Tao of the Day

About the men of old that had reached perfection We know that they felt one with the whole creation That they saw the earth not as chaos but as a unity That they felt like gods and spiritual beings That emptiness was no longer empty, but filled And they saw that the whole creation was...

True virtues are not from this world, Therefore they are true virtues The so-called “virtues” in this world Serve only self-interest Therefore those are not true virtues One...

Only what’s stretched out can be pulled together Only what’s fortified can be weakened Only what’s increased can be decreased Only one who has, can lose That must be clear Soft ...

For one who beholds the perfect arrangement of things Everything falls in its rightful place Nothing can harm him, and rest and peace will fall to him Along the way there are travellers who yield music and feasts Because the road to self-knowledge is acrid and unpleasant Not pleasant to...

The Unspeakable is eternal and is not to be spoken of in words Just like a rough piece of wood, it’s not useful to anyone If leaders were an example of true living Everyone would join his true nature at the same time The heavens would dew and the clouds rain justice And without human i...

The Eternal Creating does nothing And yet it does everything If leaders would give in to it The aspect of the world would change of itself But since people have so much to wish for...

The Unspeakable is eternal and is not to be spoken of in wordsJust like a rough piece of wood, it’s not useful to anyoneIf leaders were an example of true livingEveryone would join his true nature at the same timeThe heavens would dew and the clouds rain justiceAnd without human interveningThat a...

How ingenious weaponry may seem to be, though it will always be disastrous rubbishEverybody hates itA righteous man saves himself from itWhile a true man will not soil his hands with itA fighter grabs for itWeapons are not good for meek peopleThey bring nothing but troubleOne who is wise will never...

One who advocates a righteous world, uses no violenceBecause One who uses violence, provokes violenceAnd where discord rules there is chaosAnd after times of conflict lean years will followThe righteous one does what he can and forces nothingIs not proud about what he achievesDoes not brag about...

One who thinks he is capable of improving Creation, will not succeedCreation is perfect and cannot be correctedOne who intervenes in nature, will only destroy natureOne who tries to control nature, will lose to natureBecause everything is what it is and everything happens as it happensAt times it...

One who knows his strength and yet stays mild, is the leastWhoever is the least, is balanced like the open-minded child he once wasOne who has fathomed the lie is an example for the worldOne who became human again is an example for the worldOne knowing oneself, is a knowing among the ignorantOne...

A true traveller never takes a beaten roadA true speaker has an answer to every questionA true researcher has solved all problemsA story that holds water needs no confirmationNobody can refute a watertight storyOne who sees how perfectly everything is connected with everythingNeeds no theories or...

Heavy is the source of that which is lightThe unmoved mover is the origin of all movementTherefore a true human being can be in motion all dayNot because it is him moving himselfBut because he just floats on lifeLike a spectator he enjoys the wonderful and sparkling creationWhy should he, as the...

Tao Te ChingChapter 25 Before Creation revealed itself There was already something, perfect but formless Quiet and unchanging Ubiquitous and inexhaustible People might consider it as the creating force of everything that is I cannot describe it, but I just call it Tao If I have to interpret it , I ...