5: The Limit of Compassion

5

Heaven and Earth are not kind.
They regard all things as offerings.
The sage is not kind.
He regards people as offerings.
Is not the space between Heaven and Earth like a bellows?
It is empty, but lacks nothing.
The more it moves, the more comes out of it.
A multitude of words is tiresome,
Unlike remaining centered.

The Limit of Compassion

This chapter consists of three parts that have little to do with one another. The first part talks about offerings, the second about a bellows, and the third about words...

Here is my full commentary on this Tao Te Ching chapter:
Tao Te Ching Chapter 5 Translation and Commentary

4: The Hidden Cause

4

The Way is empty, yet inexhaustible,
Like an abyss!
It seems to be the origin of all things.
It dulls the sharpness,
Unties the knots,
Dims the light,
Becomes one with the dust.
Deeply hidden, as if it only might exist.
I do not know whose child it is.
It seems to precede the ancestor of all.

The Hidden Cause

Lao Tzu returns here to the mysterious nature of Tao, the Way. It's so vague and distant that we can only guess its existence by the deductions we make from observing the world around us. It's the inner working of the universe, and probably therefore also the originator of it...

Here is my full commentary on this Tao Te Ching chapter:
Tao Te Ching Chapter 4 Translation and Commentary

3: As Little as Possible

3

Not praising the deserving
Prevents envy.
Not valuing wealth
Prevents theft.
Not displaying what's desirable
Prevents confusion of the senses.
Therefore:
The sage governs by emptying senses and filling bellies,
Curbing strife and strengthening backs,
Keeping the people ignorant and without desire,
Making the learned afraid to act.
If he acts without action, order will prevail.

As Little as Possible

Society is obsessed with the eagerness to change. Change for the better, we would like to believe. Today we call it progress, as if that's automatically the case...

Here is my full commentary on this Tao Te Ching chapter:
Tao Te Ching Chapter 3 Translation and Commentary

2: Don’t Split the Unity!

2

When everyone in the world sees beauty,
Then ugly exists.
When everyone sees good,
Then bad exists.
Therefore:
What is and what is not create each other.
Difficult and easy complement each other.
Tall and short shape each other.
High and low rest on each other.
Voice and tone blend with each other.
First and last follow each other.
So, the sage acts by doing nothing,
Teaches without speaking,
Attends all things without making claim on them,
Works for them without making them dependent,
Demands no honor for his deed.
Because he demands no honor,
He will never be dishonored.

Don't Split the Unity

In the second chapter, Lao Tzu continues by presenting a consequence of what he stated in the first chapter. Because the opposites of existence are united in a necessary whole, it's detrimental to separate them – either in deed or in value...

Here is my full commentary on this Tao Te Ching chapter:
Tao Te Ching Chapter 2 Translation and Commentary

1: It's All Real

1

The Way that can be walked is not the eternal Way.
The name that can be named is not the eternal name.
The nameless is the beginning of Heaven and Earth.
The named is the mother of all things.

Therefore:
Free from desire you see the mystery.
Full of desire you see the manifestations.
These two have the same origin but differ in name.
That is the secret,
The secret of secrets,
The gate to all mysteries.

It's All Real

Lao Tzu begins his writing about Tao, the Way, by stating that the written word cannot fully encompass the real thing. The workings of the Way are hidden behind what we can observe...

Here is my full commentary on this Tao Te Ching chapter:
Tao Te Ching Chapter 1 Translation and Commentary