The idea of wuwei is, to a certain extent, subjective to one’s interpretation. Nevertheless, it should be noticed there is a general consensus – among the readers of the tao te ching – on what wuwei is NOT: that it is a very different concept from doing nothing at all with no particular purpose. In other words, wuwei does not refer to idleness or sloth. In fact, one can find several verses in the tao te ching that often encourages a resolute, willful action. For example, note the following verse of chapter 41:
“The wise student hears of the Tao and practises it diligently.”
Accordingly, one’s practicing of the tao (which is akin to “wuwei”) is far from falling into an idle state of mind. Then what does it exactly mean to practice wuwei?
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First, let us consider this Chinese expression from a lexical viewpoint.
Wuwei = wu + wei (wu: “nothing” wei: “doing”)
Simply put, the above combination of the words can be interpreted to mean:
(1) “no doing, (2) “nothing doing,” or (3) “doing nothing.”
Here, the “nothing” in both (2) and (3) is a little different concept from what we customarily mean when we say “nothing.” When we say “nothing,” we usually think of a void or complete emptiness. However, the meaning of “nothing” as used in the tao te ching is slightly different from that conventional notion (although it can further include that notion as well). In the tao te ching, the “nothing” is not absolute nothingness that excludes everything. Lao Tzu’s highlighted “nothing” involves an idea of an empty background upon which beings can be allowed to do their job. Therefore, I suggest that when we use the term “nothing” as used in the tao te ching, we should capitalize it as NOTHING.
Each of the above translations can be understood as follows:
(i) “No doing” may simply mean what we often say is “non-action,” which literally means not doing anything at all.
(ii) “NOTHING doing” may refer to reliance on the power of autonomy. In a sense, it is as if NOTHING does the work of doing something meaningful.
(iii) “Doing NOTHING” can mean choosing to be strategically malleable.
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Then, a question arises. How do we know that the NOTHING is different from an exclusive concept of nothingness? Is there any statement found in the text of the tao te ching that supports this view?
Let us look into the first chapter of the tao te ching.
Chapter 1
The right Tao is not always the Tao.
The right name is not always the name.
The unnameable is the beginning of the heaven and earth.
The nameable is the mother of everything.
Accordingly, in the state of no desire, one can see the mysteriousness.
In the state of desire, one can see the superficiality.
These two came from the same source, but emerged in different names.
These two are equally black (mysterious).
Black and all the more black (mysterious).
The gate of all mysteries.
Based on the overall disclosure of the tao te ching, it is not difficult to conclude that the above “unnameable” in fact corresponds to “NOTHING.” The unnameable and the nameable; nothing and being; and the empty spaces among the thirty spokes of a wheel and the thirty spokes themselves (Chapter 11) are all meant to indicate a complementary relationship between NOTHING and something. Although Lao Tzu is more into emphasizing the significance of NOTHING over something/being, it should also be understood that NOTHING has its significance only within the context of “something/being.” (For example, a wheel would not exist if it were to solely rely on its emptiness without any spokes. It can also be said that there cannot be a vessel without its brim.)
If you find it difficult to understand the above idea, think about the universe. Even though our universe is vastly large, it may not be infinitely big. That is, the universe may in fact be a finite place beyond which there can be no physically imaginable entity. We can reasonably term what is beyond our universe as “nothing.” Nevertheless, this “nothing” is different from some vacant dark space in our universe. The “nothing” is purely conceptual whereas every vacant space within the sphere of this universe can be occupied by something tangible. The concept of nothing discussed by Lao Tzu is closer to the empty space of our universe.
(Jacques Derrida once similarly remarked that his philosophy of deconstructionism does not mean that words and signs absolutely lose all meanings (in which case our verbal discourse would be totally lost in the ocean of nothingness). What he sought to do was to show that no perpetual idea or meaning can be attached to a “signifiant.” It can be argued that a “signifiant” has the property of Lao Tzu’s NOTHINGNESS in that it allows to be occupied by a different meaning, if not a “signifie.” )
In brief, I conclude that wuwei can have meaning only when we distinguish things to be done and those not to be done.
(One interesting point to note in the above chapter is that these two, namely, NOTHING and being emerge from the same source. This source likely indicates the Tao.)
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Based on the above understanding of “NOTHING,” I contend that the concept of wu-wei can be specified into the following simple keywords.
1. Detachment
2. Autonomy
3. “Flow” (Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi)
4. “Assume Formlessness” (Robert Greene)
These concepts may involve several ideas that were not consciously thought by Lao Tzu himself but are nevertheless deducible from the selective portions of the tao te ching.
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1. Detachment
i. Detachment from an “either/or” attitude
It is Chapter 2 that first mentions the expression “wuwei.”
Chapter 2 partially reads as follows:
“What is and what is not create each other.
Difficult and easy complement each other.
Tall and short shape each other.
High and low rest on each other.
Voice and tone blend with each other.
First and last follow each other.
So, the sage acts by doing nothing,”
At first, one may find it difficult to extrapolate the conclusion “So, the sage acts by doing nothing” from its preceding verses. After all, why would one have to say that a sage practices wuwei based on the ground of such relativistic statements?
In that regard, let us look into several lines of Chapter 58 that I believe are highly relevant to the above content.
“Happiness is rooted in misery.
Misery lurks beneath happiness.
Who knows what the future holds?
There is no definite end.”
Misery lurks beneath happiness.
Who knows what the future holds?
There is no definite end.”
Here, Lao Tzu argues that human affairs are intrinsically dynamic and unpredictable. What is good today happens to be a bad thing the day after, and nobody can be perfectly sure about anything. Accordingly, the sage described in Chapter 2 would not choose to side with only a particular aspect of a given situation. He would either alternate between two opposing viewpoints or maintain a distance from either of the two until he arrives at a rational decision concerning a particular issue. By refusing to steadfastly stick to either of the “binary opposites,” the sage practices doing “nothing.” This idea is also expressed clearly in the preamble of Chapter 1.
“What is a right Tao is not an eternal Tao.”
The state of affairs is beyond one’s reach, for they are influenced by innumerable causes and events. The best course of action for the sage to take, then, would be to practice non-action, namely “wuwei.” Furthermore, by practicing this non-action, the sage would try to arrive at a collective understanding of the ups and downs of a particular event.
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ii. Detachment from unnecessary concerns
When we seek to win in a field of competition (e.g., sports or college tests) and the time comes, we often do more harm to ourselves by over-thinking about the process. The more we obsess over results, the less mental energy there will be to be expended upon doing the actual work. When everything is set and ready, you should let your preparation – and not your conscious worries – do the work. In a sense, you are doing nothing. It is as if there is an autopilot in your head that guides you throughout the process. You hardly do anything on a conscious level; it is your subconscious that handles the job. However, in order for this type of non-action to happen, you should go through an insane amount of work. We can thereby detach our ego and concerns from ourselves so that they won’t interfere with our working process.
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iii. Stoic detachment
Epictetus once said:
“There is only one way to happiness and that is to cease worrying about things which are beyond the power of our will.”
By stopping worrying about things you cannot control, you are practicing wu-wei.
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2. Autonomy
Chapter 60 notes:
To govern a big nation is like to cook a small fish.
