The Way and the Power of Virtue

  Carrying our embodied soul and embracing unity,  can we not depart from it? Concentrating our Qi and becoming more supple,  can we be like a newborn babe? Polishing the dust from our mysterious mirror,  can we become free of blemish? As with many cultures, in ancient China people believed that death brought about the separation of the body and the soul (or the fracturing of the body from multiple pieces of the soul).   This passage is reminding us that this is a danger in life as well as in death.   Have you ever felt torn?   Pulled in multiple or opposite directions?   Have you ever felt like your head (or your body) was telling you to do one thing but your heart (or your soul) was telling you to do something else?   We all feel conflicted at times.   We live in a world that constantly presents us with competing priorities and compelling distractions.   It’s easy to get sidetracked.   To spend time doing what isn’t mos...

  It is better to stop pouring than to hold on too long and overfill the cup. The blade that is forged with too fine a point, can’t be maintained for long. When gold and jade fill one’s hall, no one can protect it. Pride and arrogance from wealth and status brings disaster upon oneself. Retiring once personal contributions are achieved is the Way of Heaven. This passage returns to the theme of balance  and moderation in all things.   It’s about knowing when to stop, when to let go, when enough is enough.   Too often we try to hold on to things for too long.   We stay in positions and relationships long after we stopped growing in and contributing to them.   In our desperate need to fill our cups all the way to the brim, we often overfill, spill, and lose.   Sometimes we let our own successes go to our heads and we let ourselves feel a little entitled, setting ourselves up for a fall.   We’ve all seen it countless times.   The one h...

  In speech, excel in being honest and trustworthy; in governance, excel in bringing order; in human affairs, excel in skill; in action, excel in timing.   In all cases, it is only because they don’t contend – this is why they are above reproach.   4. Honesty: Wise people excel in saying what they mean and meaning what they say.   They are honest and trustworthy.   They know when to say something publicly, when to say something in private, and when to hold their tongues.   So can we.   In today’s interconnected cyber community, we can’t take back anything that we say, so we are best served by measuring our words and being honest and truthful in everything we say. 5. Governance: Wise people excel in bringing order to chaos, finding solutions to problems, and regulating themselves first and foremost.   We can do likewise, practicing moderation and mediating the extreme views that surround us.   We can see both sides of any issue, un...

  In your place of residence, excel in positioning; In your heart, excel in being open; In giving, excel in humane benevolence; Sages, or wise people strive to excel in all they do.   They develop themselves and their abilities in seven specific areas of life:   1. Positioning: Wise people excel in positioning themselves to create and seize opportunities.   They proactively choose where they will live, where they will work, and where they will love.   They put themselves in the right place at the right time to have the influence and impact they want to create.   So can we.   Our location determines our opportunities and the influence and impact we can have.   We get to choose where we will live out our lives, which areas we will be active in, and what places we will participate in.   We get to pick our battlegrounds.   We don’t have to stay where we have always been just because we’ve always been there.   We can move anywhe...

  The highest good is like water.    Water is good because it excels in benefitting all life and doesn’t contend.    It goes places the masses despise.   Thus it is nigh unto the Way.   The greatest good, the highest excellence is like water.  Water goes where it is drawn.  It doesn’t contend or compete to go somewhere “better” and doesn’t avoid going places where it is needed – regardless of what the masses think.  It is immune to public opinion.  It is free of the cultural constructs, relative reality, and the constant comparisons  of people.  It doesn't participate in the despicable and ugly social stereotypes of what is "best" and who is "worthy."  Water is impartial and doesn’t feel superior.  It doesn't compete or contend .  Like heaven and earth, water is selfless , having no personal agendas or its own self-interest.  It benefits all living things.  Nothing is beneath it.  Wherever...

The heavens are long-lasting and the earth is enduring.  The reason heaven and earth are long-lasting and enduring is that they don’t live for themselves – thus they are long-lived. Sages put themselves last and yet end up first; they place their personal interests on the outside and yet are preserved. Is it not simply because of their selflessness?   This is why they are able to succeed in their personal labors.   The natural world has a longevity that far surpasses a single human life.  It has lasting impact, benefit, and resiliency.  It endures natural disasters human wars and calamities.  It adapts, overcomes, and endures.   The natural world balances order and chaos and doesn’t play favorites .  It also doesn’t have any self-serving agendas or interests.  Heaven and earth are impartial.  As a model or embodiment of the Way, the natural world provides resources and opportunities for life to grow .  Organi...