Returning to the Uncarved Block

In Taoist teaching, Pu—the uncarved block—represents human nature before it is shaped by social expectation and desire. Digital platforms carve away this simplicity, constantly showing you alternate versions of yourself and lives you might have lived. FOMO feeds on the gap between your uncarved state and the infinite carved alternatives displayed online. Laozi suggests returning to Pu: the restoration of your natural preferences before they were refined by comparison. This is not regression but remembering. The practice involves noticing which of your digital desires are genuinely yours and which are reactions to what you see others doing. By returning periodically to moments of genuine simplicity—a walk without documentation, a meal without curation—you reconnect with the uncarved block within yourself. From this ground, FOMO loses its power because you no longer measure yourself against infinite alternatives.