The Way and the Power of Virtue

  Excellent journeys leave no trace, no ruts behind Excellent words, l ike flawless jade,  leave no blame behind Excellent calculations do not necessarily need counters and formulas Excellent closure is unrelated to a deadbolt and yet cannot be re-opened Excellent knots use no string to bind and yet cannot be untied. 1. Leave No Trace: One of the first lessons I learned in Scouts was to “ Leave No Trace .”   This outdoor ethos and conservation strategy is now ingrained in my life.   Not only do I strive to leave no trace of my passing, no negative or permanent sign on the landscape that “I was here,” I also seek to leave the environment better than I found it by cleaning up the messes accidentally or carelessly left behind by others.   This is not to say that there are not times and places where it is necessary and even beneficial in our lives to practice the art of Wayfinding , to be a trailblazer or pathfinder, or leave a string behind to help other...

  The masses are all resplendent and rejoicing, as if feasting on the fatted calf, as if climbing a pagoda in spring to enjoy the scenery. I alone am anchored in the water, without showing any signs of divine favor, Innocent as a newborn babe, who has yet to sneer or cheer; Tired from hard work, but with seemingly no home to return to. The masses all have their surplus things, I alone am not leaving behind a legacy of loss and loose ends. How foolish is my heart – like a monkey holding a snake! The common folk are brilliant, I alone am unenlightened. The common folk are insightful, I alone am close-minded. Rolling waves, they are as the sea; blown about on the wind, seemingly without footing. The masses all have their means and undertakings, I alone am unyielding and lowly. I alone am different from people, and value feeding from the Mother.   In a rare shift to first-person narrative, this passage describes the feelings and sentiments that we feel as...