Of ancients adept in the way, none ever use it to enlighten people,
They will use it in order to fool them.
People are difficult to govern because they are too intelligent.
Therefore, using intelligence to govern the country injures the country.
Not using intelligence to govern the country blesses the country.
Know these both and investigate their patterns.
Always investigate the patterns.
That is called profound moral character.
Moral character, profound indeed, distant indeed!
To the outside world, contrary indeed.
Then, and only then, reaching great conformity.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Word for Word
Third Pass: Chapter of the Month
Archive: Characters and past commentary
Reflections:
Of ancients adept in the way, none ever use it to enlighten people,
They will use it in order to fool them.
These first two lines have long fascinated me, and they tie in with the first line in chapter 56, in my view: Knower not speak; speaker not know. It wouldn’t hurt to consider the word-for-word run-down here.
ancient (age-old) of good (satisfactory; be adept in) do (act; act as; serve as; be; mean; support) road (way, principle; speak; think) (者), wrong (not conform to <infrml> must) use (<v> take <p> according to; because of <adj> so as to <conj> and) bright (light; clear; open; honest; understand) the people (civilian), [ 古之善为道者，非以明民 ]
support (bring; handle, will> lead, command) use (<v> take <p> according to; because of <adj> so as to <conj> and) foolish (stupid; make a fool of; fool) of. [ 将以愚之 ]
When considering the first word, ancient (age-old), I wondered what would qualify. This may often be translated/interpreted to mean a person, a sage, an ‘enlightened one’. Heretic that I am, that doesn’t cut it for me. To me, only Mother Nature truly fits the bill; ‘she’ is ancient, age-old. However, that doesn’t exclude sages and the like… it just places them lower on the totem pole.
The Bio-Hoodwink
I believe these first lines brought me to the idea of the bio-hoodwink. At that time, I was still referencing D.C. Lau’s translation. He translated these two lines of chapter 65 as Of old those who excelled in the pursuit of the way did not use it to enlighten the people but to hoodwink them. Of ancients adept in the way, he put as “Of old those who excelled in the pursuit of the way”. Phrasing it that way, makes it easier to read “those who” as meaning people primarily (sages and the like). Considering the more literal eliminates that bias, and allows me to consider this in a primordial context… biology! For more on this angle, see How the Hoodwink Hooks.
I can see various ways in which this can apply to people as well. However, the question here is, are the people doing the hoodwinking aware that they are doing so. I suspect not. The hoodwinkers are themselves hoodwinked by their own biology. On the other hand, consider the example of the Christmas story. Adults know there is no Santa Claus, but ‘hoodwink’ children by maintaining the myth. When the time comes, kids see through the myth; no harm done.
Karma
Another example might be the myth of Karma. The most literal form has us living our lives, dying and being reborn into another life form consequent on the life we previously lived. If that makes one feel a sense of security, whose to say otherwise. On the other hand, a Taoist version of Karma must conform to chapter 1’s disclaimer, The way possible to think, runs counter to the constant way. The name possible to express runs counter to the constant name.
I can think of versions of Karma that, in their murkiness, can align better with the constant. For example, the viewpoint that we are all composed of stardust, the existence of which continues after our body dies. Or, the idea that consciousness is universal and continues in the presence of the present. This is similar to chapter 2 of the Bhagavad Gita: “Invisible before birth are all beings and after death invisible again. They are seen between two unseens. Why in this truth find sorrow?” These views of Karma pertain to the ‘light of consciousness’ behind ‘self’, so to speak, which shines in all things existent and not about the illusion of self (ego) of which we are conscious. That is simply the bio-hoodwink doing its thing; as Buddha pointed out, “…the illusion of self originates and manifests itself in a cleaving to things“.
Intelligence vs. Wisdom
The Line, Not using intelligence to govern the country blesses the country, was confusing to some in the last meeting. Looking at the word-for-word section made it even more so. First, consider the word-for-word for this line.
no (not) use (<v> take <p> according to; because of <adj> so as to <conj> and) wisdom (intelligence, resourcefulness; wit) rule (govern; order; peace; > government; control) country, country of good fortune (happiness). 不以智治国，国之福。
This illustrates the central problem with word meaning. Much of our own personal experience combines to anchor meaning, which can make word meaning exceedingly subjective. That’s not a problem in practical matters, where in we refer to concrete objects and events. Wisdom, intelligence, resourcefulness, and wit are another matter; they are qualitative, with much of their meaning biased by personal preferences and experience.
What seems wise and intelligent to one can seem foolish and stupid to another. I’d say that is a good reason for the advice given here. Be extremely leery of what we think of as being intelligent and wise, and avoid using those shifting sands on which to base our approach to life. As chapter 19 says, Cut off the sage, discard wisdom, And the people benefit hundred fold.
Investigate the Patterns
If we can’t rely on wisdom and intelligence to guide us, pray heaven what do we do? Profound moral character is the lock, and investigating the patterns is the key to that lock. The only way to open up one’s profound moral character is by investigating the patterns that recur in one’s own life. This is not a static wisdom; it is an ever growing and maturing wisdom. Buddha’s call to avoid taking anything on hearsay, but rather examine one’s own experience to verify truth parallels this idea.
Always investigate the patterns.
That is called profound moral character.
ordinary (normal; constant; often) know (realize; tell) check (examine; investigate; procrastinate) type (style, pattern), 常知稽式，(cháng zhī jī shì,)
<grm> is (yes <frml> this; that) say (call; name; meaning; sense) black (dark; profound) virtue (moral character; integrity; heart). 是谓玄德。(Â)
Moral character, profound indeed, distant indeed!
To the outside world, contrary indeed.
Then, and only then, reaching great conformity.
I leave these last three lines alone, only to say how pregnant with meaning they are… but perhaps not to the ‘outside world’. 😉
Correlations: A Way to Investigate the Patterns
If you wish to investigate the patterns, try your hand at Tools of Taoist Thought: Correlations. Chapter four suggests we Subdue its sharpness, separate its confusion. The correlation process aims to subdue the sharpness of word meaning. Subduing the sharpness of any distinction comes through actively looking out for profound sameness. Chapter 56 speaks to the connection between subdue its sharpness and profound sameness:
For this reason,
Unobtainable and intimate,
Unobtainable and distant
Unobtainable and favorable
Unobtainable and fearful
Unobtainable and noble
Unobtainable and humble
For this reason all under heaven value it.
It appears this correlations process is not that inviting. Not doing the process with sufficient rigor turns out to be mind-numbing drudgery. On the other hand, doing the process rigorously challenges one’s deeply held biases. As a rule, we seek support for our fondly held biases, not an existential test of them.
Oh well, so much for correlations! Still, if you’re interested, here are two posts on the subject Grinding Out Correlations, and its follow-up Correlation’s ‘Prime Directive’.
Leave a Reply