The best, like water, benefit all and do not compete. They dwell in lowly spots that everyone else scorns. Putting others before themselves, They find themselves in the foremost place and come very near to the Tao.
Lao Tzu
The Best
Topic: Virtue, Morality, & Ethics
THE BEST
“The best, like water,
Benefit all and do not compete.
They dwell in lowly spots that everyone else scorns.
Putting others before themselves,
They find themselves in the foremost place
And come very near to the Tao.
In their dwelling, they love the earth;
In their heart, they love what is deep;
In personal relationships, they love kindness;
In their words, they love truth.
In the world, they love peace.
In personal affairs, they love what is right.
In action, they love choosing the right time.
It is because they do not compete with others
That they are beyond the reproach of the world.”
Tao Te Ching
Easwaran, Eknath. God Makes the Rivers to Flow: an Anthology of the World's Sacred Poetry & Prose. Nilgiri Press, 2009, [Ruppenthal, Stephen H. The Path of Direct Awakening: Passages for Meditation. Berkeley Hills, 2004].
Lao Tzu
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Lao Tzu
Lao Tzu (c. 604-531 BCE) was a legendary Chinese sage whose collection of verses, the Tao Te Ching, is the basis of Taoism.
The Tao Te Ching
Lao Tzu (Master Lao) a legendary sage of ancient China, is considered the founder of Taoism. The legends relate that he worked as an archivist in the royal court until he decided to withdraw completely from worldly activities. As he was leaving the kingdom forever, a gatekeeper begged him to record his teachings for posterity. He sat down and quickly wrote out a series of poetic statements about how to live in harmony with the natural order of the universe – verses that have been treasured for twenty-five hundred years as the Tao Te Ching (“The Way and Its Power”). “The Best” is from chapter 8. “Ten thousand things” refers to the multiplicity of the phenomenal world, which is contrasted with Tao, “The Way,” the ultimate reality.
–Eknath Easwaran, God Makes the Rivers to Flow [Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching].
Additional Lao Tzu Quotes
HOLDING TO THE CONSTANT
Break into the peace within,
Hold attention in stillness,
And in the world outside
You will ably master the ten thousand things.
All things rise and flourish
Then go back to their roots.
Seeing this return brings true rest,
Where you discover who you really are.
Knowing who you are, you will find the constant.
Those who lack harmony with the constant court danger,
But those who have it gain new vision.
They act with compassion;
Within themselves, they can find room for everything.
Having room, they rule themselves and lead others wisely.
Being wise, they live in accordance
With the nature of things.
Emptied of self and one with nature,
They become filled with the Tao.
The Tao endures forever.
For those who have attained harmony with the Tao
Will never lose it,
Even if their bodies die.
–Lao Tzu [“Holding to the Constant”].
MOTHER OF ALL THINGS
The universe had a beginning
Called the Mother of All Things.
Once you have found the Mother
You can know her children.
Having known the children,
Hold tightly to the Mother.
Your whole life will be preserved from peril.
Open up the openings,
Multiply your affairs,
Your whole life will become a burden.
Those who see the small are called clear-headed;
Those who hold to gentleness are called strong.
Use the light.
Come home to your true nature.
Don’t cause yourself injury:
This is known as seizing truth.
–Lao Tzu [“Mother of All Things”].