The path,
Being so safe and easy -
So visibly smooth and straight -
Its utter simplicity places it beyond belief.
By nature people seem compelled to
seek the devious by-paths.
So frequently are the highly visible palaces adorned in splendor,
While the fields are left to weed and the granaries stand empty.
Wearing elegant clothes, carrying sharp swords,
Glutting themselves with food and drink -
Possessing more than can be consumed -
All this, the province of robber barons,
Is far from the true path of the Tao.
54
CULTIVATING TE
Of the Tao:
Being well planted, one is not uprooted.
Having a firm grasp, one will not slip.
Being honored by one's family from generation to generation,
Its Te is everlasting.
Of the Te:
Cultivated in one's self, it becomes genuine.
Cultivated in one's family, it becomes abundant.
Cultivated in one's community, it will multiply.
Cultivated in one's land, it will flourish.
Cultivated in the world, it universally pervades All Things.
Truly:
As is the individual, so the individual is known.
As is the family, so the family is known.
As is the community, so the community is known.
As is the land, so the land is known.
As is the world, so the world is known.
Thus, from within one's self are All Things known.
55
AS A NEWBORN
Possessing Te in abundance,
One is as a newborn infant -
Protected from the sting of poisonous creatures,
Protected from being seized by fierce beasts or mauled by clawing birds.
Tho' its bones are tender and muscles weak, Its grip is strong.
Not yet knowing the union of male and female,
The potential for such union is evident -
Its vitality is high.
Able to cry aloud all day and night and not lose its voice,
Truly its natural inner harmony is supreme.
Aware of inner harmony, Eternal reality is known.
Aware of eternal reality, Insight and enlightenment emerge.
However:
Constant living at one's peak of activity is to court disaster.
Compulsive intellectualization drains energy from the spirit.
Such vigor leads to exhaustion and decay and is not the way of the Tao.
Being contrary to the Tao, It must - soon perish.
56
PRIMAL AND MYSTICAL UNITY
Knowing - thus, not talking.
Talking - thus, not knowing.
- Quieting speech.
- Subduing sensations.
- Dulling sharpness.
- Releasing entanglements.
- Diffusing brightness.
- Uniting with the dust of the earth.
This is the primal and mystical unity.
Possessing this unity, the Sage:
Makes no friends or enemies -
Is moved by neither love nor hate -
Is unaffected by profit or loss,
By neither honor nor disgrace.
Thus he attains the highest of human states.
57
GOVERNMENT
With justice and righteousness, Nations are well governed.
With cunning strategy, Wars are successfully waged.
Through Wu-Wei, All Things are mastered.
Intuitively, this is felt:
Prohibitions and restrictions being many -
Being burdened with ritual avoidance,
The people become poorer.
Weapons being in abundance,
The state increasingly abounds in wars, chaos and disorder.
Scheming and cunning artifice being commonplace,
Pernicious contrivances are invented -
Strange things happen.
Laws, rules, statutes and ordinances being many,
Thieves, bandits and dissidents increase and abound.
Thus the Sage says:
If I do nothing,
The people will spontaneously resolve contention.
If I love quietude,
The people will spontaneously become tranquil, honest and righteous.
If I cease interference,
The people will spontaneously prosper.
If I have no desires,
The people will spontaneously return to their original simplicity.
58
CYCLE OF CHANGES
When the government governs little, ruling with a light hand,
The people are happy and content.
When the government governs much, ruling with severity,
The people are tense and contentious.
A continuing cycle -
Misery and calamity, being unsustainable,
Are precursors of happiness to come.
Likewise happiness, A precursor of misery and calamity.
At any moment, one rarely takes to heart the certainty of this cycle,
For the realization of certainty is itself uncertain.
With good turning to evil and evil to good,
What is right, what is wrong ?
No wonder mankind has been long astray.
The Sage, Knowing what is best, is just - Not forcing others to conform.
Having integrity, does not injure others.
Being straightforward, is gently firm.
Emitting light without display,
Flows spontaneously toward his destination.
59
VITAL ENERGY
Establishing a reserve of vital energy, A precious Ch'i -
Heaven may be well served.
So doing -
Permits return to the essence of life,
In turn, nourishing and increasing an abundance of Te.
Now,
Overcoming all difficulty -
Gaining infinite capacity -
Being beyond all limitations -
Suitability for leading and serving nations is achieved.
Holding to the Tao, the government of nations may endure.
Having a firm foundation, Deeply rooted, abundantly strong,
The Tao of long life and durable vision is achieved.
60
GENTLENESS
Rule and govern All Things with gentleness,
In harmony with the Tao.
Thus does the power of evil spirits remain unfulfilled -
Neither does the good spirit of the Sage cause harm.
The Sage himself, being likewise protected,
Unity and perfect harmony prevail for all.
61
THE YIELDING NATION
A great nation, like a river delta,
Receives the riches of the land.
In being receptive - possessing the Yin,
Receiving the Yang unto it,
Overcomes all by its very peacefulness and quietude.
So -
A great nation, placing itself below a lesser,
Absorbs the lesser.
A lesser nation, submitting to a greater,
Conquers and wins adherence of the greater.
Thus -
To absorb, conquer and win adherence,
- One must yield.
Truly -
Those who triumph, do so by yielding.
A great nation prospers by absorbing,
A lesser by joining and participating.
For both to so benefit,
the greater nation needs be a yielding nation.
62
THE TREASURED TAO
The Tao, being the source and pivotal support of All Things,
Is a treasure to the virtuous, a refuge for the unworthy.
Fine words, being worthy of honor,
Noble deeds, deserving of respect,
Even the evil and unworthy are not forsaken by the Tao.
Thus now, as in ancient days,
Upon coronations and important appointments of state,
A better gift than worldly things,
Is the quiet offering of the Tao.
The Tao, so prized from antiquity to this day,
Rewarding those spontaneously seeking it,
Freeing the spirit of evil ones,
Is of All Things, most highly treasured.
63
THE DIFFICULT AND THE EASY
Practicing Wu-Wei,
- Act without acting.
- Work without doing.
- Taste without tasting.
Small becomes great, few becomes many,
The unkind is rewarded with kindness.
Let simplicity emerge from complication.
Dealing with trouble while still mere bother,
Resolution emerges from potential difficulty.
Truly, dealing effectively with great problems,
Requires attention before those problems achieve great magnitude.
Thus the Sage, by never dealing with problems of great magnitude,
Achieves greatness.
Glib promises can rarely be kept.
Ostensibly easy accomplishment rarely lacks difficulty of performance.
The Sage, ever mindful of difficulty,
Encounters no difficulty.
64
OVERT ACTION
Remaining still, it is easy to hold.
Unmanifest and unforetold, there are no limits for the making of plans.
Being brittle, it is easy to shatter.
Being small, it is easy to disperse.
Deal then with formative troubles before catastrophic events occur -
Create order before confusion can begin.
Truly -
The giant tree begins as a tiny sprout.
The high tower begins as a heap of earth.
The long journey begins as a single step from where one stands.
Overt acting causes harm and failure.
Overt grasping causes loss.
Thus the Sage,
Acting not, neither harms or fails
. Grasping not, does not lose.
How often people fail as, using overt action,
They are just about to succeed.
Being as careful at the end as at the beginning,
Not interfering with the natural course of things,
Failure is averted.
Therefore The Sage:
- Desires to have what is unwanted.
- Values not objects which are difficult to obtain.
- Learns spontaneously without overt "Learning".
- Returns to the tried and true of old,
So that All Things are restored to their own true nature.
Acting spontaneously from inborn direction,
He avoids overt action.
65
ESTABLISHING HARMONY
The ancient Sages, knowing the natural Tao,
Refrained from schooling others in intellectual enlightenment.
Calculative thinking and strict intellectual processes were discouraged,
For people were argumentative and difficult t< lead when so schooled.
Leading -
Through intellect alone - harmful to all,
Through encouraging the simple and natural intuitive part of mankind - a blessing to all.
Understanding the difference between these,
A test and a standard exists.
Being able to apply this test and standard,
Is a profoundly mysterious virtue.
This Te,
Being deep, penetrating and far reaching -
All Things return to their natural state,
Bringing the original complete harmony to all.
66
HUMILITY
How much greater are the oceans and seas
Than the many lesser streams they rule.
The grand oceans and seas -
Obtaining their greatness and dominion, by being lower,
Receive thereby, the homage of hundreds of streams.
The Sage,
In order to be over people to guide them,
Places himself beneath them, serving them with humility.
In order to lead them,
Must follow behind them.
Accordingly, the Sage is truly over people,
Leading them without oppressing them.
Standing before them, protects them from harm.
All people, tirelessly lending him support,
Follow him.
Not competing with anyone,
None contend with him.
67
THE THREE TREASURES
While being recognized and proclaimed as great by consensus of all people,
Yet the Tao is indescribable.
Being indescribable by common standards,
It is great.
Were it so describable,
Its greatness would have long ago vanished.
From it, three great treasures are possessed,
To be embraced, guarded and kept secure.
The first is Tzu,
Characterized by gentleness, compassion, mercy and nurturing love.
The second, Chien,
By renunciation, frugality and economy which limits possession to no more than that which is truly needed.
When encompassing the third,
One rejects the need for worldly preeminence.
Possessing the first,
Is to possess courage.
Being frugal,
It is possible to be generous.
No longer needing preeminence,
One becomes a leader.
Forsaking these,
Endeavoring to be courageous without compassion,
Endeavoring to possess without renunciation,
Endeavoring to lead all without following behind,
Is to surely court destruction.
Through gentleness, compassion, mercy and nurturing love,
The Sage wins in attack,
Is impregnable in defense.
Truly, heaven arms with love those whom it would not see destroyed.
68
NON - CONTENTION
The greatest warrior ns the violence of war.
The greatest fighter ns the display of anger.
The greatest conqueror ns overt competition.
The greatest leader is humble with his people.
Thus is the power of non-contention.
Thus is the capacity to utilize people well.
Thus is the ancient ultimate unity with heaven.
69
THE COMPASSIONATE WARRIOR
Among great warriors, it is spoken:
It is more propitious to be the defender than the aggressor.
Better to retreat a foot than advance an inch.
This is known as:
Marching without the appearance of moving.
Preparing for conflict without the appearance of arming.
Arming without the appearance of weapons.
Confronting the foe without the appearance of attack.
To engage in war lightly -
To underestimate the foe,
These are catastrophes as severe as the loss of one's treasures -
Those abilities for compassion, renunciation
and the rejection of preeminence.
Thus, when a battle is joined,
Victory is achieved by the compassionate warrior,
Who delights not in conflict.
70
YOU KNOW ME NOT
Being very easy to comprehend,
These teachings are simple to practice.
Yet, few are they who will release ego
sufficiently to achieve understanding,
let alone the ability to practice.
These teachings have their source in nature,
Their master is the Tao.
Not comprehending this,
People find great difficulty in understanding the Sage.
So, with few people really understanding him,
He is most highly valued.
Thus the Sage,
Tho' presenting a poor appearance, to the world,
Yet carries the riches of nature embedded in his core.
71
STRENGTH IN KNOWLEDGE
Knowing you know not, is strength -
A high attainment.
Not knowing, yet thinking you know, is sickness -
A dire defect.
Only with knowledge of this sickness as a sickness,
Can the defect be removed.
The Sage has no sickness - no defect.
Recognizing sickness as sickness, defect as defect,
He is free from these curses.
