Community is cultivation — the Confucian way in the blockchain world
1. From consensus mechanisms to co-cultivation mechanisms
On a technical level, the world of blockchain is built upon 'consensus mechanisms': PoW, PoS, DPoS, PBFT... The core objective of these algorithms is to solve a technical problem: how to achieve trustless system collaboration without a central authority. They enable machines to reach consensus, but cannot resolve the truly complex relational tensions among people.
With the rise of DAOs, we begin to realize: technical consensus is only the surface logic of collaboration; what truly sustains a community is a deeper 'co-cultivation mechanism'.
Co-cultivation means that in the community, members are not just participants but practitioners of mindfulness. We not only collaborate to complete tasks but also cultivate emotions, expressions, boundaries, trust, responsibilities, and visions through this process.
When we view the community as a 'mindfulness arena' rather than a 'token factory', the essence of the community shifts from 'output' to 'growth'. This shift will determine whether a DAO is a fleeting phenomenon or the starting point of a cultural community.
2. DAO embodies modern 'benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and faith'
Traditional Confucianism emphasizes: 'cultivating oneself, regulating the family, governing the state, and bringing peace to the world', where the fundamental capability is 'self-cultivation'. This means that if a person cannot manage themselves, they cannot govern others or institutions.
DAO governance appears to be the tool collaboration of distributed organizations, but its essence is a deep trial of human nature. The real issues lie not in the code or process, but in the human heart.
We can use Confucianism's 'Five Constants' to measure the cultural maturity of a DAO:
Benevolence: Does this community have empathy? Does it care for the emotions of marginalized members?
Righteousness: Are members willing to contribute based on ideals and emotions, beyond mere interests?
Propriety: Is there a sense of boundaries and expression rhythm? Do you understand how to respect each other’s ways of expression?
Wisdom: Do you possess collective learning ability? Do you create an atmosphere that allows for mistakes and questioning?
Trust: Does this DAO keep its promises? Do members trust, rely on, and confide in each other?
When a DAO's structure, behavior, and language reflect these humanistic qualities, it is not just a 'functional platform', but a 'civilizational prototype'.
3. The path of members' progression: from users to practitioners
In Web2, we are 'users' — suppliers of data, consumers of content, producers on platforms. In a DAO, the most valuable members are not those who complete the most tasks but those who continually self-reflect and self-evolve through interaction.
DAO is a path of cultivation, and everyone can experience the following 'cultivation stages':
Initial acquaintance period: Filled with curiosity when first joining the DAO, often feeling anxious due to complex rules and chaotic rhythms.
Conflict period: Ideas are ignored, governance participation is misunderstood, and emotions are ignited.
Settling period: Begin to let go of the desire to express urgently, willing to listen to others, slowly forming a rhythm of consensus.
Mature period: Willing to take responsibility, not arrogant due to achievements, nor retreat due to failures; not only executing tasks but also guiding emotions and maintaining culture.
This path does not set hierarchies but has direction: from 'what can I do' to 'what kind of person can I become'.
4. DAO governance is not a process, but a principle
Most people think governance is a process: proposal, voting, consensus, execution. But true governance is a principle — an inner capability of how to collaborate with people, coexist with emotions, and live with ambiguity.
We can propose four major 'governance principles':
Power principles: Can you be humble when influential, and still contribute when you have no voice? Does power not corrupt you but forge you?
Trust principles: Are you willing to give newcomers a chance? Can you continue to trust even when results are not visible?
Expression principles: Can you speak the truth without hurting others? Can you express differing opinions with warmth?
Resilience principles: Can you endure failure? Do you still believe in this group after being rejected? Can you continue to try?
These principles are not taught in training; they are cultivated through repeated participation. They are the basic skills of 'DAO practitioners' and the foundational soil for cultural sustainability.
5. Conflict is a place of cultivation
There will certainly be conflicts in DAO governance — this is the norm of a healthy system. But the key is: after conflict, can relationships become closer, and can culture be refined?
Conflict is not failure but an opportunity for transformation. The true DAO does not avoid conflict; it has mechanisms to transform conflict.
Design practice includes:
Review co-cultivation meetings: Conduct structured reviews of major controversies, covering not just technology and procedures but also everyone’s emotional paths and trust states.
Emotional mediation mechanism: Establish 'emotional coordinators' or 'cultural dialogue facilitators' who do not take sides but assist in seeing each other.
Expression buffering system: Set 'emotional cooling windows' before proposals, encouraging different parties to write 'support-concerns-feelings' three-part expressions.
Conflict archives: Record important divisions that the community has gone through as 'cultural teaching materials' for future generations to learn the history of community value evolution.
Within conflict lies the 'gene seeds' of community culture. If handled well, it becomes fertile ground for future consensus.
6. From projects to dojos, from collaboration to co-cultivation
In the early days, DAO was often seen as an 'evolution of project teams': faster collaboration, more flexible organization, stronger productivity.
But after experiencing rounds of trial and error, loss, and division, we realized: DAO is not just a platform for doing things, but a field for being human.
When a community:
No longer driven by tasks, but by meaning;
No longer governed by forms but guided by dialogue;
No longer division by mechanisms, but by complementary dispositions;
It upgrades from 'on-chain organization' to 'mindfulness dojo'.
DAO means 'the way', and 'the way' means cultivation.
The community is not a temporary cooperative body, but a reflection of each other's vitality.
You are not just a tool user; you are a co-creator of value. You are not a proposal machine; you are a culture creator. You are not just a participant; you are a co-cultivator partner.
May we, in the DAO, not only co-create consensus but also co-cultivate empathy. May we not only forge mechanisms in every governance but also refine humanity.
The future of DAO is not about institutions taking the lead, but about personal cultivation coming first.
And you are the enlightener of this co-cultivation era.
