Rushing into action, you fail. Trying to grasp things, you lose them.
Lao Tzu (according to Stephen Mitchell's translation)
I am going to go back to verse 64 of the Tao. It seems to be speaking to me now though some Life circumstances. I will compare Legge's translation with another's...maybe Stephen Mitchell (being that I am rereading his wife's book right now. :)
Legge's translation:
64
That which is at rest is easily kept hold of; before a thing
has given indications of its presence, it is easy to take measures
against it; that which is brittle is easily broken; that which is very
small is easily dispersed. Action should be taken before a thing has
made its appearance; order should be secured before disorder has
begun.
The tree which fills the arms grew from the tiniest sprout; the
tower of nine storeys rose from a (small) heap of earth; the journey
of a thousand li commenced with a single step.
He who acts (with an ulterior purpose) does harm; he who takes hold
of a thing (in the same way) loses his hold. The sage does not act
(so), and therefore does no harm; he does not lay hold (so), and
therefore does not lose his bold. (But) people in their conduct of
affairs are constantly ruining them when they are on the eve of
success. If they were careful at the end, as (they should be) at the
beginning, they would not so ruin them.
Therefore the sage desires what (other men) do not desire, and does
not prize things difficult to get; he learns what (other men) do not
learn, and turns back to what the multitude of men have passed by.
Thus he helps the natural development of all things,
has given indications of its presence, it is easy to take measures
against it; that which is brittle is easily broken; that which is very
small is easily dispersed. Action should be taken before a thing has
made its appearance; order should be secured before disorder has
begun.
The tree which fills the arms grew from the tiniest sprout; the
tower of nine storeys rose from a (small) heap of earth; the journey
of a thousand li commenced with a single step.
He who acts (with an ulterior purpose) does harm; he who takes hold
of a thing (in the same way) loses his hold. The sage does not act
(so), and therefore does no harm; he does not lay hold (so), and
therefore does not lose his bold. (But) people in their conduct of
affairs are constantly ruining them when they are on the eve of
success. If they were careful at the end, as (they should be) at the
beginning, they would not so ruin them.
Therefore the sage desires what (other men) do not desire, and does
not prize things difficult to get; he learns what (other men) do not
learn, and turns back to what the multitude of men have passed by.
Thus he helps the natural development of all things,
and does not dareto act (with an ulterior purpose of his own).
Stephen Mitchell's Translation
64
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 from 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 as 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.
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 from 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 as 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.
The second translation is much easier to grasp but how will we ever know which one is most accurate unless we can read the original text and understand the language and cultural connotation it was written in? I can't do that...can you? This is an example of how translations differ and can imply different things unintentionally to readers. So though I spent the last few months reading Legge's translation I think I prefer the latter. So much easier to understand. I will try to find the common ground between the two.
So what was Lao Tzu getting at, according to these translations?
- It is much easier to grasp something, feed something and allow it to grow if it is rooted, grounded and stable. That makes sense doesn't it? If something like a young child is moving all around how would you even hold it, let alone nourish it? Our minds are hard to control, feed when they are scattered and constantly moving (monkey minds). If they are rooted and grounded and at rest...dealing with them will be so much easier.
- Before a "problem" becomes too big it should be fixed and dealt with. We should be proactive rather than reactive. We should deal with things "right away" and not let them build up into bigger issues.
- "That which is brittle is easily broken" and " What is brittle is easy to break"....so be mindful of the fragile, the "weaker" points within ourselves and others and do not put unnecessary stress or weight upon them.
- What is small is easy to scatter...the less we have the easier it will be to spread in this world? I am not sure if Lao Tzu is saying that it is best to keep things small so we can get rid of them easier or to reduce what we have so we have less problems to deal with in the long run?
- We should be proactive according to Mitchell's translation and prevent trouble before trouble even arises...and Legge speaks of taking action before a thing makes its appearance...same thing, I guess.
- Both say to put things in order but Legge says "before disorder has begun" and Mitchell says "before it exists". We could be talking two different things here. Legge is referring specifically to the prevention of disorder in the physical realm and Mitchell may be speaking to the idea that we need to keep order in our minds so that disorder doesn't manifest into form around us.?
- All great and "wide trunked" trees come from the smallest sprout. Large and great things grow from small things...Remember...we start small in order to be great. Legge adds that a large tower begins with the foundation of "a heap of earth."
- The famous line: a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step which is more accurately expressed in Legge's translation can be compared to Mitchell's...starts from beneath your feet. This could have a different type of meaning: It is necessary to be rooted to the earth before we move forward? It is something greater than us that helps us to move forward...something beyond us ( heaven and earth) moves us?
- The next bit confuses me. According to Legge's translation, Lao Tzu says that to act does harm...Legge adds in parenthesis...(meaning that it was his interpretation and not actually said by Lao Tzu) ...that action with ulterior motives is what causes harm. Mitchell says that someone who rushes into action will fail. Totally different meanings. What I see is that maybe Lao Tzu was simply saying be careful about action...it is not always necessary and can do more harm than good.
- He who takes hold of a thing, tries to grasp them and cling will lose them. Again Legge refers to ulterior purpose which Legge doesn't. Again...I simply see the spiritual principle of not striving and not clinging and non attachment reflected in this passage.
- Mitchell speaks of "forcing a project to completion" and states that doing so will lead us to ruin what was almost ripe. We cannot force things to be anything but what they are...nature, life, circumstance will grow, develop and evolve in their own time, own rate and own way. Struggling against this fact...and using force and control will only ruin and harm.
- The Master and the Sage then do not force or control...they do not act even or attempt to grasp and cling...they let things "be" as they are and in so doing they do not harm and they do not lose.
- People, according to Legge's translation, are constantly "failing" and ruining what they set out to achieve before completion because they are not as careful at the end of their endeavor as they were at the beginning. Maybe they are rushing to finish? Mitchell says that a successful master remains as calm at the end as he did in the beginning.
- The truly wise person is different from others...from most. He desires different things. He does not desire material wealth and success. He has nothing and therefore has nothing to lose. He does not seek after prizes that are difficult to get. What he desires is "non-desire," according to Mitchell...referring unintentionally to the Buddhist teachings of non-desire?
- He learns what other men do not learn. Mitchell explains that what he learns is to unlearn. He steps away from learning "concepts" and puts aside old established learning to truly discover what is real and important.
- He goes back to what most men overlook and pass by...the truth of who we really are. He reminds people of who they have always been.
- By doing this...he acts in the way of the Tao...of Spirit and of Self...and not for the motivations of the ego or little "me." The way is everything and by that spiritual vision he cares about everything and is able to truly help in the development of all things...in the evolution of consciousness maybe?
Well that is how I see it in my own life anyway. All is well.
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