Taoist Philosophy - Conversations VI

[Marblehead]

“There are philosophers who discuss different methods of government like chasing one another”, said Confucius to Lao Tan. “They talk of the true and the false, of possibility and impossibility. The sophists say, ‘You can analyze (the qualities of) hardness and whiteness as if you could hang them in a corner.’ Do you think these people can be regarded as sages?”

“They are just good clerks and specialists who worry their minds and their bodily frames about nothing”, replied Lao Tan. “A good hound is held in leash because he can worry foxes, and a monkey is captured from the hills because of his agility. Come here, Ch’iu, I want to tell you something which words cannot express. Many are the people who have a head and toes, but are deficient in hearing and in understanding. There are few who can understand that both the formless and the formed exist, and that movement is the same as rest, death is the same as life, and decline is the same as rise. These are (appearances) which do not go to the bottom of all things. Understanding the principles of order depends on the person himself. To forget the material things and forget one’s own nature is to forget one’s self. A man who can forget his own self may be said to have entered the realm of Heaven.”

Edited March 2, 2013 by Marblehead

[stan herman]

[Marblehead]

Simple and to the point, I like it.

 

Some things just don't seem to change much, do they?