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Location: Melbourne, Australia

An Australian from a Chinese background who loves the India Yoga System taught by Sri. Pattabhi Jois. This page is a study note of the classic sutra of Tao Teh Ching by the Great Lao Tzu.

Monday, April 25, 2005

Tao Teh Ching Chapter 28

知其雄,守其雌,为天下溪。为天下溪,常德不离,复归于婴儿。
知其白,守其黑,为天下式。为天下式,常德不忒,复归于无极。
知其白,守其辱,为天下谷。为天下谷,常德不忒,复归于朴。
朴散则为器,圣人用之,则为官长,故大制不割。

Translation
The sage knows how to be a strong and muscular man, yet he chooses to be a subtle female in his attitude, and he becomes the tributes of the world. Flow like the little tributes, the virtue never departs from him and he returns to the infant state.
The sage knows how to be bright and shiny, yet he chooses to stay in the shadow and set the way for the people of the world. In doing so, the virtue never departs from him and he returns to the place where there is no duality.
The sage knows how to be glorious, and yet he chooses to be humble, like an accommodating valley. Like the valley, the virtue never departs from him and he returns to simplicity.
When the simple un-fashioned is distributed, they become utensils. When utilised by the sage, they become officers. Note: I am yet to understand what the last four words mean.

Comments
The main theme in this is chapter is 归, or return. A normal person is not home, he is somewhere else. The task of life is to return to home, where he comes from. This home has three attributes: 婴儿, 无极, 朴, or infant-like, no duality nor extreme, and simplicity. Being an infant, it has no stains and it is perfect. 极, is one extreme. The home has no extremes, things like good and evil, beauty and beast, black and white does not exist. The sage returns to the 无极. That is why a truly self-realized master will love absolutely everyone. The third attribute is simplicity or朴. If you put in tons of make-up, you only appear to be young. If you dress expensively, you only appear to be successful.
There are three types of people in the world, I believe. The ones that are self-realized, I say that they are home. The ones who know that they are not home and wanted to come home, I say they are on the journey home. The last ones are those who don’t realize they are not home, and I say they are lost.

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