Chapter 41

Quote

Scholars of the highest class, when they hear about the Tao,
earnestly carry it into practice. Scholars of the middle class, when they have heard about it, seem now to keep it and now to lose it. Scholars of the lowest class, when they have heard about it, laugh greatly at it. If it were not (thus) laughed at, it would not be fit to be the Tao.

Therefore the sentence-makers have thus expressed themselves:--

"The Tao, when brightest seen, seems light to lack;
Who progress in it makes, seems drawing back;
Its even way is like a rugged track.
Its highest virtue from the vale doth rise;
Its greatest beauty seems to offend the eyes;
And he has most whose lot the least supplies.
Its firmest virtue seems but poor and low;
Its solid truth seems change to undergo;
Its largest square doth yet no corner show
A vessel great, it is the slowest made;
Loud is its sound, but never word it said;
A semblance great, the shadow of a shade."

The Tao is hidden, and has no name; but it is the Tao which is skilful at imparting (to all things what they need) and making them complete.

Comment

First thing first, I want to quote here the interpretation of this chapter by a Tao-te ching translator and commentator.

The Way manifests itself in duality and works by contra-motion (stanza 40): what unfolds reverses what seems to be only to be itself reversed. Thus naming is confounded. Those who see the world this way may themselves appear different from what they are; for they avoid self-display and self-assertion (stanza 24) and 'Acknowledge the white / But remember the black" (stanza 28). (Dao D Jing - The Book of The Way, Translation and commentary byMoss Roberts, p. 114.)

Here's my own interpretation (Jhian):

The first part of this chapter talks about skilled people who recognize the Way as a great perfection and follow it. This is normal.

But there are also those who doesn't recognize the perfection of the Way and laugh at it. This is also normal because anytime and everywhere what is perfect seems imperfect,

Second part - the conclusion of the first one, all good things in the world don't seem to be good etc. This is perfectly right. In my country, for example, there's a joke saying something similar: the dog who bark, doesn't bite! This is right. It happens all the time.

What I want to say here is that the chapter in its entirety refers to normal and observable things.

The third part - What makes all the things complete is their hidden tao - meaning, their own way to be or manifest themselves. That is, it doesn't matter if something is straight and another, crooked etc. - both are equally complete.

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Coomentary by Jhian

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