Harmonious Living

《中庸之道》

HARMONIOUS LIVING

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As the year comes to a close / a new start, we often find ourselves entangled in various discussions about the "right and wrong" of health on social platforms. Even relatives who sit across the table have opinions about our lifestyles. At the same time, we carry a load of new year resolutions that often with a high rate of disappointment. The initial purpose is to lighten our burden and boost vitality, but in reality, we might end up absorbing a significant amount of new weight and pressure into our overall well-being.

隨著年尾年頭臨近，總會陷入在社交某體上各種「健康對與錯」，甚至坐對面枱的親戚都對著我們生活方式提出各種意見。同時，背上亦出現一堆對自己失望率甚高的新年新計劃。本身目的是為自己減輕負荷並提高生活質素，但實質只是不斷吸收一大堆新的重量及壓力在自己身心靈上。

The Chinese word for "health" implies that on a foundation of physical, mental, and spiritual well-being, there must be "space" to maintain stability. To understand the quality of health, one must first comprehend the Middle Way and the principles of Yin and Yang. Many are familiar with the concept of Yin and Yang, especially those born into Chinese cultural backgrounds, but interpretations vary widely. Each family, ancestor, lineage has their own insights, realizations, practices, and methods of health preservation based on the Middle Way.

中文字「健康」是指一個人身心靈基礎上要有「空間」才能保持穩健。而要理解健康質素（即是養生之一），首先要瞭解中庸之道和陰陽。很多人對陰陽學說並不陌生，特別是生於華人背境家庭中，但了解其意思便有千秋萬種。每個家庭、老祖宗也有各自對中庸之道的見解、領悟、修行、及養生一套方法。

An ancient scholar once asked their students, "In the Way of the Mean, between Yin and Yang, which character is the most important?" The students of ancient times were no different from present-day students and replied, "Way" (道). The “Way” is formed by combining the characters for "walking", "self", "head" and "pause" in Chinese which represents something that can’t be defined by a single word unless you’ve lived in it. The character "之" means the continuous transformation "between" the changes of Yin Yang.

岑逸飛先生提到古人問學生：「一陰一陽之謂道，那個字最重要？」，古時眾學生與現今學生沒冇分別，紛紛回答：「道」。道之所為道，是由「行走」、「自」、「首」、「停頓」的字結合而成，將大無形、不可用一詞解釋的稱之為「道」。而「之」即是陰陽之間的不斷轉化及轉變。

In this process, the concept is like to the Big Bang in the universe or the division of cells within our bodies— the Way births two, two births three, and three births all things. The equilibrium between the two poles in chaos, and achieving this harmony requires finding the center point. "中" in the Way of the Mean can refer to the middle (as an adjective) but can also mean hitting the center (as a verb). One must aim for the right point within the chaos to achieve Yin Yang harmony. However, since everyone's background, timing, tests, living environment, and mission are different, the point of balance also varies—some may be at 20/80, while others at 40/60.

與宇宙大爆炸或我們體內細胞分裂概念相近 - 道生二、二生三、三生萬物。當中，一生二指出混沌中的兩極互相產生平衡同時需要兩者之間找出中庸。中庸的「中」可指中間（形容詞），但亦解作射中（動詞）。即是要取出平衡便要射中混沌中的一點來作出陰陽平衡，但因每人背境、時機、考驗、生活環境及使命有別，所以平衡點也不同，有的是20/80，有的是40/60。

With that said, when we engage in endless debates, we are essentially living in chaos (changes) of the nature. Other than acquiring knowledge through academics and words, each of us needs to journey through life, pause, use our minds (head) to think, and then find our own balance point in between the changes. What others provide is merely for reference only. That goes back to what a phrase, “Eating together at the same table but each cultivating their own practice” means—there's no need to measure our own "quality of space" with someone else's yardstick.

大家不斷爭理應多吃甚麼、少做甚麼、誰是誰非，只不過是已經活在自然界的混沌中。除了在文字上學到知識，亦需要各自在生命中行走，停一停，用腦（首）思考，再於空間（之間）找出自己的陰陽平行，這才是真正找到自我養生的中庸之道。別人提供的多是參考作用，同枱食飯、各自修行，不必用別人的尺來量度自己的「空間質素」。

Of course, this piece of journal is just a reference left by me, an uneducated and humble observer.

當然，這文只是由我這小混混留來作參考而已。

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Cover photo : charlesdeluvio @ unsplash

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