Monthly Chapter: 37

The way normally does nothing, yet there is nothing not done.
If kings and noblemen will abide by this,
Everything will self transform.
Transform yet desire rises;
Press it down using nameless simplicity.
Of nameless simplicity, man also supports without desire.
No desire and still, all under heaven will settle themselves.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Limits: Translations, even the nearly literal one above, lose some of the original meaning due to the cultural context of contemporary words. Studying the numerous synonym-like meanings of the Chinese characters in the Word-for-Word translation mitigates this. (Click graphic at right for on-line Word-for-Word.)

Third Pass: Chapter of the Month 8/30/2019

Archive: Characters and past commentary

Corrections?

The third line, Transform yet desire rises; needs a transition of sorts. So perhaps this will read better: Transform…  yet desire rises.

YouTube Recordings:

Go to Kirk Garber’s YouTube channel for recordings of our monthly Sunday meeting. These come in two parts for each chapter. The shorter first part is a chapter reading followed by attendees’ commentary, if any.

The second longer part is an open discussion among attendees on how the chapter relates to their personal experience.

Reflections:

The way normally does nothing, yet there is nothing not done.

When I picture this in my mind, I think of nature. Nature, in the broadest possible meaning, extends from the big bang onward… and backward as well. As chapter 40 notes, In the opposite direction, of the way moves.

Anyway, holding this Big Picture in my imagination, I see one reason why we humans need some sort of god or gods to believe are responsible for orchestrating the multitude of wondrous entrance. Or as chapter 14 describes,

Unending, it cannot be named, and again returns to no-thing.
This is called the without of shape form, the without of matter shape.

After all, how can it be that things happen naturally without some sort of master guidance? We are accustomed to relying on masters who excel in anything that we deem important.

The beauty of the Tao Te Ching lies in how it allows us to move beyond the ‘small picture’ view that naming experience brings about. Chapter 67 captures this perfectly…

Under heaven, all say my way is great resembling nothing.
Man is only great by reason of resembling nothing.
If it resembled anything, long ago indeed, it would trifle as would man.

If kings and noblemen will abide by this,
Everything will self transform.

If kings and noblemen will abide by this, certainly applies to the second line of chapter 67 above. Of course, being in charge of something makes is virtually impossible to let nature play out. And this really applies to everyone; we are all in charge of our lives… or so we feel. It is from that sense of responsibility that the illusion of self and free will arise. (See also Use Non-Responsibility) The last half of chapter 48 parallels this Everything will self transform of this chapter…

Without doing, yet not undone.
Take all under heaven ordinary, use without responsibility,
As well as with responsibility,
Not full, so as to adopt all under heaven

We are truly not in charge; nature is! And so we might believe that if the king within us can abide by the way of nature everything will settle itself, and the ‘The wolf shall dwell with the lamb’ (Isaiah 11:6)… at least until the wolf gets hungry.

Transform…  yet desire rises;

Clearly, Transform in the Taoist sense is not a static condition or a final resting place. The ideal of transcendence, transformation, liberation, peace on Earth… are all ideals driven by our need for closure, so to speak. “Can’t we all just get along”. No! That is not how nature works. The closest we can come to ‘closure’ is ruthless self honesty. Once you realize that any wish for ‘peace on Earth’ is a self-centered projection of your own self-interest, you will be in a better position to abide The way normally does nothing, yet there is nothing not done.

The pendulum swings, pleasure of satiation followed by pain of hunger. Need (hunger) and fear are the driving emotions of all living creatures. These survival forces are the emotional foundation simmering continually below awareness and only arising as circumstances demand.

The problem we thinking animals face lies in how we amplify those simmering survival drives through naming experience and then becoming swept up by the ensuing stories we create. Chapter 71 is blunt on this issue… Realizing I don’t’ know is better; not knowing this knowing is disease. When our story backs up the bedrock of our emotions, certainty goes through the roof. We ‘know’ that we ‘know’. There is only one way to return to earth. The secret lies in how we look upon the words and names out of which we weave our rationales… our certainty of belief. The remaining three line of this chapter are the secret…

Press it down using nameless simplicity.
Of nameless simplicity, man also supports without desire.
No desire and still, all under heaven will settle themselves.

Nameless simplicity is another word for the impartiality chapter 16 address. The ending is especially revealing…

Knowing the constant allows, allowing therefore impartial,
Impartial therefore whole, whole therefore natural,
Natural therefore the way.
The way therefore long enduring, nearly rising beyond oneself.