Since there is no struggle there are no mistakes.
9
Excess: Greed and grasping, stress and strain
Holding our cup up to be refilled
is not as good as stopping.
If we are always sharpening our knives,
they won抰 hold their edge for long.
If gold and jade fill our rooms,
it will be impossible for us to protect them.
To be arrogant about our wealth and status,
is to bring down disaster on ourselves.
When the good deed is done, withdraw.
This is the Way of Heaven.
10
Perfection: One with ourselves and one with the universe
In nourishing spirit and vitality and embracing unity,
can we prevent them from breaking up?
In focussing our breath and making it soft,
can we be like a baby?
In cleansing our mind and contemplating the mystery,
can we be flawless?
In loving our people and ruling our country,
can we not interfere?
When the Gate of Heaven opens and closes,
can we be receptive?
In understanding the four realms,
can we not use knowledge?
Bring forth and nourish.
Bring forth without possessing.
Encourage without creating dependency.
Strengthen without controlling.
This is called Profound Virtue.
11
Space: the Final Frontier: We need our space
Thirty spokes share one hub.
With the space they make, we can use the cart.
Clay is shaped to make a vessel.
With the empty space we can use the vessel.
Cut out doors and windows to make a room.
With the empty space we can use the room.
Having things is advantageous,
but it is the space within them that creates their use.
12
All about Sensation: The distraction of the five senses
The five colors blind the eye.
The five sounds deafen the ear.
The five flavors dull the palate.
Racing horses on the hunt make the heart go mad.
Seeking rare possessions obstructs one's progress.
This is why a wise person acts from the belly not the eye;
leaving one and taking the other.
13
Suffering: Surviving the ups and downs of life
Both favor and disgrace come as a shock.
Respect great suffering as part of life.
Why is it said:
揃oth favor and disgrace come as a shock br> When we get it, it is shocking, and when we lose it, it is shocking.
That is why it is said:
揃oth favor and disgrace come as a shock.?br>
Why is it said:
揜espect great suffering as part of life br> I experience suffering because I am alive.
If I were not alive what suffering could I experience?
That is why it is said:
揜espect great suffering as part of life.?br>
So it is that:
Those who value their own lives
can be trusted to care for the world,
and those who love their own lives
can be trusted to cherish the world.
14
Getting a Grip: Defining and perceiving the Tao
Looked for, it cannot be found, so we call it Exotic.
Listened for, it cannot be heard, so we call it Rare.
Reached for, it cannot be grasped, so we call it Infinitesimal.
Because these three are each incomprehensible
and cannot be fathomed, they blend as one.
Its top is not bright; its bottom is not dark.
Define it? It cannot be defined.
It returns back to nothingness.
It is called the invisible appearance,
the semblance of nothingness.
It is called Vague.
Face it and we cannot see where it begins.
Follow it and we cannot see where it ends.
Grasp this ancient Tao to get a handle on the present.
We can know this ancient source:
It is called The Sign of the Tao.
15
The Wisdom of the Ancients: Who were those guys
Long ago there were Ancient Ones
who were masters at practicing the Tao,
and who understood its subtle mysteries.
They were so profound we cannot really know them.
Since we cannot know them,
we can only describe them by their actions.
Prepared! like someone about to ford a river in winter.
Diplomatic! like someone respectful of their neighbors.
Courteous! like one who is a guest.
Expansive! like ice melting.
Natural! like uncarved wood.
Receptive! like a valley.
Blending! like swirling water.
What is muddy, when left still, will gradually become clear.
What is at rest, when moved, will gradually come to life.
Those who keep this Tao have no need for fulfillment.
Since they have no need for fulfillment,
they can remain unknown, and so be pure and complete.
16
Coming Home: Openness and tranquillity
Take openness to the limit.
Hold tranquillity in our center.
As all things arise together, so I watch them all return.
Though all things exist in abundant profusion,
each one returns to its roots.
Returning to our roots, we become tranquil.
Being tranquil, we recover our true nature.
Recovering our true nature, we become eternal.
Knowing the eternal, we have understanding.
Not to know the eternal, is to recklessly invite disaster.
Know that the eternal is tolerant.
Tolerant, and therefore, impartial.
Impartial, and therefore, complete.
Complete, and thus, sacred.
Sacred, and so the Tao.
Tao, and thus, everlasting.
In the midst of life we will come to no harm.
17
All Leaders Great and Small: Good and bad leaders
The best leader; people do not know he exists.
The next best; people are close to him and praise him.
The next best; people fear him.
The next best; people scorn him.
The untrustworthy have no trust.
We take our time and value our words.
We do good deeds and get things done.
Then people will say, 揑 did it all by myself.?br>
18
Living the Lie: Honesty and pretence
When the Great Way is abandoned,
we get benevolence and righteousness.
When wisdom and knowledge appear,
we get great deception.
When there is no harmony in the family,
we get family values and kindness.
When the homeland is in chaos and confusion,
we get loyal bureaucrats.
19
Trying Too Hard: Ease up and don抰 worry
Give up wisdom. Discard knowledge.
Then people will benefit a hundred fold.
Give up benevolence. Discard justice.
Then people will return to brotherly love and kindness.
Give up scheming. Discard profit.
Then there will be no bandits and thieves.
These three sayings, as principles, are not enough.
Therefore we must add the following:
Be natural and embrace simplicity.
Reduce selfishness and have few desires.
Give up learning and don抰 worry.
20
What Kind of Fool am I? Tao for dummies
Is there really that much difference
between 損robably?and 搈aybe br> And isn抰 the difference between 揼ood?and 揵ad?similar?
Making these distinctions can fill a person with fear;
fear that cannot be avoided.
The confusion! It is endless!
Most people are so happy-go-lucky,
as when celebrating the ox sacrifice;
or in Spring, when they climb the towers.
I alone am becalmed! Leaving no trace.
A dummy! Like a baby that has not yet learned to laugh.
Lost and forlorn! With no home to return to.
Everyone else has plenty. I alone seem to have been left out.
What kind of fool am I to have such a heart!
Ordinary people are so smart and clever.
I alone am dull and confused.
Ordinary people are so inquisitive.
I alone am sad and listless.
Indistinct, like the ocean.
Gazing without end.
Everyone else has what it takes.
I alone am a blockhead and an outcast.
My desires alone differ from those of others,
for I treasure the Mother as the source of my nourishment.
21
The Dreaming Tao: The power of dreams
To have great personal power requires only that one follow the Tao.
The Tao is only fleetingly apparent, and vaguely visible.
Vague and fleeting, at its heart is meaning.
Fleeting and vague, at its heart is substance.
Deep and dark, at its heart is life essence.
This life essence is fully real, and at its heart is truth.
From the present stretching back to antiquity
its name has not vanished.
Use this to experience the origin of all.
How do I know what the origin of all is like?
I use this.
22
Survival of the Flexible: Flexibility keeps us whole
Bend and be whole.
Twist and be straight.
Empty out and be filled.
Be used up and be renewed.
Have little and be satisfied.
Have much and be confused.
This is why a wise person embraces the One,
and becomes an example for the whole world.
If we do not show off, we will shine.
If we are not assertive, we will be recognized.
If we do not praise ourselves, we will gain merit.
If we are not reckless, we will endure.
If we do not compete, no one can compete with us.
The old saying goes: Bend and be whole.
Are these empty words?
These are perfect words, and we can rely on them.
23
Winners and Losers: In the win or in the loss
Nature speaks rarely.
A raging wind does not outlast the morning,
and a sudden shower does not outlast the day.
What causes this? It is Heaven and Earth.
Since even Heaven and Earth cannot last forever,
how could a person expect to?
Therefore, those who actions are in harmony with the Tao,
are one with the Tao.
Likewise the powerful are one with power,
and the losers are one with loss.
Those who identify with the Tao, the Tao so empowers.
Those who identify with power, the Tao so empowers.
Those who identify with loss, the Tao so empowers.
The untrustworthy have no trust.
24
The Big Shot: Pride comes before a fall
Those who stand on tiptoe are not steady.
Those who stand with legs astride cannot walk.
Those who hold a high opinion of themselves are not enlightened.
Those who admire themselves are not beautiful.
Those who think much of themselves are worthless.
Those who are conceited will not endure.
Those with the Tao call this self-indulgent and parasitical behavior.
These are loathsome things.
So those in the Tao will have nothing to do with them.
25
The Way of the Universe: The four great realms
There is a substance, utterly formless.
It existed before Heaven and Earth were born.
So silent! So vast!
It is solitary and unchanging, all pervasive and without end.
It could be considered the Mother of Heaven and Earth.
I do not know its name, but if I must find a word for it,
I will call it the Tao.
And if I must describe it, I will call it vast.
Being vast, it permeates everywhere.
Permeating everywhere, it is far reaching.
Reaching far, it returns.
The Tao is great.
Heaven is great.
Earth is great.
Humankind is great.
These are the four great things in the Universe,
and Humankind is one of them.
Humankind follows the law of Earth.
Earth follows the law of Heaven.
Heaven follows the law of the Tao.
The Tao follows its own law.
26
Taking Care of Business: Personal responsibility
Just as the meaningful is the origin of the trivial,
so calmness is the master of agitation.
That is why the gentleman, all through the day抯 journey,
does not leave his baggage unattended.
Though there may be exquisite scenery,
and places where swallows fly, he passes them by.
Only when he is safely in his inn and relaxing, is he free of concern.
How can we be master of a thousand chariots,
and treat ourselves with disrespect?
Those who act lightly lose their base.
Those who are impetuous, lose control.
27
Skillful Means: Teachers and students
Good walkers leave no trace.
Good speakers place no blame.
Those good with numbers need no calculator.
Those able to secure things have no need for lock or key,
yet no one can open it.
Those good at tying, need no rope for binding,
yet no one can undo it.
This is why wise people are always able to help others,
and no one is abandoned.
They are good at looking after things,
and nothing is wasted.
This is called twofold understanding.
Therefore, the skillful person
is the teacher of those who are less competent;
and those who are less competent
are the raw material of the skillful person.
Not to treasure one抯 teacher, and not to treasure one抯 resources, even if we are clever, will lead us far astray.
This is called the subtle essence of the mystery.
28
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Seeing who we are
By knowing the masculine, and keeping in touch with the feminine, we are of use to the world.
By being of use in the world, we are true to our original nature,
and we return to the innocence of a child.
By seeing our clarity, and also acknowledging our obscurity,
we serve as a model in the world.
By serving as a model for the world, our integrity is unimpaired,
and we return to our limitless nature.
Even when receiving praise, we remember our faults,
and are receptive to the world.
By being receptive to the world, our true nature is perfected,
and we return to our natural state.
When wood is carved, it becomes a mere tool.
When wise people are called upon to serve,
they become the ones in charge.
Thus the best principle is not to carve things up.
29
Messing with the World: We don抰 always get what we want
If we seek to seize the world and meddle with it:
I see this as unachievable.
This world is a sacred vessel.
We cannot meddle with it, nor can we control it.
Those who meddle with it, ruin it. Those who control it, lose it.
This is why wise people do not meddle with things,
and so do not ruin or lose them.
It is the nature of things either to lead the way, or follow after.
Either to breathe in through the nose, or blow out through the mouth.
