Bit by Bit - Chapter 2, Part 16

Trey Smith

For this reason, whether you point to a little stalk or a great pillar, a leper or the beautiful Hsi-shih, things ribald and shady or things grotesque and strange, the Way makes them all into one. Their dividedness is their completeness; their complete­ness is their impairment. No thing is either complete or impaired, but all are made into one again. Only the man of far­ reaching vision knows how to make them into one. So he has no use [for categories], but relegates all to the constant. The constant is the useful; the useful is the passable; the passable is the successful; and with success, all is accomplished. He relies upon this alone, relies upon it and does not know he is doing so. This is called the Way.
~ Burton Watson translation ~

I used to think -- as many still do -- that there was this thing called perfection. But how can anything be perfect? No matter how well something is done, it can always be done better. No matter how lovely a thing is, it can always be lovelier. And no matter how much we screw things up (perfect botch job), we can always screw things up worse.

Even if there was a god of some sort out there, how could it be perfect? In thinking about itself and its creations, I'm sure this "god" could envision grander schemes in which to order the world.

To view the Index page for this series, go here.