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TAO TE CHINGbyLao Tzu {approx 500 BC}The Mystic Wisdom of Ancient ChinaTranslated by Raymond B. Blakney {1955}Part 1 of 9 | |||||
Web Publication by Mountain Man Graphics, Australia in the Southern Summer of 1995
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TAO TE CHINGbyLao Tzu {approx 500 BC}The Mystic Wisdom of Ancient ChinaTranslated by Raymond B. Blakney {1955}Part 1 of 9 | |||||
Web Publication by Mountain Man Graphics, Australia in the Southern Summer of 1995
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TAO: A road, a path, the way by which people travel, the way of nature and finally the Way of ultimate reality.
TE: Virtue, character, influence, moral force. The "outward effect of a man and the inward effect of the self."
The secret waits for the insight
Of eyes unclouded by longing;
Those who are bound by desire
See only the outward container.
These two come paired but distinct
By there names.
Of all things profound,
Say that their pairing is deepest,
The gate to the root of the world.
For is and is-not come together;
Hard and easy are complementary;
Long and short are relative;
High and low are comparative;
Pitch and sound make harmony;
Before and after are a sequence.
Indeed the Wise Man's office
Is to work by being still
He teaches not by speach
But by accomplishment;
He does for everything,
Neglecting none;
Their life he gives to all,
Possessing none;
And what he brings to pass
Depends on no one else.
As he succeeds,
He takes no credit
And just because he does not take it,
Credit never leaves him.
The Wise Man's policy, accordingly,
Will be to empty people's hearts and minds,
To fill their bellies, weaken their ambition,
Give them sturdy frames and always so,
To keep them uniformed, without desire,
And knowing ones not venturing to act.
Be still while you work
And keep full control
Over all.
It blunts sharpness,
Resolves tangles;
It tempers light,
Subdues turmoil.
A deep pool it is,
Never to run dry!
Whose offspring it may be
I do not know:
It is like a preface to God.
Between the earth and sky
The space is like a bellows,
Empty but unspent.
When moved its gift is copious.
Much talk means much exhaustion;
Better far it is to keep your thoughts!
Constantly, and so forever,
Use her without labour.
The Wise Man chooses to be last
And so becomes the first of all;
Denying self, he too is saved.
For does he not fulfillment find
In being an unselfish man?
If the good of the house is from land,
Or the good of the mind is depth,
Or love is the virtue of friendship,
Or honesty blesses one's talk,
Or in government, goodness is order,
Or in business, skill is admired,
Or the worth of an act lies in timing,
Then peace is the goal of the Way
By which no one ever goes astray.
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"The Way of Life"{ Wisdom of Ancient China }Lao Tzu {500 BC}Part 1 of 9 | |||||
Web Publication by Mountain Man Graphics, Australia in the Southern Spring of 1995
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