The Meaning of Humanness: Human Life Viewed as Striving

Meaning and value in human life are found through striving, which is threefold:

1. Strive within oneself: Emulate sages and worthy men of the past; work to overcome evil thoughts and habits; turn toward goodness and light.
Harmonize the conflicts of conscience with desire. Strike a balance of mind and body that avoids vexation and pain. First attend to your own survival, then look after others; contribute your abilities to family, society and mankind.

2. Strive with Nature: Work to raise civilization to a level nearer the truth. The might and mysteries of Nature are inexhaustible. If beings so exalted as deities must still strive ceaselessly with Nature, how much more should human beings do so.
Humanity at present is busy with mutual aggression, wasting effort and resources. If only we could focus our wisdom on understanding Nature, we could get along with Nature’s ecology. Civilization would reach a stage of truth, goodness and beauty.

3. Strive toward Heaven: This is to create new life through dual cultivation of self-nature and body, thus evolving toward divinity. But to be successful one must embrace an eternal purpose, make a boundless vow, spare no effort in the work of self-tempering.