Some people say that more bitter things can nourish the heart, which may be true, because from the perspective of Chinese medicine, the heart belongs to fire, and the five flavors correspond to bitterness. Eating something bitter does have the effect of getting rid of heart fire.
Moreover, some people advocate calming down, such as taking a regular lunch break at noon in summer, being calm on weekdays and sitting still often, which is also a good way to nourish the heart.
However, these external treatments of nourishing the heart are not the fundamental methods.
Mencius told us: "nourishing the heart is not good at lewdness."
"Widow" means scarcity, that is, nothing can nourish the soul more than "widow".
I have to say that we contemporary people are more or less mentally ill.
The great richness of material civilization directly led to the loss of control of our desires.
People are thinking about how to have more, such as money, houses, cars, watches, bags and so on. These material wealth has become a very common definition of happiness in this era.
But when we have these, we have to start new anxiety and troubles in our hearts.
As the saying goes, "from simplicity to luxury, from luxury to frugality", once people have it, they will feel anxious about possible losses in the future. The more they have, the more serious this anxiety will be.
Moreover, if people's desires are not controlled, they will expand at will.
When we reach a material level, we must stare at a higher goal to desire.
In the process of this desire, people's original kindness and innocence are gradually erased.
So we will find that once the material resources of society are rich, people's living standards are improved, and people's hearts will be broken.
People began to become greedy and selfish, putting money first in everything, so the feelings between people became weaker and weaker.
Moreover, inner anxiety affects the transformation of body function. The incidence of hypertension, hyperlipidemia, hyperglycemia, cancer and cardiovascular diseases in contemporary society is getting higher and higher, and its essence comes from inner greed and anxiety.
Therefore, Mencius told us that knowing "few desires" and reducing one's own desires is the best way to cultivate one's self-cultivation.
But how can we reduce our desire?
In contemporary society, holding a mobile phone at home is a dazzling array of food, goods, short videos and so on, and merchants rack their brains to provide temptation.
Mencius said:
"Adult said, reserved, don't see its majestic. The hall is several meters high and the number of questions is several feet. I must succeed. The abbot served hundreds of concubines before eating, and I was successful. I'm happy to drink, ride horses and hunt. I'll ride in the back a thousand times. I will get what I want. "
Translated from a modern point of view, people are equal in spirit. It is normal to meet people with money and status, so there is no need to curry favor with them.
Luxury houses, luxury cars, food, wine, yachts, beautiful women and other things that most people long for, even if I succeed and have the ability, are too extravagant to enjoy.
Mencius told us: "I did nothing there." For me, this is an ancient system. "
We should establish a decent personality, maintain ordinary and simple living habits, pay attention to the shaping of our spiritual beliefs, and pursue more meaningful things for the country and society.
Instead of being fettered by the extravagant life of those who are obsessed with money, they fall into an empty and meaningless vanity style.
With a firm and decent spiritual belief in your heart, your material desires will naturally be less. In this way, no matter how complicated things are in society and how tempting the material is, I can't shake my heart at all. What else can I care about?
Just do what you should do, this is the most fundamental way to raise your heart.