Wang Guowei said in "Human Words", "In the realm of self, I observe things with me, and all objects have my color. In the realm without self, I observe things with things, so I don't know what they are. Me, what is a thing?" Self and non-self can be used to comment on the realm of poetry, but is it not a standard for measuring the realm of life? Especially for leading cadres, when they are in power, when are they selfless, where are they not selfless, and where are they selfless, this is a question worthy of serious consideration.
"Having me" is the highlighting of self-awareness, the confirmation of role positioning, the cultivation of the courage to be responsible and the courage to take on responsibilities, and the courage to stand up at critical moments. I should be there before responsibility, I should be there before officers, and I should be there before development. Only in this way, when facing the difficulties of reform and development, can we have the responsibility to sacrifice others; when facing the focus of starting a business, can we have the urgency of not waiting for ourselves; when facing the pain points of the interests of the masses, can we have single-minded sincerity. If you stand back when taking on responsibilities and stand back when promoting development, you will always leave yourself completely alone when something goes wrong. If you don't know yourself, how can you not delay development opportunities and spread problems and contradictions?
Laozi said in "Tao Te Ching", "The reason why I have a serious illness is because I have a body. But I don't have a body, what trouble do I have?" In the face of fame and fortune, people take themselves too seriously. If you are too attached to yourself about honor, disgrace, gains and losses, you will inevitably become a slave to things, worry about gains and losses, and be in constant panic all day long. When status, rank, and treatment take priority in the ranking of values, and when material, welfare, and enjoyment are at the forefront of life pursuits, how can leading cadres calm down and work hard? When there is no self in front of fame and fortune, there is the indifference of not being happy with gains and not worrying about losses, the open-mindedness of not being happy with things and not being sad with oneself, and the tranquility of cold waves and white birds. Only if it has no self, can it come and go at will, and its mind is like a flat lake, not tempted by interests, not confused by material things, and not moved by money.
Beyond self, there is even more selflessness. There is a story about a Zen master who was concentrating on meditation. Whenever his disciple reported that someone was visiting him, the Zen master always asked: "Who is the Zen master?" Forgetting, there is a kind of concentration that enjoys it and has no distractions, and a kind of mind that the heaven and earth are coexisting with me, and all things are with me. For leading cadres, they can forget themselves for the sake of their career; they can forget their selfishness for the sake of the people. Forgetting the small self is to fulfill the selfless self; forgetting the individual self is to fulfill the self of millions of people. Confucius said, "As a human being, he is so angry that he forgets to eat, and he is happy and forgets his worries. He doesn't know that old age is coming." With selfless concentration and mind, you can gain a broader mind and vision, get rid of the trappings of flies and dogs, and understand. The spiritual joy of pursuing dreams and dedication.
Selfhood, selflessness and selflessness ultimately test the leading cadres’ view of power. When serving in government, is it to benefit one party and seek benefits for the masses, or is it to be greedy for personal gain and pursue personal pleasure? When you are in a key position, do you respect power and the masses with humility, or do you act arrogantly and condescendingly? Understand the true meaning of "power is given by the people, and power is used by the people", understand the metaphor of boats and water, and the principles of rise and fall. When leading cadres exercise power, they will know where "I" should be placed.
There is such a couplet, "My heart is with the people, no matter how big or small it is; benefit belongs to the world, why fight for more to get less." If leading cadres are committed to their career, selfless to fame and selfless dedication, they will not only be good news to the masses, but will also achieve a happy life that reaches perfection.
"People's Daily" (Page 04, August 28, 2013)