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Chapter of the Week: #17

CarlCarl
edited June 2007 in Taoism and the Tao Te Ching
[cite] az:[/cite]... I'm still pondering "being disgraced" vs "being humble" . Both are low positions, and there is no judgement assigned to either, are they the same?
In the Taoist view, there is no objective reality in word meaning. Thus we 'listen' to [chref=43]the teaching that uses no words[/chref]. The actual feeling a word evokes in us reflects who we are, not the ostensible 'thing' the word symbolizes. You can [chref=4]soften the glare[/chref] of this subjective projection if you can wrap your mind around the correlations process. Here is a very brief example:

[code:1]YIN = female = ancient = disgrace = humble = selfless = dark = loss = unite = death = soft = low ...etc
YANG = male = young = honor = pride = self = light = gain = divide = life = hard = high ...etc[/code]
Although will always end up going around in circles, of course. The Taoist ideal is to be [chref=15]hesitant, murky, vacant, tentative, and falling apart[/chref] as much as possible, so as not to fight the circle. By ceasing to 'fight the circle' we are best able to [chref=64]deal with things while they are still nothing[/chref]. Oh, and just what is this 'circle'? Consider these...

[code:1]YIN = circle = endless = reality = silence = stillness = NOTHING
YANG = straight = finite = illusion = sound = motion = SOMETHING[/code]
Sure, [chref=2]something and nothing produce each other[/chref]. So, even these opposites are [chref=56]mysteriously[/chref] "the same" at the end of the day. When we realize we can't nail 'it' down, the only sane thing to do is stop hammering. However, in order to stop, [chref=36]we must first[/chref] start. So we are well on our way - hooray! In the end though, this [chref=23]is why one follows the way.[/chref]

Here are these correlations in a column which may help the reading. All the words in the YIN column share a 'sameness'; all the words in the YANG column share a 'sameness'. Deeper down, these columns share a [chref=56]mysterious sameness[/chref]. Before we can see that, we must first be able to see sameness in each column. I know these [chref=81]words are not persuasive nor beautiful[/chref], but just maybe...

[code:1]YIN YANG
female male
ancient young
disgrace honor
humble pride
selfless self
dark light
loss gain
unite divide
death life
soft hard
low high
circle straight
endless finite
reality illusion
silence sound
stillness motion
NOTHING SOMETHING
...etc ...etc[/code]
I hope this doesn't seems like I'm giving you the run around on your question. The blunt truth is: illusion = answer. So, how do I answer your question without Answering it? :?

Comments

  • CarlCarl
    edited June 2007
    Each week we address one chapter of the Tao Te Ching. The Tao Te Ching can be obscure, especially if you think you're supposed to understand what it's saying! We find it easier and more instructive to simply contemplate how the chapter resonates with your personal experience. Becoming more aware at this fundamental level simplifies life. This approach conforms to the view that true knowing lies within ourselves. Thus, when a passage in the scripture resonates, you've found your inner truth. The same applies for when it evokes a question; questions are the grist for self realization.

    Chapter 17
    The best of all rulers is but a shadowy presence to his subjects.
    Next comes the ruler they love and praise;
    Next comes one they fear;
    Next comes one with whom they take liberties.

    When there is not enough faith, there is lack of good faith.

    Hesitant, he does not utter lightly.
    When his task is accomplished and his work done
    The people all say, 'It happened to us naturally.'

    Read commentary previously posted for this chapter.
    Read notes on translations
  • CarlCarl
    edited December 1969
    [Note: I italicize phrases I borrow from the chapter, and link to phrases I borrow from other chapters to help tie chapters together. While making it more tedious to read, :? the Tao Te Ching is best pondered in the context of the whole.]

    The best of all rulers is but a shadowy presence to his subjects, and so on, applies to all aspects of life. Although, it is easiest to see in the relationship of parents to their children, and employers to employees. For example, being a shadowy presence in a child's 'knowing' allows children to blossom naturally, rather than conform to their rulers' (parents') [chref=57]desires[/chref]. Lacking sufficient maturity for that, parents become 'best friends' with their kids. Lacking that, parents use authoritarian parental dominance, and [chref=38]when no one responds, [they] roll up their sleeves and resorts to persuasion by force[/chref]. Finally come those parents who, being children themselves and driven by many [chref=19]thoughts of self[/chref], are easily manipulated by kids who now rule the roost. The employer -- employee dynamics are similar except that these two 'chose' each other. (That brings in a whole other set of dynamics, eh? Enough to write a book on I dare say.)

    The desire to be in control is an underlying emotion in all our relationships with life. 'All' meaning ALL, i.e., our relationship to the ground beneath our feet; to our plans and projects; to the weather; to our body and mind, all people, all animals, etc. What does it mean to be a shadowy presence? First, this does not mean being gone! It means being fully present yet shadowy. A shadowy presence comes from [chref=71]knowing, yet thinking that one does not know[/chref]. A [chref=15]tentative[/chref] and hesitant air envelopes all relationships, helping life flow more naturally. Of course, the irony is that we tend to 'freak out' when life starts to 'flow more naturally' – we feel we're losing control. In the end, it is all about our visceral need to control life. Why this desire to control life? The less able we are to [chref=33]overcome our selves[/chref], the more we feel a need to [chref=33]overcome others[/chref] – plain and simple. Overcome? Not as we usually understand it; rather, [chref=36]the submissive and weak will overcome the hard and strong[/chref] kind of overcoming. Submissive and weak does not mean we don't [chref=33]persevere[/chref]. To the contrary, only through [chref=40]weakness[/chref] are we truly able to persevere. In persevering, our [chref=64]desire[/chref] to control life wanes, as our shadowy and hesitant presence waxes.

    Finally, here's the plain and simple literal translation:
    greatest (superior), below (inferior) know of have.
    its next intimate and of reputation (praise).
    its next fear (respect).
    its next insult (bully).
    true (trust; believe) not enough herein (where; how; why), have not true herein (where; how; why).
    long time its value speech (word, say, speak), merit (result, work) accomplish (finish) affair satisfy,
    hundred names (common people) all say I natural (at ease, free from affectation).

    And now with some selective pruning with my poetic license:
    The greatest is beneath knowing.
    Next comes that we hold dear and admire.
    Next comes that we respect and fear.
    Next comes that we insult and abuse.
    Where truth is insufficient, there is no truth therein.
    Slow to speak, results in accomplishing affairs satisfactorily,
    Everyone will say I am natural and at ease.

    Note: There is no 'ruler' per se in the original. Without 'the ruler', it is easier to see how this chapter can refer to a 'bigger picture', and our relationship to it: how we drive; deal with the environment; work; play; eat, and so on. Notice how truth, trust, faith, and believe share the same 'field'. Slow to speak brings to mind that aphorism, 'words are cheap'.
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