EXCESS

Rajesh Ranjan Mahapatra – H16096

XLRI Jamshedpur
Zen and the Executive Mind:
EXCESS

Before starting to discuss the meaning of “Excess”, it is important to understand about

“GUO”, which is the symbol of excess. On the left is the character for "movement" and
"path." On the right is a phonetic. Excess is actually relative. Following Tao is a matter of
balance and moderation. Tao is the path, as the left side of the word “GUO” reminds us.
When we go off that path, we have the condition of excess.

Excess is like a weed, once unchecked it keeps on growing and spreading and destroys the
essence of life. Taoism advises us to identify and uproot and finally discard the weed of
excess. These weeds are driven by sense of ego driven wants of pomposity. Our want to feel
important and desired drives us to become boastful and to gloat about our worldly
achievements which enables the Ego to decide the direction of our life. As Zen philosophy
teaches us, these wants for gaudiness resemble a disease on our souls and the Ego if not
controlled becomes our greatest enemy in finding the true meaning of one’s existence.

In the famous book on Tao, the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu, Excess is described in chapter 24,
an English translation of the verse reads as

He who stands on tiptoe is not steady.

He who strides cannot maintain the pace.

He who makes a show is not enlightened.

He who is self-righteous is not respected.

1
 The verse begins with a similarity of remaining on our tip toes. This means, we human beings
sometimes attempt to be more prominent than we are. In the event that we endeavour to
fill ourselves with self-grandeur and self-importance, the result will be that we will lose our
ability to stand firmly. Lao-tzu's recommendation is to quit attempting to be what we are
not, and rather live as we really are. We ought to be modest in our day by day issues, and be
content with our identity consistently. We should demonstrate gratitude for all that we have,
and all that we are. Daily gratitude and practicing mindfulness every day keeps us on our
path of self-discovery and realization. Working on concentrating on what you have, and not
what you need, at that point and demonstrating appreciation for everything the master has
given is the true Zen way of living.

In the next part about making long steps; I think this encourages us to live in the present
moment and not make a desperate attempt to get where we were going. Rather than

2
 concentrating on our ultimate objective we ought to be unassuming and appreciate the
process of finding one’s life’s meaning.

The next piece of the verse is encouraging us to not gloat or be proud. Flaunting does not
indicate illumination. Gloating about our achievements just influence us to look like nitwits.
In the second verse of the Tao Te Ching it says " when the work is done, it is forgotten. That
is why it lasts forever," or in the ninth verse it says "resign when the work is done; this is the
best approach to paradise." These are for the most part cases of working without boasting
or assuming praise for your diligent work. It is decent to be recognized, however this ought
not be our primary objective. I also see my personal issues in this piece of the verse.
Whenever I prepare for an exam, I always think to score a A/A+ or else I think I would be
disappointed. This need for A/A+ may have been subconsciously guided by my need to feel
proud of my achievements. Ultimately most of the times when I don’t get that grade, I feel
disappointed.

I am most intrigued by the line " He who is self-righteous is not respected." The meaning of
Self-Righteousness is " having or characterized by a certainty, especially an unfounded one,
that one is totally correct or morally superior." This is a fascinating line in that the Tao
denounces being holier than thou in our religious issues. In stark contrast to major religions
like Hinduism, Christianity or Islam, Buddhism and Taoism actually don't send its adherents
out on preacher outings to get the message out. They don't put on a show to be better than
other people who have a different belief system. This is the reason you have never observed
any religious persecution/jihad/ Inquisition in Buddhism/Zen. Zen never passes any
judgment on you in view of how you adhered to its religious practices or not. I think this
lesson is far unique in relation to some different religions out there, which is the reason I have
discovered an otherworldly home in the philosophy of Zen and Buddhism.

3
 The world is brimming today with self-proclaimed “stars”, who are nothing more than show-
offs. I experience serious difficulties denouncing such individuals, incompletely in light of the
fact that I may be one of them and mostly in light of the fact that it's very justifiable,
considering the short rat race we are in presently, be it grades, placements or social events.

To put it bluntly, we all know that death is inevitable, and we know we can do nothing about
it, no matter how powerful we are. In this way, we attempt to address this fact in any capacity
we can. We're are always eager to prove a point, achieve something significant or make an
impact. At this point false pride, self-righteousness, pomposity, and boasting start.
Psychologically, It’s just a way to feed ourselves with a false sense of security that we are
powerful, but in the depths of our heart we know, that we cannot beat death at the end.

We need to survive demise, some way or another. We need to make a mark. That yearning
is one of envy of the divine forces of our own creation. We need to be them. The old Greeks
called it hubris, contrasting oneself with the divine beings. We would call it fancy. It's not
imprudence, but rather comfort against the miserable unavoidable truths that apply to
everyone. It's our yearning for an existence that might really counts in society. In the event
that we can't all have it, we chose a few of us to laureate and we call them “idols” or “stars”,
and we do it with a specific end goal, which is to keep the fantasy alive. These icons/idols of
our own are additionally our casualties.

Human life depends on the guideline of balance. Our bodies can't endure extraordinary
physical conditions. So, do our brains. We can't withstand extraordinary temperatures of
warmth and chilly nor outrageous states of joy and torment. Over the top self-denial is as
unsafe as inordinate liberality. Continuous failures due to unrealistic goals prompt
dissatisfaction, despondency and lower our self-confidence. Excessive achievement or
acclaim/success for the most part brings with itself undue mental pressure, anxiety and
disappointment with everyday life. Overeating harms the body, so does extreme dieting.

4
 Similarly, absence of rest/sleep impedes our physical and mental working, but over sleeping
also prompts a condition of idleness and mental torpor.

Our connections/bonds don't flourish, in the event that we get excessively close or move far
away. Children won’t grow up to be successful and happy if they are treated either too
leniently or too strictly. Nature is based upon the principles of adjust and agreement and any
mis adjustments result in natural catastrophes like Earthquakes or tsunamis. The principle
of control is an essential piece of numerous eastern religions like Hinduism, Buddhism,
Sikhism and Taoism.

For the mind, the middle-way/balance is a guide. It causes us evade the entanglements of
extreme views. When one goes too fast, he should slow down a bit. When one falls short of
something, one should increase. By "middle", the Buddha essentially meant that both
spiritualism as well as materialism are important for achieving enlightenment, just like to
turn page, we need to hold both the front and back sides of a sheet of paper. Zen integrates
both materialism and spiritualism to help adherents in bringing about a condition of extreme
bliss, transcendence and the highest dimension, “mushotoku”. Modern civilizations are in
complete contrast to Zen as most of the modern western civilizations are based on the
concept of dualism. Materialism in those civilizations is seen as the enemy of spiritualism, as
we had witnessed in the constant feuds between the church and the royalty in the middle
ages. Hinduism and Christianity also recommend penance, hardship and renouncement of
worldly possesions to attain true spiritual awakening. Buddhism, however, is in complete
contrast to this and believes in inseparableness and oneness of the spirit and the body or in
other words, between materialism and spirituality.