The Tao of Permaculture

There are some interesting connections between the philosophy of permaculture and Tao, the literal meaning of Tao is 'the way' and the central concept of Tao is wu wei meaning 'without action'. The goal of wu wei is to align with Tao revealing the 'soft and invisible power within all things'. The ideal permaculture design process would also begin with wu wei spending a year observing the invisible powers of energy flowing through the place you are designing to ensure you use them efficiently in your design.

Least change for greatest effect
This is also expressed as the 80:20 rule "prolonged and thoughtful observation instead of prolonged and thoughtless labour". Taoist philosophy believes the universe works harmoniously according to it's own ways and that we must place our will in harmony with the natural universe. This mirrors the permaculture philosophy of working with nature rather than against it.

Energy input & yield analysis 
If we all spent some time in a state of 'wu wei' we would be able to observe where we choose to put our life energy and what 'yield' of happiness this brings us. I think this would lead to people who put a lot of their energy into cycle of consumption finally having to connect with the emptiness of consumer existence and the wastefulness of it all, not just in terms of earths material resources but our own energy too.

Ultimately each of us can choose whether we direct the flow of our energy into perpetuating consumption or towards the creation of a life sustaining society that recognises we need to respect our role in maintaining harmony in the natural universe.