56｜Why Scarcity is an Illusion

Scripture says: “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow.” (Matthew 6:34). “He makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good.” (Matthew 5:45). This demonstrates that in the world created by God, there is no inherent scarcity; scarcity is a delusion manufactured by the human "dividing mind" and the "heart of comparison."

This article aims to demonstrate:

1. Why luxury cars, beauty, and resources are not truly scarce;
2. How scarcity is manufactured through comparison and the self;
3. Why in a system of dualistic competition, there are never true winners.

(1) Scarcity is Not a Cosmic Structure, but a Human Psychological Illusion

Man believes that luxury cars, mansions, beauty, and wealth are scarce. This is a delusion born of finite human cognition and dualistic competition. Take the Rolls-Royce as an example:

• It is "rare" not because it cannot be produced;
• It is rare because humans desire it to be rare. If the government announced that everyone would have a Rolls-Royce, manufacturing could achieve it. But once "everyone has one," the ego would immediately say: "This is no longer what I want." Because what man wants is not the car, but the superiority found in comparison. Scarcity is not a resource problem; it is a psychological problem.

(2) Achievement and Superiority: The Peak of Sin and the Root of Human Misery

Humans pursue luxury, beauty, fame, and power not for the things themselves, but for the internal whisper: “I am better than others.” This sense of superiority breeds greed, envy, struggle, hatred, war, and the vain impulse of "empire-building." Almost all forces that have devastated the world come from those who believed they were "great"—emperors, tyrants, and heroes. They pursued the illusion of being "better," a mirage that is ultimately empty.

(3) The So-called "Winner" is Never a Winner: Everyone Loses in Dualistic Competition

Consider an ancient emperor: ostensibly supreme, yet surrounded by officials seeking to control him, eunuchs full of fear and resentment, and consorts hidden behind schemes. An emperor has no true friends and lives in perpetual suspicion. Their average lifespan was often shorter than that of a commoner. This is the truth of "superiority": The larger the ego, the deeper the fear; the higher the status, the heavier the loneliness. In dualistic competition, the "greatest winner" is often the greatest loser.

(4) How is Scarcity Manufactured? The Formula: Comparison + Ego = Sense of Scarcity

Take "the scarcity of beauty": Without a unified standard of aesthetics, this concept would not exist. If there were no artificial rating systems:

• Everyone could freely appreciate different appearances and temperaments;
• People would naturally find their own "niche," like preferring different foods or colors;
• There would be no large-scale struggle. But because humans established a "standard of beauty" and the ego craves "what others cannot have," a structural scarcity is manufactured. Lao Tzu said: "Not exalting the rare makes the people not steal." Without "Good/Bad labels," there is no collective frenzy. Scarcity is a psychological black hole created by comparison.

(5) Air and Water: Most Precious, Yet Rarely Fought Over

Air and water are more precious than gold or status, yet they are rarely objects of struggle. Why?

• Because everyone has them;
• There is no need for comparison;
• They are difficult to use for creating superiority or for individual hoarding. It is clear: Scarcity is caused by fear and the desire for superiority, not the substance itself.

Even in the midst of the greatest abundance, the ghost of Scarcity returns the very moment man attempts to affix a label of 'rank' to his air and water—as through the vanity of costly minerals or the exclusivity of refined breath.

When comparison stops and the self is laid down, scarcity vanishes, and abundance naturally manifests.

Summary｜Original Doctrine 56

1. Scarcity is not a resource fact, but an illusion manufactured by comparison.
2. Humanity pursues superiority, not things; superiority is the peak of sin.
3. There are no winners in dualistic competition; the greatest winner is the greatest loser.
4. "Rareness" is mostly a psychological structure (e.g., beauty, fame, luxury).
5. Without artificial "Good/Bad labels," there would be no large-scale scarcity or struggle.
6. Abundance is God’s essence; scarcity is an illusion born of the self.

In one sentence: Scarcity is not the essence of the world, but a sickness of the human heart; abundance is the truth and the order set by God.