Taoism and Lao Tzu
Lao Tzu says, “The maiden of Heaven has no name / the mother of all things has a name”.
My writing is enriched by looking back at places and things I’ve found important, not just for myself but for others as well. I’ve been writing for over thirty years, always focusing on the singular idea of what it is that leads to the highest endeavor and destiny of myself and others.
My writing seems aimed at guiding me, in both a practical and spiritual way, to do what I once did before retiring as a city planner and neighborhood specialist—taking people to places they might not otherwise experience or know. Not to simply follow a path the same as mine, but to open the door for them as well. Something I enjoyed doing while teaching English in China with my students.
Chapter fifty-two of the Tao Te Ching teaches that the world had a beginning, seen as the mother who understands her children. By cherishing this mother (what we refer to as mother nature) and staying connected to her, we can live free of trouble and suffer no harm.
Closing our gates to trouble allows us to live without fear, and by not meddling in matters beyond our control, we learn the value of discernment. What’s important is to perceive things when they are small with the vision, or light, of knowing that what remain pliable gains strength to see beyond the present to distant horizons.
I’ve never thought of myself as a traditional scholar, but rather as a storyteller with some knowledge and a bit of wisdom gained through age and experience. Eastern philosophy and Taoism have a history spanning over four thousand years, and depending on one’s perspective and knowledge, people may interpret the idea of living in harmony with our innate nature and virtue in very different ways. This is why finding mentors and teachers can be so important.
Equally important is connecting what we know to how we see ourselves. While I’m an avid historian, I write less from a strictly academic angle and more as a storyteller with a passion for Chinese history. When thinking or writing about what remains unknown, we put ourselves into what the results may be as living history. It’s how and why we each get to be the author of our own story as well.
Why what appears to be the same yet remains different is because we put ourselves into what it should look like. The universe and nature are looking for diversity and synchronicity at the same time… Why each person’s path can appear to be the same and why our goals remain different. How Lao Tzu saw the Tao as the mother of all things guiding everything to its highest endeavor through virtue to what can only be called the unknown.
Discovering Lao Tzu and exploring the Tao Te Ching requires a commitment of time and effort that goes beyond who we are now and who we will become. It’s about embracing the principles and ideas of Taoism and virtue in our daily lives. There’s really nothing to strive for, except to simply be our true, natural selves.
More importantly, it transforms from an abstract idea into a doorway to who we’ve always been. People, places, and experiences can spark memories that take us back, reminding us of our true, timeless selves, as if there are no real beginnings or endings—only the present moment to share and embrace.
I believe there’s no greater gift than knowing our origins and having “spirit guides” who seek us out—mine take the form of the ancient Chinese dragons. Ancient shamans and sages were said to have come from the stars, taken the shape of dragons, and traveled on the wind. Chapter fifty-two perfectly captures the essence of our role.
Before we go on with Verse number 52 of 81, it’s worth noting that the title of the book we’re adding commentary to—Lao Tzu’s Tao Te Ching—is my own version, titled “Thoughts on Becoming a Sage: The Guidebook to Leading a Virtuous Life”. It’s important to note that Lao Tzu wrote the Tao Te Ching in the sixth century BC, while I wrote mine in May and June of 2000 and published it in China in 2006.
Verse 52 – When our virtue becomes us
When the ten thousand things came forth in the world, they did so as offspring of a great mother.
When you know this mother, you can begin to understand her offspring understand the child and its mother becomes secure and. lives without trouble. Begin to focus on the Tao with the path you must take becoming clear and this mother will nurture you forever.
When we block the opening from that outside ourselves and close the gate to those who would bring us misfortune, we can live without toil or struggle.
When we leave the opening unprotected and meddle in affairs outside of what the Way teaches us, we live without hope.
When we follow the words of Confucius when he reminds us that just as things have their roots and branches, those that know what comes first and last may approach the Tao.
When we understand what motivates those around us and events when they are small, we can be quick to change our behavior and magnify our vision.
When we learn to trust our vision, we can see beyond ourselves and live beyond our death.
When we live beyond our death, we can become free to travel the universe with the dragons as our virtue becomes us.
52. 德即是我们
万物都是一个伟大母亲的后代。理解这位母亲，你就理解她的后代。理解母和子会使你生活平
安，免于灾难。你就可以专心于道，前程变得更加光明。这位母亲将会永远养育你。
当我们堵塞缺口，关上大门，不允许那些给我们带来灾难的人进入，我们就能够免于陷入困境。如果我们留下缺口，
不加以保护，并且掺和那些与道无关之事，我们的生活就没有希望。
我们要遵循孔子的教导，他告诫我们，事物皆有根枝，那些知道先后的人才能够接近道。
当我们知道什么能够激励众人和事情的起始，我们就能够迅速改变自己的行为，开阔我们的视野。
当我们学会相信自己的眼光，我们就能够看得更远，超越死亡。当我们能够超越死亡，我们就可以与神龙自由地漫游，大德就成为我们。
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