Tao of the Day

Cici joined me for the anniversary of her mothers passing and #30, Melissa had some issues with a student and we looked at #58. Jay K chose #32 and V A came up to explore #79.
#30 "Tao Does Not Dominate"
Governing, in any capacity, when led by Tao
Doesn't use force to gain power.
Every force applied will suffer equal counterforce.
So violence, however it is intended,
Will always rebound upon itself.
Where armies march briers grow
And in their wake follows hunger and villainy.
Skillful in what she does
The Master achieves her goal and stops;
Neither forcing nor manipulating further.
She knows that dominating
Goes counter to Tao
And whoever opposes Tao
Will certainly die early.
#32 "It is Not What You Can See"
So subtle is Tao it has never been seen
And yet nothing that can be seen is without it.
When beings can remain centered in Tao
All that they perceive is in harmony.
As that harmony inspires actions,
Those actions will have names,
Know that those names are provisional.
If those actions inspire institutions to form,
Know where their reach should end.
Inspired actions, although they may have names,
Those names needn't be taken too seriously.
Tao is behind it all
Even if you cannot see it.
#58 "To Oversee, Don't Interfere"
In overseeing anything, don't interfere,
Let everything flourish in its own time.
Interfering, you get met with resistance
Or worse, apathetic adherence.
Misery and misfortune are tied to expectation.
To expect success is to focus on failure,
To expect happiness is to invite misery,
To expect moral adherence is to flirt with tragedy.
There is no escaping it, expecting good yields bad,
This is interfering, it has always been true.
The Master therefore is content to simply be an example
She has no desire to impose, and trusts all she oversees,
She is firm but yielding, she is sharp, yet none are cut by her
She is radiant, but easy on the eyes.
#79 "Conflict Resolution"
Every conflict creates an "Other"
Even after a resolution, animosity remains.
Is that good enough for you?
Therefore, the Master always does her part
Keeping the peace, not placing blame,
Correcting her own actions,
Without requiring the same from others.
Tao doesn't care who's right
If you do, you'll find it difficult

A great show kicked off with a partial read of #33 and Marianne joined me for #18 and got a hug from me and Melissa who chose #24. Linda E then jumped up and selected #57.
#18 "Out of Touch with Tao"
When out of touch with Tao
Etiquette is observed.
When etiquette cannot be abided
We find excuses to make it proper.
When excuses gut the family,
Chaos favors the hierarchy.
When all the neighbors are in chaos
Blind loyalty is demanded.
#24 "Do What is to be Done"
Standing on tiptoes robs you of firm footing.
Rushing ahead robs you of knowing where you are.
Looking at yourself robs you of seeing.
Boasting of yourself robs you of your brilliance.
Overpowering others robs you of your power.
Clinging to your work robs you of longevity.
If you want to align with Tao
Just do what is to be done and then stop.
#33 "You are Not Manifestation"
Study others and gain some knowledge.
Study yourself and gain deep wisdom.
Controlling others takes strength.
But controlling your ego and desires
Takes power and perseverance.
Knowing that you have enough gives you wealth,
Grasping for money and love forces you to conform.
Embrace who you are and stay centered in that
And although you will die you will not perish.
#57 "Laws are All in the Heart"
Tao governs all things by discarding objectives.
Never possessing or interfering,
All things only need abide the law in their heart,
In this way they are free from desire.
When Tao is ignored, objectives rule the day.
Rules are created that make people expend energy to get around them.
Intelligence is praised and rewarded while products become more demonic and intrusive.
Weapons are paraded, fear spreads, and the hearts of all things close off.
As litigation becomes a national focus politicians and criminals multiply.
The Master needn't engage these traps
She is quiet, and people follow their light
She is peaceful, and people are compelled to be honest
She does nothing, and all things flourish together.
Have no desire and all things will achieve primal existence.

A great show with lots of listeners and guests. I started out with Melissa and #8 then Sandy chose #64 and Johnny came up an we talked abou t#12 and healing. Jay K wrapped up the day wiht #13.
#8 "Be Like Water"
Water is humble,
Always traveling to the lowest place,
Nourishing, without taxing
Everything along the way.
In so doing, it is like Tao.
The Master aims to resemble water:
In thinking, she is simple.
In conflict, she is yielding.
In governing, she doesn't need control.
In work, she does the obvious thing.
In family life, she is continually present.
When one can be content with being,
And not require comparison or praise,
It is said they invest in their life
By making of it a donation.
#12 "The Senses"
Colors blind the eyes of men.
Sounds deafen the ears of men.
Flavors dull the tongues of men.
Thoughts will lead a mind to turmoil.
Desires and greed will lead a life to turmoil.
Therefore, the Master satisfies her inner vision
Allowing external cravings to come and go.
#13 "Finding Equality at the Extremes"
To succeed and to fail are equally undesirable.
Creation and destruction are equally present within us.
What do I mean by "To succeed and to fail are equally undesirable?"
The more success you have the more you protect it by hiding failure.
The more you associate with failure the more you embody it.
When neither success nor failure is identified as the destination
Being becomes the objective.
What do I mean by "Creation and destruction are equally present within us?"
Having a body and a mind, with which I identify, gets me involved in the manifestation.
The manifestation convinces me of my actions
And so naming them I both create and destroy
Neither of which are unique.
To see yourself with indifference
You will have faith in all things.
To see the world with indifference
You will be able to care for it all.
#64 "It's so Easy"
It is easy to stop something before it is set into motion.
It is easy to plan something before beginning it.
It is easy to break something before it has grown strong.
It is easy to hide something before it has grown big.
Preventing problems has never been the problem.
Tiny sprouts do this and grow to unimaginable heights,
Every journey has started with the first easy step.
Avoiding the easy is what has created all difficult problems.
Rushing past the easy things will end up costing you,
Grasping onto the destination you lose sight of where you are.
Forcing things to be what you want, when you want,
Will only turn those things against you.
Therefore, the Master monitors her desire for an outcome.
She remains as calm at the beginning as at the end
So she can see what is in front of her.
She embraces the mundane and doesn't prize rarities.
Doing this the Master reminds those around her
Of who they have always been, and they are inspired.
Caring about nothing but Tao she cares for all things.

Today we have some serious conversations. I started off with Marianne and #73 and that led to som eserious prais of Mariiane by Melissa and her #63. Sandy joined and we talked withdrawl and #4 then Jay K came up and discussed her take on #47.
#4 "The Void"
Tao is the void
And the void is within everything.
As it relates to what is perceptible (cells)
Everything is mostly void.
As the origin of everything
It is hidden within every particular thing.
The Master knows it is even the source of God,
And yet others still go on searching.
#47 "Engaging with Manifestation"
You can understand all things touched by Tao
Without leaving your room.
You can see all things touched by Tao
Without opening your eyes.
The more you trust the manifestation
The less you trust yourself.
Thus, the Master never engages manifestation
Without first having engaged herself.
In so doing she achieves everything
Without ever having considered it.
#63 "Problems are no Problem"
Be still and you will act without doing,
Be still and your work will happen regularly.
Be still and your senses will engage the subtle.
Similarly engage a stranger as the multitude.
See the majesty of mountains in a grain of sand.
The Master knows greatness cannot be grasped.
Remaining still, she allows greatness to flow through her.
With no desire to achieve it, her stillness guides her,
Making subtle movements the difficult seems easy.
She knows that all of life is not without its problems
So problems turn out to be no problem at all.
#73 "Nothing Falls Through"
There are men who love feeling, and to feel they kill.
There are men who love feeling, and to do so remain calm.
Who is to say which will experience more turmoil?
There is purpose in walking with death, as there is in walking with life.
The inner workings of Tao can never be understood;
It makes no commands, yet all things come on their own accord;
It never acts; but all things act on its behalf;
It is empty, yet within it lays all things and their Master Plans.
Tao is a net holding all things together, connected.
Its mesh is wide, but it holds so well nothing falls through.

What a great show, Mpress joined me for #10 after I started talking about #68. JRey and J Kay joined for #49 and #78 repectivly. then Kathy got in under the wire for #6.
#6 "The Great Feminine"
Everything is born from the feminine,
Even Heaven and Earth.
The Feminine that births is a Mother,
She nourishes and supports without possessing.
Despite your awareness of it
You are using it right now.
#10 "Authentic Action"
Can you control your mind, so it doesn't wonder?
Can you control your body, so it doesn't wander?
Can you endorse all that you do?
Can you love everyone so as to inspire them?
Can you do all this without interfering and remain unknown?
Can you leave behind knowing and open yourself to understanding?
Can you be like Tao and give birth
Without possessing?
Can you be like Tao and act
Without expecting?
Can you be like Tao and lead
without dominating?
If so, it would be considered great.
#49 "Illusion of Separateness"
The Master has freed herself from separateness
She opens herself to receive from all beings.
When she encounters sincerity, she responds in kind,
In the face of duplicity, her sincerity remains.
When she encounters goodness, she responds in kind,
In the face of evil, her goodness remains.
Why should she change for the manifestation?
She knows the manifestation is an illusion of separateness
Beyond that, there is only one.
#68 "Do What you Love to Do"
Great athletes love to play, not win
Great fighters love to fight, not be angry
Great generals love to strategize, not destroy
Great employers love to employ, not be a boss.
Great musicians love to play, not perform.
They are not attached to identities or outcomes,
They simply dance with what they love to do.
This is in harmony with Tao.
#78 "Living in a Damaged State"
Air and water are the softest things we know,
Causing no damage to those that live within them
Yet both erode the hard or rigid in their path.
The soft and flexible will always overcome.
While the hard and rigid eventually collapse.
Ordinary men are well aware of this
However, they prefer conspicuous outcomes.
Thus they align with rigid hardness,
It stands firm for a time, but does not last.
Therefore, the Master teaches us that
We can live amongst things that damage
Without being damaged by them.