When you come to think of it, playing or listening to music is a pure luxury, an addiction, a waste of valuable time and money for nothing more than making the patterns of sound. Yet, what would we think of a society which had no place for music, which did not allow for dancing, or for any activity not directly involved with the practical problems of survival? Obviously, such a society would be surviving to no purpose--unless it could somehow make a delight out of the "essential tasks" of farming, building, soldering, manufacturing or cooking. But in that moment the goal of survival is forgotten. The tasks are being done for their own sake, whereupon farms begin to look like gardens, sensible living-boxes sprout interesting roofs and mysterious ornaments , arms are engraved with curious patterns, carpenters take time to "finish" their work, and cooks become gourmets.
A Chinese philosophical work called "The Secret of the Golden Flower" says that "when purpose has been used to achieve purposelessness, the thing has been grasped" .
Alan Watts- The Book (copyright 1966)
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