Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Wen Tzu - Verse 124, Part I

from Verse One Hundred Twenty-Four
Nondoing does not mean that you cannot be induced to come and cannot be pushed away, do not respond when pressed and do not act when moved, keep stopped and do not flow, clinch tight and do not let go. It means that private ambitions do not enter public ways, and habitual desires do not block pure science.

It means undertaking projects in accord with reason, establishing works according to resources, fostering the momentum of nature itself, so deception cannot enter in. When undertakings are completed there is no personal conceit, and when success is established, no claims honor.
~ Wen-tzu: Understanding the Mysteries ~
If you need any evidence that I'm reading the Wen Tzu verse-by-verse as I write about it, the passage above can easily confirm it!!

In the previous verse, I stated that I was a bit unsure about what Lao Tzu meant by the need for "calculated planning." Well, here's the answer. After reading and contemplating the passage above, I suggest you go back to read the passage presented for Verse 123. I'm guessing it's meaning will be more readily apparent now. :>D

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

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