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Verse Seventy One The best thing is knowing That you don’t know. Not knowing that you don’t know is A mental illness. There’s a strong tendency among people seeking positions of authority to have this sickness. Don’t be like this, don’t have this unhelpful affliction. The kind of person you should emulate doesn’t have this disease. In fact, talking to wiser people than yourself makes this sickness sick. They will show you the defect in the defect. Once you realize you don’t know - you’re no longer sick. “I’ve wrestled with alligators, I’ve tussled with a whale. I done handcuffed lightning And throw thunder in jail. You know I’m bad. just last week, I murdered a rock, Injured a stone, Hospitalized a brick. I’m so mean, I make medicine sick.” Muhammad Ali In the field of psychology, the Dunning–Kruger effect is a cognitive bias in which people assess their cognitive ability as greater than it is. It is related to the cognitive bias of illusory superiority and comes from the inability of people to recognize their lack of ability. Without the self-awareness of metacognition, people cannot objectively evaluate their competence or incompetence. Kruger, Justin; Dunning, David (1999). "Unskilled and Unaware of It: How Difficulties in Recognizing One's Own Incompetence Lead to Inflated Self-Assessments". Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 77 (6): 1121–1134. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.64.2655. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.77.6.1121. PMID 10626367.

Verse Seventy What I’m telling you Is easy to understand And VERY easy to follow. But I look around and everywhere, There is misunderstanding. I’m giving you what we knew In ancient times. I’m telling you how it is. But even the so called grownups in charge Have no idea, they’re ignorant. My ideas are unknown. There is hope, I suppose, for the person Reading this, learning my ideas. But people who even take the time to understand Are becoming rare. So there’s plenty of room Under the faded, patched brown quilt That my Mother In Law, the Holy Person, who I try to emulate (Grandmother to Lao Tzu’s kids, and all) made.

Verse Sixty Nine Old soldiers say “Better to be a guest Than to host the party” They’d not dare to advance an inch When they could retreat a foot. Better not to engage the enemy at all, in other words. They never know what you didn’t hit them with. Move aside without engaging the enemy Carry on without losing a soldier. It’s a tragic disaster to underestimate an enemy And I mean it is wrong to forget that they are as human as yourself. It’s acting outside the Three Treasures mentioned above, Lacking compassion, moderation and certainly involves putting One's own interests ahead of others. War just makes for sad people at soldier’s funerals No real victory

Verse Sixty Eight The Military is not a worthwhile occupation for An educated person. Anger is not a worthwhile occupation For a warrior. Violence is not the worthwhile method For attaining victory over ones enemies. A person who can treat other people properly Is occupying the low place, and that tells us that they will avoid violence. That’s the way to treat other people. This is called Following the ancient compass - true North.

This is splendid.

Reading Daniel Keown's "The Spark In The Machine:How the Science of Acupuncture Explains the Mysteries of Western Medicine". He's got a great "voice", and takes the readers through the layers of the human body in development - a point he makes is that healing is embryology, and explains the development of the channels in terms of cellular development in early stages. While pondering that, I'm poking away at Jin Yong's "A Snake Lies Waiting", part of the Condor Heroes Saga. Jin Yong is the pseudonym of an author who wrote "Kung Fu Adventure novels" in the era before the golden age of Kung Fu movies. Pressure points are poked! Kicks hang in the air like wire work! Chi is chucked about like shurikens, and so are all sorts of shuriken type objects. Heroic and fiendish characters abound, and there's plenty of books in the series. Good translation, too.

“The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the human mind to correlate all its contents. We live on a placid island of ignorance in the midst of black seas of the infinity, and it was not meant that we should voyage far.”― H. P. Lovecraft, The Call of Cthulhu and Other Weird Stories Sincerely, I think of this line frequently.

Verse Sixty Seven I have three treasures which I cherish. One is called compassion. Kindness, pity, Mercy. The second is called thrift. Cheapness. The ability to travel far On a shoestring. The third is called not daring to be First under Heaven. The kind develop the ability To be brave. The thrifty Develop the ability To be expansive. Not daring to be first under heaven Develops the ability to survive And thrive. Show your kindness and your courage. Show that you are cheap And generous. Show that you are not afraid To be the next to die! Win the war by kindness. With solid observation, discern Where the protection of Heaven Provides a merciful haven.

My sense of this is strongly flavored by Chinese Novel "Journey To The West", pretty much set at the junction of Chan and Tao, particularly when compared to biographical information on the historical monk the fictional account is based on. One way I look at it is that Chan, and Zen, are mainly defined as systems of non conceptual meditation, and the creation of conditions useful for such. This is a useful ability, and even a prerequisite for much Daoist self development.

Verse Sixty Six The River flows down into the Sea - it is because it is the low place that the sea is where the waters gather. All the streams come down from the mountains, and they flow into the rivers, which then flow into the sea. It’s as if the Sea were the boss, with all of the tributaries Reporting in order. Everything collects in the lowest place. When the person you should emulate wants people to do something, They set the example and set the pace Start working first Sets their own needs last. The person to emulate knows they can’t be heavy, can’t be acquisitive, pompous or too involved in the rules for their own sake. If you must set yourself up in front of Other people and not do any harm, Conduct the heavenly choir here on earth. Guide people to follow natures ways. Never grow weary of this task - once you set up shop, the people are watching. If you act the same in all of your dealings, and strive to improve your self as your means to helping others, Your actions are indisputable. Therefore the world will not fight you. Everyone calls Lao Tzu, “Big Road Guy”, “Trail Marker Dude”, and “Originator of the Dao”, but he looked nothing like that - just doing what he could to represent . Any so called grown up does the same, At least pretending that their behavior Is correct and a good example to all. One way or another, a leader sets the example.

Verse Sixty Five The benefit of following This trail, this trail marker, This path of wisdom, this Daoism If I have to call it that, It’s not for everybody. Minds have different tendencies; some people are just stupid. Stupid people influence each other, when they get ideas. They confuse one another, showing off their wisdom. When all this knowledge and wisdom is applied to running a country, It sabotages the country. The country (or any other institution) that is not run by such wisdom and knowledge is blessed or lucky, take your pick. Being able to tell people who are judging conditions for themselves From the ones who are following mass confusion And keeping up with trends Is a useful technique. Learn it; this technique is part of the Mysterious means of deciding what to do The ability to make these simple decisions can seem Mysterious and distant. It can even seem to go against reason. This is the advantage of developing resolve And self discipline.

Verse sixty four It’s easy for things at rest to stay at rest. It’s easier to keep track of a few things Than it is to keep track of many. Brittle objects are easy to break. Small objects are easy to move. Deal with potential problems Sooner rather than later, before they get out of control. Outside my window there are cedar trees, some as wide as I can get my arms around. They started out as tiny seedlings. A nine story platform starts out As flattened earth. A thousand mile journey Begins when you put one foot forward. When this goes far enough, no mere human force can overcome it. At this point, the person we should try to be No longer considers it their problem. No wasted effort, no possibility of failure. People with one plan for their lives Often fail at that plan. Be as careful about the ending as at the beginning. Then there’s no defeat. Be with the Holy Person, Desire no desires. No rare, difficult to obtain goods. Don’t waste time on the latest ideas Although everyone in the broad thoroughfare Stops to discuss them. Supplementing the ten thousand dancing scorpions, adding to all the junk concerns You should already be taking your mind away from. Don’t dare do this.

Verse Sixty Three 爲無爲 Wei wu wei. Cause, nothing, cause. Pause between actions, let the moment land. Act, don’t act, act. Rhythm, peristalsis. Chew, swallow, chew. Large, small, many or few, You can always use these as complaints. But it is difficult to see the big map. Look out for the fine details And Heaven will take care of the rest With ease. Join the person you should be emulating in not worrying about the big things. Deal with your own life, let the universe Deal with itself. A so called grown up Who says too lightly what they will do May not mean the words they choose. Many things turn out easy, many turn out difficult. Nevertheless, the Wise person Treats it all the same And just deals with whatever difficulties come up.

It is taking me a while to get through these. Very appreciative.

Verse Sixty Two The Way, the trail that we’re marking here, covers everything. It’s the treasure of good people And it protects the bad ones. So, by following the trail, you can even find success in the world, and wind up in a position of influence. By all means, continue to be an exemplar of the Way, continue to follow the Trail Marker in your dealings. Even if they decide to treat you like Heaven’s Baby, Or make you one of the three lord high Muckety Mucks, Stick you in a horse drawn carriage With a BIG jade disk - a symbol of office, expensive, time consuming to make, and this one is too big to Put your arms around, Being displayed in front of your carriage, That would not bring you as much honor As the example you would set By following the Way. So the coach and horses, the Jade disk, the whole Dog and pony show that goes along with authority Just covers up the crimes Of the evil men who followed the path just as far as political power, money and influence. Which makes it too costly by far.

Verse Sixty One A great Nation is like the fertile bottom lands That a river flows into. All that land, spread out under the sky, That’s female. And females win over males by being Receptive. A larger nation wins out over a smaller nation for this reason. If the larger nation yields - it still wins in the end. If the smaller nation gives in - they will still wind up Being dominated and assimilated by the larger nation Over time. So - some who yield will conquer, And some who yield will be conquered. The larger country always needs more resources, more people. The smaller country will wind up serving these Realities. So- the larger nation may as well yield.

Verse Sixty Ruling a large country Is like cooking a small fresh fish Do too much and you ruin it’s best qualities. This is the trail marker to follow In these matters. Messing around with ceremonies Creates the possibility of getting the ceremonies wrong - Possibly invoking the bad luck And evil intention of forces that may not even exist! This isn’t getting into the nature of Spirits or ghosts or gods Or flying immortals or whatever, we’re not playing with ontologies here. The wise person doesn’t Hurt anyone, real or imagined. The Grownup Mommies and Daddies Don’t get hurt or scared or cursed Or demonically possessed Or have the ground to do these kinds of Harmful activities to one another. Don’t play stupid games, You won’t win stupid prizes.

Verse Fifty Nine If by chance you do get put in charge of anything, For heaven's sake show some restraint. Get up in the morning and do the same things you learned were the right things to do Base your decisions on the same Behavior and thinking. This way of thinking can deal with anything that comes up. It is not limited just to your personal daily routine. It can be the foundation for Nations, societies, ways of life That have the power to endure. Deep roots make solid stems. And that is the way to a long life. 生 Sheng; life, raw, born, sprout “He not busy being born is busy dying” Bob Dylan

Verse Fifty Eight Their politics is Boring Boring The people are Mellow Mellow. Their politics is A big hairy eyeball Into everything And the people Are poorer Missing out in more ways Than one. It’s a disaster to rely on good things happening, good intentions and luck. It’s real life impending disasters you have to deal with. Can you see the difference? It’s not about what should happen, It’s about the unexpected. Good things happening is The realm of pixies and demons Fairy tales, which have a lasting appeal. The person you should emulate will set things square, Not from an angle. They will tell you the truth Straight No chaser. Frugal but not cheap. Straight deals with no bureaucratic procedures, Contracts, guarantees or any of that civilized stuff. Bright without dazzling.

Verse Fifty Seven When you rule your kingdom Correctly The military can be a small, specialized thing. You can deal with the world And everything that happens in it In the space between breaths How do I know this? Here it is; When you have too many rules for the people to follow, The people wind up impoverished. They put what little they have into weapons. This weakens the nation, And many skillful ministers will show up with Their solutions and they will Run things right into the ground. Strange things begin to happen. The laws cause many people To be criminals, thieves. Look up - read the wise person’s thought bubble. I’d do nothing. That would cause The people to change their ways. I’m peaceful and quiet And the people return To the correct path. I live simply and the people prosper. I want nothing and the people are Frugal and satisfied.

That is supremely cool. I've considered derailing my whole music AND "cultivation" activities to explore overtone singing (and the whole connection between the voice and everything it moves) with the attention it could take up.

Sorry for the double post, new to the mechanical possibilities. The above is a response to Steve.

I mess with it. Years ago, friends and I did get the tones David Hykes Harmonic Choir use, fooling around singing under bridges in Philly. Another friend travelled to Tuva to study the music there, and can sing the karygraa (sic) style well.