Chapter 6

The Tao is called the Great Mother:
empty yet inexhaustible,
it gives birth to infinite worlds.

It is always present within you.
You can use it any way you want.

S.Mitchell translation

The Dao is called the Great Mother because it nourishes and births all things and beings. In the most ancient of religions, the people often thought of the Divine as the Mother, because they observed her as that which brought all things to them, their food, their homes, the beauty of nature. This Mother is still with us even though we often are not able to perceive her nourishing presence.

The Dao is called "empty" because it is what in the Buddhist tradition we call Shunyata, or Void. This is not a nihilistic expression that "nothing" exists, but the realization that nothing can exist on its own. There is literally no "thing" that can exist in the universe. No separate thing. All things exist in relation to each other, and they are thus all one. In the ancient traditions this is called "emptiness".

We also speak of emptiness because when one lets go of extraneous thoughts and emotions, one perceives from an empty center. All events and ocurances rise up, but they play upon the blank screen of the mind. This does not feel depressing at all like one might think. It can be very surprising when one first catches a glimpse of the mind's true nature, that as one realizes that the center of the mind is emptiness, all the colors of the world seem to become brighter and more beautiful. As one releases the habitual grasping of judgement of things as good or bad, one is able to recognize the beauty that is inherent in ALL manifestation. It is a bit of a pardox, but one often finds that upon letting go of attachment to reality and the usual habitual identity, an even greater love for all things arises within one.

The Tao is said to be "empty, yet inexhaustible". This is the essence of what one begins to recognize. Emptiness is not some demoralizing force or depressing sentiment, when we discover this silent place within, we can start to feel that all things are connected - that there is "no-thing" in the universe. It becomes more than a philosophy. One can actually begin to feel ones kinship with trees, mountains, buildings, and other beings. Emptiness becomes a felt reality - a reality that one is a relation of all Life.

When this occurs, an individual has what's called a "numinous experience". Looking deeply into the essence of a thing, one realizes it is the same as the essence within herself. At this moment, there is an experience of power and magic that cannot be described in words. When I have caught glimpses of this sort, I have had the wonderful sense that anything was possible. At other times, the depression that can be a common companion in this life lifted magically, and i KNEW that there was purpose, meaning, and value to my existence. This numinous power is the inexhaustible nature of the empty Tao.

The Tao as the Great Mother is also sometimes called the Cosmic Mirror. What we come to recognize is that this Great Mother is always giving, always nourishing. She does not discriminate in what she nurtures. She wants to give all of her children what they most want. What the Mother nurtures is our thoughts, intentions, and beliefs. These emanate from us like prayers into all of life, and all of life conspires to play them back to us.

When one practices recognizing emptiness and inexhaustible power, the awareness becomes very subtle and accurate. One may begin to realize that if one holds a belief in joy, or wealth, then joy or wealth will come to one in many different forms. If one holds a belief in sorrow or poverty, the mother will provide them with experience that matches this belief. Jesus says it like this in the Book of Thomas - "To those who have, more will be given, to those who have not, even that which they do posess will be taken from them."

These are not just the thoughts floating on the surface of our minds with which we identify, but the deep currents pulling from beneath the unconscious. It is these currents which are expressed by our actions in the world, and it is from this that the Law of Karma arises. If we do harm to another, this is an expression of our belief that there "should" be harm in the world, at the same time, watching ourselves perform these actions confirms these deep currents and reinforces them. If, on the other hand, we act in ways which are kind, or embody belifs in infinite health, wealth, or joy for beings then these are the deep currents that are reinforced within us. Remember, the power of the Tao is "inexhaustible" - this means that whatever you choose to believe in and concentrate your energy on can manifest continually to the extent you believe in it.

It is for this reason that we are told we can use the Tao in any way that we want. If we want more joy, we simply must broadcast that desire through our actions and our thoughts. If we want to be more spiritually fulfilled, there is inexhaustible power to apply to this. If we want worldly fulfillment, the Tao will pour her great nourishment toward this. Truly, whatever we hold most dear is brought about by the cosmic nourisher - in each moment. Our only job is to ask ourselves what we really want, and then look to see if our actions are conforming to that desire.

chapter 37

Tao does not act
yet it is the root of all action.
Tao does not move
yet it is the source of all creation

If princes and kings could hold it
everyone uder them would naturally turn within.
Should a doubt or old desire rise up
The Nameless Simplicity would push it down.
The Nameless Simplicity frees the heart of desire
and reveals its inner silence.

When there is silence
one finds peace.
When there is silence
one finds the anchor of the universe within himself.

Johnathan Star translation

Another way to translate the beginning on this chapter is "Tao is eternally without doing, yet nothing remains undone".

What is this doing that Lao Tze refers to? Are we to believe that practicing the Tao is a kind of nihilism where we become aware that nothing really exists in the universe and so try to cease our own existence through inaction? I do not believe so. I believe that Lao Tze is teaching us a valuable lesson here about the union of the non-existent and the existent. That which is empty within us, and that which is manifest.

Our acquired personalities are obsessed with doing. One of the first questions that one might ask when making another's acquaintence is "what do you do?" We can contrast this with the question that a student may hear when first making the acquaintence of a Zen master "Who are you?" There is a big difference in the direction of these questions. One leads you out, the other leads you within. An even more direct question than "who are you?" might be "are you?". Well, find out right now - are you?

Of course, you can just say that you are very easily, you can tell stories about it for hours, I'd bet - but this isn't really finding out, is it? This is really just more doing. Wouldn't you like to know if there is some being that dwells within that doing?

In order to find out if you are, you must become very quiet, very still. Some teachers call this "consciousness without attributes". Can you find an awareness within you that posesses no attributes but being? This is the Tao living right there inside of you.

If you can maintain awareness of this being, even for a moment, you will feel a great peace and silence. You will be dwelling in I Am-ness, which is your true nature. This is the secret name that God spoke to Moses - Eheye Asher Eheye "I am that I am".

The interesting thing that one finds out next is that one does not have to retire to a cave somewhere in order to practice resting in this being. One can do it in any situation at all. Being, or presence is not a trance you have to go into or some special state - that would be more doing. Being is just the plain and simple reality of this moment. If you find that place within you, sometimes called the "mysterious pass" in Taoism, you will realize that it does not shut out the rest of the world, but invites it in and makes it more numinous and colorful.

When we abide in this state, we are able to respond to Life appropriately. One will notice that when action must be taken, one does not need to leave ones Being in order to carry it out. One can remain present in the moment. In fact, if one is dilligent in the practice of maintaining deep presence, the actions will have a special quality to them - a quality of effortless flow and grace.

This flow is the movement of the universe. The Tao does not strive. The earth does not need to be oiled, she just keeps spinning. The Sun does not need to be recharged, it just keeps shining. The reason for this is that the sun and the earth do not get in their own way. There is no friction in the activity of the universe. There is no constriction or trying. Thus it is said that the Tao does not do, yet all things are accomplished through it.

"If princes and kings could hold it, everyone under them would naturally turn within."
Here Lao Tze points out that if we get our priorites right, everything will fall into place naturally. The King, or the ruler is that silent watcher within. If we can abide AS this presense, there is nothing we need to do or to fix - all our lives slowly come into order. These are all the people under them turning within. There is no pattern of pain or suffering within us that cannot be met with deep presence. There is no pattern of pain or suffering within us that does not transform in the face of deep being. The more we strive to "fix" those aspects of ourselves that are troubling - the further away from Being we get. When we rest in Being, these troubles can finally find what they were looking for in the first place - peace.

This passage also refers to the power of entrainment. What Lao Tze is reminding us is that the power of Being is so strong, that it has massive influence over others. This influence is so pronounced that one who practices becomes like a King or a Queen in this world. When people are in their presence they feel changed in some way. Individuals become more peaceful, more centered, they feel more "on-track" with who they are. The more we practice abiding in non-doing, the greater our influence in the world becomes. This peace spreads out in waves from the yogi and no one can remain unaffected.

"Should a doubt or old desire rise up, the Nameless Simplicity would push it down.
The translation "push it down" is slightly problematic here, because we can take it to mean that these feelings are being repressed. This is not the case at all. The Nameless Simplicity is another name for the Tao abiding within. When we begin to practice, we may notice that all sorts of interesting feelings arise. We may notice doubts about our practice of presence, or old feeligs that we haven't thought about in a long time. These too are asking for our presence. The practice of abiding begins to untie all knots. As these knots release, old feelings can bubble to the surface - sometimes they have lain dormant for lifetimes. The key is to remain stable in the peace of your true nature. All of these stories are just coming to seek the peace of the Tao, and yet the content of the stories may look very interesting or frightening. it may seem as if we should act quickly on these feelings. We may want to start a lot of Doing to soothe the feelings we are experiencing.

This Doing doesn't just mean action on the outside. In fact, you may have to do some actual work to take care of the past influences that come up to your consciousness. It is the striving within that causes us so much pain. The beautiful truth is that we get to choose whether we want to engage in this pain or not. The Nameless Simplicity is always there for us to become aware of. There is no trial one must pass through in order to gain the grace of God. The trial is in this moment and in each moment - will we remember that we can rest open as Being, or will we choose to struggle.

There are many old stories of Taoists or mystics who maintained their meditative practice even while "demons" came to them disguised as seductive members of the opposite sex, or frightening beings, or family memebers begging for aid. The idea here is not to say "go away, I'm meditating". But to stay in our practice of full consciousness of who we Are. We can bring the light of this consciousness to our feelings of love, fear, or duty and watch them transform and evolve.

When we realize that we can choose not to struggle is when the heart is "freed of desire". This doesn't mean that we become mindless automotons - but simply that we stop desiring things to be other than they are. We know that we can rest into peace whenever we choose, and somehow our actions lose their friction. Taking the "desire" out of the picture takes the struggle out of things. We learn to act as the Tao acts - the earth turning, the sun radiating.

It is through this that "one can find the anchor of the universe within him[or her]self." Abiding in being is the center point between past and future, it is the center point of all directions. This being which you are now is the most powerful location in the universe. Recognizing this, you recognize that your vital Qi, your intentions are radiating out and pulling the thread of all existence in each moment. Coming home to the silent center of your being puts you back into the seat of your true power - the power that you are as this present Reality.

Chapter 19

Lao Tze says:

Abandon holiness
Discard cleverness
and the people will benefit a hundredfold.

Abandon the rules of "kindness"
Discard "righteous" actions
and the people will return to their own natural affections

Abandon book learning
Discard the rules of behaviour
and the people will have no worries

Abandon plots and schemes
Discard profit-seeking
and the people will not become thieves

These lessons are mere elaborations
The essence of my teachings is this:

See with the original purity
Embrace with original simplicity
Reduce what you have
Decrease what you want.

*Jonathan Star Translation

Holiness and cleverness are concepts. Holiness and cleverness are goals to attain, or the means to attain goals. This is not what we are concerned with in our study of the Dao. There is a natural holiness that is ever present - just stop a moment and notice if you are still breathing. Is your breath coming in or going out? Just this is enough. All our desires to make this moment something more - to add to the sacredness of what is - only steal the joy that is ever available to us.

Go out into the woods on a clear night and look up into the sky. There is no word for the numinosity of the shining stars and silence, but we might call it holy.

How many rules of "kindness" do you have in your own life? How safe do you wish to keep your heart? How many images do you keep of what "righteousness" is? Or perhaps you call it "right action", or "integrity". All images are stale - this is why the Buddha never allowed representations of him to be produced.

When we practice kindness because we think we should, we are falling short of the glorious reality which is our true nature. When we practice the rules of "righteousness" because of what they will get us, we are missing out on the only possible opportunity for salvation - this opportunity occuring right now.

If we sit still and quiet we might begin to recognize who we are, just a little bit. In that same instant, one will feel a great freedom like wings unfolding - and a great sadness. Simply looking around from the center of this moment, one is no longer able to keep the world at arms length. The suffering of a closed heart nearby is felt as ones own heart, and one cannot help but act. It might be a smile, a heroic effort, a joke, or a shout, but kindness will naturally arise - you cannot help it, it is who you are.

Infants hearing the cries of other infants become stressed, and relaxed when the other is soothed. Small children seeing infants in distress naturally seek to comfort them. This does not depend upon rules of conduct.

"Abandon book learning" the master tells us in his 81 chapter book! What are you seeking through more learning. How full is your mind, and yet we seek to put more knowledge on top? This seeking has become an addiction - we begin to think that if we just get the next fix, maybe that will finally be the one that will make it all o.k.. Maybe the next one will finally feel like it's enough. Maybe when I'm finally smart enough, clever enough, then I'll finally be safe and fulfilled. The truth is that you will never be safe - not in the way you want to. The big universe will eventually win - all your fragile accomplishments, all your hard-won personality traits will come to nothing. All the rules of behaviour in the world will not save you from this inevitability. The only safety available to us is to find that which is indestructible within us. But that has nothing to do with all that we've put on to protect ourselves.

Look beneath the layers of conditioning. Look beneath who you've become to live safe in this world. Look beneath your goals and aspirations. Who do you find there? Has this one ever not been? Could this One ever be added to or subtracted from? When you live openly as this One, you will be free from worry. What could possibly harm you?

In this one, there is no plotting or scheming. Everything is enough, just as it is. We so often walk about and think "well, it's a nice day, but i wish that breeze wasn't blowing". "Oh, dinner was great - except the coffee wasn't very good" - or the like. Or perhaps the day is exactly the type we could wish for, then we might think "I hope the sun stays out" or "I wish this vacation would never have to end". Unfortunately for the desiring mind, there is no permanant vacation, no endless summer- all things change and cycle. Denying this, the ego strives to get as much as it can, while it can. The desire to add something to reality is the only sin.

When we seek profits, what is really going on is thievery. What will you do with all this excess you generate? Will it keep you safe? Often a body will feel like it wants profit, wants a little extra just in case. So we eat little extra at each meal. In fact, we might want to eat the densest, most calorie rich foods at each meal to make sure that the profit accumulates quickly. Soon our profits will show for all to see, in the extra pounds we are carrying around. Storing up more is just a way of trying to create security, but which becomes just another addiction. When the body stores up its profits in the form of fat, it is robbing the heart, robbing the joints of thier mobility. When we seek to profit from reality we are afraid that we don't have enough - that just a bit more would feel safer, and yet we steal from ourselves the enjoyment possible in this moment.

In a culture that prizes profit, you will see the distance grow between the "haves" and the "have nots". When the "have nots" grow poor enough, they will resort to stealing and violence rather than starve and chaos ensues. All these profits have not truly created more safety, more happiness, only more striving and deprivation.

Lao Tze tells us "Reduce what you have, decrease what you want". What we have is everything that gets in the way of our enjoyment of what is - right now. What if there was no chance at salvation, elightenment, happiness some time in the future? What if this was it - as enlightened as it gets? What would it be like if no relationship, no religion, no accomplishment, no meal, no orgasm, no art project, no new movie, no new fashion, could ever add anything to the sanctity and holiness that you are. What if all the powers of compassion and happiness you ever needed to help yourself and others were available right now? Would you then wish to enjoy this moment? Would you let go of the pain of wanting for just a breath and enjoy the holiness of being?

Seeing the original purity one recognizes that there is nothing which should not be. Grasping Original Simplicity one can rest in just what is - plain, boring, and amazingly sacred and numinous.

Chapter 67

Lao Tze says:

All the world talks about my Tao with such familiarity - What folly!
Tao is not something found at the marketplace or passed from father to son
It is not something gained by knowing or lost by forgetting
If Tao were like this it would have been forgotten long ago


I have three treasures I cherish and hold dear
The first is love
the second is moderation
the third is humility

With love one is fearless
With moderation one is abundant
with humility one can fill the highest position

Now, if one is fearless but has no love,
abundant but has no moderation,
rises up but has no humility,
surely he is doomed

Love vanquishes all attackers
it is impregnable in defense.
When Heaven wants to protect someone does it send and army?
No, it protects him with love.

*Jonathan Star translation

To call the name of something Great with familiarity is disrespectful. In the Bible, this is referred to as making "vain repetitions" or "taking the Lord's name in vain". Our fundamental problem here is not sharing what we've learned of the Way, or even dialoguing with others about meditation practice and the like. Our fundamental error is thinking that we "know" something.

To speak of the Tao as if we could know it is to belittle it. We can know the Tao in this present moment, but if we go to speak - to explain, to discourse - we have lost it. Wise men and women understand this and so can laugh at their attempts to encapsulate the vastness of Reality in words and thoughts. Others of us think we can truly know that we can finally gain the right set of thoughts that will never betray us and will bring us happiness.

Truly, the Tao cannot be gained or lost. It is ever present in this moment. Even our attempts to capture it with our small minds are part of its activity. When we recognize this we can relax deeply into the knowledge that everything is all right just as it is. In that moment we become a "Tao Ren" a human of the Tao - a lover of Reality.

Practicing the Tao is a mystery. The human mind wants so much to gain stable ground, to rest assured that it can finally "come up with" the Answer. The mystery is that it is only through relaxing our need for security, our need for "familiarity" with the Great One, our need for concepts and answers, can we actually find security, intimacy with Reality, and wisdom beyond conceptualization.

Lao Tze reminds us that if the Tao were dependant on our knowledge of it, it would have long ago been lost. It is not a secret technique that has been preserved for generations. It is nothing that you can attain. If it were so, it would have degenerated. The great Tao doesn't require our recognition - because even our ignorance is a part of it. The great secret though, is that by recognizing it we can dwell in inner and outer peace.

In the second part of this verse, the Master goes on to tell us of his cherished treasures - Love, Moderation, and Humility.

It is important for us to know that Love here means compassion. We are told that when we have compassion like this, we can be fearless. How is this so?
When we give our lives to love, the opening of the heart overwhelms all other feelings and vibrations. Just think of a mother and her child. Nearly any mother would do anything to protect and nurture her child. If the child was threatened she would give no thought for her own safety - only for that of the child. Many mothers experience a joy and peace that they've never known when they first gaze into the eyes of their child. Mystics of all times have come to feel this way for all beings. With this fire of compassion in your heart - all other concerns are burned away - fear has no room to exist.

Perhaps you have felt this for a family member or intimate partner. You love them so strongly that you would give anything for them. This is just a taste of what is possible for us as humans. Often our love wants something in return. Often we cannot sustain the Greatness of what we feel. If we practice giving our love, and then giving it more we will find that that spark we may have felt upon "falling in love" or caring for a sibling or grandparent blossoms into a full blown star. We become a beacon of light and we dwell in this bliss with no break.

With moderation, it is said that we are abundant. The word moderation here implies not exceeding the use of things, knowing the place for everything, not over-doing it. Essentially, when we practice this type of moderation we are letting go of greed. I think it is telling that this treasure is listed after Compassion because through compassion we recognize that what we have to do in this life is give we are made of love and happiness, and things will only feel "right" when we learn to give them away. From this recognition we are established in the ability to live simply, because all we need is that which will sustain our ability to love others.

When we establish ourselves in this practice of moderation and simplicity an amazing thing happens: first, we begin to feel abundant - we feel fulfilled in our lives as if all our needs are met; then, our outer reality begins to change into a more and more perfect expression of that abundance which we feel. When we align with Love, we are aligned with all of Life. On a subtle level, none of our efforts go unnoticed. Our practice of moderation means that we will always have everything we need. We begin to become a part of nature again. The trees have all they need, so do the flowers. Humans begin to feel we need more and more and thus eventually deprive ourselves and others.

Abundance will mean different things to different people - it is all based upon what one needs to offer this world. For one person as small meditation hut in the mountains may enable them to serve, for another it might require a giant office building in New York. You can tell if you are living beyond your spiritual means because if you are then all your possessions will either begin to feel like burdens, or will be taken for granted. On the other hand, if you are living a life that is an expression of your Love and Compassion, everything in your life will reflect to you a feeling of gratitude.

The third treasure is Humility. This word also means "not being to daring" or "non-presumptuous". When we are not too daring, we can assume the highest position. This means that we rememer our role and our station. It actually takes us back to the first part of this chapter - reminding us not to get to "familiar" with the Dao. The perspective of the mystic is always one of receptivity. We may be shining the light of Compassion into all the world, but at the center of it all is the emptiness of our rapt wonder at the mystery of all Life.

Coming from this perspective of emptiness, we are in a position to responsibly hold high positions where we can care for others and the energy of the universe will place us in them. These may not always look like "high positions" to the eyes of others in the world (though they may as well), motherhood is a position of great responsibility, husband is a role which allows one to truly do good in another's life. The more humble we are, the more we begin to recognize what an honor it is to be where we are. We recognize the privelege we have been given in this moment and we vow to use it responsibly.

Lao Tze goes on to tell us that if we neglect these treasures, we are most surely doomed.
If we are fearless without love, we are likely to act in ways that harm ourselves or others.
If we are abundant but without moderation, we are likely to lack appreciation for what we have.
If we rise up without humility, we will lake the presence and responsibility that each moment deserves.
In the Buddhist tradition it is explained that all the things that come to us in this life are a result of the actions we have taken which effect others. It is said that one can even become a godlike being which lives for millions of years through accumulating good karma. It is also said, though that the later years of a god are very painful and filled with fear. Often, as a godlike being, one has so much power that one can forget compassion, moderation, and humility. Forgetting these essentials, one can mindlessly engage in actions which bring harm to others - and the more powerful one is, the more potential there is for harm (or good). Causing all of this harm brings it's inevitable karmic result and, according to tradition, a god's last few thousands of years are so terrible because only then do they realize that their rebirth will be of a nature to repay all the harm they have done.

We can see this in the lives of contemporary rock stars, business executives, perhaps even politicians. Being blinded by power or fame, individuals can forget where true happiness comes from - from expressing ones nature as Love and Compassion. As the saying goes "power corrupts".

When, on the other hand, one begins from a standpoint of Love, Moderation, and Humility, one has the means by which to handle any power or fame responsibly - because she knows that it has only been given to enable her to serve beings in ever greater ways. When we practice in this way the positive energy we generate (merit) can grow exponentially - allowing our service to become ever greater, and our happiness to increase at the same rate.

The last verse in this chapter reinforces the View that Love is of the utmost importance. We are told that Compassion is the ultimate defense and protection. This passage helps to put our minds at rest. Contemplating becoming a more loving, open-hearted person can seem like a frightening prospect. Many of us have learned to believe that it is only by becoming stronger or more cunning than others that we can survive and gain happiness. By studying the Dao, though, we begin to learn that our happiness arises as a natural by-product of living in harmony with who we really are. And who we really are is Love itself. Living as who we really are we become one with the Tao and there is no possibility of being in the wrong place. The intentions we put forth begin to become ever clearer expressions of our Compassion, and anything which does not match that vibration is either repelled or transformed instantly.

When Heaven wishes to protect someone it does not send an army. When we are not living the truth, we will feel very insecure. We may think we need to constantly seek out more knowledge, more means of defending ourselves. This is because the identity we've created is an illusion and is quite small. On some level we know that it is an illusion and could crumble at any moment (and eventually will die) - this makes us feel scared. When we are living the truth of our being, we recognize that what we really are is deathless, we begin to feel invulnerable. We know that no matter what happens to us, we are living the Tao in this moment as Love. Established in this state, all the world comes to us in peace and is transformed by our presence.