The weighty is the basis of the light.
Tranquility rules over restlessness.
Therefore
Sages are always on the go
But never lose sight of their bags. 5
The view may be spectacular
But they hold to their calm manner
Remaining rooted yet detached.
How could a king
Commanding ten thousand chariots 10
Display himself lightly to the world?
Such lightness does foundational damage
Just as being restless costs kings their thrones.
***
NOTES
line 4: More literally, “Sages travel all day.”
COMMENTARY
The entire natural world shows us heavy things producing lighter things – little eggs from big birds, slender branches from thick tree trunks; but as for restlessness, the advice that opens poem 26 sounds counterintuitive. Yet the secret to dealing with the restless is not to keep them occupied but to stop their wheel-spinning so a greater stillness can prevail. The Sage’s example is recommended, and not surprisingly it operates on paradox: active but focused, appreciative but unmoved, involved but disengaged. From the Sage Laozi turns to the king, yet plainly is speaking to you, because you rule over your own life. Take that responsibility lightly, and your rulership will be stripped from you by the law or the physician or the grave.
Links To:
The Classic of Dao and De by Laozi: Contents
For more on Daoism, see:
Film Dreams: Frank Capra
Music: KALW Radio Show #3, Ancient China in 20th-Century Music
Music: SFCR Radio Show #8, Daoism in Western Music, part 1
Music: SFCR Radio Show #9, Daoism in Western Music, part 2
NICOLE V. GAGNÉ 