Chapter 22.2: On Becoming Whole Again

 

Seeing beyond themselves, they thus radiantly play their part;

not showing themselves off, they thus shine bright like the sun and the moon.

Not out to get for themselves, they are thus accomplished;

not out to boast of themselves in each moment, they thus grow and endure long.

Now, it is only because they do not contend – engage in the tug of war –

 that no one in the world can tug on them.

Of old it was said, “broken yet made whole,” are these but a few empty words?

Truly, we can become whole and return home.

When we see beyond ourselves, we can shine like the sun – not just for ourselves, we can be a source of light for others as we play our part radiantly in the symphony of life.  Counterintuitively, we don’t need to show offor put ourselves on display as an object.  In the words of leading body image experts Lindsay and Lexi Kite, PhD, we are “more than a body” our bodies are instruments not ornaments.  We are already rare, precious, and priceless treasures.  We need only to choose to see and embrace our place in the universe. 

When we are not just out to get ours, trying to outsmart and outmaneuver others, and looking out for numero uno, that’s when we can accomplish great things.  When we are not out tooting our own horn all the time, engaging in self-promotion, or trying to convince people how amazing we are and just live our lives, pursue our passions, and develop our dreams, that’s when we can make a difference in the world and in the lives of others.  Selflessness is the secret to longevity and lasting legacy.

We often find ourselves going round and round on the roller coaster of relative worth with its corkscrew of constant comparisons (there are unlimited fast passes :P).  It has been said that “comparison is the thief of joy” and “the death of true self-contentment.”  When we choose to believe and buy into that, everyone around us becomes competition, which often leads to contention.  

Sages, or wise people, choose not to contend with others, to engage in the constant back and forth, the tug of war of contentious comparison.  When we choose not to take up that rope of relative worth, we cannot be tugged this way or that by the opinions and agendas of others – and therefore there is no competition or contention with others.  We simply go where we're needed like water and give ourselves and everyone else permission to be their best selves, (re)discover their destinies, and pursue their passions and personal purpose in this world.

These few simple words offer a message of profound hope: There is ALWAYS a Way – a Way forward, a Way upward, a Way over, a Way around, or a Way through – from where we are right now to where we want to get to in any aspect of our lives.  It doesn’t matter how broken, fractured, warped, or messed up we may feel or how long we’ve felt trapped or stuck in our lives, we can become whole again, can return to the wellspring of our souls, reconnect with the taproot of our being, (re)unify our fractured souls, and experience a joyous homecoming of self.  It starts with vision, with choosing to see the best in ourselves and others – to look upon and offer up our gifts on the altar of life and no that they and we are enough right now, where we are, as we are, in this very moment – even as we strive to become the best versions of ourselves. ~ DCB

Translation & Etymology Notes:  

The character 视 (shi4) refers to vision and the ability to see signs.  It is comprised of an altar 示 on the left (also the phonetic shi4), which also denotes inspiration, signs, and revelation, and 見, meaning to see and be seen, to behold, etc.  Thus 視 refers to one's vision or ability to see the signs and evidence of things.  As Steven R. Covey put it in The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, “We see the world, not as it is, but as we are – or, as we are conditioned to see it.”  Whether the glass is half-empty or half-full depends on how we choose to see it – the glass is the same.  If we choose to see the good in the world, we will see those signs.  If we choose to see the best in ourselves and others, we will find evidence.  The opposite is also true.

The character 彰 (zhang1) is composed of three rays of sunshine 彡on the right and the phonetic 章 (zhang1) on the left.  章 refers to a part in a musical composition.  Combining these meanings together, I have thus rendered 彰 as 'to radiantly play our part' in the symphony of life.

The character 矜 refers to an elaborate and ornate spear handle and implies drawing attention to, boasting about, and focusing on things that are superfluous, extraneous, and that just don't really matter -- a spear works just as well with a simple wooden handle.

The character 爭 (zheng1), to contend, depicts to hands (and in one case four hands) pulling on a rope, sometimes from different directions.  So, I have double translated this as 'to not contend – engage in a tug of war.'

Lastly, I have followed the common convention of reading 見 (jian4), to see and be seen or to behold, as 現 (xian4), to show, to put on display.  I have also followed the sequence and order of the Mawangdui manuscripts for the first two stanzas, which differs slight from the traditional version in reversing the order of the clauses.