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and I'm going to take a few Passages from this great text on How to Live Life: Less
and Less Do You Need to force things until finally you arrive at non-action. Less and
Less Do You Need to force things; don't force anything. You cannot change anyone. And by
forcing things, you are not going to accomplish anything at all. Until finally you arrive
at non-action. Then you come to a point and then you don't act. So, if you don't act,
then who is going to pay the bill. It is a practical question. The answer comes in the
next two sentences: When nothing is done, nothing is left undone. When nothing is done,
nothing is left undone. Do you understand? When you are really able to do nothing, then
you have done everything. The paradox is you should be able to completely completely stay
away from all obligations. Dattatreya, this is my own teaching.
He was talking to one of his students, Parasa Rama. Dattatreya says to Parasa Rama: What
is making you to get out of your totality or unity, is your sense of obligation. You
are obliged, a phone rings, you are obliged to answer it. Then the unity is gone. The
worst obligation is the phone bill. At least you can choose to answer or not answer the
phone. But you have no choice in paying or not paying the phone bill. Then, they will
make sure the bell never rings. So that obligation now drives you to act; then you can't be in
non-action. How can you be in non-action? Hmmm? Then how can you be in non-action? Can
you really be in non-action. Yes, you can be. Non-action doesn't mean that you don't
act. Then you are moving into another territory: The opposite of action. By non-action, Lao
Tzu means an action in which you are not a participant. You are not the doer. The Bhagavad
Gita would say it in different language. It would say 'you are not the doer.' You are
not the doer. You just do it without any attachment to the action or any attachment to the results
of the action. Lao Tzu is not different from Krishna or the Buddha or the quantum physicist.
They all say the same thing: The problem is: your attachment to these things.