Line by Line - Verse 28, Line 18

The simple infant man in him we hail.
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

Return to the state of the uncarved block.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

Return to the state of plain wood
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

Your life will become simple, yet full of potential.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

The uncarved block is a central concept of philosophical Taoism. Here is how this term is defined by 4 different individuals. (How do you define it?)

The Chinese word "Pu" is often translated as "the uncarved block," and refers to a state of pure potential which is the primordial condition of the mind before the arising of experience. The Taoist concept of Pu points to perception without prejudice, i.e. beyond dualistic distinctions such as right/wrong, good/bad, black/white, beautiful/ugly. It is a state of mental unity which places the Taoist practitioner into alignment with the Tao.
~ from Elizabeth's Taoism Blog ~

One of the basic principles of Taoism is P'U; the Uncarved Block. The essence of the Uncarved Block is that things in their original simplicity contain their own natural power, power that is easily spoiled and lost when that simplicity is changed. This principle applies not only to things, but to people as well. Or Bears. Which brings us to Pooh, the very Epitome of the Uncarved Block.

When you discard arrogance, complexity, and a few, other things that get in the way, sooner or later you will discover that simple, childlike, and mysterious secret known to those of the Uncarved Block: Life is Fun. Along with that comes the ability to do things spontaneously and have them work, odd as that may appear to others at times. As Piglet put it in 'Winnie-the-Pooh', "Pooh hasn't much Brain, but he never comes to any harm. He does silly things and they turn out right."
~ from Just-Pooh.com ~

The Uncarved Block is one of the primary metaphors for the concept/anti-concept known as wuwei. The Daodejing suggests that we be like an uncarved block of wood. The implication is that once a block of wood is fashioned into something, it loses it’s potential to be something else. Once we make a decision, it cuts off certain options. In other words, it is often good to wait. But the Daodejing isn’t telling us to be indecisive. It doesn’t say, “in difficult situations – waver!” It also doesn’t say be slow, like a tree; or “be inactive,” like a log or a stump. It says be like a partially processed block of wood.

Since the Daodejing doesn’t give us any idea how big this block of wood might be, or what it might be for, we can speculate. Our block of wood could be carved into any sort of deity or icon, or perhaps a boat, a cabinet, a ladle, or a coffin. The Daodejing is using this metaphor to point to a process which takes place when we make something. It is not saying, “Don’t make stuff.” Sometimes a decision can position us for more possibilities, sometimes a decision can limit us. Is this better than that? Be comfortable with ambiguity, but have a few uncarved blocks hanging around in case you need them.
~ from Weakness With a Twist ~

P'u (pronounced POO) is literally the "uncarved wood" or "uncarved block." The metaphor suggests we are all born with our personality like an uncarved block of wood. All that we experience and all we are taught starts to carve away pieces of that original simplicity. Taoists try to regain that early sense of unlimited possibility by trying to "unlearn" things until everything becomes a new experience.

We may feel that we must hold fast to a sense of history so that we don't "repeat the mistakes" of our ancestors or at least our own mistakes. We have an alternative though. We can use our instincts to make a correct choice in each situation. And we can do it without an unnecessary burden of past experiences which may or may not be applicable to the new one.
~ from Tao Manor ~

To view the Index page for this series to see what you may have missed or would like to read again, go here.