“the second is called conservation

verse 10 from Chapter 67, Tao Te Ching

The second of the three virtues is conservation. Conservation is the virtue of preserving, protecting, not being wasteful and using resources in a wise method. It is used in both material and non-material aspects of life.

Examples:

Material resources: money, home, clothes, car etc.

Non-material resources: friendship, relationships, energy, time etc.

These material and non-material things in life are limited. Since they can be used up, it is important to take care of things that can be hard to replace. Your most important resource is life. Life is limited for everyone, therefore you must learn to conserve your life so that you can endure successfully. Sovereignty is the self-disciplined management of ego so that you don’t waste your life experience. Longevity and endurance depend on skillfully managing your resources so that your biggest resource, life, can be long and full.

Conservation has complementary relationships with other virtues such as moderation, patience, harmony and mystic virtue. When you practice patience, you can use your resources in moderation to keep balance and harmony in your life. Longevity, endurance, prosperity, and harmony are all inherent powers of conservation.

Conservation of Spirit. (constancy)

The foreword section of this book defines life as a sacred journey of experience. You are called to be awake, aware and experiencing life to gain wisdom. Successful realization of sovereignty can only happen when you continually return to self-awareness and unity with the Tao. This constantly returning/awakening is called constancy.¹

Conservation of spirit is one of the highest virtue. Conservation of spirit empowers you to manage the ego and desire so that you do not deplete your resources. As always it comes back to conservation of spirit to be mindful of choices. Choosing actions that conserve both intangible and tangible assets is key to longevity and avoiding suffering and death.

Remember, your actions are like ripples in a pond. We are all connected. Your compassion or your indifference can affect so many. When you deplete your spiritual awareness and make selfish choices, the result can affect others. When you stupidly waste your life, others must sacrifice some of their own resources to help you start over. Those with compassion are willing to help. However, it is important to know that compassion from others can have a limit along with patience. If you hit bottom and have a chance to start over, you must use the gifts of compassion from others to help yourself return to harmony. Gratitude for assistance can go a long way.

The penalty for continuing to be the prisoner of ego and self-serving narcissism is dealt out by karma. Karma² sometimes called “the great executioner” does not play favorites. Any notion of “it can’t happen to me” will be crushed. Karma is the result of your own ignorance choices. You must be honest with yourself and realize your actions. Conservation is a virtue that the Sovereign works at to build wisdom. You must be mindful of your resources and keep harmony in your life.