I learned this phrase from the TV series The Sympathizer — Oriental me, Occidental me. It stuck with me and I started to pay attention to the Oriental me and Occidental me from time to time.
The Oriental Me #
The Oriental me always knows, deep down, that wealth and status are like floating clouds. Chasing worldly and material success would never bring lasting happiness and deep inner peace.
I also believe the truly great things — great AI models, software products, organizations, even business — the ones that will be talked about for generations, are created by beings with unity of Craft 技, Dao 道 and Mind 心:
- 技 (Craft) is the skill of your hands.
- 道 (Dao) is the way, the path you walk - moving in harmony with nature
- 心 (heart & mind) is what you feel, what you suffer, what keeps you going.
By “being” I mean human, for now. But if someday AI can feel pain and suffering, then it means they have 心, and then I have no doubt there can be greatness in AI too. Even Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche said something similar: if AI knows suffering, it can become Buddha too.
The Occidental Me #
I think my hopelessly romantic side comes from the Occidental me. I feel warmth and fuzziness whenever I hear 🎵
When you wish upon a star, makes no difference who you are~ If your heart is in your dream, no request is too extreme.
I appreciate that optimism (even the Silicon Valley version), that belief in fairness and equality, and the encouragement to pursue one’s dream.
I remember in The Hunchback of Notre Dame, the evil priest Frollo says to Quasimodo: “The world is cruel, the world is wicked. Out there they’ll revile you as a monster. Why invite their consternation? Do as I say, obey and stay in here.”
That was a lightning moment that showed me the mountains and valleys in my own mind.
I’ve always had a soft spot for Disney, because that’s where I learned great truths from a young age - not just princesses and fairy tales.
Disney also taught me how to identify people who have their own greed and agenda, who would manipulate, who can be ruthless and would on purpose put someone else down to make themselves feel powerful.
The Master of the Two #
Lately I’ve been reading a lot about Bruce Lee. And whenever I think of who truly mastered the harmony of the Oriental and Occidental sides, I think of him.
He seems to be someone who:
- Mastered his craft (技), understood the Dao (道), and carried a malleable mind and honest heart - the Oriental side
- Pursued his dream with great passion and practical optimism, and would teach anyone from any background regardless of gender or race - the Occidental side
His philosophy doesn’t only apply to martial arts, it applies to life.
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Be water, my friend. Water takes the shape of its container — soft yet strong, flexible, sensitive, free, unstoppable.
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Empty your mind. If your mind is stuffed with ideas and information you’ve already mastered, and your feelings about those things, there’s no room for new possibilities and new perspectives. Obsess over what should have happened — and if it didn’t, you’re lost.
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Success or failure isn’t what matters — what matters is what it does to a person’s spirit.
Recently there’s been a lot of news about big AI labs mocking each other, and it reminded me of Bruce Lee’s views on opponents and competitions. Sometimes I wonder how we are so susceptible to these diseases:
- desire for victory
- desire to resort to technical cunning
- desire to awe the enemy: I will wow you to get your approval even if I have to do something shocking and wild to get your attention
Here are some quotes I’ve been pondering from Be Water, My Friend by Shannon Lee:
To know oneself is to study oneself in action with another person.
We don’t need to shame ourselves or beat ourselves up in the process of making ourselves better, nor should we shame or blame others to make ourselves feel better either.
There are no limits. There are only plateaus, and you must not stay there, you must go beyond them.
The great mistake is to anticipate an outcome of engagement. You ought not be thinking whether it ends in victory or in defeat. See that there is no one to fight, only an illusion to see through.