on their sleeve (or around their collar) generally have little of it. Performative virtue is hollow of true beneficence. The poets so often attribute the “highest virtue” (of which Lao Tzu writes) to the “principled brigand.” Consider Shakespeare’s many fools (Feste, Falstaff, Dromio) or Hotei, the corpulent, laughing monk. . . . Westerners tend to associate virtue with morality and qualities such as compassion, temperance, courage and humility. However, the Chinese don’t recognize virtue as concomitant with ethics. Virtue results from a profound study of nature and is expressed by aligning yourself with its course and is a skill that one refines. . . .True virtue is knowing and aligning with The Way – the intelligence of nature. Identify the river’s current and get with it. – Jeff Krasano

“The great secret of the successful fool is that he is no fool at all.” -- Isaac Asimov