If a country is governed wisely,
its inhabitants will be content.
They enjoy the labor of their hands
and don't waste time inventing
labor-saving machines.
Since they dearly love their homes,
they aren't interested in travel.
There may be a few wagons and boats,
but these don't go anywhere.
There may be an arsenal of weapons,
but nobody ever uses them.
People enjoy their food,
take pleasure in being with their families,
spend weekends working in their gardens,
delight in the doings of the neighborhood.
And even though the next country is so close
that people can hear its roosters crowing and dogs
barking,
they are content to die of old age
without ever having gone to see it.
Translation of the Tao Te Ching by Stephen Mitchel
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This text didn't give me anything to use in my daily life -- unless I had the goal of being a perfectly boring person. Back in 2001 I wrote in the margin: My world is in this moment / And I step from moment to moment / Like from one smooth stone to another / The clear water of a stream / My joy is here in this moment--step, in this moment--step in this moment.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to think that this moment to moment action is full of peace that can be gained through living daily my life. Perhaps this is what Chapter 80 is talking about?
The following translation is from John Bright-Fey:
ReplyDeletekeep your life simple and interesting
striving for great talent and skill
striving for great and perfect tools
is not the true way
have just enough talent
have just enough skill
have just the right amount of tools for work
have just the right amount of weapons for protection
the ancient child asks
how much is the right amount
know one hundred songs
so you can play a single simple melody
from the heart
to a heart
treat complex things
as simple things
arranged in a pattern
that
once you are at peace
can be easily deciphered
remember your ancient roots
read your history
relish your food
revel in your habits and customs
rest in your home
return to the tried and true
place great value in the natural order
of life and death
do not wander far from home
play and have fun in your life
and your backyard
will become a world
that will take you a lifetime to explore
what could be better