Taoist Philosophy - Chapter 83

[Marblehead]

With Much You’ll Be Confused

 

Bent over, you’ll be made upright;
Twisted, you’ll be straightened;
Hollowed out, you’ll be made full;
Worn out, you’ll be renewed;
With little, you’ll attain much;
With much, you’ll be confused.


Those Who Understand Life

Those who understand life do not occupy themselves with things that are of no benefit to life. Those who understand destiny do not occupy themselves with what cannot be helped in the realm of knowledge. One depends on material means to strengthen the body, but there are plenty of people who have more than enough of the material means and yet whose bodies are not strong. One cannot live without taking care of the body, yet there are plenty of people who do take care of their bodies and lose their lives. Alas! We have no control over death. The people of this world think that they can preserve their lives by taking care of their bodies, but if they cannot preserve their lives by taking care of their bodies, then what are they so busy about? To attend to things which are not worth attending to but which have to be attended to is no escape. Those who wish to escape living for their bodies should not attend to business affairs. Those who do not attend to business affairs have no entanglements. Disentanglement means calm and repose; calm and repose means the beginning of the new life, and when one begins a new life, he comes near to Tao.

Business affairs are not worth attending to and this life is not worth worrying about. By forsaking business affairs, one’s body is relieved from worry, and by abandoning life, one’s soul is preserved whole. When a man’s body is at ease, and his soul is recovered, he becomes One with Heaven. The Tao is the Mother of the Universe, the Universe is the mother of the things of Heaven and Earth. When the Spirit is united with matter, the body is formed; when the Spirit departs, it returns to the origin of things.

Edited March 6, 2013 by Marblehead

[manitou]

How poignant this is for one who has grown up in the West, who has grown up with the puritan work ethic (perhaps at the best extreme) or on the other end of the pole just merely the desire to get ahead. How much time and energy I've used up in the past 60 odd years trying to maintain an American middle-class identity. And the horrible thing is that I feel Guilty if I'm not still doing that. I don't do that any longer, I am retired...I am an artist...but I can still get anal about that too. Sometimes I beat myself up because I'm not producing the right quantity or type of art - I can easily get away from the PURPOSE of art (soul expression) and revert instead to turning the selling of my art into a money-making scheme. The balancing act extends to everything, I guess.

My dad was a large and loud man who, when he saw us just sitting in a chair, could be depended on to say "Why are you just sitting there? Do something! Improve your mind! Create something!" On one hand, I'm glad I was brought up with this because it lent itself to creativity. On the other hand, it was apparently a recipe for constant un-ease unless one was actually "doing something" at any given moment. To read the Tao, which emphasizes exactly the opposite, is absolute balm for my soul. I read it, my soul responds to it, and it seems to be saying that Doing Nothing is just fine, and in fact better than fine. But there is still a niggling voice inside me, when I'm too comfortable, that can say "Get up! Do something! Be productive!"

As much as I believe I do understand because I've been trying to live the Tao philosophy for so very long, getting this to actually take up residence in our bodies is a different thing, at least in my case. I haven't found that the mental understanding translates right away into body knowledge. I am still a ball of neuroses! I don't want to be a ball of neuroses, but here I am. I have a problem with TMJ because I still grind my teeth; going to the dentist is a problem because it drives me nuts to hold my mouth open. This is nothing but stress; stress from not feeling that I can control the future, apparently. Fear of what tomorrow brings, at the very end of the cord. A hovering stress that isn't even realistic - I'm okay on every front, even financially - but the stress monster will find something to obsess about.

As the Tao comment above indicates, disentanglement means calm and repose. I have moments of this during the day. When I am mindful I can slip into repose at the drop of a hat. I can see that it's all One, that it's manifesting just the way it wants to manifest, and that I'm merely the Observer. But how easy it is to slip back into the illusion and get all caught up. Sometimes I feel like I'm on the horns of an enema.

[Marblehead]

Hi Manitou,

 

Yeah, I think that most of us in the West have been through what you have described. In fact, many of the Eastern peoples are getting that way nowadays, I think.

 

It sure takes a long time to learn how to just relax. Funny sometimes, you know.

[Apech]

Hi Manitou,

 

Yeah, I think that most of us in the West have been through what you have described. In fact, many of the Eastern peoples are getting that way nowadays, I think.

 

It sure takes a long time to learn how to just relax. Funny sometimes, you know.

 

Hi Marblehead and Manitou,

 

A great message and I can really relate to those personal comments. It is my impression that the world is getting faster and faster and people more and more busy. Its as if they are desperate to rush from one distraction to the next. Today in the UK they have announced the royal wedding of what's-his-name to his girlfriend. The News channels have gone hyperactive - I am sure there will be some spill over to the other side of the Atlantic. There will be months and months of endless nonsense and speculation ... this sums up the modern world to me.

 

Yours gloomily,

 

Apech

[goldisheavy]

Very nice Marble! Where is this from?

[Marblehead]

Hi Marblehead and Manitou,

 

A great message and I can really relate to those personal comments. It is my impression that the world is getting faster and faster and people more and more busy. Its as if they are desperate to rush from one distraction to the next. Today in the UK they have announced the royal wedding of what's-his-name to his girlfriend. The News channels have gone hyperactive - I am sure there will be some spill over to the other side of the Atlantic. There will be months and months of endless nonsense and speculation ... this sums up the modern world to me.

 

Yours gloomily,

 

Apech

 

Yeah, ole what's-his-name is in the news here too.

 

Yes, things are changing ever faster, technology, etc. Nearly everyone seems to have the need to keep up with all the changes.

[Marblehead]

Very nice Marble! Where is this from?

 

Hi Gold,

 

The poem section is TTC, Chapter 22, Henricks' translation.

 

I guess I am going to have to say I pulled the prose portion out of my behind because I cannot find the original source. It is likely that it is from a translation of Chuang Tzu that I got from a library. I did check with the Lin Yutang, Burton Watson & James Legge translations but there is no good match. It may even be a result of some editing on my part but I doubt that because I would have noted doing that.

[3bob]

This is not exctly in context but:

 

Mt 8:20 "And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head"

 

or:

 

Man has no where to lay his head, until he finds his heart.

 

Om

[Marblehead]

Man has no where to lay his head, until he finds his heart.

 

Om

 

Well, this part is in context.

 

Man can have all the fluffy pillows he wants but if he can't lay his head on those pillows and sleep without worry what good are all those pillows?

[manitou]

 

Mt 8:20 "And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head"

 

or:

 

Man has no where to lay his head, until he finds his heart.

 

Om

 

 

Even back when I used to read that book I never understood what that verse meant. I'm afraid I still don't. Bob, how do you relate this to finding the heart?

[Stigweard]

Bent over, you’ll be made upright;

Twisted, you’ll be straightened;

Hollowed out, you’ll be made full;

Worn out, you’ll be renewed;

With little, you’ll attain much;

With much, you’ll be confused.

 

 

Those Who Understand Life

 

Those who understand life do not occupy themselves with things that are of no benefit to life. Those who understand destiny do not occupy themselves with what cannot be helped in the realm of knowledge. One depends on material means to strengthen the body, but there are plenty of people who have more than enough of the material means and yet whose bodies are not strong. One cannot live without taking care of the body, yet there are plenty of people who do take care of their bodies and lose their lives. Alas! We have no control over death. The people of this world think that they can preserve their lives by taking care of their bodies, but if they cannot preserve their lives by taking care of their bodies, then what are they so busy about? To attend to things which are not worth attending to but which have to be attended to is no escape. Those who wish to escape living for their bodies should not attend to business affairs. Those who do not attend to business affairs have no entanglements. Disentanglement means calm and repose; calm and repose means the beginning of the new life, and when one begins a new life, he comes near to Tao.

 

Business affairs are not worth attending to and this life is not worth worrying about. By forsaking business affairs, one’s body is relieved from worry, and by abandoning life, one’s soul is preserved whole. When a man’s body is at ease, and his soul is recovered, he becomes One with Heaven. The Tao is the Mother of the Universe, the Universe is the mother of the things of Heaven and Earth. When the Spirit is united with matter, the body is formed; when the Spirit departs, it returns to the origin of things.

 

 

Don't care for the body. Don't attend to business affairs.

 

Sounds like an old, impotent, fat literati dude who lost all his money on the stockmarket!

 

Did Zhuangzi really say this?? I mean I knew he had a jibe at the hygienists just like Laozi criticized the Naming School ... but really???

 

When Bodhidharma turned up and witnessed the monks sitting around wasting away he said: "Get off yo big fat asses and do some damn exercise!!"

 

Admittedly I subscribe to the self-cultivation branch of Taoism that advocates the wholesome fulfillment of Jing, Qi and Shen. The body is regarded as a mini-universe and the foundation of the developing Shen.

 

I would love to see the original text this has come from. I am sure that it doesn't mean "don't care for the body". I can accept "don't cling to the body", but to advocate knowledge over integral health just rubs me the wrong way.

 

And "Don't care for business" ... yeah well I can understand that. Damn business nearly sends me round the twist once or twice a year. But hey I am a Warrior and it's a good arena to hone the cutting edge

 

[strawdog65]

Greatly interesting post Marblehead!

 

Fill my cup, so i may empty it.

Lie to me, so I may know truth.

Kill my self, so I may be Tao.

 

Empty my cup, so I may fill it.

Tell me truth, so I may know lies.

Tao has killed my self.

 

 

I agree with Manitou about the brain comprehending

the path, but the flesh being stuck with bad habits.

 

I guess that's where the slowing down and being in that

moment fully is the discipline coming to fruition.

 

Those moments of clarity are very nice!

[3bob]

Even back when I used to read that book I never understood what that verse meant. I'm afraid I still don't. Bob, how do you relate this to finding the heart?

 

Hi Manitou,

 

To find the true home of Spirit or the Heart of hearts, where Spirit can rest in Spirit!

 

Om

[Marblehead]

 

Don't care for the body. Don't attend to business affairs.

 

Sounds like an old, impotent, fat literati dude who lost all his money on the stockmarket!

 

Did Zhuangzi really say this?? I mean I knew he had a jibe at the hygienists just like Laozi criticized the Naming School ... but really???

 

Hehehe. Like I told Gold, I was unable to find a match for that in any of the three primary translations of Chuang Tzu so it is likely that it is a very bad translation that I no longer have access to in order to quote the source.

 

Then too, it may be something I heavily edited but I doubt that.

 

I agree, Taoist Philosophy teaches the importance of taking care of the body. I think the quote might have been pointing to not constantly seeking bodily pleasures.

 

Well, I'm not fat and I never played the stock markets. I won't speak to any of the other things you mentioned. Hehehe.

[Marblehead]

I guess that's where the slowing down and being in that

moment fully is the discipline coming to fruition.

 

Those moments of clarity are very nice!

 

Amen to that!

[Marblehead]

Hi Manitou,

 

To find the true home of Spirit or the Heart of hearts, where Spirit can rest in Spirit!

 

Om

 

Yes, we rest in Yin, the feminine, the valley spirit.

[Marblehead]

I feel so proud of myself having posted a chapter that has drawn a lot of fussing over. Hehehe.

[manitou]

I agree, Taoist Philosophy teaches the importance of taking care of the body. I think the quote might have been pointing to not constantly seeking bodily pleasures.

 

 

 

(Marbles, you are so adorable...you done yerself proud with this thread)

 

If you read the part about the body being disregarded, I think he's referring to the same mindset that the Nazarene might have been referring to when he talked about not having worry about tomorrow - that the lilies of the field are beautifully clad and therefore aren't we also? And also I think he said something about the sparrows, yada yada. I think Marbles is on the money when he indicates that moderation is key....balance. By no stretch of the imagination is the author saying to stop batheing or caring for the temple.

 

Lin Yutang's take on this chapter emphasizes the concept of Yielding a little more than this translation:

 

 

FUTILITY OF CONTENTION

 

To yield is to be preserved whole.

To be bent is to become straight.

To be hollow is to be filled.

To be tattered is to be renewed.

To be in want is to possess.

To have plenty is to be confused.

 

Therefore the Sage embraces the One,

And becomes the model of the world.

He does not reveal himself,

And is therefore luminous.

He does not justify himself,

And is therefore far-famed.

He does not boast of himself,

And therefore people give him credit.

He does not pride himself,

And is therefore the ruler among men.

 

It is because he does not contend

That no one in the world can contend against him.

 

Is it not indeed true, as the ancients say,

"To yield is to be preserved whole?"

Thus he is preserved and the world does him homage.

[Marblehead]

"To yield is to be preserved whole?"

 

Thanks for the verbal hugs.

 

I love talking about flexibility. The quote above speaks to this concept, I think.

[3bob]

I feel so proud of myself having posted a chapter that has drawn a lot of fussing over. Hehehe.

 

Hehehe,

[manitou]

 

I love talking about flexibility. The quote above speaks to this concept, I think.

 

 

Exactly. Like the willow bending in the breeze, capable of withstanding the storm more flexibly than an older rigid one. Not that there's anything wrong with that...

[Marblehead]

Exactly. Like the willow bending in the breeze, capable of withstanding the storm more flexibly than an older rigid one. Not that there's anything wrong with that...

 

Hehehe. I may be old but there is no part of my body that gets rigid anymore.

 

(Sorry, the devil made me say that.)

[manitou]

Hehehe. I may be old but there is no part of my body that gets rigid anymore.

 

(Sorry, the devil made me say that.)

[manitou]

(I'm having a horrible time with my computer this morning - it's actually not the computer, it's me. Maybe I can actually respond this time).

 

 

Re: The devil. That fictitious old bum sits comfortably in my brain too, ready at a moment's notice.

 

RE: Rigidity vs,. non-rigidity. I knew this would be a lay-up for you. Slam dunk.

[Marblehead]

Re: The devil. That fictitious old bum sits comfortably in my brain too, ready at a moment's notice.

 

RE: Rigidity vs,. non-rigidity. I knew this would be a lay-up for you. Slam dunk.

 

I really don't believe that there is such a thing as a devil. I just like that saying "The devil made me do it." Let's me get off the hook when I get naughty.

 

Hehehe. We won't speak any more about my non-rigidity. (Actually, that is a result of my high blood pressure medication. But I don't see it as a problem so I have never mentioned it to my doctor.)