Tao te ching_ annotated & explained - Derek Lin [23]
What about absolute good and evil? Do they exist in the Tao? While we can certainly find absolutes in abstract theory, in the real world they rarely, if ever, exist. For instance, no metal is absolutely free of impurities. In fact, hardly anything in nature is absolutely pure. We can get close to 100 percent purity but never quite reach that absolute state.
It is the same with people. Absolute good and evil can exist as concepts, but we will never find them in human beings. We are all mixtures of varying proportions. None of us is any one thing. (back to text)
3 Annotations
1 When we glorify achievers and set them aside for special treatment, people will compete aggressively and step over one another to achieve that glory. Similarly, when we place a high value on certain goods, there will be those who plot to take them by force or by trickery.
This determination of value can be rather arbitrary. For instance, what intrinsic goodness does gold have that makes it so much more valuable than other metals? What is so great about gold other than a particular numerical value that people determine and agree upon? In general, whenever we point to anything as desirable, a wave of disruption ripples through society. People begin to think of ways to get more of the desirable thing, often at the expense of others.
Because of this, a sagacious ruler refrains from setting aside certain individuals for glorification, or designating certain goods as extremely valuable and putting them on display. These are surefire ways of stimulating materialistic desire, which is a bottomless pit. (back to text)
2 Although the sages empty people’s hearts of desires and reduce their ambitions for fame, glory, or material wealth, they also pay particular attention to their basic needs. As rulers, the sages see to it that the people enjoy good health and do not go hungry. As teachers, the sages give people teachings that provide spiritual sustenance and promote spiritual health. (back to text)
3 When people follow the way of the sages, the few who scheme and plot will find themselves unable to utilize their repertoire of clever ploys. The governance of the sages leaves no room for their contrived tactics, and everything falls into place peacefully and naturally. (back to text)
4 Annotations
1 The emptiness of the Tao is not a vacuous state of nothingness, because its infinite depths conceal the seeds of Creation. There appears to be nothing in the Tao, and yet it contains everything. It is the “pregnant void,” a field of unlimited potentialities.
One way to describe the Tao is to compare it with an empty container with infinite capacity. This container cannot be filled up, and the water that flows out of it can never be used up. It continues to function indefinitely. (back to text)
2 The Tao is eternal. It outlasts everything. After millions of years, even the tallest, sharpest mountain peaks will be reduced to gentle rolling hills. After billions of years, even the brightest stars will burn out and shine no more.
Given enough time, all problems great and small will be resolved one way or another, like the unraveling of even the tightest knots. Given enough time, even the proudest achievements of humankind will be reduced to dust. (back to text)
3 The indistinct nature of the Tao refers to the fact that we cannot perceive it directly. We can only observe its effects on the world, just as we can see the effects of gravity (objects falling) but never gravity itself. (back to text)
4 We do not know how the Tao came to be, or whether it came from anywhere at all. Does the concept of “place” have meaning without the Tao? Does the ultimate source have a source? We cannot say. We cannot pretend to have all the answers. (back to text)
5 ”Emperor” in this line refers to Yu Di, the Jade Emperor. He is the ruler of the universe and the supreme deity in ancient Chinese mythology. Lao Tzu is saying that the image of the Tao precedes even such a being, because any principles