Chapter 5 of the Tao Te Ching - Adaptation

Why do people hoard things? Why do they amass great fortunes? What do they think these things will bring them? I see people everyday fighting to have the biggest and best of everything. What is it about human nature that makes them do this?

Everything that exists comes from nature; therefore it all comes from the Tao. Even those things that are man made have their origins in the Tao. Nature itself does not place one thing more important than another. All things exist in harmony and, when left to themselves, all things remain in balance.

The wise are as impartial as nature. They see all people as equally important. The amount of wealth a person has does not make him any more important. The amount of toys that a person collects does not make his existence any more justified than any one else.

Nature is like the space inside a bellows. As the bellows moves, the space yields and adapts. The wise allow themselves to do the same. They adapt to life instead of forcing life to be what they want.

Keep your life simple and your speech more so. More can be said with fewer words. Don’t grasp for things that you think might bring you happiness. Instead, find the happiness that is at your center. Latch on to it, focus on it and never let go.