Farmers

Plain country folk with rounded bodies,
Skin turning to bronze in the valley heat.
Why talk to them about Tao?
They eat when they are hungry,
They sleep when they are sleepy.
Even sage with infinite permutations
Could not match their simplicity.

Deng Ming-Dao

Do you want to know about simplicity? Go live with the farmers. Their daily activities are coordinated with the seasons, they are close to the earth, and they do not spend their time figuring out to attain status. They are honest and plain. They make no distinction between who they are as individuals and who they are as farmers.

Those of us who live in cities would be hard pressed to equal the farmer in simplicity. Simplicity, after all, is what Tao most celebrates. Who needs to know the digits of pi? Who needs to engineer a new monetary policy? Who needs to strive for political office? None of these things are necessary to be a human being.

Give up unnecessary things.