from Verse Fifty-EightTo govern the body and nurture essence, sleep and rest moderately, eat and drink appropriately, harmonize emotions, simplify activities. Those who are inwardly attentive to the self attain this and are immune to perverse energies.~ Wen-tzu: Understanding the Mysteries ~
The middle path keeps us on the correct course. When we allow ourselves to travel on the extreme edges, one little trip can knock us off the path entirely. Once off the path of virtue, many struggle to regain their footing and some never do.By traveling down the middle, we provide ourselves with a bit of leeway. If we trip and stumble, all we need to do is to pick ourselves up, brush off the dirt and then continue on our way. No harm, no foul.
This post is part of a series. For an introduction, go here.
Virtue is a concept loaded with the ammunition of confusion.
ReplyDeleteI was discussing the concept of honesty with my wife:
She imagined it was a virtuous thing.
I explained that - for me - it was nothing to do with virtue, or of the appearance of virtue.
It was simply a practical method of having my life work, as opposed to not work.
Virtue, to me, has something of the contrived about it.
I may be wrong.
I think Lao Tzu was speaking of essential virtue -- something that cannot be contrived.
ReplyDeleteI think verses 57 and 58 are about cultivation practices. The "virtue" (the TE) is also about "power," not like political power, but the power of internal energy, qi. So we govern the body and nurture essence to be immune to perverse energies.
ReplyDelete