Bit by Bit - Chapter 25, Part 21

Trey Smith

Little Understanding said, "Here within the four directions and the six realms, where do the ten thousand things spring from when they come into being?"

Great Impartial Accord said, "The yin and yang shine on each other, maim each other, heal each other; the four seasons succeed each other, give birth to each other, slaughter each other. Desire and hatred, rejection and acceptance thereupon rise up in succession; the pairing of halves between male and female thereupon becomes a regular occurrence. Security and danger trade places with each other, bad and good fortune give birth to each other, tense times and relaxed ones buffet one another, gathering-together and scattering bring it all to completion. These names and realities can be recorded, their details and minute parts can be noted. The principle of following one another in orderly succession, the property of moving in alternation, turning back when they have reached the limit, beginning again when they have ended - these are inherent in things. But that which words can adequately describe, that which understanding can reach to, extends only as far as the level of `things,' no farther. The man who looks to the Way does not try to track down what has disappeared, does not try to trace the source of what springs up. This is the point at which debate comes to a stop."
~ Burton Watson translation ~

Where DO the ten thousands spring from? Nobody knows and, from my perspective, no amount of thinking or anything else will change this. The ten thousand things simply are and so, why don't we go from there?

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