Wen Tzu - Verse 45, Part II

from Verse Forty-Five

Animals of fine markings are stripped of their hides; those with beautiful horns are killed. Sweet springs are used up, straight trees are cut down. Flowery talk is later resented, mountains are torn up when their rocks contain jade. The troubles of the people exist before words are spoken.

~Wen-tzu: Understanding the Mysteries ~

Professional golfer Tiger Woods has been learning the lesson of the above passage these past few days! Those who go out of their way to be in the public eye tend to be targets of gossip, innuendos and aggressive investigative reporting.

It seems to be very prevalent in our ego-based human nature to want to watch the once-mighty fall. We love it when the rich, famous and powerful are discovered to have feet of clay and they then receive their just deserts.

And this is why Lao Tzu and Chuang Tzu value plainness. The sage who is plain and unobtrusive doesn't call attention to her or himself. When we don't stand out, then other people are less likely to want to knock us down. We are more apt to avoid unnecessary conflict because we don't create the environment for conflict to arise.

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