I accept all of these ways as being the way in motion but I am inclined to think that those who live more simplistic lives are less troubled by the world and so live in a more sustained and comfortable manner.
This is what these people MAY do on a daily basis.
"Enlightened" (not that we really know)
Sit in silence, smiling or content. May answer questions when asked.
Eat minimally. No intoxicants. Likely to have a base they rarely stray from. Pleasure is from being itself and having no distinctions to trouble the mind.
Set routines may involve a rarely changing pattern of sitting in contentment. Likely to have people bring offerings of food and so on.
Sage
Happy free, learned. May live mainly alone, may have followers and visitors they answer questions of or guide. May often wander may have a base.
Will eat light or in some cases eat heartily if circumstances say so. May use intoxicants. Likely to eat from nature and gifts.
Set routines could be strict, such as waking, eating, meditations, praising, mixed with seemingly random fits that follow nature.
Saint
Eats light to normally, no intoxicants. Gives and gives. Always looking to help others. Lives frugally, moves frequently, rarely a fixed base. Sole aim to help others.
Set routines likely to involve prayer, reading of scripture, giving respect to images and or places in nature.
Mystic
Likely to live alone and only mix with similar folk. May interact with day-to-day people to give medicine, healing advice or so on. Eats light, from nature and some gifts. Likely to use intoxicants to enter states and explore realms not normally seen. Likely to wander and have a number of places to stay which are likely nature based.
Routines could well involve intoxications, nature based events such as events defined by star positions, seasons. May follow pilgrimages to set places at set times.
Master
Likely has a base, may wander. Strict diet. Likely to want to give out teaching and likely direct in methods. Probably reads, may write or use art such as painting, carving or gardening to display creativity and to occupy time.
Routines likely strict such as waking, meditation, worshiping of past masters, teaching times, eating times.
Monk/Nun
Strict diet, perhaps strictly enforced exercise, culturally related say tai-chi, yoga, martial art..
Usually a very strict routine of devotion. Much time spent following set patterns of wake, prayer/meditation, eating, and routines defined by the master.
Religious
Religion a key part of life and time spent but also involves family. Time spent in contemplation. Not so strict diet but some restrictions. May restrict intoxicants or use a select few. Likely to pray quite often, likely to seek and take advice of leaders and attempt to adjust inner cravings into line with defined betterment.
Routines will involve daily routines of work and family mixed with weekly and yearly cycles of key events.
Half/Half
Lives a normal life of work, family friends. Has a calling or tradition to uphold but this is not the key drive in life. Eats freely and intoxicates as defined by the law of the land.
Routines are to wake, work, eat, shop, seek release, seek entertainment, seek self gratification by betterment over people in similar places to them and seek to change their life on a scale as defined by material ownership, external looks and money.
Not really
As above but spirituality is likely to be rarely fulfilled bar for occasional interest in self improvement books and systems pointing to increasing material gain by spiritual half-truths. Most pleasure taken from material goods and intoxicants.
Not at all
Completely involved in daily routines of work, family, entertainment, material goods. Distaste or no interest in a spiritual outlook finds the material world enough of a distraction and only growth seen is in material ownership, status gains and dull intoxicated highs.
No path
Wanders out of society with no spiritual calling. Eats by availability, intoxicates by necessity, also by availability and solely as escape. A wanderer with no path. Generally a life of suffering.
Routines involve set patterns of wandering, scrounging.
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Tao Wow | Daily Cup of Tao
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