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There is no greater loss than losing Tao
No greater curse than desire
No greater tragedy than discontentment
No greater fault than selfishness
47
Without going outside one can know the whole world
Without looking out the window one can see the ways of Heaven
The farther one goes the less one knows
Thus the Sage does not go； yet he knows
He does not look； yet he sees
He does not do； yet all is done
48
To become learned； gain daily
To obtain Tao； reduce daily
Reduce and reduce again until all action is reduced to non…action
Then no one is left
Nothing is done yet nothing is left undone
One who gives freely and without attachment gets a full life in return
One who gives with the secret hope of getting is merely engaged in business
Truly； they neither give nor receive any of the treasure from this world below Heaven
49
The Sage has no fixed heart of his own
Those who look at him see their own hearts
Those who are good he treats with goodness
Those who are bad he also treats with goodness because the nature of his being is good
Those who are truthful he treats with truth
Those who are not truthful he also treats with truth because the nature of his being is truthful
The Sage lives in harmony with all below Heaven
He sees everything as his own self
He loves everyone as his own child
All people are drawn to him every eye and ear is turned toward him
50
Again and again
Men come in with birth and go out with death
One in three are followers of life
One in three are followers of death
And those just passing from life to death also number one in three
But they all die in the end
Why is this so？
Because they clutch to life and cling to this passing world
I hear that one who lives by his own truth is not like this
He walks without making footprints in this world
Going about； he does not fear the rhinoceros or tiger
Entering a battlefield； he does not fear sharp weapons
For in him the rhino can find no place to pitch its horn
The tiger no place to fix its claw
The soldier no place to thrust his blade
Why is this so？
Because he dwells in that place where death cannot enter
51
Tao gives all things life
Te gives them fulfillment
Nature is what shapes them
Living is what brings them to completion
Every creature honours Tao and worships Te not by force but through its own living and breathing
Though Tao gives life to all things
Te is what cultivates them
Te is that magic power which raises and rears them completes and prepares them comforts and protects them
To create without owning
To give without expecting
To fill without claiming
This is the profound expression of Tao
The highest perfection of Te
52
That which created the universe is the Mother of the world
By knowing the Mother one knows her children
By knowing her children one comes to know her
Such is their unity that one does not exist without the other
Fully embrace your life and you will share in the glory of creation
The Mother herself will be your guardian
And all her creation will be your guide
Stay with the Mother； shut the mouth； close the gates and you are never in trouble
Abandon the Mother； open the mouth； be busy with other and you are beyond all hope of rescue
Seeing your own smallness is called insight
Honouring your own tenderness is called strength
The sun in all its glory reveals a passing world
Only the inner light illuminates eternity
Only that light can guide us back home
Have faith
Follow your own shining
Be aware of your own awareness
On the darkest nights you will not stumble
On the brightest days you will not blink
This is called 揟he Practice of Eternal Light？br》
53
If I had the least bit of wisdom I could follow the path of Tao quite well
My only fear would be trying to go my own way
The Great Path is simple and direct yet people love to take the side…routes
See how magnificent the courts have become
The women are dressed in colourful gowns
The men carry well…crafted swords
Food and drink overflow
Wealth and finery abound
Yet in the shadow of all this splendour the fields grow barren the granaries empty
I say this pomp at the expense of others is like boasting of thieves after a looting
Surely it is contrary to Tao
Surely it cuts against the grain of the whole empire
54
The truth； once established； can never be uprooted
The truth； once imbibed； can never be stripped away
A sacrifice to a higher cause is never lost
An offering to an ancestor never goes to waste
When a person embodies Tao his heart becomes true
When a family embodies Tao it thrives
When a village embodies Tao it is protected
When a country embodies Tao it prospers
When the world embodies Tao it reveals its perfection
Tao is everywhere it has become everything
To truly see it； one must see it as it has revealed itself
In a person； see is as a person
In a family； see is as a family
In a country； see is as a country
In the world； see is as the world
How have I come to know all this？
Tao has shown me ？Tao as all this！
55
One who embraces Tao becomes pure and innocent like a newborn babe
Deadly insects will not sting him
Wild beasts will not attack him
Birds of prey will not strike him
He is oblivious to the union of male and female yet his vitality is full his inner spirit is complete
He can cry all day without straining so perfect is his harmony so magically does he blend with this world
Know this harmony ？it brings the Eternal
Know the Eternal ？it brings enlightenment
A full life ？this is your blessing
A gentle heart ？this is your strength
Things in harmony with the Tao remain
Things that are forced； grow for a while but then wither away
This is not in keeping with Tao
Whatever is not in keeping with Tao comes to an early end
56
One who speaks does not know
One who knows does not speak
Shut the mouth
Close the gates
Blunt the sharpness
Loosen the knots
Tempe the glare
Become one with the dust of the world
This is called 揟he Secret Embrace？br》 One who knows this secret is not moved by attachment or aversion； swayed by profit or loss； nor touched by honour or disgrace
He is far beyond the cares of men yet comes to hold the dearest place in their hearts
57
To rule the state have a known plan
To win a battle； have an unknown plan
To gain the universe； have no plan at all
Let the universe itself reveal to you its splendour
How do I know this should be so？
Because of this ？br》 The more restrictions； the more poverty
The more weapons； the more fear in the land
The more cleverness； the more strange events
The more laws； the more la