you have true wealth.
If you never give up,
you will find a way.
If you stay true to yourself,
you will never be lost.
If you stay alive your whole life,
you've really lived.
34
Tao flows in all directions.
It's in everything,
but nothing can contain it.
Everything needs Tao,
so Tao provides,
and never expects anything in return.
Everything comes from Tao,
but Tao doesn't call attention to itself.
It wants for nothing.
Think nothing of it.
Everything leads to Tao,
but Tao doesn't call attention to itself.
Pretty impressive, huh?
It doesn't strive for success.
That's why it succeeds.
35
When you get right with Tao,
everybody wants to be your friend.
When they're around you,
they can relax and enjoy themselves.
People can be easily distracted
by music or good food.
When we try to talk about Tao,
it seems boring by comparison.
It doesn't look like much.
It doesn't sound like much.
But no matter how much you use,
there's still plenty left.
36
To make something smaller,
you need to appreciate its size.
To make something weaker,
you must recognize its strength.
To get rid of something,
you need to hold it tight.
To take something,
you must give it up entirely.
To put it another way:
Sensitivity and weakness
overcome unfeeling strength.
37
Tao never does anything
but nothing is left undone.
If our leaders
could get in touch with Tao,
the world would take care of itself.
Even if they wanted
to impose their own ideas,
they'd be drawn back to Tao's
nameless simplicity.
When our lives are that simple,
we want for nothing.
We can relax,
and the world becomes a better place.
38
People with integrity
don't even think about it.
That's how you can tell
they have integrity.
Other people talk about
how much integrity they have,
when they really don't have much.
If any.
Truly powerful people
don't do anything,
but they get the job done.
Other people are always busy
doing something,
but nothing ever gets done.
When kind people act,
they do so without thinking about it.
When the just act,
they're always sure
they're doing the right thing.
But when the righteous act,
and nobody reacts,
they try to force everyone
to do things their way.
If you're not in touch with Tao,
at least you can still have integrity.
If you don't have integrity,
there's always kindness.
If you don't have kindness,
there's always justice.
If you don't have justice,
all you have left is righteousness.
Righteousness is an pale imitation
of true faith and loyalty,
and always leads to trouble.
If you've already made up your mind,
you don't know the first thing about Tao,
and you never will.
The Masters pay attention
to what's beneath the surface.
They'll look at a tree's leaves,
but eat the fruit.
They turn all that down,
so they can accept this.
39
Since time began,
this is what it's meant
to be in touch with Tao:
Tao made the heavens clear.
Tao made the earth solid.
Tao made our spirits strong.
Tao made the valleys fertile.
Tao gave all living things life.
Tao gave rulers authority.
Without Tao,
the heavens would collapse.
Without Tao,
the earth would crumble.
Without Tao,
our spirits would fade away.
Without Tao,
the valleys would dry up.
Without Tao,
all life would become extinct.
Without Tao,
rulers would stumble and fall.
Humility gives us power.
Our leaders should think of themselves
as insignificant, powerless,
unworthy of their stature.
Isn't that what humility is all about?
Be strong,
but pay no attention to hollow praise.
Don't call attention to yourself.
Don't make a scene.
40
Tao is always heading
back to where it came from.
Tao advances by not pressing forward.
Things exist because they are.
They are because they once were not.
41
When a wise person hears about Tao,
he gets right with it.
When an ordinary person
hears about Tao,
he tries to get right with it,
but eventually gives up.
When a fool hears about Tao,
he just laughs and laughs.
If he didn't laugh, it wouldn't be Tao.
Here's what they find so funny:
The path to enlightenment
seems covered in shadows.
The way forward
feels like taking a step back.
The easiest path seems difficult.
Those with the most virtue
seem debased.
Those who are most pure
seem to be grubby and soiled.
The deepest thoughts appear shallow.
The greatest strength
looks like weakness.
What is most real
strikes us as imaginary.
The largest space has no boundaries.
The greatest talent
seems to produce nothing.
The greatest voice is unhearable.
The greatest beauty is invisible.
Tao is hidden to us
and it has no name.
It is the source and the strength of all things.
42
Chapter 42 starts out
with some cosmic mumbo-jumbo
about Tao making one,
one making two,
two making three,
and three making everything else.
I don't know what it means,
and, frankly,
I wouldn't worry about it too much.
Let's get to the practical part:
Men hate to be called
powerless, insignificant, or unworthy,
but that's how
Masters describe themselves.
Because when we lose, we've won.
And when we succeed, we've failed.
Other people will tell you
what I'm telling you now:
"Live by the sword, die by the sword."
That's pretty much what Chapter 42
boils down to.
(See Chapter 46 for more details.)
43
The softest force in the universe
can overcome the hardest of objects.
Something without substance
can pass through the space between atoms.
That's how I know
about the power of doing nothing.
The silent teachings
and the power of doing nothing
can only be understood
by a few people.
44
What's more important,
fame or your well-being?
What's worth more,
your money or your life?
What is more dangerous,
winning or losing?
If you are too attached
to your possessions,
they will bring you misery.
If you hang on to your riches,
you will suffer substantial loss.
If you know when you have enough,
you will never be disgraced.
If you practice moderation,
you can stay out of trouble.
And that's the secret to lasting success.
45
The greatest achievements
may look like mistakes,
but you will always be able
to build upon them.
The fullest reserves may seem empty,
but you will always be able
to draw upon them.
The straightest line looks crooked.
The most skilled people
come off as clumsy.
The most eloquent people
are usually silent.
When it's cold,
you can move around to stay warm.
When it's hot,
you should keep still and stay cool.
But whatever the weather,
if you stay calm,
the world will sort itself out around you.
46
"When the world is right with Tao,"
Lao Tzu said,
"horses haul fertilizer to the fields.
When the world loses touch with Tao,
horses are trained for cavalry."
Nothing is more insidious than possession.
Nothing is more dangerous than desire.
Nothing is more disastrous than greed.
If you know when enough is enough,
you will always have enough.
47
You don't have to leave your room
to understand what's happening in the world.
You don't have to look out the window
to appreciate the beauty of heaven.
The farther you wander,
the less you know.
The Masters don't wander around
They know.
They don't just look.
They understand.
They don't do anything,
but the work gets done.
48
Usually,
we try to learn something new every day.
But if we want to get right with Tao,
we have to let go of something every day.
We do less and less,
until we end up doing nothing.
And it's when we do nothing
that we get the job done.
Let events take their course,
and everything will turn out
in your favor.
If you act on your ambitions,
they will never pan out.
49
The Masters
don't make up their minds.
They turn their thoughts
to other people.
They are good to good people,
and they're good to bad people.
This is real goodness.
They have faith in the faithful,
and they have faith in the unfaithful.
This is real faith.
A Master throws himself
into the world completely,
forgetting everything he's been told.
People pay attention to him
because he lives a life of child-like wonder.
50
People who look
for the secret of long life
wind up dead.
Their bodies are the focus of their lives
and the source of their death,
because they think a healthy body
is all there is to life.
Lao Tzu used to say
a man who truly understood life
could walk through the jungle
without fear
or across a battlefield
without armor, totally unarmed.
Wild animals and weapons couldn't kill him.
I know, I know:
what the hell does that mean?
"Well, he couldn't be killed,"
Lao Tzu said,
"because his body
wasn't where he kept his death."
51
Tao is the source of all living things,
and they are nourished
by Tao's power.
They are influenced
by the other living things around them,
and they are shaped
by their circumstances.
Everything respects Tao
and honors its power.
That's just the way it is.
Tao gives life to all things,
and its power watches out for them,
cares for them, helps them grow,
protects them, and comforts them.
Create something
without holding on to it.
Do the work
without expecting credit for it.
Lead people
without giving them orders.
That's the secret of the power of Tao.
52
Everything starts with Tao,
the mother of all things.
If you know the mother,
you know the children.
If you know the children
and remember the mother,
you have nothing to fear in your life.
t your mouth and keep still,
and your life will be full of happiness.
If you talk all the time,
always doing something,
your life will be hopeless.
It takes insight to see subtlety.
It takes strength
to yield gently to force.
Use that strength
to hang on to your insight,
and you will always be at peace.
That's how to get right with Tao.
53
If I had any sense,
I'd be trying to get right with Tao,
and the only thing I'd worry about
would be messing up.
It's not that hard to get right with Tao,
but people are easily distracted.
"When the king's palace is full of treasure,"
Lao Tzu said,
"ordinary people's fields
are smothered with weeds,
and the food supplies run out."
Today, you see sharply dressed people
carrying flashy weapons
and living the high life.
They own more
than they could ever use,
let alone need.
They're nothing
but gangsters and crooks.
That's not what Tao's about.
54
Tao's power is so deeply entrenched
it can never be uprooted.
Tao's power clings so tightly
it can never slip away.
It will endure for generations.
If you get in touch
with the power of Tao,
it will become real.
If your family gets in touch
with the power of Tao,
the power will flourish.
If your community gets in touch
with the power of Tao,
the power will grow even stronger.
If your country gets in touch
with the power of Tao,
the power will become abundant.
If the world gets in touch
with the power of Tao,
the power will be everywhere.
How can I know this?
I just do.
55
A person filled with the power of Tao
is like a baby boy:
bees can't sting him,
wild beasts can't attack him.
A baby has soft bones
and weak muscles,
but a firm grip.
He hasn't had sex,
but he can get an erection.
That's because he's got lots of energy.
He can cry all day
and never lose his voice.
That's because he's at one with his world.
If you're at one with the world,
you know constancy.
And if you know constancy,
you've been enlightened.
It's not healthy
to try to prolong your life.
It's unnatural to impose the mind's will
upon the body.
People waste time and energy
trying to be strong or beautiful,
and their strength and beauty fade.
They've lost touch with Tao,
and when you lose touch with Tao,
you might as well be dead.
56
Those who know, don't talk.
