Verse 20: Fool on the Hill

Verse Twenty
Stop thinking, and end your problems.
What difference between yes and no?
What difference between success and failure?
Must you value what others value,
avoid what others avoid?
How ridiculous!

Other people are excited,
as though they were at a parade.
I alone don't care,
I alone am expressionless,
like an infant before it can smile.

Other people have what they need;
I alone possess nothing.
I alone drift about,
like someone without a home.
I am like an idiot, my mind is so empty.

Other people are bright;
I alone am dark.
Other people are sharper;
I alone am dull.
Other people have a purpose;
I alone don't know.
I drift like a wave on the ocean,
I blow as aimless as the wind.

I am different from ordinary people.
I drink from the Great Mother's breasts.
~ Stephen Mitchell translation ~

We live in a world in which a lot of people go out of their way to advertise their so-called wisdom. They write books by the dozen. They appear on each and every talk show that will have them. They are trotted out by the news media; we know that they are wise because the graphic on the screen labels the person as an "expert". They go on multi-city motivational speaking tours and host scads of workshops, seminars and retreats. Many of them sport blogs, FaceBook accounts and they Twitter every move they make.

Whatever the medium or venue, they tell you and me over and over again just how wise they are. Look at me, they cry, I'm a self-made man or woman. My strategies will work for you...for only x amount of dollars. I'm the person in-the-know because I know what you think you need to know. Three cheers for the most wonderful me!

If this wasn't bad enough, too many people believe them!! The public heaps accolades upon them without end. Too many people fork over untold amounts of money to buy their books, videos, tapes or ooh, see them in person. It's truly a symbiotic relationship.

What's wrong with this picture? As Lao Tzu eloquently points out, people who genuinely are wise don't spend their time reveling in their own sagacity. They don't spend their time announcing to the world how wise they are; they lead simple and humble lives in tune with their own natures. They intuitively understand that there is far more that they don't understand than what they do understand.

Years ago Paul McCartney, while a member of The Beatles, penned a song -- The Fool on the Hill -- that could be an apt paraphrase of this verse in the Tao Te Ching. According to the website, SongFacts, the lyrics describe "a man who is considered a fool by others, but whose foolish demeanor is actually an indication of wisdom."

Day after day,
Alone on a hill,
The man with the foolish grin is keeping perfectly still
But nobody wants to know him,
They can see that he's just a fool,
And he never gives an answer,

But the fool on the hill,
Sees the sun going down,
And the eyes in his head,
See the world spinning 'round.

Desiring fame, recognition, power and fortune are not signs of wisdom -- they are signs of vanity and, where vanity exists, true wisdom is elusive.

This post is part of a series. For an introduction, go here.