TAO TE CHING by Lao Tzu {approx 500 BC} The Mystic Wisdom of Ancient China Translated by Raymond B. Blakney {1955} Part 6 of 9
Web Publication by Mountain Man Graphics, Australia in the Southern Summer of 1995

The Mystic Wisdom of Ancient China

"Tao Te Ching" ... the Way of Life

Part 6 of 9 - Chapters 46 to 54

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."

{46} The Way of Contentment ...

When the Way rules the world,
Coach horses fertilize the fields;
When the Way does not rule,
War horses breed in the parks.

No sin can exceed
Incitement to envy;
No calamity's worse
Than to be discontented,
Nor is there an omen
More dreadful than coveting.
But once be contented,
And truly you'll always be so.

{47} The world may be known without leaving the house ...

The world may be known
Without leaving the house;
The Way may be seen
Apart from the windows.
The further you go,
The less you will know.

Accordingly, the Wise Man
Knows without going,
Sees without seeing,
Does without doing.

{48} The student learns by daily increment ...

The student learns by daily increment.
The Way is gained by daily loss,
Loss upon loss until
At last comes rest.

By letting go, it all gets done;
The world is won by those who let it go!
But when you try and try,
The world is then beyond the winning.

{49} Wise Men hear and see ...

The Wise Man's mind is free
But tuned to people's need:
"Alike to be good and bad
I must be good,
For Virtue is goodness.
To honest folk
And those dishonest ones
Alike, I proffer faith,
For Virtue is faithful."

The Wise Man, when abroad,
Impartial to the world,
Does not divide or judge.
But people everywhere
Mark well his ears and eyes;
For wise men hear and see
As little children do.

{50} How best to be at peace ...

On leaving life, to enter death:
Thirteen members form a living body;
A corpse has thirteen, too:
Thirteen spots by which a man may pass
From life to death. Why so?
Because his way of life
Is much too gross.

As I have heard, the man who knows
On land how best to be at peace
Will never meet a tiger or a buffalo;
In battle, weapons do not touch his skin.
There is no place the tiger's claws can grip;
Or with his horn, the buffalo can jab;
Or where the soldier can insert his sword.
Why so? In him there is no place of death.

{51} The Mystic Power ...

The Way brings forth,
Its virtue fosters them,
With matter they take shape,
And circumstance perfects them all:
That is why all things
Do honor the Way
And venerate its power.

The exaltation of the Way,
The veneration of its power,
Come not by fate or decree;
But always just because
By nature it is so.

So when the Way brings forth,
Its power fosters all:
They grow, are reared,
And fed and housed until
They come to ripe maturity.
You shall give life to things
But never possess them;
Your work shall depend on none;
You shall be chief but never lord.

This describes the mystic power.

{52} Practicing constancy ...

It began with a matrix:
The world had a mother
Whose sons can be known
As ever, by her.
But if you know them,
You'll keep close to her
As long as you live
And suffer no harm.

Stop up your senses;
Close up your doors;
Be not exhausted
As long as you live.
Open your senses;
Be busier still:
To the end of your days
There's no help for you.

You are bright, it is said,
If you see what is small;
A store of small strengths
Makes you strong.
By the use of its light,
Make your eyes again bright
From evil to lead you away.

This is called "practicing constancy."

{53} Walking on the mighty Way ...

When I am walking on the mighty Way,
Let me but know the very least I may,
And I shall only fear to leave the road.
The mighty Way is easy underfoot,
But people still prefer the little paths.

The royal court is dignified, sedate
, While farmers' fields are overgrown with weeds;
The granaries are empty and yet they
Are clad in rich-embroidered silken gowns.
They have sharp swords suspended at their sides;
With glutted wealth, they gorge with food and drink.

It is, the people say,
The boastfulness of brigandage,
But surely not the Way!

{54} Set firm in the Way: none shall uproot you ...

Set firm in the Way: none shall uproot you;
Cherish it well and none shall estrange you;
Your children's children faithful shall serve
Your forebears at the altar of your house.

Cultivate the Way yourself,
and your Virtue will be genuine.
Cultivate it in the home,
and its Virtue will overflow.
Cultivate it in the village,
and the village will endure.
Cultivate it in the realm,
and the realm will flourish.
Cultivate it in the world,
and Virtue will be universal.

Accordingly,


One will be judged by the Man of the Way;
Homes will be viewed through the Home of the Way;
And the Village shall measure the village;
And the Realm, for all realms, shall be standard;
And the World, to this world, shall be heaven.

How do I know the world is like this?
By this.

[Translational & Editorial Notes] [Part 1 of 9] [Part 2 of 9]>/a> [Part 3 of 9] [Part 4 of 9] [Part 5 of 9] [Part 6 of 9] [Part 7 of 9] [Part 8 of 9] [Part 9 of 9]

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TAO TE CHING by Lao Tzu {approx 500 BC} The Mystic Wisdom of Ancient China Translated by Raymond B. Blakney {1955} Part 6 of 9
Web Publication by Mountain Man Graphics, Australia in the Southern Summer of 1995