The Tao Te Ching

[ProKeymaster]

The Tao Te Ching

Pro – ‘The Tao Te Ching’

Tao means roughly ‘the way’ or ‘the path’ and Taoism is more a way of life than a religion. After I discovered what would become Pro theory I finally knew how to understand everything and so I began to read the Tao.

It remains the best book I’ve ever read, its gentle suggestions and constant insights are valuable beyond riches and correct beyond words. Every great idea needs a philosophy behind it and for my own life I choose the Tao. I’m just going to leave this thread as a work in progress as I hand copy passages from what I feel is the best translation of this wonderful book.

One of its main principles is subtlety and just for an example I’ve been trying to find the words to write an introductory passage here but I’m trying too hard and so I’ll take this message as a sign and let the Tao do the talking. This thread is in the theory of everything forum as it goes with Pro theory as a guide that does not directly contradict any religion but that is open to interpretation and exploration by the individual.

I’m closing this thread until I’ve copied the full text out from my book so that I can complete it fully as a whole first before any replies. If anybody wants to discuss this while I’m still copying the words out please start your own thread about it. There are lots of online translations of the Tao but I feel that this is the best 🙂

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Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

The Tao that can be talked about is not the true Tao. The name that can be named is not the eternal name. Everything in the universe comes out of nothing. Nothing – the nameless is the beginning; While Heaven, the mother is the creatrix of all things. Follow the nothingness of the Tao and you can be like it, not needing anything, seeing the wonder and the root of everything. And even if you cannot grasp this nothingness, you can still see something of the Tao in everything. These two are the same only called by different names – and both are mysterious and wonderful. All mysteries are Tao, and Heaven is their mother: She is the gateway and the womb door.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

Life, all life began without words. Life is made – and no one owns it. The Tao is neither selfish nor proud. The Tao is generous and graceful in what it does without ever claiming any merit. And the sage’s greatness lies in taking no credit.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

If the sage refuses to be proud then the people won’t compete for his attention: If the sage does not buy treasures then his people won’t want to steal them: If the sage governs with vision then his people will not go wrong. So in his wisdom, he restrains himself:- by not being greedy for food- by not dominating the State- by keeping himself healthy and fit. The sage always makes sure that the people don’t know what he’s done, so they never want to be in control – and are never driven by ambition. He keeps them in truth like this acting invisibly. You see, if there is nothing to fight for then there is nothing that can break the flow.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

The Tao pours out everything into life – It is a cornucopia that never runs dry. It is the deep source of everything – it is nothing, and yet it is in everything. It smooths round sharpness and untangles the knots. It glows like the lamp that draws the moth…Tao exists, Tao is but where it came from I do not know. It has been shaping things from before the first being, from before the Beginning of Time.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

What is going to be diminished must first be allowed to inflate. Whatever you want to weaken must first be convinced if its strength. What you want to overcome you must first of all submit to…What you want to take over you must first of all give to – this is called discerning. You see, what is yielding and weak overcomes what is hard and strong: (And just as a fish can’t be seen when he stays down in the deep don’t show your power to anyone).

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

The Tao goes on forever Wu-wei – doing nothing. And yet everything gets done. How? It does it by being. And by being everything it does. If people and rulers go by this then every living thing will be well. And if parts want to separate the true leader will use the centrifugal weight of this original unnameable Oneness. It is simple: If no one wants anything for themselves then there can be peace and all things will know peace the way music ends in peace.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

Beauty and mercy are only recognised by people because they know the opposite which is ugly and mean. If the people think they know goodness then all they really know is what evil is like! Nothing, and Heaven share the same root – Difficulty and ease are a part of all work. The long and the short are in your hands, above and below exist because they each do, what you want and what you say should be the same… Neither future nor past can exist alone. The sage has no attachment to anything, and he therefore does what is right without speaking by simply being in the Tao.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

The guide who walks the Way never resorts to violence. The sage goes to the left side of the Emperor. While the man of war goes to the right. Weapons are terrible things – and no sage will have anything to do with them, unless there is no alternative. The sage wants peace and quiet. No victory is free of grief, and so the celebrate one is to glory in the death of innocent people. No one who revels in death like this can be true to the Way or is fit to rule in our world. At glad times, the place of honour is on the left, after disaster it is on the right. So in the army, the officers stand to the left while the general stands to the right. So the whole thing is staged like a funeral. When a war kills many, we must mourn for them – and if you win the war, you must grieve it.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

The Emperor’s advisers will never recommend violence if they know what the Tao is. If you use the strategy of warfare it can only result in revenge. After troops have tramped by only weeds grow in the broken ground. There can be no harvest, and everyone is left starving. If you need to take action, only do what is necessary. Never abuse your power.And if you’re successful, don’t be smug; If you are a success, don’t trumpet it – if you think you’ve won, never overdo it. Those who use force soon end up without it – and this is not the Way.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

The Tao has no name, it is a cloud that has no shape. If a ruler follows it faithfully, then every living thing under heaven will say yes to him.Heaven and earth come together and a sweet dew-rain falls. The people do not know why, but they are gathered together like music. Things have been given names from the beginning. We need to know when we have enough names: this is wisdom. At the beginning of time the sage gives names to everything – seen and unseen. A ruler who walks the Way is like a river reaching the sea gathering the waves of the streams into himself as he goes.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

When you know the true being of another, you can judge – and if you truly know the Tao you will be in the light. It takes force to control people: but if I am humble, I can never be overcome. If you know what you have is enough you will be satisfied. But if you think you don’t have enough then you will never have enough! If you follow the Tao, what you are will last.You will live, and live, and outlive yourself again.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

The Great Tao goes everywhere, past your left hand and your right – filling the whole of space. It is breath to every living thing, and yet it asks for nothing back. It feeds and creates everything, but it will never tell you so. It nurtures all things without Lording it over anything. It names itself in the lowest of the low. It holds what it makes, yet it never fights to do so, that is why we call it Great. Why? It never tries to be so.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

Everyone will gather to the person who rules in the light of the One. To trust such a being is to live in true happiness and healing. Good food and sweet music may make you stop – you listen in passing. But the Tao: how does it seem? Oh, tasteless and shapeless by comparison. You cannot even hear it. Is it even worth trying to? Yes, my friend because it is unending.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

Heaven and earth are not like humans. The Tao does not act like a human. They don’t expect to be thanked for making life, so they view it without expectation. Heaven and earth are like a pair of bellows: they are empty, and yet they can never be exhausted. Work them, and they produce more and more – there’s too much talking, it’s really better to stay quiet. There are too many laws when all you have to do is to hold on to the centre.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

The Tao is the breath that never dies. It is a Mother to All Creation. It is the root and ground of every soul – the fountain of Heaven and Earth, laid open.Endless source, endless river. River of no shape, river of no water drifting invisibly from place to place…it never ends and it never fails.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

Heaven and earth are enduring. The universe can live for ever because it does not live for itself. And so both last – outliving themselves. The sage guides his people by putting himself last. Desiring nothing for himself, he knows how to channel desires. And is it not because he wants nothing that he is able to achieve everything?

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

The sage’s way, Tao is the way of water.There must be water for life to be, and it can flow wherever. And water, being true to being water is true to Tao. Those on the way of Tao, like water need to accept where they find themselves; and that may often be where water goes, to the lowest places, and that is right. Like a lake the heart must be calm having great depth beneath it. The sage rules with compassion, and his words need to be trusted. The sage needs to know like water how to flow around the blocks and how to find the way through without violence. Like water, the sage should wait for the moment to ripen and be right:water, you know never fights it flows around without harm.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

Hold yourself back from filling yourself up, or you’ll tip off your stand. You can hammer a blade until it’s razor-sharp – and in seconds, it can blunt. You may amass gold and jade in plenty but then the more you have, the less safety…Are you strutting your wealth like a peacock? Then you’re setting yourself up to be shot. You bring about your own disaster because you’ve got too much. Let go, when your work is done: That is the Way of Heaven.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

Can you nurture your souls by holding them in unity with the One? Can you focus your ch’i – your energy and become as supple and yielding as a baby? Can you clear your mind of all its dross without throwing out the Tao with it? Can you do it without self-interest so you shine like a diamond? Can you love the people of your nation without being pulled into action? Can you turn around and let Her rise up over you? The world spans out in four directions – and can you be as embracing? Birthing, nurturing and sustaining: The Tao does this unceasingly…It gives without holding on to what it’s made, it gives everything essence, without reward. It knows, without flaunting it. It is serene beyond desiring – and this is its virtue and its Source.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

TAO Thirty spokes on a cartwheel go towards the hub that is the centre – but look, there is nothing at the centre and that is precisely why it works! If you mould a cup you have to make a hollow: It is the emptiness within it that make it usable. They all do what they are made of to do what they do, but without their nothingness they would be nothing.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

The five colours blind the eye – the five notes deafen the ear…The five tastes deaden the mouth: Riding the chase on horseback drives you crazy when you overdo it; And wanting what’s precious you do what distorts your being. The sage knows this in his gut, and is guided by his instinct and not by what his eyes want.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

Most people fret about themselves and their status, but you don’t have to do this. What is success and what is failure? If you have prestige and favour, all you worry about is that it’ll get taken away. And if you have a lowly place you are still basically afraid. So both, at the root, make for fear. What does it mean that success is a problem? It means people are too bound up in themselves. If they weren’t so self-obsessed they’d have no need to be worried. If you can put yourself aside – then you can do things for the whole of the world. And if you love the world, like this then you are ready to serve it.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

When you gaze at something but see – nothing; When you listen for a sound but cannot hear it; When you try to grasp it and find it has no substance – then these three things, that go beyond your mind are moulded together in the One. Its surface doesn’t shine, but nor is its base dull. Given this, it is only knowable as no-thing. Confront it – it has no head; Come behind it, and it has no tail…If people could follow the ancient way, then they would be masters of the moment. And if you know the Way then you have seen the timeless way of the Tao.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

In ancient times, the leaders were as subtle as sorcerers. No one knew what they were about to do. How can we describe them to you? They were like soldiers about to cross a cold river, hesitant, watchful and uncertain. They were cautious like people who know there is danger. They were over-polite, like practised house guests. They gave way like ice, melting. They were simple like uncarved wood. They were empty like deserted valleys. They were muddy like unreflecting water. The mud will settle, and it is hard to wait for it. But if you can, then you can act. If you follow the Tao without pretension you will never burn yourself out.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

The sage rules from the purest motives relying wholly on quiet and inner peace. He watches the seasons rise and fall and if he knows how things grow, he knows they are fed by their roots. And they return to their roots;To grow and flower and flow. Every thing must have its roots, and the tendrils work quietly underground. This quiet feeding is the Way of Nature.If you understand ch’ang – this principle of nurturing, you can understand everything. Not understanding it will lead you to disaster.If a sage knows this, he can rule and he will do so with patience and justice. Any man can become wise in this and he can walk the Way of Heaven. And if you walk that way you will be royal in the mastery. Life can end in pain – but if you live like this, under the Tao, you will fill your days with breath.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

The highest form of government is what people hardly even realise is there. Next is that of the sage who is seen, and loved, and respected.Next down is the dictatorship that thrives on oppression and terror – and the last is that of those who lie and end up despised and rejected. The sage says little – and does not tie the people down; And the people stay happy believing that what happens, happens naturally.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

When the Great Tao is lost sight of – then people have to try to be kind and gentle. They try to compensate by being clever but this only breeds hypocrisy and sleight-of-hand. When families fall out relationships sour into useless formality. When the nation is misled and in chaos ministers mouth empty promises.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

If the sage could abandon his wisdom and skill, then everyone would be a hundred times better off.If the sage could let go of holding the scales, then everyone would flow in the web of harmony…And if the sage can give up looking to gain, then there will be no theft or exploitation. Now while these three things are important they are not enough: The people themselves need to learn simplicity. They shouldn’t need to know more than they do, and should have as few things as possible.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

Listen, give up trying to be so learned and things will be a lot easier. Is there any difference between a yes and a no said insincerely? Is there really much of a difference between being angry and pretending not to be?What the people are afraid of I also need to fear. And what do most people do? They go looking for a good time. They go looking for fool’s gold and auspicious signs. Only, you see, I am lazy and I don’t give a damn about fame or money. I am like a child that cannot bring himself to smile.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

What do the people want? Money and things. And yet I find I have nothing, and I don’t care. I am as unambitious as any fool. Most people seem to be bright and sharp and how do I feel? Like a blunted sword. The people, the people are like waves of sea and I am drifting between them and wherever they are blown. And the people, the people are so busy! But I have nothing to bother about. I am a bumpkin, a lout. I am different, I am strange. I live for the Mother.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

The Body of The Tao is a mist beyond your eyes. Tao of No Body, and yet within it is All Creation. Like a seed in the dark, and a dim light and from it, comes everything. Root, stem, leaf…its essence is in everything. Everything is born from this Tao. I say so, and I can prove it! From the beginning of time until now the Tao is eternal because it is creation. How do I know the Tao is the root of all being? I know this.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

Learn to yield and be soft if you want to survive. Learn to bow and you will stand in your full height. Learn to empty yourself and be filled by the Tao…the way a valley empties itself into a river. Use up all you are and then you can be made new. Learn to have nothing and you will have everything. Sages always act like this, and are Children of the Tao. Never trying to impress, their being shines forth. Never saying ‘this is it’ people see what the truth is. Never boasting, they leave the space they can be valued in. And never claiming to be who they are, people can see them. And since they never argue, no one argues with them either…So the ancient ones say, ‘Bend, and you will rule.’ Is this a lie? You’ll find it is true. Be true to yourself, and all will go well with you.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

It is a natural thing to talk sparingly. And surely, this is right – even a great wind and lashing rain do not go on forever. It is naturally so.Both Heaven and Earth know it. And if neither can hold on to such an outpouring for long what makes people think they can? If you follow the Tao, all you do will belong to it. If you act with Virtue, all you do will have its power. If you lose these – then every way you will be lost. If you go the Way of Tao, it can only be with you. If you go the Way of Virtue, its purity will sustain you. But if you go the way of loss, then that will be your name; And if you cannot trust, no one will trust you.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

A man on tiptoe can’t walk easily. The man who strides on ahead is bound to tire. The kind of person who always insists on his way of seeing things can never learn anything from anyone. Those who always want to be seen will never help others to be. The showman is never secretly respected by anyone. People like these, say the Wise Ones are as useless as the left-over food at a feast: No true follower can relate to them.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

Before the world was and the sky was filed with stars…There was a strange, unfathomable Body. This Being, this Body is silent and beyond all substance and sensing. It stretches beyond everything spanning the empyrean. It has always been here, and it always will be. Everything comes from it, and then it is the Mother of Everything. I do not know its name. So I call it TAO. I am loath to call it ‘greater than everything’ but it is. And being greater, it infuses all things moving far out and returning to the Source. Tao is Great, Tao, the Great! It is greater than Heaven, Greater than the Earth – Greater than the king. These are the four great things, and the ruler is the least of them. Humanity is schooled by the Earth; Earth is taught by Heaven, and Heaven is guided by the Tao. And the Tao goes with what is absolutely natural.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

What holds, what you can trust is the same as this quietness – and it is light hearted. This quiet light-hearted silence is the key to being free from emotion. The sage never abandons the Tao, He never lets its weight out of his sight. He may live in a fabulous house but he never gets caught up wanting to – and though there are always temptations, He stays unswayed, and smiles. So why is it that out rulers seem so bright, but are glib and insubstantial? Losing the weight of the Tao means you lose your root; And when you can’t sit still you lose the source.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

The sage who goes by the way leaves no traces. The sage who speaks the true law never slips up – He never calculates what profit he can make from what he does. He keeps out thieves with his wisdom! He’s never robbed – He makes sure the rules are binding, then no one can undo them:He is aware of everyone, leaving no one uncounted; He cares like a parent, and wastes nothing. This is the essence of harmony. So, a good man is a model for a bad one and, misguided, he is touched by his goodness. Not to follow a teacher here. To love his precious message is to lose the Way, however clever you are – this is the essence of the matter.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

Understand the thrust of the Yang – but be more like yin in your being. Be like a valley that parts to its stream; Be like a stream for the earth…And channel it, so it flows – to the sea. Be newborn – be free of yourself, be humble, be earthy, be a valley for the whole world. Be a channel for the energies here – weave them in a true and practical way so they can link up with the Way and become one again. Oneness generates everything: When the sage rules in the light of it, He rules everything. A wise man never tries to break up the Whole.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TAO

If a ruler behaves as if he’s invented the world, He will do no good at all. The earth is a sacred vessel – and it cannot be owned or improved. If you try to possess it, you will destroy it: If you try to hold on to it – you will lose it. Some are leaders, then, and others follow. Some drift like the wind, and others drive hard. Some are thick-skinned, and others have no armour; And some are destroyers, and others they destroy. So now you know why the sage abandons greed, all false charm – and every last bit of pride.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

The highest kind of man has innate goodness, and that is what he rules with. The lesser man brags about how good he is – and isn’t much good, I can tell you. A Man of Te rules by Wu-wei doing nothing for himself or of himself. The lesser man acts from his ego and what he wants is gratification. A man who rules with compassion acts through it – and no one even realizes. A legal man acts judiciously but he is still serving his own ends. The rigid man uses laws and if people don’t like it, force. If the true Tao is lost then morality takes its place. If that fails, we have ‘conscience.’When that fades, we get ‘justice.’When that disappears, we have the status quo. Confusion reigns. No one knows what’s going on. Predictions and prophecies abound – and they are merely gloss on the Tao, they are the roof of all twisted guidance. So the sage only looks at what is really real. He doesn’t just look at the surface – He blows away the dust and drinks the water…He doesn’t just go for the flower but also for the roots and the fruit. Blow away the dust, now: Come to the living water.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

From its first days, the universe came from the One. The heavens are one, and clear, and round because of it. The earth is one, and is its firm infused foundation…The spirit force is one, with all it brings into being – the valley is a oneness, and so it flows and renews all things. Everything is one – every living thing is one, and alive! Kings and lords are one in a kingdom that is one. And they can only rule truly because of the One. If Heaven wasn’t clear, then the sky would fall down. If the earth cannot be peaceful, it will tear itself apart. If the Spirit cannot bless, then no one will believe in it – if the valley can’t rebirth, then the valley will run dry. If life can’t be itself, then life will be nothing: And if the king is nothing, then the world will be at war. Everything has both yin and yang in it – and from their rise-and-fall-coupling comes new life. The highest authority needs the basement as its base and the depths are the foundation of the heights. That is why rulers call themselves lonely, like souls in a wilderness who have no home. And, in doing so, don’t they see then that their roots lie with the people? To see yourself as extraordinary is to stand out like jade among ordinary stones; But what people ignore – the lonely, and the worthless – is the rock a true leader finds himself on. You see, you win by losing – and you lose by succeeding.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

The Tao moves in every direction at once – its essence is fluid and yielding. It is the maker of everything under the sun: And everything comes out of nothing.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

When the wisest student hears about the Tao, he follows it without ceasing. When the average student hears about it he follows too, but not all of the time…And when the poor student gets wind of it he laughs at it like an idiot! And if he didn’t, then it wouldn’t be the Tao! That is why the ancient ones said: The path that is bright seems dull, and the one who is going towards the Tao seems, in fact, to be going backwards – and those that think the Way is easy will find it extremely hard. The greatest virtue is to be empty like a valley. Those who think they are perfect never are – those who feel that they are, feel inadequate to the task, and morals seem to be no more than a contrivance. A great square has no corners: A great work is never done with; A great shout comes from a whisper, And the greatest of forms is beyond shape. Tao without substance – invisible – ever-creating.Forever creating.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

The Tao gives birth to the One: The One gives birth to the two; The Two give birth to the three – the Three give birth to every living thing. All things are held in yin, and carry yang: And they are held together in the ch’i of teeming energy.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

The very softest thing of all can ride like a galloping horse through the hardest of things. Like water, like water penetrating rock. And so the invisible enters in .That is why I know it is wise to act by doing nothing. And how few, how very few understand this! People teach in the world what I know to be true: If you live violently that is how you will die.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

What really matters most, your image or your soul? What do you care about, your money, or your life? What’s actually the best, making it – or losing? If you pour all your energy into one thing, you’re sure to harm the rest of your being and if you invest it all in profit – you’ll end up losing the whole lot. If you’re not always wanting, you can be at peace. And if you’re not always trying to be someone you can be who you really are and go the whole way.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

The great thing done is never perfect – but that doesn’t mean it fails: it does what it is. Real richness means to act as if you had nothing because then you will never be drained of it. The greatest straightness seems bent, the greatest ability seems awkward, and the greatest speech, like a stammering. Act calmly, not coldly. Peace is greater than anger.Tranquillity and harmony are the true order of things.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

When the Tao runs the world, the horses work the farms. Without Tao the horses are led into war along the borders. You see, if people want more and more it can only lead to disaster. Greed is the seed of apocalypse – it is the catalyst of selfishness: me, me, me! If people could only be glad with all they have, if they only knew it, they’d be happy.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

Without going anywhere, you can know the whole world. Without even opening your window, you can know the ways of Heaven. You see: the further away you go, the less you know… The sage doesn’t need to travel around. Why? This is because he can still understand. He sees without needing ‘to see.’ He never does anything, and yet it all happens.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

Usually, people read because they want to know – but the more you study the Tao, the less you want knowledge. And as you want less and less, you come closer to not-doing.Wu-Wei – this is the way to get things done. The best way to run the world is to let it take its course – and to get yourself out of the way of it!

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

The sage is never opinionated, He listens to the mind of the people.’ I am kind to people when they are kind to me. I am kind to them even if they hate me. Virtue – Te – is its own reward. I trust those who trust me, I also trust those who have no faith in me: What I give, I receive. A sage is self-effacing and mindful of offence. He sets himself as his own example. How shall I treat you, my son? Like a child.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

In the normal way of things every three in ten live long, while every three in ten die young – and for those just passing through their lives (that is, every three in ten) the chances are the same. Why is this? Well, it all depends on how identified they are with the mundane world of matter. People who know how to live will never do things that threaten their lives, any more than a traveller who knows this will run towards a tiger or wild buffalo. Living well is like wearing a kind of armour that nothing can penetrate. Living badly is like being attacked! A practised sage is invulnerable to attacks that punch like a buffalo’s horn, that claw like a leaping tiger – or that stab like a knife in the back.And why is this? It is because he is impeccable.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

Everything streams from the Tao, everything is nurtured by Te. Everything is made out of substance. Everything is created by the Tao of Nature – and from everything on earth that surrounds it. So every living thing should bow to the Tao, the Tao and its Virtue because they are what it is. Everything that breathes comes from the Tao, and the Virtue feeds and takes care of it. They grace things without possessing them, they benefit everything but ask for nothing back, they give themselves into everything without seeking control. This is the essence of the original intention.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

Every living thing comes from the Mother of Us all: If we can understand the Mother then we can understand her children. And if we know ourselves as children we can see the source is Her. And, well, if your body dies – there’s nothing to be frightened about. If you keep your mouth shut and stay inside – then you’ll live a long time. If you blurt out what you think to everyone, then you won’t last long. Value littleness. This is wisdom. To bend like a reed in the wind – that is real strength. Use your mind, but stay close to the light and it will lengthen its glow right through your life.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

If all I know is a fraction – then my only fear is of losing the thread… The Great Way is easy but people are forever being taken down sidetracks. They look after the palaces, but ignore the fields! The granaries are empty – but they wear wonderful clothes! They go about with arms and gorge themselves on fine food and drink. How rich they are -and they have stolen it all from the poor. They are the robber barons of now – this is not the real Tao!

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

What is built on rock cannot be pulled down. What is held lightly can never be lost. Meditate on virtue within yourself, and you will find the benefit of virtue. Use it as ground for the family, and your virtue will last for generations. Take it as your guidance for the village, and the place will blossom for years to come. Use it to guide the nation, and that nation will create abundance. Be guided by it for the Whole, and it will flood its way over the world. So, look at someone else as you would yourself and treat other families as you would your own. See your community in other communities, think of all countries as part of your being and treasure the world as the round centre of everything. How can I see the world like this? It is because I have eyes.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

Those who have true Te are like a newborn baby.- and if they seem like this, they will not be stung by wasps or snakes, or pounced on by animals in the wild or birds of prey. A baby is weak and supple, but his hand can grasp your finger. He has no desire as yet, and he can be correct – he can cry day and night without even getting hoarse, such is the depth of his harmony. It’s stupid to rush around. When you fight against yourself, it shows in your face. But if you draw your sap from your heart then you will be truly strong. You will be great.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

If you know what it is, don’t talk it away: If you do, then you don’t understand.Hush, keep it in, and your doorway shut – steer clear of sharpness and untangle the knots. Feel your lightness and let it merge with others, this, we say, is our basic oneness. The sage who does this doesn’t have to worry about people called ‘friends’ or ‘enemies’ with profit or loss, honour or disgrace – He is a Master of Life instead.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

To rule a nation, use justice. To win a battle – cunning, but remember: Wu-wei is the only true way. How do I know this? I will explain: The more rules you have, the more unhappy people are. And the more weapons there are, the worse things happen. The more we want luxuries, the more we abandon simplicity – and the more laws you pass, the more we will break them. So the sage says: I do nothing, and the people come together. By leaving them alone I let them be on the path – by not using my power, they become rich in themselves. And if I want nothing, they will return to the essence of their being.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

If you govern with a generous hand – then your people will be good people. But if your system is too constricting then your people will outwit you… Good fortune, we say, can come from disaster: and the reverse is true as well. Who knows where all this will lead? Honesty can flip into deceit in a moment, people trying to be good can fall into the dark and it can take them years to get out of it. So the sage is like a razor, but he doesn’t cut, he is straight as a die, but not pointedly so – he is bright, but not blindingly so…

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

When ruling the world and serving Heaven, the sage uses simplicity in everything he does. Simplicity comes from letting go of what you want. If you’ve been true to yourself earlier in your life then Te builds up in you like a well that never fails. Nothing is impossible, then – and nothing can stop you. And if you have no limits – then you can hold the State. If the sage can find the Mother of a Nation then he will govern for a long, long time. All this comes from the rootedness in the Tao, The Tao of Ages, the Mountain Of Vision And Of Wings.

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’ TE

Ruling a big country is like cooking a small fish, you have to handle it with care. If a sage uses the Tao then evil forces have no power. He doesn’t harm people either. Through Te, you see we have harmony.

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Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’

Didn’t realise I’d closed this topic :p Thiago, I’m not 100% sure whether there is a doctrine within Taoism that says we must meditate or not but in my view meditation is just the same as deep thought.

The Buddha said that the highest form of meditation is that which we do every day in our normal thoughts. Things like positive thinking and similar.

So I wouldn’t necessarily say that Taoists meditate in the classic Buddhist way but we wouldn’t be against it either. Taoism is really sort of a folk wisdom way of living and it doesn’t mention any God specifically which is the main reason that I am a Taoist so to speak.

Taoism isn’t so much a religion in the sense of me saying ‘I’m a member of the Taoist faith’ it’s more like a way of life. I know many people say their religion is a way of life but Taoism is actually more of just a way of life, it’s all about harmony and balance through nature and doesn’t attribute creation to anything in particular, just to heaven or ‘the mother’ which means the universe.

I like it because it fits in with Pro theory and the three pronged forces that I often speak of. I believe that only by harmonising these three separate forces into a unified answer of three potentials can we create a theory of everything.

This balance is the basis of my whole theory really. Three things at once, no more no less. Hope this helps 🙂

Thiago – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’

So, as you wanted me to ask here, how do Taoists see the world (like God and stuff)? Is there a book that’s like a bible, or Taoism is based on many books?

I really enjoyed the Tao Te Ching book, it really looks like Taoism “philosophy” is like Buddhism (probably because of the culture of where it came from, that’s Asia).

I know that there’s some people that follow a Buddhism/Taoism religion. And… do Taoists follow some rules like some Buddhists do (like to not eat after mid day…), or is it like “do whatever you want, just don’t kill, lie, envy…”?

Btw, I don’t follow any religion, my religion is my philosophy, I see something good in all religions, but they always have something that I don’t agree, but most of what I believe comes from Buddhism. Why Buddhism?

I had thought already that what make us sad is because we want stuff, and what make us happy is when we have what we want, so if you don’t want anything, you will be happy, if you want to have everything, you will live a sad life. Well, that’s all! 😛

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’

Hi Thiago, it’s good to hear from you 🙂 I’m not entirely sure how to answer you here as I only really know the Tao Te Ching as the main Taoist text.

I’ve heard it said that Taoism is often coupled with the writings of Confucius, as he writes specifically about moral conduct and how to live a good life as a compliment to the Tao. Traditionally Taoism seems to be associated with three major texts, the Tao Te Ching, the I Ching, and the Chuang Zu.

I’ve not been able to find a copy in print of the Chuang Zu but I think it’s a kind of more down to earth text as opposed to the Tao Te Ching itself. The I Ching on the other hand is a divination oracle, said to have been copied down from old divination bones that were cast upon the ground by priests to read the future.

As far as I know Taoists don’t see a God as such, they just see the wonder and beauty of nature and the universe without attributing its formation/creation to any being or other. Taoism is similar in some respects to Buddhism which I’m also quite familiar with but the two are distinctly different in their ideas and how they approach creation and the after life etc.

Buddhism is mainly concerned with what is known as ‘the Buddha mind’ which is a perfect and serene state that is incorruptible. They say that the Buddha mind is always clear and bright and a truly enlightened being or person will have no need to adjust their thoughts after their perfect state of achievement.

Taoism is different also in that it doesn’t talk as specifically or rigorously about any perfect state of mind, it’s all about just living a peaceful and quiet life, without needing to describe and explore and categorise our existence.

What I’m saying here isn’t Gospel in the sense that I know everything there is to know about these philosophies, I can only tell you what I know myself. I don’t know of any rules that define Taoism such as fasting or prayers etc like we might see in some forms of Buddhism so I think you’re right, it seems to be a case of just following the Tao (the path or the way) and not killing, hurting, or being too full of yourself.

I like what you think about lowering our standards in life, and it’s true that the more we want the more disappointed we become. The Tao says ‘the more we have the more we worry that it will be taken away’ (or words to this effect).

I think that when it comes down to it this is common sense isn’t it. The richer we become in the personal sense the more we worry, they say it’s lonely at the top and I believe this to be true. If you’re the best at whatever it is you do, then you will always be worried about somebody being better than you.

I also think it’s important to note that the original Buddha was a very rich and spoilt prince in India so it makes sense that one who was born with great riches may renounce them all in later life in a similar way that many modern millionaires started as a child of very poor parents and so sought wealth.

It’s just the opposite to the Buddha, he was rich and became poor and many people began poor and ended up as rich.I hope this helps 🙂

Thiago – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’

Thanks, so my thoughts about Taoism are kinda right, I will try to find some copies of those two books to read, I’m sure it will be a good knowledge for life.

And yea, I pretty much know about that what keeps people sad is that they don’t achieve what they want, I used to be a really competitive guy and not so good with competition (I used to fail many times), after I realized that I shouldn’t worry so much about it (and now, I don’t care about it at all), I’ve started to win more and live my life in peace.

I really see those books priceless, It’s really easy to find books that can tell me anything(that’s already discovered) about physics, calculus etcetera, but finding books that can actually teach me about this miracle, that’s life, it’s really hard =P

Pro – ‘Re: The Tao Te Ching’

No problem Thiago 🙂 You will surely be able to find a copy of the I Ching divination oracle as it’s quite popular I think but I can’t even find the Chuang Zu myself yet, if you find a copy in print I’d love to hear what you think of it and what it says.

I used to try to be competitive too actually but in the end I decided to just live my life the best way I’m able to and hope for the best. I find that instead of trying to look on the best side of things it helps me to think instead ‘Don’t look on the worst case scenario’ rather than trying to look positive.

It’s like with my videos on YouTube, I’m not so worried that people like me, I just don’t want anybody to dislike me if you see what I mean.

It may seem that the two statements seem very similar but they are slightly different. Rather than me trying to please people I try to not displease them instead if that makes sense.

I’ve looked for a Taoist monastery in England before lots of times but I couldn’t find one, only a Buddhist one which is different to Taoism and not quite what I’m looking for. You’ll have to let me know how your search progresses :peace:

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