Some say that my teaching is nonsense.
Others call it lofty but impractical.
But to those who have looked inside themselves,
this nonsense makes perfect sense.
And to those who put it into practice,
this loftiness has roots that go deep.

I have just three things to teach:
Simplicity, Patience, Compassion.
These three are your greatest treasures.
Simple in actions and in thoughts,
you return to the source of being.
Patient with both friends and enemies,
you accord with the way things are.
Compassionate toward yourself,
you reconcile all beings in the world.

-Lao Tzu-
(Tao Te Ching chapter 67, translation by Stephen Mitchell)

In an earlier chapter Lao Tzu talked a bit about different reactions to philosophical Taoism. He said when superior people hear of the Tao, they immediately begin to embody it. The average person half believes it and half doubts it. And the fool? They laugh out loud. Lao Tzu was not bothered by the fool’s reaction. He simply said that if the fool didn’t laugh, it wouldn’t be the Tao. I immediately thought of that as I was reading today’s chapter.

Some people are simply not going to “get” Lao Tzu’s teaching. To them, it is nonsense. Others call it lofty, but impractical. Honestly, I don’t know whether that reaction is much better than simply calling it nonsense. By dismissing it as idealistic and impractical, it is going to be hard for us to go on with dialogue.

And dialogue is what I want. I know I put out this monologue each and every day with each new installment from the Tao Te Ching. But I don’t want it to remain just monologue. What I am hoping for is to get my readers thinking. And responding. Oh, you don’t have to send me a message. That isn’t what I really mean by dialogue. What I want you to do is to look inside yourself; and see if this nonsense doesn’t make perfect sense. What I want is for you to put it into practice in your own life; and find that this loftiness has roots that go deep. If you do that, then I have achieved exactly what I have wanted to achieve.

Lao Tzu says that he has just three things to teach. He considers them so important that he calls them your three greatest treasures. These three treasures are simplicity, patience, and compassion. Because he places such a high value on each of them, I am going to take them one at a time.

First treasure, simplicity. What does Lao Tzu mean by simplicity? He wants us to be simple in our actions and in our thoughts. Lao Tzu understood it back in 400 B.C.E., and it is still true today; we expend a lot of time and energy trying to simplify. But our efforts only seem to make things for us more, rather than less, complex. But complexity is not going to help us along our journey, our return to the source of being. Complexity only serves to confound us. Lao Tzu has an interesting solution for us. Instead of trying to simplify, just be simple. Be simple in your actions. Don’t try to do something to make your actions more simple. Just be simple. Be simple in your thoughts. Don’t try to think how can I keep this simple. Just be simple. Perhaps I am making this too complicated. See how that is done? We are talking about returning to the source of being. Being. Not doing. Where things get complicated is in the doing. And in trying to explain it, I am making it complicated. But it isn’t complicated. It really is simple. Just be. Relax. Just be. Simple.

Second treasure, patience. Let’s keep this simple. We wouldn’t want to discard our first treasure while trying to reach for the next. Lao Tzu puts it simply. Be patient with both friend and foe. Let’s not complicate things by trying to figure out whether we should or should not be patient with our enemies as well as our friends. Lao Tzu is wanting us to accord with the way things are. We have talked at length about the way things are. This is the eternal reality. What is true, regardless of what our senses may tell us to the contrary. What is true, regardless of how convincing the illusion may seem to be. We want to be in accord with the way things are. And that requires that we have our treasure, patience. Patience with our friends who mean us well, and our enemies that mean us harm. Being in accord with the way things are means being patient with everyone, regardless of their intentions.

Third treasure, compassion. Lao Tzu has one goal when it comes to this third treasure. The reconciliation of all beings in the world. But, as is usually the case with Lao Tzu, he doesn’t go the direction we expect him to go, in order to achieve the goal. When we think of compassion we think of directing it outward toward others. That does sound noble, doesn’t it? And Lao Tzu is certainly thinking about others when he is talking about reconciliation. But he doesn’t want us directing our compassion outwards, at all. He wants us to be compassionate toward ourselves. What was he saying about nonsense, earlier? No, come back here, we are going to keep this simple. When we try to direct our compassion outwards, we start making things complicated. How exactly do I express compassion to others? What is compassionate to one is something else entirely to another. I wanted to bring about reconciliation and all I have managed to do is make a gigantic mess of things. Now, they aren’t even speaking to each other anymore. And before I interfered, they were getting along so well. Lao Tzu has very good reason for wanting us to direct our compassion inward, toward ourselves. He wants to keep it simple.

I am thinking about an old song that wasn’t so old when I was young. Let there be peace on Earth and let it begin with me. Lao Tzu didn’t write that song. Though he may have been the inspiration for it. If you are going to live to see the reconciliation of all beings in the world, it will begin with you being compassionate toward yourself. We tend to be our own worst critic, our own worst enemy. But as long as we are at odds with who we are, the whole world is irreconcilable It starts with me. It begins now.

All streams flow to the sea
because it is lower than they are.
Humility gives it its power.

If you want to govern the people,
you must place yourself below them.
If you want to lead the people,
you must learn to follow them.

The Master is above the people,
and no one feels oppressed.
She goes ahead of the people,
and no one feels manipulated.
The whole world is grateful to her.
Because she competes with no one,
no one can compete with her.

-Lao Tzu-
(Tao Te Ching, chapter 66, translation by Stephen Mitchell)

Today, we are going to continue to look at how the art of living informs the art of governing; and the art of governing informs the art of living. Lao Tzu begins with a metaphor which he uses to illustrate how humility is what gives you real power. We all understand the reason that streams flow into the sea. It is because the sea is lower. Streams don’t naturally flow uphill. And power doesn’t naturally flow uphill either.

We keep returning to this concept of the need for humility because it is probably the most important lesson of them all. Lao Tzu understood human nature. He isn’t asking for any of us to try to deny our nature. He is wanting us to understand our nature and work with that. People are not sheep, or cattle, or swine. Rulers tend to treat people as if that were the case. But that is to deny our nature.

Sometimes, those of us who describe ourselves as libertarians or anarchists, complain that people are behaving like sheep. But I hope that we all understand that we are not actually describing their real nature as humans. What we are really complaining about, is that they are not behaving according to their own nature.

For Lao Tzu the role of leaders is to “lead” the people back to their own nature. What they have always been. Their real nature as human beings. Sheep is a very disparaging term to use to refer to humans. Sheep are completely dependent on a shepherd. Left to their own devices, they can’t fend for themselves. They have to be led to green pastures. Sheep have been known to eat themselves right off a cliff. They need constant supervision. But we are not sheep!

Cattle and swine are herded. Our rulers tend to treat us with this herd mentality. Do cattle and swine like to be herded? No, they don’t like it at all. Sadly, for them, it is their unfortunate lot. But that isn’t the case for us humans. We don’t like being herded either. Because we are humans, when we are treated like cattle or swine, we feel oppressed and manipulated. There needs to be a better way of leading us.

Lao Tzu understands the nature of humans, and treats us all accordingly. Humility is the key to this understanding. I like that word humility because it comes from the same root as human. It is our nature. Some may balk at that. Pride seems to be a very human trait as well. But all pride is, is the absence of humility. Pride shouldn’t be, and doesn’t have to be, our defining trait. Humility can and should be.

But how? Well, what do you think produces pride? Since it is the absence of humility, why we become prideful is because we have failed to cultivate the seeds of humility. The art of living is the cultivation of what we are in our human nature. It is the cultivation of those seeds of humility, first and foremost.

This is true for each one of us; but it is especially true for anyone who wants to govern the people. You want to govern? Remember where the sea gets its power. That is where your power is to be found as well.

As Lao Tzu has said over and over again, the art of governing is not ruling. It is leading. And leading is serving. And serving means putting yourself below everyone else. You want to lead? You must first learn how to follow.

Now, Lao Tzu provides us with the picture of a leader. The Master. She is above the people; yet, no one feels oppressed. She goes ahead of the people; yet, no one feels manipulated. This is the art of governing. It is leading, by serving as an example, back to the way we have always been.

I want to be clear here. It would be a denial of our human nature to believe that we don’t have any need for leaders. When I hear people complaining about anarchy, that is one thing they fear. It would be a free for all. That is one of the reasons I don’t choose to use the word anarchy. I prefer anarchism because I want to make it clear that what we anarchists are opposed to is rulers. Not leaders. We don’t need or want rulers. But we do, and always will, need and want leaders. And nature has a way of producing real leaders, right when we need them.

Real leaders, are people for which the whole world are grateful. Why grateful? Because we need them. Real leaders compete with no one. This is important. Rulers are very competitive. They are always needing to figure out some way to be on top of everyone else. But real leaders don’t fight their way to the top. They get their power by staying below the people. No one can compete with a real leader. No one wants to.

The ancient Masters
didn’t try to educate the people,
but kindly taught them to not-know.

When they think that they know the answers,
people are difficult to guide.
When they know that they don’t know,
people can find their own way.

If you want to learn how to govern,
avoid being clever or rich.
The simplest pattern is the clearest.
Content with an ordinary life,
you can show all people
the way back to their own nature.

-Lao Tzu-

(Tao Te Ching, chapter 65, translation by Stephen Mitchell)

Yesterday, I said that for Lao Tzu the art of living and the art of governing were one. It took me awhile to figure that out. But coming to that realization transformed my life.

We’re going to take a look at today’s chapter in that context. Lao Tzu talks all the time about the ancient Masters. He certainly esteemed them. They informed his philosophy. He says today that they didn’t try to educate the people. Because they understood the problem wasn’t a lack of education. The problem was they already knew too much. Or more precisely, they thought they knew the answers already.

When you think you already know the answers, it will be difficult to guide you. The ancient Masters taught the people to not-know. This is that unlearning that I said we needed to be practicing. But, don’t mistake guiding for manipulating or controlling. They weren’t wanting to manipulate or control the people, Guiding was a very subtle practice. It wasn’t about manipulation or control.

In fact, Lao Tzu tells us it was just the opposite of that. When the people come to the realization that they don’t really know, and that is because they have learned to not-know, the people can find their own way.

That right there is how the art of governing is one with the art of living. The art of governing isn’t about control. It is about leading, guiding. And that is through being someone who is content to serve as an example. Of course this establishes the difference between rulers and leaders. But that isn’t all that Lao Tzu is trying to get across. The point of governing, of leading, of guiding, of serving as an example – is to show all the people the way back to their own nature.

The ancient Masters understood that people can find their own way; if only they aren’t confounded by their so-called knowledge. People don’t need to be forced to do the right thing. They can figure it out for themselves. All that is necessary is humility. The people need to be humble enough to come to the realization that they don’t really know. And the leaders need to be humble enough to be content to serve as an example, rather than needing to force some outcome.

This is why Lao Tzu says to those who want to learn how to govern, that cleverness and riches are not what is needed. Those actually are a hindrance. They will puff you up. Make you proud. And humility is what you need to be cultivating. The simplest pattern is the clearest. This is important whether you are just one of the people; or, you are wanting to be a leader of the people. Keep it simple. If you are going to serve as an example, you want a simple and clear pattern.

This simple and clear pattern is being content with an ordinary life. Once again, this does separate rulers from leaders. Rulers tend to be extravagant in their living. That doesn’t serve as an example to the people. Instead, it just enflames their desires. Leaders are a completely different breed from rulers. Leaders are content with an ordinary life. One that serves as an example to the people. Instead of enflaming desires, it calms them. And, people find their way back to their own nature.

Just like the proverbial question of which came first, the chicken or the egg? We need to understand how the art of living informs the art of governing and the art of governing informs the art of living.

What is rooted is easy to nourish.
What is recent is easy to correct.
What is brittle is easy to break.
What is small is easy to scatter.

Prevent trouble before it arises.
Put things in order before they exist.
The giant pine tree grows from a tiny sprout.
The journey of a thousand miles
starts beneath your feet.

Rushing into action, you fail.
Trying to grasp things, you lose them.
Forcing a project to completion,
you ruin what was almost ripe.

Therefore, the Master takes action
by letting things take their course.
He remains calm at the end as at the beginning.
He has nothing, thus has nothing to lose.
What he desires is non-desire;
what he learns is to unlearn.
He simply reminds people
of who they have always been.
He cares about nothing but the Tao.
Thus he can care for all things.

-Lao Tzu-
(Tao Te Ching, chapter 64, translation by Stephen Mitchell)

Because today’s chapter is a continuation of the theme from yesterday’s chapter, and yesterday, I was writing a lot about my own personal transformation with regard to this theme, I am just going to continue today, where I left off yesterday.

Yesterday, I admitted that what first attracted me to philosophical Taoism was what Lao Tzu wrote about the art of governing. It was so very libertarian of him. And it really meshed with my own libertarian ideas on governing. If Lao Tzu hadn’t been such a libertarian, I probably never would have stuck it out long enough with the Tao Te Ching to ever finally begin to understand the art of living, which is the philosophy behind his art of governing. Lao Tzu helped me to understand that I am not helping myself by compartmentalizing things. Maybe others can get away with separating their personal and political philosophy. For Lao Tzu, it was all one.

As I read through the Tao Te Ching, over and over again, this became clear to me. That certainly helped me to let go of everything that was holding me back from going all the way with philosophical Taoism. Certainly, when I started my tumblr blog and used the url libertariantaoist, I was more libertarian than Taoist at the time. I was just trying to come up with something I thought was somewhat original. Something to differentiate myself, and yet, I also knew there was something to this Taoism that, though I didn’t quite know what it was yet, given time, I knew I would get it.

More than anything else this past couple of years, I can attribute taking a chapter each day and adding my commentary to it, has shaped me into the blogger I am right now. Lao Tzu, more than any other, led me to abandon all hope in taming Leviathan (the State) or trying to downsize it. My own anarchism is the practice of philosophical Taoism. Nothing more, nothing less. I know I still have a long way to go on this path. I certainly haven’t arrived at “Master” level. And, I may never. But I’ll just keep taking it one day at a time and see how the Tao shapes me.

Yesterday, Lao Tzu was talking about the practice of effortless action. Acting without doing. Working without effort. And he told us how to go about that, practically speaking. He said, think of the small as large and to think of the few as many. By thinking that way we can confront the difficult while it is still easy. We break down great tasks into a series of small acts.

Today, he really does continue with this idea. If, as you were reading along, it sounded vaguely familiar to you, that may be because of the oft quoted “The journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step.” If you have a long journey before you, it can seem daunting. Lao Tzu’s advice is to remember to start at the beginning. And the ground beneath your feet is always the place to begin.

When I was laid off from my last job two and a half years ago, I knew I didn’t want to continue trying to earn a living, doing things I didn’t enjoy doing. I knew what I enjoyed. I had successfully home schooled my own children. I knew that one on one interaction with children was what I wanted to do. So, I decided to start my own tutoring business. I hit upon this idea in March, the same month that I was laid off, but it wasn’t until August that I had my very first student. I had to spend time planning. Thinking about how I was going to go about it. I tried to raise some venture capital. That proved unsuccessful. So, I ended up just doing it by the skin of my teeth with the meager means I had. I did some advertising until I didn’t have the money to invest in it any furtherr. That did result in the one student that I started with in August.

When Lao Tzu talks about a giant pine tree growing from a tiny sprout, what he is saying to me is don’t despise small beginnings. Given time, that sprout will grow. My first student was 3 years old at the time. 3 years old? I had never thought I would be working with someone so young? I was thinking I was going to be helping out moms and dads with their school age children who were having trouble getting difficult concepts, in math, especially. But this little girl’s mom and dad wanted their daughter to succeed and they wanted her to get an early and fast start. They asked if I could teach her how to use an abacus. Sure, I could. Right after I figured out how to use one myself.

Anyway, I set about to teach her counting numbers, letters, both how to write them and how to say them, then phonics. What sounds do all these letters make? It, of course helped that I had home-schooled my own children. I just hadn’t begun with them so early. That was the only difference.

I started out with just one hour a day, five days a week. The little girl turned four in December. We continued working. I won’t bore you with all the details. My time increased with her to two hours a day, and now 3 hours a day. We are working with the abacus. It is amazing! What a useful tool. She is five now, and I am doing first grade curriculum with her. I am enjoying myself.

I said all of that because what little I said about myself yesterday, kind of left things up in the air. Sure, I was going to do what I wanted to do; but what exactly was that? Now, you know.

Time to get back to today’s chapter.

Things that we already know; and yet, Lao Tzu feels the need to remind us, anyway. It is easy to nourish things that are already rooted. The best time to correct things is while the mistakes made are still recent. What is brittle is easily shattered. And, while something is still small, it can easily be scattered in the wind. Yes, we already know all these things. But, for whatever reason, we fail to apply them to our own lives.

If we just applied these truths to our lives, we could prevent trouble before it arises. We would plan and put things in order, beforehand. Don’t be discouraged by the length of the journey before you. And don’t despise small beginnings.

Are you seeing how Lao Tzu is helping us to do what it is that we do, effortlessly? If only we will listen. And let things take their course. Yes, that is the most important concept of all. Planning is good. But only planning that takes into consideration, and allows, letting things take their course.

This is where the central planners get it all wrong. They never seem capable of an appreciation for the law of unintended consequences, largely confuse cause and effect, and believe the end justifies the means.

This whole, not despising small beginnings and not being discouraged by the long journey is some serious business here. But letting things take their own course is how we keep grounded in reality. If we rush into action, we will fail. If we try to grasp things, we will lose them. If we try to force a project to completion, we can end up ruining what was almost ripe. Take a moment to reflect on that last sentence. It was almost ripe. If only we hadn’t rushed it. If only we had waited. If only we had let things take their own course.

All of that is the opposite of effortless action. It is a good thing that we have the example of the Master, who always takes action by letting things take their course. Take your cue from the pace of nature. Remain calm from beginning to end. Remember, if you have nothing, you have nothing to lose. Don’t let desires rob you of life’s simple pleasures. We have much more to unlearn than we have yet to learn.

Perhaps this all seems elementary to you. Maybe it is because I spend three hours a day working with a little girl through her school work. Or maybe it is because Lao Tzu believes that reminding us of what we already know will help us to remember what we have always been.

I have come to love the Tao. You could say that there is nothing else I care about. It speaks to me of spontaneous order emerging out of the chaos. And free people interacting peacefully and voluntarily.
That is what the Tao means to me. By centering myself in it, and being one with it, I can truly care for all things.

Act without doing;
work without effort.
Think of the small as large
and the few as many.
Confront the difficult
while it is still easy.
Accomplish the great task
by a series of small acts.

The Master never reaches for the great;
thus, she achieves greatness.
When she runs into a difficulty,
she stops and gives herself to it.
She doesn’t cling to her own comfort;
thus, problems are no problem for her.

-Lao Tzu-
(Tao Te Ching, chapter 63, translation by Stephen Mitchell)

If I had to pick out just one chapter in the Tao Te Ching, which epitomizes how philosophical Taoism has transformed how I practice the art of living, it would have to be this one. You would really have to know the me, before I encountered philosophical Taoism to understand this transformation.

For the old me, life wasn’t art. And it wasn’t really living. It was drudgery. Like my father before me, I knew if I wanted to provide for my family, that meant working 50, 60, or more hours each week. By the time each day of work was done, I had no energy left for making the little time that I was spending with my family, real quality time. To complicate my living further, I was the divorced father of two pre-teen children, and I had sole-custody. And, because I have never been one to make things at all easy, I was choosing to home school them.

While you are living each day of your life, it is difficult, if not impossible, to be able to see how the little things you are doing and the circumstances you are experiencing, are going to affect how your life is going to be in the future. It has only been when I have looked back on the past that I have been able to see the patterns. All the little things that, as they came together and built upon themselves, have resulted in the person I am today.

I certainly didn’t have the time then for any kind of introspection. I was just working, working, working. And trying to raise my two children. Thankfully, a lot of love goes a long way. My children turned out great. But I certainly didn’t know how that could possibly happen while we were just trying to make it from one day to the next.

But, life does have a way of messing with you. And sometimes, probably most of the time, that messing is going to end up resulting in something better than you could ever imagine. But I can only say that in hindsight. If only we could have the benefit of hindsight functioning as foresight. Then, life wouldn’t be so very complicated.

Life messing with me was the economy crashing and me going through unemployment, followed by a series of short term jobs, followed by longer unemployment, followed by disappointment after disappointment. I had encountered Lao Tzu and the Tao Te Ching some years ago, but had kind of put it on the backburner. Just no time for a real appreciation of what Lao Tzu had to say.

About two and a half years ago I was hit with my most recent lay off, and that was the final straw for me. I decided I just wasn’t going to be a participant in the labor force ever again. I was going to do what I enjoyed doing. And live on what little I could earn, doing what I enjoyed doing. That choice of my own pursuit of happiness made me happy. It helped that my children were then grown. I no longer had extra mouths to feed. It was only me that needed to be provided for, and I knew I could do with a lot less.

I think it was about that time that I encountered Stephen Mitchell’s translation of the Tao Te Ching. And I ate it up. It was so clear to me that Lao Tzu was a libertarian, just like me. The chapters on the art of governing, were exactly what I had always believed. But then there were the myriad chapters like today’s chapter about the practice of wu-wei. Effortless action. That I just couldn’t comprehend. I simply couldn’t wrap my mind around it. It flew in the face of everything my Protestant Work Ethic upbringing had taught me. It is easy to agree with Lao Tzu when he agrees with you. That would be the politics. But what about the philosophy? The art of living?

But, I kept reading it, and thinking about it, and reading it, and thinking about it. I encountered a roadblock. What I needed to be doing was unlearning. What I thought I needed to be doing was learning something new. But my own circumstances, the very circumstances that I chose for myself as my own pursuit of happiness, kind of forced me to this roadblock. Back in chapter 48, Lao Tzu talked about the pursuit of knowledge vs. the practice of the Tao. I wanted to practice the Tao. I knew that. But I was trying to do it through the pursuit of knowledge. Every day I thought something needed to be added. That is certainly how the pursuit of knowledge works. But that isn’t how things work in the practice of the Tao. In the practice of the Tao, every day something is dropped.

I had a “Eureka!” moment when this just clicked. I wish I could tell you the exact day and hour this took place. Aren’t most “Eureka!” moments like that? But mine was a lot more gradual and subtle than anything like that. I didn’t see it while I was living it in the present moment. It was only later, using that infamous hindsight, that I could see what had happened.

I can look back and see that I gave up the pursuit of knowledge and chose the practice of the Tao. An entirely different kind of path. A path that has been strewn with the things I have dropped. And that has resulted in the practice of wu-wei, effortless action. It isn’t something that I can still as yet wrap my mind around. Don’t be expecting any intellectuaal explanation of it here. Remember, I gave up the pursuit of knowledge a while back.

I just know that my practice of the Tao, which has made living an art for me, is exemplified in this practice of effortless action.

It is still so very strange for me to try to explain. How very different from how I used to live my life. I live my life effortlessly. I act without doing. I work without effort. I am able to think of the small as large and the few as many. I confront the difficult while it is still easy. I accomplish great tasks by a series of small acts.

I don’t know how else to explain it. I just go with the flow. I gave up trying to achieve greatness. And I really think that somehow – don’t ask me how, I had nothing to do with it – somehow, I achieve greatness. When I run into a difficulty – because yes, I still encounter difficulties, all of the time – I just stop and give myself to it.

And while these words are ones that Lao Tzu is using to describe the Master, I certainly don’t think of myself as the Master of anything, right now. But I do know, that one thing that has helped me more than anything else, is when I quit clinging to my own comfort. That right there is huge. At least it was for me. Once I let go of that, problems became no problem for me.

The Tao is the center of the Universe.
The good man’s treasure,
the bad man’s refuge.

Honors can be bought with fine words.
Respect can be won with good deeds.
But the Tao is beyond all value;
and no one can achieve it.

Thus, when a new leader is chosen,
don’t offer to help him
with your wealth or your expertise.
Offer instead to teach him about the Tao.

Why did the ancient Masters esteem the Tao?
Because, being one with the Tao,
when you seek, you find; and,
when you make a mistake, you are forgiven.
That is why everybody loves it.

-Lao Tzu-
(Tao Te Ching, chapter 62, translation by Stephen Mitchell)

In today’s chapter, Lao Tzu takes a break from talking about how to govern a country. Or does he? He begins by laying on us a little Cosmology; and being as Lao Tzu wrote this sometime around 400 B.C.E., I am, of course, curious, to see what he has to say; and see whether it fits with our current understanding of Cosmology.

Lao Tzu says the Tao is the center of the Universe. This is an interesting beginning sentence to this chapter because Lao Tzu has been talking about centering our country, and indeed, ourselves, in the Tao. And I read that sentence, and my first thought was, “But if the Tao is somewhere out there, wherever the center of the Universe is, how am I supposed to center myself in it?”

But that was just my first thought. Then I really started thinking about what he means by that. Is the center of the Universe really some far off place? My own understanding of the cosmos is admittedly limited. But I don’t mean by limited, limiting. Bear with me while I explain what I mean.

To hear some people talk about the Earth in its relationship with the rest of the Universe, it is infinitesimally small and insignificant. We are, after all, just a tiny speck in a tiny galaxy in some remote corner of the Universe. The Universe is so much bigger than anything we can even imagine, let alone know. The actual center of the Universe must be a gazillion lightyears away, and who would even know which direction one would need to steer the ship that is going to transverse the darkness to find it.

But wait just a doggone minute. Is that really true? I was watching the fourth episode of the first season of the reboot of Cosmos, now with Neil Degrasse Tyson. I don’t care too much when that man is talking about stuff he knows nothing about; but I have to admit, I really enjoy listening to him talk about the Cosmos. Maybe it is just because my own understanding of the Cosmos is limited. But he said something in that fourth episode that really jumped out at me. I am going to paraphrase because I don’t have the exact quote in front of me. Wherever you are, you are in the center of the Universe. It doesn’t matter whether you are standing on Earth or some planet in the furthest known galaxy from us. When you look out on your Universe, you are in the center of it.

That resonates with me. If that is true, then Lao Tzu telling us that the Tao is the center of the Universe, is not sticking it some unknown place, far, far away. Instead, he is saying the Tao is very close, indeed. It is inside each of us. Which, of course, he has already told us before.

Okay, that was the lesson in Cosmology for today; now to what he really wants to talk to us about. The value of the Tao.

What does Lao Tzu have to say about the Tao today? Besides it being the center of the Universe, he calls it the good man’s treasure and the bad man’s refuge. Don’t forget those two, we will get to them toward the end of the chapter. Right now, he lays it all out on the line for us. The Tao is beyond all value.

Which gets me wondering, what is it that we value? Is it honors? Respect? Wealth? Expertise? Lao Tzu tells us that anything else that we can come up with has some price. Honors can be bought with fine words. Respect can be won with good deeds. But the Tao? There is no price that you can put on it. No one can achieve it.

If you are instantly dismayed at that last sentence, don’t be. No one can achieve it. But, Lao Tzu isn’t wanting to discourage us. He is wanting to encourage us. That is what today, and every day, is all about.

Given what we know about the Tao, which admittedly is still very limited – though, I hope not limiting – Lao Tzu has this advice for us, when we choose a new leader. See, Lao Tzu hasn’t stopped talked about governing a country, after all. He says, don’t offer to help your new leader with your wealth or expertise. Oh, they both have their value, but they aren’t beyond all value, like the Tao. That is why Lao Tzu tells us that we would do our best service to our new leaders by teaching them about the Tao.

And then he gives us the historical context for what he has been saying all along. Why did the ancient Masters esteem the Tao so? And this goes back to those two points I touched on earlier, but then left for now. It is the good man’s treasure and the bad man’s refuge. Lao Tzu explains what he means by that. He says that the ancient masters believed that when you are one with the Tao – and, guess what, that isn’t so hard to be, once you realize you are in the center of the Universe with the Tao – it doesn’t matter if you are a good person or a bad person. The Tao is exactly what you need it to be for you. Are you good? Then it is a treasure. A treasure is something we seek, and being one with the Tao, when you seek, you find. Oh, but what if you are bad? Then the Tao is your refuge. When you make a mistake, you are forgiven.

That is what makes the Tao beyond all value. That is why everybody loves it.

When a country obtains great power,
it becomes like the sea:
All streams run downward into it.
The more powerful it grows,
the greater the need for humility.
Humility means trusting the Tao;
thus, never needing to be defensive.

A great nation is like a great man:
When he makes a mistake, he realizes it.
Having realized it, he admits it.
Having admitted it, he corrects it.
He considers those who point out his faults
as his most benevolent teachers.
He thinks of his enemy
as the shadow that he himself casts.

If a nation is centered in the Tao,
if it nourishes its own people
and doesn’t meddle in the affairs of others,
it will be a light to all nations in the world.

-Lao Tzu-
(Tao Te Ching, chapter 61, translation by Stephen Mitchell)

I think after having a few chapters in a row where Lao Tzu has been talking about governing a country, that it is good to remember that Lao Tzu is not writing to countries, or governments, really. He is writing this to individuals; who he believes can put into practice the words he is sharing.

Notice in today’s chapter how he segues from talking about a great nation to a great man. Lao Tzu isn’t interested in trying to motivate a collective. He is interested in motivating individuals. He does start with discussing a country that obtains great power. But his point is the importance of humility. And that is a very human trait.

By humility, Lao Tzu means trusting the Tao. When you trust the Tao, whether you are a great nation or a great person, it means you never need to be defensive. That really brings out the definition of humility for me. When you are not humble, when you don’t trust the Tao, you necessarily feel the need to be defensive.

When you are on the defensive and you make a mistake, it is very hard to first realize it, and then to admit it. But it is this that sets apart a great nation or a great person, from just the merely mediocre. We all make mistakes, both great and small, alike. Maybe it is easier for those of us that don’t think we really matter in the grand scheme of things, to realize when we have messed up. But whether or not we think we matter, it is always important to both realize and admit when we have made a mistake.

But this is only the beginning of what is required of us, if we have any hope of being really great. We must then go on to correct our mistakes. And that may be the hardest thing of them all. Keep in mind, this is what separates those who are great from those who are merely mediocre. There are plenty of pretenders out there, who have all sorts of people believing the illusion of their greatness. But if you want to see past the illusion, here is the reality. When someone has a hard time realizing they have erred, an even harder time admitting it, and gets all defensive when it is time to make amends, that is your neon sign pointing out the mere mediocrity of that person. Don’t be that guy.

It is the shame of every nation who have so called leaders that are really only mediocre at their very best. I live in the United States, the further along we go the more mediocre our leaders seem to get. And the only thing that is greater than their level of mediocrity is their level of hubris. But Lao Tzu would say that is exactly how it would be. They need to be humble. Instead they are proud. And that is their downfall.

No, what we need are great leaders, willing to serve as an example for all. The truly great ones have no need to be on the defensive. They consider those who point out their faults as their most benevolent teachers. That stands in stark contrast to so many of our so called leaders who surround themselves with sycophants. When you aren’t feeling the need to be on the defensive, you are free to think of your enemies as the shadow that you yourself cast.

Think about that last sentence for just a moment. Now, repeat after me, I am always my own worst enemy. So, how do you overcome the enemy, when he is you? By surrounding yourself, not with yes men, but with people who will be honest with you. Pointing out your faults. Insisting you admit it. Helping you to make amends. These are the kinds of people that surround great leaders.

As I read through the chapter today, I realized that great nations aren’t always the ones we think they are. For a nation to be great, it needs to be centered in the Tao. Being centered in the Tao means nourishing its own people and not meddling in the affairs of others. That right there is the definition of a great nation. If your nation doesn’t fit that description, and I know mine doesn’t, then you know your nation is only one of the merely mediocre ones. Too bad mine has delusions of grandeur, thinking it should serve as the policemen of the world. We can’t even nourish our own people. Yet, we meddle in the affairs of others. Shameful!

I am old enough to remember when Ronald Reagan said of my nation that it was a shining light on a hill for all other nations. It wasn’t really true then. And it is even less true now.

Governing a large country
is like frying a small fish.
You spoil it with too much poking.

Center your country in the Tao
and evil will have no power.
Not that it isn’t there,
but you’ll be able to step out of its way.

-Lao Tzu-
(Tao Te Ching, chapter 60, translation by Stephen Mitchell)

My posts the last few days have been rather long. I hope that hasn’t been too discouraging for those of you that want to read them. Today, I am hoping to keep it shorter. Yes, as you could already tell by reading the quote today, Lao Tzu is still talking about the art of governing. Today, his focus is on the maddening desire to interfere. For Lao Tzu, the art of governing, is really the art of living. Instead of having rulers who are driven by the will to power, he is looking for those who want to be great leaders, those who will be content to serve as an example.

Governing really is an art. If you are talking about governing a large country, the temptation is to think that bigger means a greater need to interfere. But Lao Tzu uses the illustration of cooking a small fish to illustrate the art required in governing. Yes, I have fried fish before. I know how strong is the temptation to poke at it. Any of us that have tried our hand at frying fish, know what happens when we succumb to that temptation. I have spoiled quite a few fish I was frying.

The lesson that Lao Tzu is wanting us to understand is that the art of governing is just like that. The greater the temptation to interfere, to poke, the more we need to resist that temptation.

But… There is always a but. What about the problem of evil? People can’t be trusted to do the right thing. We can’t leave the people to their own devices. And that would seem to be more and more true the larger the country.

And Lao Tzu has an interesting solution to the problem of evil. What is his solution? Don’t poke at it. Don’t interfere with it at all. Leave it alone. Center your country in the Tao and evil won’t have any power. Won’t have any power? But evil is all around us. Of course, we have to acknowledge it. Of course, we need to try and do something about it.

Lao Tzu doesn’t deny the presence of evil. But when he says it will have no power, what he is really saying, is we are the ones that give it the power. If we are not interacting with it, it won’t have any power. Center your country in the Tao. Evil will still be there. No, he isn’t promising that it is going to go away. It will still be there. But, we will be able to step out of its way.

Maybe that sounds too simple to you. The will to power is strong, indeed. And plenty of would be conquerors of evil will rise up to make grandiose promises of deliverance from the evil. But I think Lao Tzu has a point here. What is it that gives evil its power? When we are in its way. And why are we in its way? Because we are wanting to confront it. To deal with it.

I am rather sure that if Lao Tzu believed for even a moment that we could successfully confront it, and deal with it, once and for all, that he would encourage us to do just that. But Lao Tzu understands what we all need to understand. The problem of evil isn’t something that can be successfully confronted and dealt with. What we want to do is create for ourselves a situation where we can successfully step out of its way. That is the only thing to do with evil. Avoid it.

Now this is not going to go over too well with those with the will to power. So, it doesn’t surprise me at all that the U.S. government creates evil wherever it can; so that we can then have to confront it and deal with it. U.S. foreign policy has been a prime example of this for decades now. The situation in Iraq with ISIS or ISIL or IS, or whatever they are calling themselves now, is only one of the more recent examples of this.

Now, I have no problem acknowledging that the people that are a part of this Islamic State business are the very definition of evil. But, I also know that if we would only center ourselves in the Tao, we could very easily step out of their way. They are egging us on right now. That is good news for the powers that be. They have been looking for an excuse to get us back in Iraq since we got out of Iraq. But it isn’t good news for the rest of us.

Some are going to tell me that, sure we created this mess, but now we have an obligation to clean up the mess. And I am going to counter that, we never do actually clean up the messes. All we ever do is make more messes which we will then need to go clean up.

Tl;dr? Give evil nothing to oppose and it won’t have anything to oppose.

For governing a country well
there is nothing better than moderation.
The mark of a moderate man
is freedom from his own ideas.
Tolerant like the sky.
All pervading like sunlight.
Firm like a mountain.
Supple like a tree in the wind.
He has no destination in view
and makes use of anything
life happens to bring his way.

Nothing is impossible to him.
Because he has let go,
he can care for the people’s welfare
as a mother cares for her child.

-Lao Tzu-
(Tao Te Ching, chapter 59, translation by Stephen Mitchell)

Today is Day 3 of me trying to apply what we have learned about philosophical Taoism to the art of governing. I am still out on this limb I call anarchism. Lao Tzu hasn’t come along and lopped off the branch, just yet. But, in spite of the fact that I am still maintaining the eternal reality, the way things are, is best referred to as anarchism, Lao Tzu does still continue to talk about how best to govern. And I know that a lot of you are still having trouble meshing together the idea of government with anarchism. Perhaps, if I had a better understanding of it myself, I would do a much better job of conveying what it is I believe.

The problem, I think, comes from trying to make anarchism out to be some set, static way of accomplishing things. But the Tao isn’t some set, static thing. And neither is anarchism. What we are trying to understand isn’t static at all. It is dynamic. It grows with our own understanding. We understand more and more as we go along in our journey. All I can ask of you is that you will indulge me while I continue to understand more and more.

Today, Lao Tzu says that there is nothing better than moderation. He specifically applies that to governing a country. Yesterday, he warned us that the higher our ideals, the lower our results were going to be. This is especially true when the will to power is in charge. But today, he has left that will to power behind. Oh, I know, we still have that to deal with. But Lao Tzu is beyond that, for today.

Now that he has dispensed with the problem of the will to power, he is telling those of us who want to be great leaders how best to govern. And he tells us that moderation is the way to go about it.

When he gives us the marks of a moderate person, he is merely talking about someone who is in perfect harmony with the way things are, the eternal reality. This is just another way of saying, this is how the Master looks when they are governing. And if we are able to see the marks, we will better understand what Lao Tzu means by moderation.

The first mark is freedom from your own ideas. It isn’t that you don’t have any ideas. It is that you aren’t a slave to them. What Lao Tzu is saying is that the difference between a moderate and an immoderate person is that freedom. An immoderate person is so certain that they are right. Their ideas, Their way of doing things. That they are completely incapable of seeing any other way of looking at things. They are enslaved to their own ideas. I know some anarchists that are just as enslaved to their own ideas, their own way of thinking and doing things. But anarchism doesn’t work that way. Freedom isn’t static. It is dynamic.

The second mark of a moderate person is how tolerant they are. I know that the word “tolerance” has been taking a beating the last few years. Tolerance had been a politically correct buzzword for awhile. After years of this, it seems to me that the growing trend is intolerance toward tolerance. This first showed up as intolerance of the intolerant. Then I started to hear that tolerance was simply not enough. I call that intolerance toward tolerance. Look, I get it. Acceptance sounds more accepting. The intolerant want acceptance to be the new politically acceptable buzzword. But I am not willing to play that game right now. Like it or not, I want to use the word tolerance. If for no other reason than that is the word that we have before us. Lao Tzu doesn’t say “accepting as the sky,” he says, “tolerant as the sky.” So, please, try to be moderate with me and “accept” that tolerance will just have to do.

Let’s keep this all in perspective. We are, after all talking about the marks of the moderate. Not the marks of the liberal, or the marks of the conservative. The moderate are not enslaved to their own ideas. And that makes them tolerant of every other idea.

I hope you are seeing the pattern that is beginning to develop as we explore what it is that moderation means. Each of these marks, these traits build on the last. Because the moderate person is free, they are tolerant. And because they are tolerant they are… All-pervading. That is the third mark. Sunshine spreads over the whole country. And moderation, too, spreads through all parts of the country.

It might come as a shock to some of my readers, but I will here equate anarchism with moderation. Moderation, or anarchism, does in fact pervade every thing in the world, the whole Universe really. If you are having trouble understanding that right now, give it time. I have said before that we have a whole lot of unlearning to do. And when it comes to that word, anarchism, we really have a whole lot of unlearning to do.

But I don’t really mean to distract you from our discussion about moderation. It just gets lonely out here on this limb sometimes, so I have to wave at you as you walk by.

The fourth and fifth marks of the moderate person I want to mention together; because they really serve to dispel a myth that I long believed about the moderate person. How can the moderate person be both firm like a mountain and supple like a tree in the wind? For a very long time I have not understand what being moderate really meant. And I still think a lot of people that label themselves moderate, don’t really know. But, contrary to my lack of understanding, the mark of a moderate person is not one who is holding up a wet finger to see which way the political winds are blowing and proceeding in that direction.

No, the moderate person is firm and supple. Not wishy-washy. The firmness relates to the fact that they still have very firm ideas. They are resolute in their purpose. Just like a mountain. And mountains are firm. Still, notice the subtle shift that Lao Tzu makes in going from describing the moderate person. Firm like a mountain, supple like a tree. Not supple like the wind. Not blowing every which way. Not going in whatever politically expedient way happens to be in vogue at the moment. They are like a tree, planted. And when the wind blows, because winds do blow, generally they come in from a variety of directions, that tree can withstand the winds. It doesn’t break, it bends. It is flexible. If the moderate person, so firm in their ideas, were likewise a slave to their own ideas, then they would break. But they are free. So, firm, yet supple.

The final mark of the moderate person is just downright crazy. Or at least it would sound downright crazy if we weren’t beginning to understand how this being in harmony with the way things are works. If I don’t have any destination in view, how am I ever supposed to get where I am going? But when I talk that way I am betraying my own enslavement to my own ideas. Once we understand what freedom really means, we see that this is the only end that we could ever have.

When I don’t have any destination in view, I can make use of anything life happens to bring my way. Life does have a way of bringing anything your way. Are you ready? Or do things have to be just so? If you are free, truly free, nothing will be impossible to you. When you have really let go of all your preconceived ideas of the way things ought to be, then, and only then, can you really deal with the way things really are. And, now you can really care for the people’s welfare. Oh, it isn’t that you didn’t care before. But you thought the solution was using force to achieve your ideals. That isn’t how a mother cares for her child. And that is why, for governing a country well, there is nothing better than moderation.

If a country is governed with tolerance,
the people are comfortable and honest.
If a country is governed with repression,
the people are depressed and crafty.

When the will to power is in charge,
the higher the ideals, the lower the results.
Try to make people happy,
and you lay the groundwork for misery.
Try to make people moral,
and you lay the groundwork for vice.

Thus the Master is content to serve as an example,
and not impose her will.
She is pointed, but doesn’t pierce.
Straightforward, but supple.
Radiant, but easy on the eyes.

-Lao Tzu-
(Tao Te Ching, chapter 58, translation by Stephen Mitchell)

I know I really went out on a limb with yesterday’s post tying philosophical Taoism together with anarchism. Some of my friends who are into Taoism may be questioning whether Lao Tzu was really expressing anarchism. And some of my anarchist friends may be not so sure about this whole Tao thing. I am going to content myself with sitting out on this limb until such time as Lao Tzu comes along with a saw and cuts off the branch. I actually think I am sitting on a firm branch. The tree has been growing in my mind for sometime as I have been going through the Tao Te Ching. Today’s chapter is yet another which makes this particular branch sturdy.

I guess the first objection that is going to be raised by those that doubt the validity of the marriage of anarchism with philosophical Taoism is that Lao Tzu keeps talking about governing. Aren’t anarchists opposed to all governments?

Of course, today’s chapter is just a continuation of the previous one. Haven’t they all been? I mention that, not just because I am stalling on answering the previous paragraph’s question. I talked to some new people today, who may or may not be looking at my blog for the first time. Chapter 57 wouldn’t be the ideal place to start this journey with me. And chapter 58 isn’t any better. You’d really have to go back to the beginning. To chapter one. But even then, that wouldn’t be enough. I have been traveling through the Tao Te Ching now for so long. When I get to chapter 81, I am not really at the end. And chapter one really wasn’t the beginning for me. I just know that I have really felt like I have been making real progress as I have been going along through this particular cycle of the Tao Te Ching. I hope my regular readers – you guys are out there, aren’t you? – have been picking up on that.

But now back to the present question. Aren’t anarchists opposed to all governments? Well, that is easy enough to answer. No. Anarchists come in all shapes and sizes – and ideological persuasions. But I have yet to meet one that is opposed to all governments. What we are opposed to is the State. The State is a particular form of government that all anarchists oppose. And sadly, most governments end up being the State. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

Today’s chapter affords me the opportunity to explain better this marriage of philosophical Taoism with anarchism and address the problem of governing from that perspective. Yesterday, I entitled my blog post: “Anarchism! Because I believe the world can govern itself.” Except for that controversial word, anarchism, I took that line straight from Lao Tzu. He said in yesterday’s chapter, that the first lesson to be learned by someone who wants to be a great leader, is to stop trying to control. Let go of fixed plans and concepts, and the world will govern itself.

The only question that is really up for discussion is whether we believe that or not. I do. I believe the world can and will govern itself, if we will just let go of the will to power. The need to interfere. That ties in very nicely with today’s chapter. In which Lao Tzu specifically refers to the will to power. He very neatly lays out the difference between a country that is governed with tolerance and a country that is governed with repression. It makes all the difference between whether the people are comfortable and honest, or the people are depressed and crafty.

And this difference relates to when the will to power is in charge. It is the difference between a government that anarchists would not oppose, and the State, which anarchists will always oppose. The will to power is the defining mark of the State.

When the will to power is in charge, the higher the ideals, the lower the results. The State may say its goal is to make people happy or to make people moral. Those are certainly high ideals. But the results, to put it as bluntly as possible, suck. Does the State make people happy? No, it makes people miserable. Does it make people moral? No, and Lao Tzu covered this quite well in yesterday’s chapter. No matter how high your ideals, people can’t be made to be what you want them to be.

Which is why the Master is content to serve as an example. This is the very opposite of making anyone be anything at all. She isn’t interested in imposing her will. Lao Tzu, in previous chapters has intimated that she actually has no will of her own. Instead, she has mastered the art of being content. The will to power is never content. And it isn‘t just because they don‘t want to be. It is, by definition, impossible. This is important to understand because many people mistakenly think that the problem isn’t the will to power, it is that we just don’t have the right people wielding that will to power. If the right people were in charge everything would be different. But that is folly. The problem isn’t the people. People are all the same. The problem is the will to power. That is the problem. It has always been the problem. And, it will always be the problem.

The Master understands this. She sees the eternal reality. She is in harmony with it. It is that harmony with the eternal reality that enables her to see the illusion for what it is. And, she is content with the way things really are. This is the mark of a truly great leader. This contentment. When you are content, the people who follow you will be content. Leaders, at least the great ones, serve as examples of how to live. They are pointed, but they don’t pierce. Straightforward, but supple. Radiant, but easy on the eyes. Great leaders don’t make us anything at all. Great leaders work with the mind of the people. They understand human nature for what it is, instead of wishing it was something entirely different from what it is. And the people? We just are. And the world governs itself.