Shen Yue spoke of the profound principles of cultivation.
The worldly people speak constantly of immortality and Nascent Soul, yet they do not know that this thought is merely an obsession. In this world, those with obsessions have never endured for long.
Emperor Qin was obsessed with longevity and ultimately died violently, Emperor Wu of Han craved fame and ended up with the tragic fate of losing his wife and children. Emperor Taizong of Tang killed his brothers and imprisoned his father; Emperor Taizong of Song quarreled with his brother, all due to the obsession with power.
Thus it is with emperors, and likewise with cultivation.
Laozi explicitly said—those who hold on to things lose them. Therefore, the sage acts without striving and thus has no defeat; has no obsession and thus has no loss.
Yet those who follow the path of immortality passed down from the ancestor Laozi become increasingly obsessive.
