to consider what is small as great, and a few as many;This line runs counter to the way society, unfortunately, tends to operate. We seem to focus on what is big and bold, while neglecting what is small and quiet. Our economic system seeks to grant benefits to the few, while keeping the many trampled down.
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~
Magnify the small, increase the few.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~
Great, small, many, few
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~
Pay attention to details.
Start small and work your way up.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~
To view the Index page for this series to see what you may have missed or would like to read again, go here.
Maybe our society, but what about, say, Bhutan?
ReplyDelete"less is more" ----> make big of the Small (similar only Different to 'make the small big').
ReplyDeleteMaking 'big' of the 'Small' suggests simplify (as did Trey's quoted Biblical story about "posessions" & the "What if" response).
For Taoism & Taoists Power is in Sensitive, Modest
& Small. Represented by Child, Mysterious Female & Spirit of the Valley bringing compassion, humility & courage respectively. Incidently these 3 - Child, Mysterious Female & Spirit of the Valley - are considered Personifications of Tao. It is possible to draw parallels here with other spiritual persuasions where 3 is an important configuration].
Small & quiet has, quite literally, nothing to prove :)