Chapter 3 of the Tao Te Ching - Jealousy

Children are the most wonderful creatures on the planet. The younger they are the more pure of heart they are. They are not bogged down by the petty jealousies of adults. Yeah, right! Ever watch the interaction of two children if one thinks the other is getting more attention? Quarreling almost always ensues. How do you stop it? Good question. How do you stop it in adults? Even better question. Stopping the quarreling is simple. Don’t exalt the gifted over the non-gifted. If you must exalt one, you must also exalt the other.

Here is another no-brainer. How do you keep people from stealing from you? Do not amass treasures to the point that any one would want to. If something is never seen, then it is never desired.

The wise ruler will keep his people well fed, healthy and strong. But he will keep their hearts calm and ambitions dampened. If the populace is ignorant of what they can attain and lack the knowledge of how to attain it, then the clever people will not try to interfere with the ruler. Out of sight, out of mind.

As an individual, do nothing. Live a simple life and you will live a happy one.

(Note: The Tao Te Ching was written 600 years before Christ in ancient China. The politics of the day actually worked well with the above. Today however, we live in an age where the increase in knowledge is paramount to our very survival. Unfortunately, if you look at today’s political leaders you will see that many of them seem to believe that an ignorant populace is still a good thing. It is those very leaders that we must replace if we are ever going to gain true peace on this planet.)

Chapter 2 of the Tao Te Ching - Balance

I went to visit a friend that I had known for a very long time. When I arrived at her house she was in the back yard working in her garden. We chatted idly for a few moments and I noticed that she was removing certain plants and pruning others. The ones that she removed, she tossed aside without a care.

“Why are you tossing those plants aside?” I asked her. “Do you not want them?”

“They're just weeds,” she said with a smile. “I have to remove them if I want my garden to remain beautiful.”

“I see,” I said. “What makes the plants you are removing weeds?”

She laughed lightly. “They are dandelions and plantain mostly. Everyone knows they are weeds.”

“I have always wondered why,” I said.

“Well, because they're ugly.”

“Are they? Why?”

“Look at them,” she said. “The leaves are large and jagged and they don't flow with the flowers I have planted.”

“Do you feel that all of your other plants are beautiful?”

“Of course I do,” she answered. “That is why I planted them.”

“Then you prefer your garden to be without balance.”

“You always confuse me,” she said. “I've worked very hard to create a garden that is balanced in color, shape and size.”

“But not in beauty,” I said.

She just looked at me. I could tell that she wanted me to explain myself, but she did not know what question to ask.

“Dandelions and plantain are ugly to you,” I said. “While lilies and daisies are pretty. But, beauty is only so, because there is ugliness to compare it to. Beauty and ugly are two halves of the same thing. Without one, you can not have the other. In the same way, evil must exist, or there would be no good. You have some things because you do not have other things. Many things are easy only because other things are difficult. Without long, there is no short. High and low exist upon one another. Voice and sound compliment each other. If you see the front of something, you know that it must have a back.”

“That's all well and good,” my friend said to me. “But what about this dandelion? By itself it's ugly. Where is the good in it?”

“Clean it,” I said, “and toss it into a salad. The plantain as well. You will find that it is wonderful to eat and helps with many stomach ailments.”

While she was contemplating these things. I went on with my explanation of true balance. “The true teacher,” I said, “will teach his students many lessons, but he will tell them nothing. All of his creations will rise and fall without cease, though he never creates anything. He works with no need of recognition. When he is finished he moves on without a thought of his past work. It is because of this, that all remember his works and his works live on forever.”

“What's that got to do with gardening?” my friend asked.

“That is an excellent question,” I said.

She looked at me as if expecting me to say more. She finally shook her head and looked back to the garden.

“So I should leave the dandelions in then?” she asked.

“Oh, no,” I said. “They are ugly.”

Chapter 1 of the Tao Te Ching - The Name

“How well do you know the Tao?” he asked.

“I don’t,” I answered.

“But you are the most renowned Taoist in the entire world,” he said. “How can you not know of it?”

“I never said that I did not know of it,” I answered. “You asked how well I know it. I answered you truthfully that I do not.”

“I am afraid I don’t understand,” his face was contorted in confusion.

“That’s good,” I smiled at him. “Then you know the Tao as well as I do.”

“But all I know of the Tao is its name.”

“If you know that,” I said, “then you know more than any that have come before you. If you know the name of that which man can not name, then you are the true master and I am your humble student.”

“I thought its name was Tao,” he said, still looking confused.

“Tao is a word that simply means the way. It is only a description, not a name. It is a failing of man that we try to force everything to be something that we can understand. There are some things that should never be understood.”

“But my greatest desire in life is to understand the Tao,” his expression was becoming pained. I could see that his heart was breaking.

“As long as you have that desire, you will never succeed. To understand that which can not be understood is the greatest of miracles. But only those that do not desire the understanding will ever find it.”

“But what should I do?” he asked.

I smiled at him. “You should live your life,” I told him. “Name only the things that can be named. Desire only those things that you can see. As long as you desire to see that which can not be seen, you will only see the earthly manifestations of your desires. You will never see what you truly seek.”

I saw his confusion once again. He was learning.

“The dilemma of desire is the greatest of all mysteries. It is darkness within darkness. Search the part of your heart that is hidden; find what it is that you truly seek. Then return to me.”

I could see the disappointment in his eyes as he bowed to me and turned to walk away. He had the potential, but time would tell if he had the ability to understand the true nature of sacrifice.

Beginning the Conversations

I have always wanted to gain a true understanding of the ancient Asian masters. But, like all lazy Westerners, I tried to find books that would teach me instead of allowing the learning to come from within. I eventually realized my folly and set out to find the text of the Tao Te Ching so that I could meditate on each section to learn its secrets.

Since I do not read Chinese I had to find the English translation to work with. As I began my search I discovered that there are several English translations of the Tao Te Ching and there are even more people that have paraphrased the chapters. Again, my lazy Western ways saw a short cut. It would be a lot easier to learn through reading a paraphrased translation that it would a straight translation. But the more I read the paraphrased texts the more I realized that I really did not agree with most of them.

After countless hours of research I found an English translation that I liked and and began my meditations. As I studied each chapter I began to come to an understanding of what that chapter was teaching me. The next challenge was presenting what I was learning in a way that others could understand. I tried simply explaining my understandings, but realized that I was doing the same thing that everyone else had done. I was teaching meanings for each chapter as apposed to leading the reader to discover their own conclusions.

I grew up going to Sunday School every week. In the Bible, Jesus Christ used parables to teach universal truths to his disciples. I always enjoyed those parables. They allowed me to see examples of his teachings instead of having to just memorize what he said.

So I decided to present what I had learned in the form of parables. This blog is written from the viewpoint of a sage that never lived and the stories he tells never happened in a land that never existed. But what is important are not the stories themselves, but the messages that lie beneath them.

As you read this Blog remember that this is my interpretation. You do not have to agree with anything that I have said in these pages. If that is the case, I hope that you will seek out the text of the Tao Te Ching and study it for yourself. It is truly the best way to understand.