SIMPLICITY: ALLOWING THE NECESSARY TO SPEAK

Many years ago, a friend made me a begging bowl like the ones used by the Buddhist monks.  I keep it on my desk, where it can be seen daily, because it reminds me of several principles that I want to guide my life.  First, it reminds me of Lao Tzu's paradoxical advice that we must be empty if we wish to be full.  Second, it reminds me that my needs, versus my desires, are no greater than what can be placed in a small bowl each day — a little food and a little water.  Finally, and most importantly, it reminds me of the need to anchor my life in simplicity — simplicity of purpose, simplicity of thought, simplicity of action.

In a world where one must "make a living", pay bills, discharge household chores, and take care of loved ones, it may be difficult, if not impossible, to achieve the simple life that is the lodestar for many of us.  Still, I find there are things that can be done to move my life closer to the ideal.  To use the words of the late artist, Hans Hoffman, I can "eliminate the unnecessary so the necessary may speak."  And that is what I truly want.  I want to hear the music of nature; I want to hear the music of other lives and other cultures; I want to listen to the beat and music of my own heart — music that is often smothered by the din and demand of modern life.

How, then, can we eliminate the unnecessary things in our lives, so that the life-affirming, necessary things can not only speak, but be heard?  I'm no expert on these matters, of course — simply a student.  There are a few simplicity practices, however, which I have incorporated into my daily life, and which have been paying considerable dividends in terms of the quality of life. Among the practices that I try to follow are these:

Do not make anything larger, more complex, or more serious than it needs to be.

Let nature and solitude be enough for my daily pleasure.

Always remain conscious and present with the task at hand.

Remember that some things are best left undone.

Minimize exposure to "news" and commercial advertising.

Follow Goethe's advice to "hear a little music, read a little poetry, and see a fine picture every day . . ." 

Keep nothing that is not either useful or beautiful.

Remember that every act of consumption has environmental and social consequences.

Don't waste time attempting to rebut the arguments of foolish people.

To quote Alice Longworth Roosevelt, "fill what's empty, empty what's full,   and scratch where it itches." 

While I have yet to master these practices, I have found that each provides an effective way of simplifying my life, if only in some small measure.  How about you? What practices do you follow to keep yourself anchored in this world of mind-boggling complexity?

Set forth below are some interesting quotes on the need for more simplicity in our lives.  Many of these writers have inspired my own practices.  May you, too, find inspiration that will bring more simplicity and peace to your own lives.

Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent.  It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction.

E.F.  Schumacher

To find the universal elements enough; to find the air and the water exhilarating; to be refreshed by a morning walk or an evening saunter . . . to be thrilled by the stars at night; to be elated over a birds nest or wildflower in spring — these are some of the rewards of the simple life.

John Burroughs

The best things in life are nearest: Breath in your nostrils, light in your eyes, flowers at your feet, duties at your hand, the path of right just before you.  Then do not grasp at the stars, but do life's plain, common work as it comes, certain that daily duties and daily bread are the sweetest things in life.

Robert Louis Stevenson

Besides the noble art of getting things done, there is the noble art of leaving things undone.  The wisdom of life consists in elimination of non-essentials.

Lin Yutang

Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.

William Morris

Be content with what you have, rejoice in the way things are.  When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you.

Lao Tzu

Live simply, so that others may simply live.

Gandhi

As you simplify your life, the laws of the universe will be simpler; solitude will not be solitude, poverty will not be poverty, nor weakness weakness.

Thoreau


Who is rich?  He who rejoices in his portion.


The Talmud

If you cultivate a healthy poverty and simplicity, so that finding a penny will literally make your day, then, since the world is in fact planted with pennies, you have with your poverty bought a lifetime of days.

Annie Dillard

Voluntary simplicity means going fewer places in one day rather than more, seeing less so I can see more, doing less so I can do more, acquiring less so I can have more.

John Kabat-Zinn

You can't force simplicity; but you can invite it in by finding as much richness as possible in the few things at hand.  Simplicity doesn't mean meagerness but rather a certain kind of richness, the fullness that appears when we stop stuffing the world with things.

Thomas Moore

To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not rich; to study hard, think quietly, talk gently, act frankly; to listen to stars and birds, to babes and sages, with open heart; to bear all cheerfully, do all bravely, await occasions, hurry never; in a word to let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious, grow up through the common. This is to be my symphony.

William Henry Channing

Yesterday, my friend Robert, whose blog is The Solitary Walker, posted a moving article on his view of The Simple Life.  I close by quoting from Robert because what he says is as fine as anything said above:

The simple life is the good life, is the best life.  Joy, happiness and fulfillment come from the innocent, simple, often freely bestowed pleasures of existence: a bracing cliff top walk on a blustery autumn day; the sound of bagpipes in a remote Scottish glen; crossing the Spanish meseta under a hot sun, then spending the night in a cheap albergue with other pilgrims; growing, preparing and cooking one's own food; the scent of fir tree sap; the cold grittiness of rock beneath the fingers; the tang of citrus; the cry of owls; the running of deer; eating when hungry, drinking when thirsty, sleeping when tired; lovemaking.

Go forth and keep it simple, 
my friends, 
especially during the holidays!