Tao Te Ching

The Power of Goodness, the Wisdom Beyond Words
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Showing 81-100 of 249 items.
Chapter NumberContent
2

Happiness requires a middle way path that includes both mind and spirit, intellect and feeling, strategy and emotion, reason and intuition, character and practical action. One without the other only creates unhappiness and failure.

5

Heaven and Earth aren’t humane
Treating the 10,000 things like Christmas trees.
Sages are heartless too
Treating people like Christmas trees.
The space between heaven and earth is like a bellows,
Empty yet inexhaustibly giving,
Responding with what fits.
The more talk, the less understanding,
The more words, the less truth.
The external disguises the eternal.

7

Heaven is eternal and earth will endure
Because they don’t live for themselves
Or nurture an independent self.
In this way the wise put themselves in the background
And end up in front
Put themselves outside
And find themselves safe and centered.
Because they don’t strive for personal goals,
They find fulfillment.

13

Honor and disgrace only trap and confuse us.
Painful because we hope to gain, fear to lose;
Misfortune and high status hurt like our bodies do.
Because favor turns into disfavor, misfortune into fortune;
Welcome them both.

Believing in a separate self
Creates great suffering.
Without a self,
How can there be suffering?
Only those who realize egolessness
Can safely be entrusted with political positions.
Only those not seduced and controlled by something external
Will remain unmanipulated by crises
And not become corrupted by power.

79

If the resolution of a conflict
Leaves resentment and enmity,
How can it be called resolved?
And so the wise
Carefully fulfill their obligations
But aren’t concerned if others do or not.
They play no favorites
And only hold fast to the good.

9

If you don’t stop pouring,
The cup will spill over.
If you sharpen a blade too much,
It will soon dull.
If you keep accumulating wealth,
You won’t be able to protect it.

Fame, fortune, pleasure and power
All lead to their own downfall.
The vanity of success
Only brings to harvest
A crop of calamities.

The best recipe for a good life:
Know when to stop.

24

Imagination can bring contentment, make happiness possible, and balance reason. It can also tyrannize and dominate our lives, burden our mind and body by leading us to folly in blissful delusion. For some, it exaggerates dangers and prevents action; for others, it spurs on foolish action by promising unrealistic adventure and happiness. For these reasons, understanding and influencing our imaginations with prudent self-control remains essential for a good life. Sometimes we need to hold it in check, other times better to galvanize and encourage.

80

Imagine a small country without many people.
They have advanced technology
But they aren’t mesmerized by their tools,
Hypnotized by their computers,
Enslaved by their inventions.

Mindful of death and appreciating where they are,
They have no need for long journeys.
They have good transportation systems
But no place people would rather be.
They have defensive weapons
But don’t have to display or use them.
They keep things simple
And are happy with the way things are.

They savor their food,
Enjoy wearing their clothes,
Cherish their homes,
And delight in their customs.
The next country could be close enough
To hear their dogs barking,
Their roosters crowing
But people could get old and die
Without ever making a visit.

10

In being who and what you are,
Can you live with panoramic awareness?
Riding your energy like a new-born child,
Seeing with mirror-like, clear vision;
Can you journey without goal,
Serve without seeking reward,
Govern without gaining ideas,
Teach the wisdom beyond words?
Can you give birth and develop –
Create without attachment,
Nurture without domineering?
This is the Power of Goodness.

103

In every thought and action, maintain an authentic integrity. At all times hold fast to the highest principles, acting how you would hope and expect for a prince or the officials with the most responsibility and power. Much more than position and birth, this unswerving dedication to the good defines a true leader. For those in power, disregard vanity and pomp but hold firm to the highest standards of virtue.

79

In excess a vice, in timely moderation a virtue; jovial humor can either degrade integrity or add a pleasant spice to situations. Often the encounters most beneficially taken lightly are the same ones most take too seriously. The wise join in the fun to an extent but never go beyond the boundaries of decorum, rectitude, or decency. Humorous wit can extract us from difficult, socially dangerous encounters as well as amplify the good feelings arising from positive experience. The wise use it judiciously.

59

In looking after yourself
And caring for others,
Nothing surpasses the gardening of spirit.

Gathered early, this power doubles
And prevents any reckless use of mind.
It brings freedom from our own ideas
And the knowing of what to accept, what to reject.
It overcomes all obstacles,
Reaches invisible heights,
And has no limits.

Firmly planted and deeply rooted in the Tao,
It shows the way to a deep life with eternal vision.

127

In our quests for success; forbidden, cruel weapons and techniques may give a temporary advantage but the honorable do not use them. We may not be able to avoid conflict in life but we can avoid meanness and hatred. When we respond to an enemy's attack with malice, we let them control us and win on the reputation front if not the physical one. Using a confidence from old friendships turned into enemies displays a kind of treason that destroys honor and prevents trust and respect. Victories gained with great costs to our character and self-respect quickly become embarrassing failures. The wise win not only in external ways but also on the psychological fronts.

25

In the distant past, straightforward contemplation of communications may have sufficed; but today, lies, deception, half-truths, and proliferating scams dominate the culture. To avoid these traps, we must learn to see more deeply than the status quo surface and become psychic and material event forecasters. In terms of self-evaluation and feedback, be slow and skeptical to accept good news and positive comments; welcoming and open to criticism and unfavorable opinion.

67

In this second, not-typical, probably inserted chapter; power and prestige-seeking is again glorified:
Choose a livelihood that will gain you the most praise and fame. Some professions immediately attract esteem while others—although sometimes more important—do not. Prefer the paths that bring the most prestige, that put you closer to the center of celebrity. An honored reputation brings the breath of life.

90

Inner integrity colors our experience, our health, even our bodies. Holding fast to a strong strength of purpose filled with virtue, honesty, and wisdom sustains longevity and supports a full and rewarding life. In a similar but opposite way, vice becomes its own punishment undermining health and shortening our years. Foolish, corrupt, and selfish action destroys our sense of purpose and hastens the death of both body and spirit.

82

Integrity grows from the discipline of warding off extremes. Even the most commendable virtue becomes a vice when it goes too far. If you squeeze an orange too much, the juice becomes bitter. Best to stop before drinking the dregs, expanding a theory ad absurdum, bloating enjoyment to decadence, over-pursuing justice until it becomes injustice, indulging pleasure until it becomes pain, milking a cow until it bleeds.

127

Intelligence sees the flaws most miss. It understands the problems and shortcomings in the most popular and enthusiastic endeavors, ideas, and personalities. The uncensored pointing out of these failings, however, only displays a foolish ignorance. It turns allies into enemies, pleasant conversations into contentious skirmishes, smooth-running projects into resentment-generating disasters. Keeping insight into unacknowledged issues private increases skillfulness while too freely expressing them undermines success.

28

It is great and wise to be ill at ease when your deeds please the mob. When popular with the mob of public opinion, be concerned and more careful. Pleasing the gods of popular approval most often reflects a decrease of integrity. Don't be satisfied with empty and fickle praise which has no depth or intelligence and can abruptly change. The larger the crowd, the more admiration for foolish delusions. And so, don't follow the herd in anything, be common in nothing; and instead, watch for deception.

89

It's easy to see our outer image and qualities but much more important to see clearly our inner selves—our talents, passions, short comings, inclinations, character flaws, intellect, our levels of understanding and wisdom. Without an undistorted view of who and what we really are, we can't improve ourselves, our families, our communities, or the world. By default, most of us fall into the arrogance of self-deception, the distortions of projection, and the delusions of ego-centrism. Forging a mirror that reflects our true qualities requires deeply honest self-reflection, a brave resolve, and careful consideration.