The Physics of Kindness: Compassion as a Universal Precept

     Philosophical Taoism tells us that the Tao, the course of the universe, is a fluid, imperceptible unity underlying all reality. It is the origin of all existence, and to veer from its path is to suffer unhappiness and instability. The path of the Tao is the path of nature, of the true way that things are and behave, and it is far afield from the path of modern civilization. When we struggle against the Tao, against the natural flow of things, we struggle needlessly. We create instability in a system that is perfectly, beautifully stable, and we set ourselves apart from this universal unity. Tao is perfect unto itself, and we, as a part of its perfection, have the potential to follow the true course. We need only kindness and understanding to show us the way, to cease the endless struggles of Humankind.
     To understand the root of the need for harmony and goodness in human affairs, we need only look to the universal structures that have preceded us. The evolution of life on earth has led us to live in a world of systems (be they individuals, species, or entire eco-spheres) that, simply put, work, in the sense that they have reached a high level of self-sufficiency through survivability and adaptability. In exactly the same way, the universal phenomena we see around us have developed through an analogous process of universal evolution whereby a system may only achieve a certain complexity if the steps leading up to it have established a high degree of stability. Unstable systems never develop far, which is why they’re all far gone in the past. We see around us a universe that, like our own biosphere, simply works. But there are steps in this progression of universal complexity, such as the recombination of atoms from the early plasma state, the formation of these atoms into stars, the accretion of stellar byproducts into larger molecular masses, the development of these chemical systems into biological entities, and the gradual sophistication of these biological nervous systems to a point capable of self-awareness, consciousness and abstract thought. These are not discreet steps, for the most part, but gradual developmental phases in the state of the universe.
     In the beginning stages of all these vast and momentous developments, there is a procession of fits and starts, where things start to gel together in a general direction, but encounter dead ends along the way. It must have taken quite a bit of particulate jostling before those solitary atoms settled into the elegant waltz of fusion at the heart of every star. In each example of a universal phase transition, it is as a system’s stability increases that it is more likely to achieve the next evolutionary step. In the current universal stage, the development of consciousness, something new has occurred. It seems that no longer are we blindly stumbling through the darkness, but instead possess a newfound potential to affect our state of affairs with a definitive purpose. If we are still stumbling about to some extent, it is only because of the blinders we place over our own eyes.
     So we, as every system before us, require a definite internal stability in order to ensure not only our success but our very continued existence. The definition of "success" in this context I will return to later. As far as we know, we are the first universal system that is aware of itself, its own progress, its own potential. As such we are uniquely empowered to affect our destiny. If we would only stop and think about why we do what we do, if we would cease our frantic jostling from dawn to dusk and from birth to death with nary a moment for true reflection, we would see that the power to ensure our future is within our own hands. We must exercise benevolent system stability to the best of our ability. And what is "system stability" for the human race? That is truly the easiest question of all—harmony, peace, good will. I have written before of the Four Treasures of compassion, humility, moderation and levity as essential tools for self-improvement. These apply perfectly in this case. By practicing them we may cast aside the aggression of the ego and make way for the harmony of the universe around us. We simply behave kindly to our fellows—we smile. If we are wronged, we refrain from striking back. Remember that every action we commit is only a segment of an infinitely long string of action-reaction-action-reaction that can easily continue until the human race is dead and gone. So if you are wronged just step back, smile, turn away. You will have accomplished a feat more difficult—and more important—than you may realize. You have broken a thread of violence and retribution that could have continued for years without end, and you did this simply by turning away. This is the power we possess, the strength of our thoughts and our will, to turn the human race in a direction where it will not founder and disappear into a pit of its own instability.
     With the perfect elegance of the best physics, what is good for the individual spirit is good for the population as a whole. When we improve our minds and our hearts we help ourselves and our fellows move along the true path of the universe. Harmony and stability are the guardians of our future. It is not for religious credit or morality or egoism that we should be kind to each other, it is because that is the true universal way. If we fail to learn to practice this loving kindness we will inevitably perish. If we learn to love our fellows we will be happier, safer and secure in our future.
     Which brings me back to the term "success" as applied to the future of the human race. We can philosophically discard many concepts as being true for some people but not for others—heaven may be a metaphor, enlightenment nothing more than a grand hoax. But the progress of systems from simpler states to more complex ones is the indisputable universal flow. It is what has occurred since the beginning of time, and its consistency is undeniable. Until now, that progress has been both cruel and blind. Through us, however, the universe has opened its eyes and is suddenly looking upon itself, past, present and future. It can discern its own pattern, it can recognize its spirit in the reliable way that each phase achieves stability and increases in complexity. Eventually, something new and wonderful will rise from this new found intricacy. So "success" for the human race signifies an ability to follow the course of the universe, to adapt, to survive, to stabilize—to gloriously metamorphose into the next stage of existence. Failure, on the other hand, is to follow the course of aggression and destruction—of internal instability—and ultimately to wither on the cosmic vine.
     Our part is simple—if we are promote harmony, we will move on to unimaginable wonders. If we continue to fight wars, abuse power and hoard wealth then we will perish, because under such conditions the system of humanity will not be able to support itself. We will dissolve into irrelevance, and there will no one left to remember us. "Success" is not a subjective term depending on one’s moral system of beliefs—it is an absolute term based on the template established by the entire history of the universe. To succeed we need only be good to each other, kind, charitable and compassionate. These are the keys to our destiny, to our successful advancement in the evolution of the universe, and to our reunification with the Tao.

October 16, 2003
by Peter Patrick Barreda, material copyright 2009, all rights reserved