Lao-tzu saw the potential for existing
harmoniously through living beyond judgment; thus, this 49th verse of the
Tao Te Ching invites us to explore that peaceful world. It’s encouraging us
to replace our idea of criticizing them with an acknowledgment of us
without criticism . Imagine the possibilities for all of humanity if we simply
eliminated prejudice and could live “in harmony with all below heaven.”
You can begin changing your view of judgment as a valuable or important
activity by being aware of when you’re doing it to yourself. Then simply
start substituting noticing for judging; from this perspective, you’ll realize
pretty quickly that you prefer to observe what you’re doing or feeling rather
than critiquing yourself. Calling your behavior “bad” or “good” just pits
you against yourself and others by using competition, punishment, or
dislike as your motivational markers—hatred, anger , and threats become
necessary because love, acceptance, and kindness can’t be trusted. As you move away from judging yourself, you’ll no longer need or want
what Lao-tzu calls the “fixed mind”; thus, allegiances that pitted you
against the people you thought of as them will begin to dissolve. The
innumerable categories that helped you organize your labels become totally
superfluous and unimportant when you change the way you look at their so-
called value. In spite of having been conditioned by the country you were
born in, the religion you were assigned at birth, the culture you were
immersed in, or even the famil y who raised you, living beyond judgment
becomes your preference. You exist in harmony with the Tao that excludes
no one and has no conception of divisions and loyalties. The oneness of the
Tao entices you away from any belief that others are separate. This is the basic solution to wars and conflicts. You see, when  you stop
judging and instead begin to see yourself in others, you can’t help but love
the uniqueness of everyone as though they were your own children. Then
instead of exclusions and alleg iances, the onen ess of the Tao graces all,unimpeded. Rather than God bless America (or whatever country you
happen to reside in), Allah save our people, or Krishna bless those who
believe in you, there’ s God bless humanity—let me do all that I can to treat
everyone, without exception, with goodness and kindness, as all of those
whom we r evere as spiritual masters taught us by their example. As your worldview changes, you’ll extend goodness to everyone you
encounter . You’ll find that you can feel nonjudgmental compassion for the
mistreated, even  when their way of seeing things causes you and yours
pain. You can send out kindness not only in response to kindness, but
especially when you’re the recipient of cruelty. Why? Because, as Lao-tzu
reminds you in this poignant verse, “the nature of [your] being is kindness.”
It’s impossible to give to others what you are not, and you are not
judgmental. Y ou see yourself in everyone, without the need to criticize them
or yourself. Change your thoughts and live beyond judgment—and don’t see yourself
as “bad” when you falter in this view or as “holy” when you succeed. Keep
in mind that you’re a mix of infinite openness and finite limitation, as we all
are. So sometimes you just need to notice yourself judging, without then
judging yourself! This is what I feel called by Lao-tzu to offer you from this 49th verse of
the T ao Te Ching:
Change the way you look at yourself. If you pride yourself on having a fixed mind, realize that it relies on
conditioning that generally shows up as prejudice. Instead, see yourself as
flexible, since being open is the higher virtue. Pride yourself on extending
your goodness and kindness to all sides, even 49th Verse when they oppose
your preprogrammed learning. Begin to see yourself as a person who
notices instead of judges. Avoid taking one position and sticking to it no
matter what the circumstances are; rather , be in harmony with all people,
especially those whose opinions conflict with yours! And remember to
include yourself when dispensing kindness and nonjudgment. Change the way you look at other people.One version of this verse says: “I trust men of their word, and I trust liars. If I am true enough, I feel the heartbeats of others  above my own.” Whet her
you call it “judging” or “labelin g,” notice when you think of others as evil,
lazy, dishonest, stupid, or ugly. Then affirm: I see myself in this person, and
I choose  to be in a space of goodness rather than judgment. There’ s a
Sanskrit word, Namaste, that can help you with this. When used as a
greeting, it roughly translates to: “I honor the place in you wher e we are all
one.” So silently or verbally begin telling others “Namaste” in order to
remind yourself to love everyone as your own children. Do the T ao Now
Vow to spend a day looking for opportunities to practice kindness in
circumstances that usually provo ke judgment. Notice what you think or say
about a panhand ler, a relative whom you feel animosity toward, or even a
politician or TV commentator speaking in terms that send you of f in a flurry
of critica l thoughts. Take that opportunity to become a “noticer ,” decreasing
your criticism while increasing the amount of courtesy and goodness in
your world. OceanofPDF .com50th Verse
Between birth and death,
three in ten ar e followers of life;
three in ten ar e followers of death. And men just passing fr om birth to death
also number thr ee in ten. Why is this so? Because they clutch to life
and cling to this passing world. But ther e is one out of ten, they say , so sur e of life that tigers and wild bulls
keep clear . Weapons turn fr om him on the battlefield, rhinocer oses have no place to
horn him,
tigers find no place for claws,
and soldiers have no place to thrust their blades. Why is this so? Because he dwells in that place
wher e death cannot enter . Realize your essence
and you will witness the end without ending. OceanofPDF .comLiving as an Immortal
In this passage, Lao-tzu asks you to change the way you look at your
mortality . The Tao teaches that death is an insignificant detail that doesn’ t
need to be consciously struggle d with or dreaded. As this verse of the Tao
Te Chin g informs you, there’ s a “place where death cannot enter .” Talk
about your life changing when you change your thoughts! This is the
ultimate, since the fear of death tops virtually everyone’ s list of anxieties. If you see yourself solely as a physical mortal, then you’re part of the 90
percent of the population that this passage refers to as “followers of life,”
“followers of death,” or “just passing from birth to death.” Here you’re
being encouraged to aspire to be part of the remaining 10 percent, for whom
thoughts of mortality don’t invade the heart space or life in general. By
altering the way you see death, you’ll be in that select group. You’ll
experience life on the active side of infinity , knowing yourself first and
foremost as a spiritual being having a temporary human experience, rather
than the other way around. In this realm, you’ll be gracefully adept at moving along free of the fear
of life-th reatening events. You’ll have a knowing about yourself and your
connection to the Tao that simply allows you to ride with life like a fearless
downhill skier who’ s at one with the snow-covered  mountain. Without
resorting to judgment, you’ll notice others who are perpetually victimized
by scams, bureaucracies, indifference, natural disaster , criminals, or
meddling relatives. With an intimate awareness of your infinite essence that’s cente red in the
Tao, you’ll most likely escape from victimization yourself, and you’ll
lightly deal with situations that others tend to get stuck in. In other words,
when you know your own endless nature and live each day with this
awareness directing you, there will simply be no space within you for
mortality to call the shots. If harm ever does make an attempt to inflict
damage or death on you, it won’ t find a place to sink its hooks into. Change how you think about death by seeing your essential spiritual
beingness, and you’ll be able to enjoy this world without the dread caused
by believing you are of it. When you know your immo rtality through theflow of the Tao, you won’ t even need to assign it a worldly concept or
formal religion. And when the time comes for you to remove the worn-out
coat you call your body , Lao-tzu says that “you will witness the end without
ending.”
Contemplate the teachings of the Tao Te Ching and realize that you can
never really be killed or even harmed. With this view of life, you’ll be able
to clear your inner battlefield of the army of beliefs that continually try to
march on your essential self. Fear and dread are weapons that can’t hurt or
threaten you. Even the natural elements symbolized by rhinos ’ horns and
tigers’ claws can’t inflict damage because they butt against and tear at a
space that has no solidity for them to inflict pain. Y ou dwell in a place that’ s
impenetrable to death—no longer are you clutching at the 10,000 things and
treating your short journey from cradle to grave as your one and only
ultimate life experience. Now you are the infinite Tao, living your real
essence. Although Lao-tzu lived 25 centuries ago, he is still very much alive. I feel
him ur ging you to heed the following bits of wisdom:
Create affirmations. Remind yourself, No one dies, including myself. Affirm that you can
never be harmed or destroyed, for you are not your body . If you stay
connected to this reality , you’ll automatically deflect dangers that may have
previously been  able to invade  your physical space. For exam ple, as the
Indian saint Muktananda lay dying, his devotees are said to have
surrounded him, pleading, “Please don’t leave.” Muktananda replied,
“Don’ t be silly—where could I go?” The great swami realized his true
essence and knew that he was at an end without ending. Die while you’r e alive! In your imagination, contemplate the death of your physi cal shell:
Visualize it lying there lifeless,  and observe how you, the witness, aren’ t
identified with this corpse. Now bring that same attention to your body as it
gets up and goes about its daily tasks. Nothing could harm your human
form when it was dead, and nothing can harm you now because you are not
that body—you’re the invisible witnessing essence. Remain in this
realization, knowing that you’ve experienced the death of your earthlycontainer as your primary  source of identification. In this new awareness,
you’re impenetrable and free. Here’ s how Leonardo da Vinci expressed the
message of this verse of the Tao Te Ching: “While I thought that I was
learning how to live, I have been learning how to die.” Do this now, while
you’re still alive. Do the T ao Now
This Tao exercise is an inner -vision quest in which you picture yourself as
immune to harm. Create your own imagined picture of danger , or draw on
the 50th verse of the Tao Te Ching for threats to your life. Tigers jump at
you and miss, swords are thrust at you but do no damage, bombs explode
but you’re unscathed. . . . Keep this image of yourself as incapa ble of being
harmed regardle ss of what goes on in your body . Then use this “witness to
your immortality” vision to help you activate dormant protective forces that
will accommodate you in fulfilling what you’ve imagined. OceanofPDF .com51st Verse
The W ay connects all living beings to their Sour ce. It springs into existence,
unconscious, perfect, fr ee;
takes on a physical body;
lets cir cumstances complete it. Therefore all beings honor the W ay
and value its virtue. They have not been commanded to worship the T ao and do homage to
virtue,
but they always do so spontaneously . The T ao gives them life. Virtue nourishes and nurtur es them,
rears and shelters and pr otects them. The T ao pr oduces but does not possess;
the T ao gives without expecting;
the T ao fosters gr owth without ruling. This is called hidden virtue. OceanofPDF .comLiving by
Hidden Virtue
This passage encourages you to discover that quality within  you that
protects, nurtures, and shelters automatically , “without ruling.” Consciously
living by hidden virtue probably means changing many of the ways in
which you see your role in the grand scheme of things. And a natural
starting point would be the way you explain the mystery of how life begins. If you had to describe your creation, you’d most likely say that you
originated through an act of commingling between your biological parents. If that’s the only explanation for your existence, then it excludes the
spontaneity and mystery that living by hidden virtue offers you. Operating
in this new way expands and redefines your conception and birth, and the
world changes as a result of your modified viewpoint. Living by hidde n virtue allows you to get the most out of life because it
means seeing that it’s your choice and responsibility to decide how you’re
going to spend it. Not living by hidden virtue, on the other hand, ensures
that your role in a family or culture is assigned at birth (or even
conception), with predetermi ned expectation s about how you should and
will function. Your days become filled with stressful attempts to please
those to whom you’re biologcal ly related. You experience the nagging self-
criticism that you’re disappointing a parent or grandparent, along with
unsettling desire s to be free of the pressure of your gender or placement in a
designated family . Trying to operate within this belief system can
consequently keep you trapped in an unpleasant and intolerable role of
servitude and obsequiousness. In the 51st verse of the Tao Te Ching, Lao-tzu asks you to expand your
vision and begin to see yoursel f as a creation of the Tao. Imagine that the
tiny seedling that was you didn’t come from another particle, but rather
from an invisible Source. And this Source that sprung you into existence,
herein called “the Way,” has no preconceived doctrine dictating what you
should do, whom you should listen to, where you should live, or how you
should worship. The Source, your great Mother , has no invest ment in thechoices you make during your individual journey—it knows that the
seedling that was you is perfect and free to complete itself in whateve r way
it chooses. This Mother , which is the Tao, has no expectations for you . . . no demands, no battles or wars for you to fight, no history to live up to. The Chinese refer to this hidden  entity that brought you into existence as
Te. I’m referring to Te here as “virtue” or “character .” And Jonathan Star’s
translation of the T ao Te Ching interprets it in this verse as follows:
Though T ao gives life to all things,
Te is what cultivates them. Te is that magic power which
raises and r ears them,
completes and pr epares them,
comforts and pr otects them. Te, then, is the virtue that’s deep within you and all of creation. This isn’t
a force that guarantees the physical shell will never die; it’s more a
characteristic that allows you to move through the material world in your
body , perfectly aligned with the creative originating force. Read this verse
as a reminder that you’re protected and completed by your ultimate
originating Source, which isn’t the same as guaranteeing your security in
this phenomenal world. Helen Keller 51st Verse was speaking of this very
thing when she stated, “Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in
nature . . .”
The 51st verse is about learning to trust by changing your view of life to
include Te, or hidden virtue. It’s about seeing yourself as a member of a
family of onene ss, with the same parents as all other creature s. It’s about
feeling your total freedom—to produce without possessing, and to keep
from becoming a possession yourself. So give without expecting, and don’t
be victimized by the expectations of others. Here are suggestions offered to you by Lao-tzu as I gaze at the great
master ’s picture before me and feel as if we were one:
Practice feeling safe and pr otected.Live each day trusting in the hidden virtue that’s both within you and that
caused you. Keep in mind that the feeling of being secure, shielded, and
nurtured won’ t come from anything you might possess. Instead, it will arise
when you know  that you’re in constant contact with a virtuous  power that
lies within every cell of your being. This hidden force is responsible for
your very presence. You sprang into existence by virtue of Tao; and while your every breath
and actio n aren’ t commanded to do so, they nevertheless pay homage to the
inner virtue that is your life. That power is in my hand as I write these
words, and it’s in your eyes as they read this page. Trust in it. Worship it. Feel safe in the force that remains hidden. This is all you need to feel
complete. Remember that the T ao pr oduces—it doesn’t possess. Do the same and you’ll achieve the wisdom of this verse. Be a caretaker ,
not an owner . Don’ t attempt to control anyone; instead, foster growth
without dominating or ruling. When you’re in a supervisory role, allow
others to activat e their hidden virtue as much as possible. Just as you wish
to feel protected and trust in that invisible force that animates you, so does
everyone you encounter . I emphasize this word because there are no
exceptions. Witter Bynner ’s translation of this 51st verse of the T ao Te Ching states:
All cr eated things r ender , to the existence and fitness they depend on . . . Do you likewise:
Be par ent, not possessor ,
Attendant, not master . Be concerned not with obedience but with benefit, And you ar e at the cor e
of living. I urge you to remember the phrase “Do you likewise,” and live by hidden
virtue. Do the T ao Now
Plan a day of letting go: Let go of thinking, and discove r the all-
embracing nature of the mind. Let go of preconceptions and ideas, andexperience how things really are. Let go of needing to control others, and
discover how capable they really  are. Take time to find your answers to the
question What might really happen if I let go? As you do this exercise, you
may be surprised to discover that you find more of the hidden virtue in your
life, which then changes the way you see yourself. OceanofPDF .comOceanofPDF .com52nd Verse
All under heaven have a common beginning. This beginning is the Mother of the world. Having known the Mother ,
we may pr oceed to know her childr en. Having known the childr en,
we should go back and hold on to the Mother . Keep your mouth shut,
guard the senses,
and life is ever full. Open your mouth,
always be busy ,
and life is beyond hope. Seeing the small is called clarity;
keeping flexible is called str ength. Using the shining radiance,
you r eturn again to the light
and save yourself misfortune. This is called
the practice of eternal light. OceanofPDF .comLiving by Returning
to the Mother
This verse tells you that it’s valuable and important to realize that your
life is more than just a linear experience happening in time and space. That
is, you more or less currently view your time on Earth as a straight line
from conception to birth—you’ll move through predictable stages of
development, concluding with death, where you’ll meet up with the
mystery that awaits you on the Other Side. Lao-tzu is inviting you to see
that your existe nce is a return trip to the place where all the planets’
creations emer ge. He wants you to realize that you have the ability to enjoy
this mysterious beginning before your physical ending. This mystery , which
is in each and every one of the 10,000 things, is referred to by Lao-tzu as
the “Mother,” or the symbol of what lies beyond all that seems to begin and
end. Start your journe y back to the Mother by contemplating the first two lines
of this verse of the Tao Te Ching: “All under heaven have a common
beginning. This beginning is the Mother of the world.” Let this thought
filter into your physical being  and create a state of awe about your
existence, whic h emer ged out of no-thing-ness. Know that this unseen
Source that births every single thing also birthed you. Like electricity
streaming through a conduit, the myst erious nothingness flows through and
sustains all of life, including you. It’s a constant invisible, soundless,
odorless force, which isn’ t immediately available to your sensory self. It’s vital that you spend a few moments each day getting to know your
(and my) eternal Mother , which  you can do by simply acknowledging her
presence and silently communi cating with her. Once you decide to know
and honor her, you’ll begin to change the way you look at all of her
children, including yourself. You’ll view all of the 10,000 things as
offspring of the Mother , and you’ll look beyond the temporariness of their
appearances to see the Tao unfolding. This is what Lao-tzu means when he
asks you to know the children not as separate from their Mother , but as theMother herself. So see all of creation as originating in the Mother , and then
“go back and hold on to” her . How do you embark on this return trip to your eternal Mother ? Lao-tzu
advises that you close your mouth and seal your ears to ensur e that your
spirit isn’t frittered away on worldly activities. In other words,  spend time
with the maternal part of yourself, and seek clarity by noticing the Tao in
the small and the large. Practice abandoning rigidity , and instead cultivate
elasticity to improve your stren gth. Lao-tzu concludes by telling you that
this way of seeing the world is “the practice of eternal light.” See that light
in the tiniest insect, and even in the invisible particle that forms that little
creature’ s leg. It’s the same light that beats your heart and holds the
universe in place—so allow yourself to not just be in awe of the insect but
to be that insect. In this way, you find clarity through “seeing the small,”
and you’ll improve the power of your new way of seeing through your
flexible viewpoi nt. Change your linear thoughts about your presence here
on Earth, and begin to see your life change right before your eyes! Lao-tzu offers the following to you, through me, to aid you in “the
practice of eternal light” in today’ s world:
Open mouth—spirit escapes. Closed mouth—spirit connection
excellent! Think of your mouth as a gate that guards your spirit: When you speak to
others, become conscious of the need to close the door and allow your spirit
to be safely ensconced within you. Make the same mental shift with your
ears: Keep them sealed when it comes to rumors and petty conversations. Use fewer words; commit yourself to long periods of listening; and
eliminate giving advice, meddling, and participating in gossip. Cultivate your strength with the flexibility of consciously deciding when
to involve your speaking and auditory senses. When you’re inclined to get
into other people’ s business, remember that your eternal Mother ’s one and
only voice is silence. Do likewise, and you’ll feel yourself holding on to her
in freedom and bliss, thus returning while living! Seeing the smallest mystery r eveals the grandest mystery .By being attentive to smallness, you cultivate your desire for clarity . Noting the same spark in microscopic creatures that animates you is a way
of exploring life as a return trip rather than a dead end. What seem to be the
tiniest mysteries of life lead to an experience of the shining radiance that
comes from an appreciation for all that you encounter . You and the Mother
who birthed you and everything else are one. By seeing the small, you gain
this clarity , which is the return trip you’re encouraged to make while alive. Now your world begins to look very different, as you see originating spirit
everywhere. Nothing is viewed as ordinary , inferior , or unwanted anymore. Do the T ao Now
Plan a day dedicated to examining the smallest life-forms that you can
find. Become a witness to a spider creating a web, a sand crab scurrying
along the beach, or a fly buzzing about on the wall. Take an imaginary trip
through your insides, examining the life-forms that reside in your intestines,
in your bloodstream, or in the lining of your eyes—all creatures that you’d
need a powerful microscope to be able to see. Meditate on the Mother
birthing these little bacteria in order for you to exist. Experience the way
viewing your body through the infinitesimally tiny life that’s part of you
affects you. Living by returning to the Mother will provide you with a
clarity you’ve never experienced before. OceanofPDF .com53rd Verse
If I have even just a little sense,
I should walk in the Gr eat W ay,
and my only fear would be straying. The Gr eat W ay is very smooth and straight,
and yet the people pr efer devious paths. That is why the court is corrupt,
the fields lie in waste,
the granaries ar e empty . Dressing magnificently ,
wearing a sharp swor d,
stuffing oneself with food and drink,
amassing wealth to the extent of not knowing
what to do with it,
is being like a r obber . I say this pomp at the expense of others
is like the boasting of thieves after a looting. This is not the T ao. OceanofPDF .comLiving Honorably
Imagine that you were able to view the world from a position of complete
honor and oneness: Everywhere you looked you saw the Great Way . . . and
saw all of it as you. From this perspective, every person who’ s ever existed,
or will ever exist, is a part of you, birthed by your Source. All of life—the
creatures, the land, the oceans, and the vegetation—are connected by the
Tao. From this perspective, your world would change dramatically . If a
critical mass of humanity had this same perspective, seeing the whole  globe
as part of ourselves would translate to the same respect for every form of
life that we have for our individual bodie s. And this unity would make the
scene that Lao-tzu is describing in this passage impossible. Despite all of our technological advances, the words that the great
Chinese master wrote 2,500 years ago still apply . Unfortunately , we’re far
removed from walking the Great Way, for we continue to see great
divisions rather than a sense of unified oneness. As Lao-tzu admonishes at
the end of this verse, “This is not the T ao.”
One of my favor ite translations of this 53rd verse of the Tao Te Ching was
written in 1944 by W itter Bynner . He expresses it perfectly:
See how fine the palaces
And see how poor the farms,
How bar e the peasants’ granaries
While gentry wear embr oideries
Hiding sharpened arms. And the mor e they have the mor e they seize,
How can ther e be such men as these
Who never hunger , never thirst,
Yet eat and drink until they burst! You can see that these conditions still exist today: Whole continents of
people experience starvation, while a few in positions of power live in
opulence and grandeur . Weapons of destruction receive funding, whilemillions live in poverty . Leaders sit down to overflowing plenitude, while
the masses scrounge around for ways to feed their families and heat their
homes. W e have a long way to go before traversing that smooth and straight
Way of the Tao, for we still take “devious paths” and see the all-too-painful
results of this choice every day. But I’m not writing these words to try to
change the world in one fell swoop; rather , I’m doing so to encourage you
to change the way you see your world. If you make that modification,
others will gravitate toward living honorably as well. When enough of us do
this, we’ll reach a critical mass that will eliminate “the boasting of thieves
after a looting.”
Begin by seeing yourself as the environment, rather than as an organism
within it. I’ve even coined a word to describe when life-forms are whole,
rather than separate: envir onorganisms. Understand that you can’t survive
apart from what it seems isn’t part of you—for you absolutely are the air,
the water, the plants, the animals, and everyone else on the planet. Change
your worldview to one that completely understands that when anyone else
is starving or living in poverty , so are you. See yourself in all others and
you’ll find the compassion, love, and willingness that replaces  your belief
in your uniqueness and dif ferentness. Lao-tzu was obviously distressed by the conditions of hardheartedness
and indifference that he observed in ancient China, so he appealed to all to
live honorably through the emulation of the Tao rather than from the ego
perspective of separateness. And now he asks you to change the way you
look at the blatant imbalances in 53rd Verse your world, noting how your
world changes to align with the T ao when you live honorably . Here are his suggestions, which you can apply to your life today:
Make compassion the essential foundation of your personal philosophy . Feeling guilty about what you’ve amassed or wallowing in sadness over
the plight of the starving won’ t change things, but making compassion the
essential founda tion of your philosophy will. This is one of the most
significant ways of initiating the growth of a critical mass. As that mass
grows, kind hearts and actions will realign our planet: Like-minded leaders
will emer ge, and gross inconsistencies will be reduced and eventually
eliminated. Moth er Teresa was an outstanding example of how one person’ sway of seeing the world can change the world itself: “[I]n each [person I
see],” she said, “I see the face of Christ in one of his more distressing
disguises.”
“Walk in the Great Way” by doing charity work or supporting candidates
for public office who embody compassionate action. And vow to make a
difference on a daily basis throughout your life, which might be as simple
as refusi ng to join in denouncing others or catego rizing them as “evil” or
“defective.” After all, so many of the wars that currently rage on our planet
are rooted in religious hatred that perpetuates the imbalances pointed out in
this verse of the T ao Te Ching. In the following  excerpt from the Koran, the great prophet Mohammed
tells the followers of Islam to practice compassionate action. You can use
his teaching to make a daily dif ference during your own life:
Behave beneficently towar d the neighbor
that is a kinsman and the neighbor that is
a stranger and the companion by your side. He who behaves ill towar d his neighbor is not
a believer , nor can ever be one. One who eats his fill while his neighbor
is hungry by his side is not a believer . Do the T ao Now
Make a daily practice of opening your heart in compassion when you see
someone less fortunate than yourself. Give him or her a silent blessing
rather than a thought of scorn, ridicule, blame, or indifference. Do the same
when you learn how many of “them” were killed in any skirm ish—rather
than rejoicing about the dead enemies, say a silent prayer of love and
compassion.Live honorably; it “just [takes] a little sense.”
OceanofPDF .comOceanofPDF .com54th Verse
Whoever is planted in the T ao
will not be r ooted up. Whoever embraces the T ao
will not slip away . Generations honor generations endlessly . Cultivated in the self, virtue is r ealized;
cultivated in the family , virtue overflows;
cultivated in the community , virtue incr eases; cultivated in the state, virtue
abounds. The T ao is everywher e;
it has become everything. To truly see it, see it as it is. In a person, see it as a person;
in a family , see it as a family;
in a country , see it as a country;
in the world, see it as the world. How do I know this is true? By looking inside myself. OceanofPDF .comLiving as If Your Life
Makes a Difference
In this verse of the Tao Te Ching, you’re invited to see your role in the
transformation of the planet. Instead of perceiving yourself as one
insignificant individual among billions of people, you’re urged to see
yourself as the Tao itself. “We Are the World” is everybody’ s theme song. You do make a dif ference! When you live with the joyful awareness that you potentially  have an
infinite effect on the universe, you’ll radiate Tao consciousness. You’ll be
like a wave of energy that illuminates a room—everyone will see the light
and become affected. Those who were unaware of their Tao nature will
notice the difference, and those who were aware—but not living as if their
lives mattered— will be attracted and begin changing. So recognize and live
your life as part of the Great W ay, and help bring balance into the world. In this 54th passage, Lao-tzu is advising you to see your divinity  and revel
in your magnificence. Know that in the silent space within you, where the
Tao animates every breath and thought, your life makes a difference. The
following is what he advises in the language of the 21st century:
Choose an ar ea to concentrate on making a differ ence. Don’ t entertain doubt about your impact on the world; instead, develop a
vision for Earth  and convince yourself that you are perfectly capable of
contributing to this vision, whether it’s grandiose or small. See a world
without hatred, disrespect, or violence; where the environm ent is respected
and cared for; and where cancer , AIDS, starvation, child abuse, weapons of
all kinds, or any other detrimental or demeaning scenarios disappear . The anthropologist Margaret Mead addressed this idea in the following
observation: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed
citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’ s the only thing that ever has.”
Realize how much your life matters.It’s said that when a butterfly flaps its wings, that energy flows thousands
of miles away . Therefore, everything you think and do extends outward and
multiplies. Live your life knowin g that the difference you choos e to make is
toward wholeness, not destructiveness. Even if no one sees or
acknowledges it, an act of unkindness contains energy that impacts our
entire universe. And a silent blessing or thought of love toward others
contains a vibration that will be felt throughout the cosmos. William Blake’ s vision expresses this idea:
To see a W orld in a Grain of Sand
And a Heaven in a W ild Flower ,
Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand
And Eternity in an hour . Be conscious of how very much you matter to all of creation. Do the T ao Now
Dedicate a day to extending kind thoughts and acts toward your family ,
your community , your country , and the world. In your family , encourage
someone who’ s struggling with low self-esteem. In 54th Verse your
community , pick up litter and recycle it without judgment. In your country ,
spend a few moments in silent prayer , sending loving energy to those who
are in positions of powe r—then do the same for the world, including any
so-called enemies. OceanofPDF .com55th Verse
He who is in harmony with the T ao
is like a newborn child. Deadly insects will not sting him. Wild beasts will not attack him. Birds of pr ey will not strike him. Bones ar e weak, muscles ar e soft,
yet his grasp is firm. He has not experienced the union of man and woman, but is whole. His manhood is str ong. He scr eams all day without becoming hoarse. This is perfect harmony . To know harmony is to know the changeless;
to know the changeless is to have insight. Things in harmony with the T ao remain;
things that ar e forced gr ow for a while,
but then wither away . This is not the T ao. And whatever is against the T ao soon ceases to be. OceanofPDF .comLiving by
Letting Go
Perhaps you’ve observed people who seem to get all the breaks, appearing
to be impervious to the onslau ghts that wreak havoc in many  lives. For
example, do you know someon e who seldom if ever gets sick, in spite of
spending the flu season in close contact with people who are coughing and
sneezing? How about those who emer ge unscathed in the middle of a crime
spree? You might say that these lucky few seem to have guardian angels
that protect them from the provocations of the symbolic “deadly insects,”
“wild beasts,” and “birds of prey” mentioned in the opening lines of this
passage. But Lao-tzu knows that these men and women are simply in
harmony with the Tao, just as some individuals appear to have the right
people show up in their lives at the right  time, while others seem to have a
knack for making money materialize just when it’ s needed most. Lao-tzu says that we should look to infants, who haven’ t yet taken on the
ego belief that they’re separate from their originating Source. Consequently ,
they have what could be considered “magical” powers: They can scream all
day and never lose their voice like a screechin g adult would. Even with
undeveloped muscles, they can fashion a firm grip. Furthermore, babies are
pliable and virtu ally immune to harm from a fall that would break the bones
of a grown-up. All of this is called “perfect harmony” by Lao-tzu. Verse 55 of the Tao Te Ching invites you to realize that what you call luck
isn’t something that randomly happens—it’ s yours for life when you decide
to live by letting  go. You attract the cooperative power of the Tao when you
release the need to control your life. So change your thoughts and see how
your life changes to a very fortunate one indeed. Let go and exist in harmony with the Tao in order to build up your
immune system and be “lucky”  about resisting disease and illness. I know
that letting go for protection sounds paradoxical, and I suppos e you could
think of it like that. But try seeing it as a way of allowing life’s natural
rhythm to flow unimpeded through you. Living by letting go means
releasing worry , stress, and fear. When you promote your sense of well-being in the face of what appears as danger to others, your alignment with
your Source frees you from pushing yourself to act in a forceful manner . Lao-tzu reminds you here that “things that are forced grow for a while, but
then wither away .”
Attain the protective nature that’s alluded to in this powerful verse, and
realize the changeless with these insights for the world you’re living in
today:
Visualize yourself as indestructible. Activate an inner picture that will carry you through perceived dangers. In
this visualization, remove the image of your physical body and instea d see
the part of you that’s as constant as a spirit or a thought. This is your
essence, and it’s incapable of being harmed in any way. From this
perspective, you’re not threatened by anything, from criminal s to cancer ,
from a common cold to a wild beast. When you live in harmony with the
enduring part of yourself, it will contribute to an overall sense of being
indestructible. Declare yourself to be that lucky person who goes through
life unscathed by freeing yourself from trying to control your perception of
looming danger . Change the way you look at your potential for becoming a lucky
person. Rather than telling yourself: With my luck, things aren’t going to work out
for me, affirm: I am open to allowing what needs to happen. I trust luck to
guide me. This change in your thinking will serve you by 55th Verse
guiding you to live in the flow with the Tao. Peace will replace stress,
harmony will replace effort, acceptance will replace interference and force,
and good luck will replace fear. You’ll become what you think about, so
even things that you previously  believed were evidence of bad luck will
now be viewed as what helps you move toward greater harmony . Living by letting go will allow you to appreciate Lin Yutang’ s wry
observation in The Importance of Living: “If you can spend a perfectly
useless afternoon in a perfectly useless manner , you have learned how to
live.”
Do the T ao NowDedicate a week to charting incidents of “things working out” without
your having to control or “make” them happen. This will mean consciously
choosing situati ons where you curb your automatic impulse to control the
outcome. Relax when you want to tense up, and trust in as many situations
as you can. At the end of the week, notice how changing the way you think
has changed your life. OceanofPDF .com56th Verse
Those who know do not talk. Those who talk do not know . Block all the passages! Close your mouth,
cordon off your senses,
blunt your sharpness,
untie your knots,
soften your glar e,
settle your dust. This is primal union or the secr et embrace. One who knows this secr et
is not moved by attachment or aversion,
swayed by pr ofit or loss,
nor touched by honor or disgrace. He is far beyond the car es of men
yet comes to hold the dear est place in their hearts. This, ther efore, is the highest state of man. OceanofPDF .comLiving by
Silent Knowing
This is probably  the best-known verse of the Tao Te Ching. In fact, the
opening two lines (“Those who know do not talk. Those who talk do not
know”) are so popular that they’ve almost become a cliché. Nevertheless,
the passage’ s essential message is little understood and rarely practiced. Lao-tzu is calling you to live in the highest state of silent knowing, that
place deep within you that can’t be communicated to any other . Consequently , you might want to change your thinking about whom you
consider to be wise or learned. Persuasive speakers with a good command
of the language,  who are forceful in their pronouncements and confident in
their point of view , are gene rally considered to have superior knowledge . . . but Lao-tzu suggests that precis ely the opposite is true. Those who talk, he
says, aren’ t living from the place of silent knowing, so they do not know . As you modify the way you look at this presumption, you’ll see several
differences in the way your world appears. First, you’ll note that those who
are compelled to pontificate and persuade are almost always tied to an
attachment of some kind—perhaps it’s to a point of view , to being right, to
winning, or to profiting in some way. And the more talking they do, the
more they appear to be swayed by such attachments. The second thing you’ll notice takes place within you: You begin to see
your inclination and desire to persuade and convince others. Then you
begin to listen more attentively , finding yourself in “the secret embrace” of
the “primal union” that Lao-tzu  describes. Your need to be knowledgeable
or dominant is replaced by the deep realization that it’s all irrelevant, and
you lose interest in seeking approval. Living in silent knowing becomes the
process that casts your existence in a different light—you have less of an
edge and feel settled, softer , and more centered. As you change how you think about what it means to be intelligent and
wise, you’ll come into contact with the irony that sums up this wonderfully
paradoxical section of the Tao Te Ching. Lao-tzu says that the sage wholives by the Tao is “far beyond the cares of men,” yet holds “the dearest
place” in his heart. I’d sum it up this way: Those who care the least about
approval seem to receive it the most. Since such individuals aren’ t
concerned with how they’re perceived, either honorably or in disgrace, they
don’t seek praise or run from it. While their calm wisdom may make them
appear to be aloof, they actually end up gaining the respect of everyone. You have this place of silent knowing within you right now. And the
following is what Lao-tzu suggests for adapting the paradoxical language of
this verse of the T ao Te Ching to your world:
Block all the passages! Get honest with yourself about wanting to win the favor of others. You
don’t have to prove anything to anyone, and you’ll never succeed by
droning on and on. Remember that “those who talk do not know ,” or as one
translation of this verse simply states, “Shut your mouth.” Silence is your
evidence of inner knowing. Talking to convince others actually says more
about your need to be right than their need to hear what you have to say! So
rather than trying to persuade others, keep quiet . . . just enjoy that deeply
satisfying inner awareness. Use the acr onym BUSS to remember
the four dir ectives of this verse. —Blunt your sharp ness. Do this by listening to yourself before you let
your judgments attack someone else. A better course of action 56th Verse is
to just listen, and then silently offer loving compassion to both yourself and
the other person. —Untie your knots. Detach from what keeps you tied to worldly patterns. Untie the knots that bind you to a life that’s dedicated to showin g profit and
demonstrating victory , and replace them with silently contempla ting the Tao
in “the secret embrace.”
—Soften your glare. Notice when your need to be right is glaringly
obvious, and let the soft underside of your being replace your rigid stance. Your impulse to glower at external events is alerting you that you’re out of
touch with your inner silent knowing.—Settle your dust. Don’ t kick it up in the first place! Realize your
inclination to stir up dust when you feel a diatribe about to erupt on how
others ought to be behaving. Stop in the middle of pounding the table or
angrily screaming and just observe yourself. Since your emotions are like
waves on the ocean, learn to watch them return to the vast, calm, all-
knowing Source. Do the T ao Now
Spend an hour, a day, a week, or a month practicing not giving unsolicited
advice. Stop yourself for an instant and call upon your silent know ing. Ask
a questio n, rathe r than giving advice or citing an example from  your life,
and then just listen to yourself and the other person. As Lao-tzu would like
you to know , that’ s “the highest state of man.”
OceanofPDF .com57th Verse
If you want to be a gr eat leader ,
you must learn to follow the T ao. Stop trying to contr ol. Let go of fixed plans and concepts,
and the world will govern itself. How do I know this is so? Because in this world,
the gr eater the r estrictions and pr ohibitions,
the mor e people ar e impoverished;
the mor e advanced the weapons of state,
the darker the nation;
the mor e artful and crafty the plan,
the stranger the outcome;
the mor e laws ar e posted,
the mor e thieves appear . Therefore the sage says:
I take no action and people ar e reformed. I enjoy peace and people become honest. I do nothing and people become rich. If I keep fr om imposing on people,
they become themselves. OceanofPDF .comLiving Without
Authoritarianism
In this and some of the followi ng chapters of the Tao Te Ching, Lao-tzu
counsels the rulers of 2,500 years ago on how and why to pursue a high
quality of leadership. His advice is pertinent today , in the 21st century , to all
forms of leadership, including government, business, and, in particular ,
parenting. The essential message in this 57th verse is to allow rather than interfer e.
Now I don’t interpret this to mean letting an infant crawl into traffic or
leaving a child alone near a swimming pool—obviously , you must be
sensible when supervising those who could harm themselve s or others. What I believe Lao-tzu is conve ying here is that allowing is quite often the
highest form of leadership. He states that “more people are impoverished”
in societies with excessive restrictions and prohibitions; the same can be
true in families with commandm ents that must be obeyed without question. The more authoritarian any system is, the more outlaws will appear . On the other hand, when children are encouraged to explore and exercise
their inquisitive ness, they’re inspired to be their best with little need for
regulation. So when you change the way you view the need for rules, family
members will tend to make decisions based on what’ s best for everyone
rather than themselves. See what happens, for instance, if you drop an
absolute curfew time for your teenagers , asking them to just be sensible
about when they come home and to notify you if they’re going to be later
than normal. You may find that because you didn’ t impose yourself on
them, they end up coming home even earlier than when they had a strict
curfew governing their conduct. Examine the restrictions that you enforce in your family . Reme mber that
effective parents  don’t want to be leaned on; they want to make leaning
unnecessary . After all, you want your children to be responsible, healthy ,
successful, and honest—not simply because you’re there to monitor them,
but because it is within their nature to do so. So set an example and let them
see that it’s possible to be self-suf ficient and enormously successful. Allowthem to learn to trust in their highest nature, rather than having to thumb
through a rule book to decide what’ s right. Change the way you look at the need for edicts, laws, and prohibitions,
and see yoursel f as someone who doesn’ t need to rule with an iron fist. Then enjoy taking this revised view of your leadership abilitie s into every
area of your life where you’re considered to be “the boss.”
What follows is some 21st-century advice based on this verse that was
written 2,500 years ago:
Practice the art of allowing yourself. Begin by letting yourself be more spontaneous and less regimented in
your daily life: Take a trip without first planning it. Go where you’re
instinctively guided to go. Tell the authoritarian part of you to take a break. Introduce a different side to yours elf and the world by affirming: I am free
to be myself. I do not have to live by anyone else’s rules, and I release the
need for laws to r egulate my behavior . Practice the art of allowing others. Catch yourself when you’re about to cite a rule as a reason for saying no
to a child or someone you supervise, and instead consider the ramifications
of saying  nothing and just obser ving. When you change the way you look at
your role as a leader , you’ll find that very few edicts are necessary for
people to condu ct the business of their lives. Everyone has a strong sense of
what they want to do, 57th Verse what limits they have, and how to
actualize their dreams. Be like the Tao—allow others, and enjoy how your
nonauthoritarian leadership inspires them to be themselves. Do the T ao Now
Make time to do something you’ve never done before—it could be
walking barefoot in the rain, taking a yoga class, speaking before a group at
a Toastm asters Club, playing a game of touch football, jumpin g out of an
airplane in a parachute, or anything else you’ve always wanted to do. Recognize that you’ve created restrictions for yourself that keep you from
new and expanding experiences, and find the time now to close your
personal rule book and plunge in where you’ve never before wandered. Also, make time to give those in your charge an opportunity to do the same,enjoying how much they accom plish with minimal or no action on your
part. OceanofPDF .com58th Verse
When the ruler knows his own heart,
the people ar e simple and pur e.
When he meddles with their lives,
they become r estless and disturbed. Bad fortune is what good fortune leans on;
good fortune is what bad fortune hides in. Who knows the ultimate end of this pr ocess? Is ther e no norm of right? Yet what is normal soon becomes abnormal;
peoples’ s confusion is indeed long-standing. Thus the master is content to serve as an example
and not to impose his will. He is pointed but does not pier ce;
he straightens but does not disrupt;
he illuminates but does not dazzle. OceanofPDF .comLiving Untroubled by
Good or Bad Fortune
The world of the 10,000 things is also called “the world of the changing.”
You see it in your ever-alterin g life, even as you want everything to be
stable and predictable. Howeve r, all things on our planet are in constant
motion. As Albert Einstein once observed, “Nothing happens until
something move s.” This 58th verse of the Tao Te Ching stresses that there’ s
another way to see the world, one that virtually guarantees that you’ll  be
untroubled by good or bad fortu ne. Instead of only noticing the constantly
shifting energy pattern of the material world, this verse invite s you to let
yourself focus on the unchanging Tao. Like most humans, you probably want your surroundin gs to be
permanent, stead y, reliable, secure, and predictable. However , your reality
unequivocally insists that you take into account the opposite and
unpredictable that are present in every experience you have. After all, even
the landscape that surrounds you is far from orderly: Mountain ranges go up
and then down into valleys. Trees tower over shrubs, and cloud formations
are ominously black at times and fluffy white at others. In every perfectly
sunny day, there’ s a storm hiding, and in every rainstorm lies a drought
waiting its turn. Up and down and the unexpected are the norm of nature;
hills and dales are the way of the 10,000 things. Change your view of the peaks and valleys of all of life to an attitude that
allows you to discover what’ s hidden in both of those experiences. Begin to
see wholeness rather than good or bad fortune. See opposites as parts of
oneness, rather than disrupting surprises. In a world of pure Taoist unity ,
there’ s no good or bad luck; it’s indivisible. What you’re calling “bad”
fortune has “good” just waiting to emer ge because it’ s the other half. Lao-tzu’ s advice for applying the 58th verse to today’ s world would
probably include the following:
See wholeness in place of good or bad fortune.When anyone is in the midst of an experience you believe is fortunate,
such as a blissful relationship, financial success, excellent health, a great
job with a new promotion, or children excelling in school, know that all is
subject to change. Accumulated wealth has poverty hidden in it; popularity
has nonrecognition camouflaged in it, too. And, of course, the same is true
during the periods that are generally thought of as unfortunate. Your life itself is the perfect place to personalize your ability to live
untroubled by good or bad fortune, for you have the oppo rtunity at every
stage to see wholeness. So rather than calling youth an aspect of “good
fortune” and old age a mark of “bad fortune,” know that the youth you were
is part of the wholeness of your old age. The elderly individual you may
become is part of the wholeness of your development through the levels of
change that are your physical existence. Life has death concealed in it. So
know your own heart and let your conduct be consistent with the Tao by not
imposing your will—be pointed, straight, and illuminating without piercing,
disrupting, or dazzling. When bad fortune feels so tr oublesome that you can’t get unstuck, see
good fortune leaning on it. When you feel overpoweringly discouraged during a trip through the
valley of despair , it can feel as if that’s all there is. If you’re unable to see a
circumstance or situation as part of a larger picture, remind yourself that
good fortune is leaning on this bad one, just as morning  follows the darkest
night. With wholeness as a backdrop, rely on your knowledge of day
following night at these times. Keep 58th Verse in mind that when you’v e
reached the valley floor , the only direction you can go is upward. Things
definitely will get better; your luck must change; scarcity has to turn into
abundance. This is because good fortune is invisib ly there in all moments of
despair , and you want to learn to live untroubled by them both. Do the T ao Now
Spend a day noticing what aspects of life fall into the categories of
“fortunate” or “unfortunate.” List them under their titles at the end of the
day, and then explore each of them when you won’ t be interru pted. Allow
yourself to either feel each one physically in your body or see it as an image
that presents itself to you. Without trying to change it in any way, allowyourself to observe the subject with your eyes closed. Just as if it were a
kaleidoscope (or life itself), watch it and permit it to flow through you—the
way the clouds drift in the sky, night turns into day, rain evaporates . . . and
how confusion comes and goes when you’re living untroubled by good or
bad fortune. OceanofPDF .com59th Verse
In governing people and serving natur e,
nothing surpasses thrift and moderation. Restraint begins with giving up one’ s own ideas. This depends on virtue gather ed in the past. If ther e is a good stor e of virtue, then nothing is impossible. If nothing is impossible, then ther e are no limits. If a man knows no limits, he is fit to lead. This is the way to be deeply r ooted and firmly planted in the T ao, the secr et
of long life and lasting vision. OceanofPDF .comLiving by Thrift
and Moderation
There are four words that crop up repeatedly in many of the translations
of this passage of the Tao Te Ching: restraint, frugality , moderation, and
thrift. Here, Lao-tzu is advising you to examine the way you look at these
qualities in relation to your supervisory and parenting roles—he doesn’ t say
that you should sit on the sidelines and do nothing, but he does counsel you
to practice self-control. When you cultivate a style of leadership that creates
“a good store of virtue, then nothing is impossible,” for there are no limits. Living in thrift and moderation  means being in harmony with the world
through your generous nature. Rather than continually prodding, directing,
giving orders, setting down rules, and demanding obedience, it’s important
to be a leader who accumulates a warehouse full of virtue by living in
accordance with the Tao. When that’s what you have to give away , you’ll
naturally interfere less. Feel joyful knowing that the example you’re
modeling is helping others make the right choices, as this is the essence of
Tao leadership. As Lao-tzu specifically states, “If a man knows no limits, he
is fit to lead.”
People whose lives are run by rules, dogma, and fear can only do what
they’ve been told to do . . . nothing more. The options for self-direction are
nonexistent for the blindly obedient, so practice restraint, moderation,
frugality , and thrift when making pronoun cements about how others must
behave. Children  raised in families where that blind obedience is demanded
have the highest levels of prejudice  when they become adults. Why? Because they’ve been taught to “prejudge” what’ s acceptable, according to
someone in a position to lead them. That’ s why it’s so vital to give your
kids an example of leadership that encourages them to make choices based
on higher standards. I have a gift from my daughter Saje that I’ve placed on my desk, which
I’ve titled Nothing Is Impossible. It’s a green plant growing out of a rock—
there’ s no dirt or earth, only hard rock, yet it thrives, despite what all of us
have been taught to believe. When Saje gave this to me, she remarked thatit reminded her of me because I’ve always said that I refuse to believe in
anything being impossible. My plant helps me remember that nature knows
no limits, and that I am as much a part of nature as both the rock and the
greenery growing within that hard stone. Lao-tzu reminds you that “if nothing is impossible, then there are no
limits.” So practice living without limits by gathering virtue and modeling
it. When you do, you’ll see the “lasting vision” in those you’ve been
selected to lead in one way or another , and they’ll see it in you, too. And put
the wisdom of this 59th verse to work for you by taking these suggestions:
Gather as much virtue as you possibly can. For years I practiced gathering virtue without realizing it. I sent hundreds
of thousands of books to individuals and organizations at my own expense,
getting into the habit of beginning each day with this act of love. I spent a
great deal of time giving away much of what I earned, almost all of it
anonymously . I didn’ t realize it at the time, but what I was doing was
accumulating virtue, or what I facetiously called “God points.”
I then found that not all of my life was to be peaks and mountaintops. Yet
when I succeede d in getting out from under what felt like a mountain, I was
virtually unscathed. This is because I was so deeply rooted and firmly
planted in the Tao that my original vision was to be a lasting one,
impervious to external circumstances. Practice moderating your ego. Change the way you look at your life by moderating your ego. See
yourself as a being who gives rather than collects, and live on what you
need rather than practicing conspicuous consumption. You’ll begin to see
that your purpose has more to do with Tao consciousn ess than ego
directives. When  you moderate your demands and use only what you and
your family require, you’ll gather virtue points by servin g rather than
accumulating. Lao-tzu reminds you that this is “the secret of long life and
lasting vision.”
William Shakesp eare described this more than 2,000 years after Lao-tzu’ s
passing in his play The Thir d Part of Henry the Sixth:
My cr own is in my heart, not on my head;Not deck’d with diamonds and Indian stones,
Nor to be seen. My cr own is call’d content;
A crown it is that seldom kings enjoy . Do the T ao Now
Make a commitment to gather five God points today . Imagine how the
Divine Source of all 10,000 things must be operating in order to maintain
the creation cycles of life, and do five things that match up to it. Pick up a
piece of someone else’s trash, which is an example of excess; anonymously
give a gift to someone in need; or perform any other actions that help you
accumulate virtue and remain deeply rooted in the T ao. OceanofPDF .com60th Verse
Governing a lar ge county
is like frying a small fish. You spoil it with too much poking. Appr oach the universe with the T ao
and evil will have no power . Not that evil is not powerful,
but its power will not be used to harm others. Not only will it not do harm to others,
but the sage himself will also be pr otected. If only the ruler and his people would
refrain fr om harming each other ,
all the benefits of life would accumulate
in the kingdom. OceanofPDF .comLiving with
Immunity to Evil
Your assignment in this verse of the Tao Te Ching is to change the way
you view the presence of evil in your personal world, as well as the entire
planet. You can do so by acquiri ng an inner awareness that evil simply can’t
impact you if you’re centered within the protective net of the Tao. If you
live in accordance with the Great Way, refusing to have injurio us thoughts
directed either toward yourself or others, then the powers of wickedn ess
and wrongdoing will be rendered impotent. The Tao isn’t about destruction or visiting harm on anyone; rather , it gives
sustaining energy to everyone, without exception. When people violate this
principle, they’re only successful when others respond in kind. This is when
war erupts and dissension becomes presen t in the family and the
community . Negativity then begets more negativity , and the leader or ruler
will ultimately be destroyed as the lar ger grouping falls into chaos. Update your viewpoint on the presence of malevolence in the world to
one that emphatically affirms: My loved ones and I cannot and will not be
impacted by the presence of evil anywher e in the world. Your inner
landscape will immediately begin to change as well. So when you see or
hear reports of violent thinking and action, your immediate reaction must
be, This is not abou t me. I choose not to have any thoughts of harm directed
to anyone by me. I am a being of lightand love, and therefore the only
thoughts that can emer ge from me ar e in harmony with the great loving Tao. In other  words, whatever comes your way because of other people won’ t
evoke a plan of revenge and hatred. That’ s because you’ve made yourself
immune to negativity by being T ao centered. Now you may think that this sounds too simplistic, but imagine if large
numbers of people began thinking this way—and then imagine if rulers
began to emer ge from this kind of consciousness. As Lao-tzu says in this
verse, “If only the ruler and his people would refrain from harm ing each
other , all the benefits of life would accumulate in the kingdom.” Ultimately ,our world must live by this principle or humanity will cease to exist . . . and
it begins with you. As Tao awareness grows one person, one family , one community , and one
country at a time, priorities will shift. Our energies will go into building
more environmentally sensitive vehicles and homes rather than instruments
that reflect a belief that we can do what ever we want to the planet without
repercussions. We’ll find ways to destroy the stockpiles of unimaginably
horrendous weapons of mass destruction. Cooperation will replace hatred
and thoughts of harm. It will come about, as Lao-tzu states, when rulers and
people change the way they think about harming each other . As you reexamin e this passage of the Tao Te Ching, see how it can impact
your daily life. When negativity feels like it’s directed right at you, retreat
to that place of kindness and love within and deflect that energy. Remember , it’s impossible to pick a fight with someone who refuses to
fight! So your refusal to enter into battle is your most potent weapon against
evil. You can change an angry person’ s attempt to inflict harm by refusing
to lower yourself to the level of their abusive thinking. From an enraged
motorist’ s curse  to the harsh words of a disgruntled clerk or upset family
member , these outbursts are easily shifted when you stay centered inwardly . Become immune to such harmful thinking and action by knowin g that none
of this is about you. As he dictated this 60th verse some 2,500 years ago, Lao-tzu was thinking
about all of humanity . He knew that hurtful behavior could be rendered
impotent if enough people were willing to live in ways that encourage
cooperation and a spirit of love in place of competition and revenge.
_OceanofPDF.com_Change_Your_Thoughts_-_Change_Your_Life_-_Wayne_W_Dyer.txt
Summarize the following text section accurately and concisely. Maintain specific details and numerical information, and use anti-repetition mechanisms:

        Lao-tzu saw the potential for existing
harmoniously through living beyond judgment; thus, this 49th verse of the
Tao Te Ching invites us to explore that peaceful world. It’s encouraging us
to replace our idea of criticizing them with an acknowledgment of us
without criticism. Imagine the possibilities for all of humanity if we simply
eliminated prejudice and could live “in harmony with all below heaven. ”
You can begin changing your view of judgment as a valuable or important
activity by being aware of when you’re doing it to yourself. Then simply
start substituting noticing for judging; from this perspective, you’ll realize
pretty quickly that you prefer to observe what you’re doing or feeling rather
than critiquing yourself. Calling your behavior “bad” or “good” just pits
you against yourself and others by using competition, punishment, or
dislike as your motivational markers—hatred, anger, and threats become
necessary because love, acceptance, and kindness can’t be trusted. As you move away from judging yourself, you’ll no longer need or want
what Lao-tzu calls the “fixed mind”; thus, allegiances that pitted you
against the people you thought of as them will begin to dissolve. The
innumerable categories that helped you organize your labels become totally
superfluous and unimportant when you change the way you look at their so-
called value. In spite of having been conditioned by the country you were
born in, the religion you were assigned at birth, the culture you were
immersed in, or even the famil y who raised you, living beyond judgment
becomes your preference. You exist in harmony with the Tao that excludes
no one and has no conception of divisions and loyalties. The oneness of the
Tao entices you away from any belief that others are separate. This is the basic solution to wars and conflicts. You see, when  you stop
judging and instead begin to see yourself in others, you can’t help but love
the uniqueness of everyone as though they were your own children. Then
instead of exclusions and alleg iances, the onen ess of the Tao graces all,unimpeded. Rather than God bless America (or whatever country you
happen to reside in), Allah save our people, or Krishna bless those who
believe in you, there’ s God bless humanity—let me do all that I can to treat
everyone, without exception, with goodness and kindness, as all of those
whom we r evere as spiritual masters taught us by their example. As your worldview changes, you’ll extend goodness to everyone you
encounter. You’ll find that you can feel nonjudgmental compassion for the
mistreated, even  when their way of seeing things causes you and yours
pain. You can send out kindness not only in response to kindness, but
especially when you’re the recipient of cruelty. Why. Because, as Lao-tzu
reminds you in this poignant verse, “the nature of [your] being is kindness. ”
It’s impossible to give to others what you are not, and you are not
judgmental. Y ou see yourself in everyone, without the need to criticize them
or yourself. Change your thoughts and live beyond judgment—and don’t see yourself
as “bad” when you falter in this view or as “holy” when you succeed. Keep
in mind that you’re a mix of infinite openness and finite limitation, as we all
are. So sometimes you just need to notice yourself judging, without then
judging yourself. This is what I feel called by Lao-tzu to offer you from this 49th verse of
the T ao Te Ching:
Change the way you look at yourself. If you pride yourself on having a fixed mind, realize that it relies on
conditioning that generally shows up as prejudice. Instead, see yourself as
flexible, since being open is the higher virtue. Pride yourself on extending
your goodness and kindness to all sides, even 49th Verse when they oppose
your preprogrammed learning. Begin to see yourself as a person who
notices instead of judges. Avoid taking one position and sticking to it no
matter what the circumstances are; rather, be in harmony with all people,
especially those whose opinions conflict with yours. And remember to
include yourself when dispensing kindness and nonjudgment. Change the way you look at other people. One version of this verse says: “I trust men of their word, and I trust liars. If I am true enough, I feel the heartbeats of others  above my own. ” Whet her
you call it “judging” or “labelin g,” notice when you think of others as evil,
lazy, dishonest, stupid, or ugly. Then affirm: I see myself in this person, and
I choose  to be in a space of goodness rather than judgment. There’ s a
Sanskrit word, Namaste, that can help you with this. When used as a
greeting, it roughly translates to: “I honor the place in you wher e we are all
one. ” So silently or verbally begin telling others “Namaste” in order to
remind yourself to love everyone as your own children. Do the T ao Now
Vow to spend a day looking for opportunities to practice kindness in
circumstances that usually provo ke judgment. Notice what you think or say
about a panhand ler, a relative whom you feel animosity toward, or even a
politician or TV commentator speaking in terms that send you of f in a flurry
of critica l thoughts. Take that opportunity to become a “noticer,” decreasing
your criticism while increasing the amount of courtesy and goodness in
your world. OceanofPDF. com50th Verse
Between birth and death,
three in ten ar e followers of life;
three in ten ar e followers of death. And men just passing fr om birth to death
also number thr ee in ten. Why is this so. Because they clutch to life
and cling to this passing world. But ther e is one out of ten, they say, so sur e of life that tigers and wild bulls
keep clear. Weapons turn fr om him on the battlefield, rhinocer oses have no place to
horn him,
tigers find no place for claws,
and soldiers have no place to thrust their blades.
It encourages us to replace judgment with acknowledgment and compassion, and to see ourselves in others.
What is the main message of the 49th verse of the Tao Te Ching?
Recognizing one's infinite essence and understanding that one is not the physical body, but rather the eternal, witnessing essence.
According to the 54th verse, what is the key to recognizing one's true nature?
It emphasizes the importance of living honorably and not trying to control or dominate others.
What is the main theme of the 53rd verse?
It advises to gather virtue and not accumulate wealth or material possessions. One can apply this by practicing moderation, thrift, and self-sufficiency, and by giving without expecting anything in return.
What is the 57th verse advising, and how can one apply it to their life?
It suggests that one should not engage in negativity and harmful behavior, and instead choose to live in harmony with the Tao, refusing to lower oneself to the level of others.
What is the 60th verse of the Tao Te Ching suggesting, and how can one live in accordance with its message?