1. The Way

The Way that can be experienced is not true;

The world that can be constructed is not true.

The Way manifests all that happens and may happen;

The world represents all that exists and may exist.

To experience without intention is to sense the world;

To experience with intention is to anticipate the world.

These two experiences are indistinguishable;

Their construction differs but their effect is the same.

Beyond the gate of experience flows the Way,

Which is ever greater and more subtle than the world.

10. Harmony

Embracing the Way, you become embraced;

Breathing gently, you become newborn;

Clearing your mind, you become clear;

Nurturing your children, you become impartial;

Opening your heart, you become accepted;

Accepting the world, you embrace the Way.

Bearing and nurturing,

Creating but not owning,

Giving without demanding,

This is harmony.

15. Enlightenment

The enlightened possess understanding

So profound they can not be understood.

Because they cannot be understood

I can only describe their appearance:

Cautious as one crossing thin ice,

Undecided as one surrounded by danger,

Modest as one who is a guest,

Unbounded as melting ice,

Genuine as unshaped wood,

Broad as a valley,

Seamless as muddy water.

Who stills the water that the mud may settle,

Who seeks to stop that he may travel on,

Who desires less than may transpire,

Decays, but will not renew.

19. Simplify

If we could abolish knowledge and wisdom

Then people would profit a hundredfold;

If we could abolish duty and justice

Then harmonious relationships would form;

If we could abolish artifice and profit

Then waste and theft would disappear.

Yet such remedies treat only symptoms

And so they are inadequate.

People need personal remedies:

Reveal your naked self and embrace your original nature;

Bind your self-interest and control your ambition;

Forget your habits and simplify your affairs.

 

37. Tranquillity

The Way takes no action, but leaves nothing undone.

When you accept this

The world will flourish,

In harmony with nature.

Nature does not possess desire;

Without desire, the heart becomes quiet;

In this manner the whole world is made tranquil.

42. Mind

The Way bears sensation,

Sensation bears memory,

Sensation and memory bear abstraction,

And abstraction bears all the world;

Each thing in the world bears feeling and doing,

And, imbued with mind, harmony with the Way.

As others have taught, so do I teach,

"Who loses harmony opposes nature";

This is the root of my teaching.

54. Cultivate Harmony

Cultivate harmony within yourself, and harmony becomes real;

Cultivate harmony within your family, and harmony becomes fertile;

Cultivate harmony within your community, and harmony becomes abundant;

Cultivate harmony within your culture, and harmony becomes enduring;

Cultivate harmony within the world, and harmony becomes ubiquitous.

Live with a person to understand that person;

Live with a family to understand that family;

Live with a community to understand that community;

Live with a culture to understand that culture;

Live with the world to understand the world.

How can I live with the world?

By accepting.

 

 

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