Can a plan of strategic inactivity prove efficacious? Why would doing nothing necessarily result in right action presenting itself, arising from the chaos of life circumstance? Does this make sense? Shouldn’t we get out there and proactively try things, and do something? Wouldn’t this be better than sitting around, pretending we’re some of kind of Yoda?

There is a time for action, and when it comes we can know the time. But, so often in life, the path forward is very muddy, no clear view, with too many possibilities, and none of them offering likelihood of success. In these cases, Lao-Tzu counsels waiting, and doing nothing. He also says that waiting and inactivity has won more battles than quixotically marching off into the unknown.

But why should nonaction work out well for us?

There is an underlying guiding hand, a universal intelligence. This force of reason superintends the cosmos toward destined outcome. Universal intelligence is beneficent by nature. Only good comes from it. Materialistic man cannot see and knows nothing of this architectonic and subsuming monitoring and shepherding. There is nothing bad in itself, but our self-interest and fear-based interpretations lead us to errant views. All things naturally flow and occur in accordance with this underlying universal wisdom.

When our vision is clouded, we do well to postpone action until we’re granted clear vision forward. Our part is to align our minds and spirits with a beneficent universal intelligence. The answer we seek will yet come, but will often shock us with an unexpected element. We would have done something else, and made everything worse.

Wait, wait for the answer to arise, and present itself, from the havoc and confusion of muddied waters.