31
Good weapons are instruments of fear; all creatures hate them.
Therefore followers of Tao never use them.
The wise man prefers the left.
The man of war prefers the right.
Weapons are instruments of fear; they are not a wise man's tools.
He uses them only when he has no choice.
Peace and quiet are dear to his heart,
And victory no cause for rejoicing.
If you rejoice in victory, then you delight in killing;
If you delight in killing, you cannot fulfill yourself.
On happy occasions precedence is given to the left,
On sad occasions to the right.
In the army the general stands on the left,
The commander-in-chief on the right.
This means that war is conducted like a funeral.
When many people are being killed,
They should be mourned in heartfelt sorrow.
That is why a victory must be observed like a funeral.
Peace and compassion are always preferred by the sage. He only resorts to using fear if there is no other path to peace. Peace is the only true victory. Peace allows us to focus on our true path and true nature. A victory that destroys is mourned not celebrated.
Do I seek to destroy anyone?
Do I seek to control anyone through fear?
Do I celebrate the failure of another?
If so, I am not following the Tao.
32
The Tao is forever undefined.
Small though it is in the unformed state, it cannot be grasped.
If kings and lords could harness it,
The ten thousand things would come together
And gentle rain fall.
Men would need no more instruction and all things would take their course.
Once the whole is divided, the parts need names.
There are already enough names.
One must know when to stop.
Knowing when to stop averts trouble.
Tao in the world is like a river flowing home to the sea.
The Tao is mysterious and small, but it is the solution to all problems. If a society follows the Tao, no other rules are needed. We have a tendency to see things as separate. All ten thousand things have a name, but names separate us. Knowing we are all part of the Tao builds empathy, understanding, respect and kindness. Better to see the whole than all the separate parts. The Tao is the river flowing home to the sea, the unmovable force of life within us all.
It is too powerful to be easily controlled. Like the holy powers of any religion, the Tao can only be approached by the pure in heart. And even then, if someone believes they have grasped it, they surely haven't. In this way, the Tao requires humility, patience and acceptance of its followers. The Tao is the river flowing home to the sea.
33
Knowing others is wisdom;
Knowing the self is enlightenment.
Mastering others requires force;
Mastering the self needs strength.
He who knows he has enough is rich.
Perseverance is a sign of willpower.
He who stays where he is endures.
To die but not to perish is to be eternally present.
Understanding other people helps us move through life more peacefully, but coming to know the self brings deep growth and enlightenment. When we come to know the self, the Tao shines more brightly through us. The self grows stronger by conquering its lower nature. Satisfaction and enlightenment come not be attaining things, but by being content with what is.
34
The great Tao flows everywhere, both to the left and to the right.
The ten thousand things depend upon it; it holds nothing back.
It fulfills its purpose silently and makes no claim.
It nourishes the ten thousand things,
And yet is not their lord.
It has no aim; it is very small.
The ten thousand things return to it,
Yet it is not their lord.
It is very great.
It does not show greatness,
And is therefore truly great.
The greatest thing in the universe is the smallest thing in the universe. All things depend on the Tao, and it gives freely and completely, but it takes no credit. It fulfills its purpose silently and without fanfare. It nourishes not through effort but by being what it is. It nourishes all but demands no allegiance, and because of this all respect it. The truly great do not show their greatness.
35
All men will come to him who keeps to the one,
For there lie rest and happiness and peace.
Passersby may stop for music and good food,
But a description of the Tao
Seems without substance or flavor.
It cannot be seen, it cannot be heard,
And yet it cannot be exhausted.
The most appealing thing is the most plain thing. In plainness lie rest, contentment and peace. Some may look to satisfy their senses, and to many the Tao seems quiet and without flavor. The Tao is often overlooked, but it is always present for those who can see, taste and hear it.
36
That which shrinks
Must first expand.
That which fails
Must first be strong.
That which is cast down
Must first be raised.
Before receiving
There must be giving.
This is called perception of the nature of things.
Soft and weak overcome hard and strong.
Fish cannot leave deep waters,
And a country's weapons should not be displayed.
All things are composed of opposing forces. You cannot have one without the other. If you would make something grow, think about what would make it decrease. If you would make something strong, think about how it could be made weak. If you would receive, think about how you can give. This is the way of nature.
What do I want to grow in my life? What needs to shrink to allow this to happen?
What do I want or need to receive? What am I giving in order to allow that to happen?
37
Tao abides in non-action,
Yet nothing is left undone.
If kings and lords observed this,
The ten thousand things would develop naturally.
If they still desired to act,
They would return to the simplicity of formless substance.
Without form there is no desire.
Without desire there is tranquility.
And in this way all things would be at peace.
The Tao does not do, it simply exists.
Yet all things are accomplished through the Tao.
The essence of the Tao is formless substance, yet men try to control the world through the ten thousand things of form. The sage looks to the simplicity of formless substance. Though the form exists, he senses the formless within it. When the focus is on the formless, there is no desire and tranquility abounds. When the focus is on the formless, all things are at peace.
38
A truly good man is not aware of his goodness,
And is therefore good.
A foolish man tries to be good,
And is therefore not good.
A truly good man does nothing,
Yet leaves nothing undone.
A foolish man is always doing,
Yet much remains to be done.
When a truly kind man does something, he leaves nothing undone.
When a just man does something, he leaves a great deal to be done.
When a disciplinarian does something and no one responds,
He rolls up his sleeves in an attempt to enforce order.
Therefore when Tao is lost, there is goodness.
When goodness is lost, there is kindness.
When kindness is lost, there is justice.
When justice is lost, there ritual.
Now ritual is the husk of faith and loyalty, the beginning of confusion.
Knowledge of the future is only a flowery trapping of Tao.
It is the beginning of folly.
Therefore the truly great man dwells on what is real and not what is on the surface,
On the fruit and not the flower.
Therefore accept the one and reject the other.
If we simply do good rather than try to do good, we are not aware of our actions, and we are truly good. A society tries to impose morality and order by crafting rules and laws. But in a truly moral society, goodness happens spontaneously. Attachment to rules and laws creates the illusion of a good and just society, but rules and laws are only a substitute for goodness. Just as a law is not the same as goodness, the future is only a distraction from what is real in the here and now. A wise person will focus on what is and not be distracted by what may be or what seems to be.