Tao te ching_ annotated & explained - Derek Lin [53]
4 We can keep the Tao in mind and not follow the herd. Whenever we have too much of anything, we can offer the surplus to those who do not have enough. In this fashion, we give in the same way that nature does—without claiming credit or feeling superior or the need to show off. It makes no difference whether people never find out about the good we have done. Having the Tao is its own reward. (back to text)
78 Annotations
1 Water appears to be the weakest and softest thing in the world. It always conforms to the shape of its container. Pour it into a bottle, it’s a bottle; pour it into a cup, it’s a cup. Water is the ultimate symbol of the yielding and flexible aspect of the Tao. (back to text)
2 At the same time, there is also nothing better than water at dissolving the hardest and most unyielding rocks. We only have to look around to see how water has carved ravines and canyons out of mountains all over the world. Water is the universal solvent. Nothing can replace it. (back to text)
3 This observation of water teaches us that despite a yielding, humble appearance, the weak overcomes the strong and the soft overcomes the hard. This is a principle that we can all understand, yet somehow we cannot put it into practice in real life. We still have a tendency to meet force with force. When someone yells at us, we yell back louder; when someone trespasses against us, we retaliate in full measure. (back to text)
4 How should we react to humiliation? To accept it calmly requires far more strength of character than to respond with hostility and aggression. Remember the power of water, and let it guide you to yield … and overcome. (back to text)
5 What happens when we encounter misfortune? If we can be like water, then we, too, will have the depth of character to contain difficulties and disappointments. Keep the lesson of water with you as you handle setbacks in your life. (back to text)
6 By embracing the seemingly weak and soft, we gain personal power. This is a truth that, at first glance, appears contrary to expectations! (back to text)
79 Annotations
1 It doesn’t matter how we say “no hard feelings.” After a bitter dispute, there’s bound to be residual ill will. (back to text)
2 Sages give without expecting anything in return. It is as if they hold the left part of the lending agreement but do not demand payments from the borrower. The “left part” means the lender’s copy. It refers to the ancient Chinese method of keeping track of debts, which existed even before the invention of paper. Lender and borrower would take a piece of wood or tree bark and carve a record of their transaction on it. Then they would split it down the middle. The left part would go to the lender; the right to the borrower.
The left part was the lender’s proof of his right to demand payments. When the loan was fully paid, the lender would give the left part to the borrower, thus making the contract whole. The restored contract then became the borrower’s proof that he had fulfilled his obligations. Because the tear was uneven, it served as the perfect and natural way to authenticate the contract. A forged left side will never match the right side—a simple and brilliant solution! (back to text)
3 Tax collectors take from everyone and give to no one. Unlike them, Tao cultivators hold the left half of the contract. This means that we give without expecting anything in return. When we do that, the Tao sees to it that we are amply rewarded, despite the complete lack of expectations. (back to text)
4 How can it be that generous souls prosper while misers are forever pinching pennies? Shouldn’t those who take from others end up with more than those who give? It is not because the Tao plays favorites. It is because the law of cause and effect ensures that those who give in accordance with the Tao will receive abundantly. (back to text)
80 Annotations
1 This chapter is about an ideal place where people have vehicles and weapons but do not need to use them. It reflects the time when the Tao Te Ching was written—a time of strife, with