The Tao, The Way
The Sage never tries to store things up.
The more he does for others,
the more he has.
The more he gives to others,
the greater his abundance.
--Lao Tzu (Tao Te Ching 81)
Creating without claiming,
Doing without taking credit,
Guiding without interfering:
This is the Primal Virtue.
-- Lao Tzu (Tao Te Ching 51)
There is no greater sin than desire,
No greater curse than discontent,
No greater misfortune
than wanting something for oneself.
Therefore one who knows
that enough is enough
will always have enough.
--Lao Tzu (Tao Te Ching 46)
Better to stop short
than fill to the brim.
Oversharpen the blade
and the edge will soon blunt.
Amass a store of gold and jade,
and no one can protect it.
Claim wealth and titles,
and disaster will follow.
Retire when work is done.
This is the way of heaven
Be really Whole
And all things will come to you
Some wear gorgeous clothes,
Carry sharp swords,
And indulge themselves
with food and drink;
They have more possessions
than they can use.
They are robber barons.
This is certainly not the way of Tao.
--Lao Tzu (Tao Te Ching 53)
When an archer is shooting for nothing
He has all his skill.
If he shoots for a brass buckle
He is already nervous.
If he shoots for a prize of gold
He goes blind or sees two targets--
He is out of his mind!
His skill has not changed,
But the prize divides him.
He cares.
He thinks more of winning
Than of shooting--
And the need to win
Drains him of power.
Greed for enlightenment and immortality
is no different than greed for material wealth.
It is self-centered and dualistic,
and thus an obstacle to true attainment.
therefore these states are never achieved
by those who covet them;
rather, they are the reward of the virtuous.
Reward-and-punishment [credit-and-debt]
is the lowest form of education.
-- Chuang Tzu
What good is it to spend your life
accumulating material things?
It isn't in keeping with the Tao.
What benefit in conforming your behavior
to someone's conventions?
It violates your nature
and dissipates your energy.
Why separate your spiritual life
and your practical life?
To an integral being,
there is no such distinction.
Live simply and virtuously,
true to your nature,
drawing no line
between what is spiritual
and what is not.
Ignore time.
Relinquish ideas and concepts.
Embrace the Oneness.
This is the Integral Way.
Do not race after riches,
Do not risk your life for success,
or you will let slip
the Heaven within you.
Lao Tzu
Chuang Tzu