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Introduction

I find this verse’s exhortation to operate from the root of our experience very compelling. It promises that returning to the root brings endless security, a sense of purity, connection to the eternal, and profound clarity. It also makes it clear that not returning to the root results in confusion and foolish actions, making us responsible for our own suffering. To sum it up:

The good news is we get to plant our own fields and can do it however we want. 

The bad news is we have to plant our own fields, and we can do it however we want. 

Spider-man’s Uncle Ben was on point when he said, “With great power comes great responsibility.”

Translation

Approach absolute voidness,
 preserve the profound center. 

All that exists acts
from its origin and returns to it. 

Those who Weave the Way
  each return to the root. 

Returning to the root is called purity. 
Purity is called recovering destiny.
Recovering destiny is called unchanging. 
Knowing what doesn’t change is called clarity. 

Not knowing the eternal… 
Confused! Acting foolishly!

Knowing an unchanging presence. 
Presence is the leader.
The leader is the ruler.
The ruler is Spirit. 
Spirit is Dao. 
Dao is eternal. 

Endless security.

Commentary

Approach absolute voidness,
  preserve the profound center. 

Here, we revisit a motif that first emerged in verse 5: “Using Nothing-ness,” preserving the center. These lines further define the concept of “center” to include the quality of “voidness.” Without diving too far into meditative practices, voidness points to an experience of such immediate presence, immediate “now-ness,” that no conscious experience persists long enough to be registered. It feels like expanding into infinite space.

The effect of this experience is that, by becoming so vast, the pressure of past events drops to nothing, and we gain immense freedom to function in alignment with the Way. Many aspects of what that looks like have already been described in previous verses, and we will continue to explore them more throughout this work. 

In any case, this profound center is the root of the moment. It is the point where the Dao flows into existence and begins the dance of yin and yang.

All that exists acts
  from its origin and returns to it. 

This line invites us to use the necessary practices to approach voidness and preserve the center. That’s nice yet somewhat idealistic. What can we learn from this principle that’s more immediately applicable? 

You get what you give. You reap what you sow. Like attracts Like. What goes around comes around. It’s called karma, baby! 

Most people harvest a bunch of corn (for example), and because they already have corn, they plant more corn. If we like corn, that’s awesome! If we don’t, that’s a problem. 

This is an impersonal, natural law that seekers of every time and culture have identified and verified:

Action (Corn kernel) = Mental State + Intention + Thought/Word/Deed

Each action is a cause (kernel) and an effect (corn).

Different cultures and systems interpret and work with this truth differently, but the mechanism itself is undisputed. 

Those who Weave the Way
  each return to the root.

This system of meditative living asks us to deal with the truth mentioned above by returning to the root, our profound center. When we do, we operate on the creative side of the cycle by intentionally “sowing” what we hope to “reap.” To Weave the Way is, in its simplest form, applying this principle to the greatest possible extent. 

Returning to the root is called purity.
Purity is called recovering destiny.
Recovering destiny is called unchanging.
Knowing what doesn’t change is called clarity. 

At this point, the verse is just banging the point home. As was stated, returning to the root provides an experience of “now-ness” where everything is possible. This is “purity.” In the pristine state, anything is possible; most delightfully, we can act according to the flow of the Dao, which is “destiny.” Attuning to our “destiny” frees us from the fickle, erratic impulses that keep us caught up in all the wrong things. This stability inherent in operating from our center, always connected to the eternal voidness, is called “unchanging.” From such an “unchanging” perspective, the chaotic swirl settles, and we experience profound “clarity.” 

Not knowing the eternal…
Confused! Acting foolishly!

Whenever we forget the eternal, unchanging basis from which all form manifests and to which all form returns, we are confused. In that confusion, we sow seeds we don’t want to eat the fruit of. Then we have to deal with the harvest of fruit we don’t like. It’s the cosmic joke! Admittedly, eating what we don’t like may not seem amusing, but my root teacher, Jun Po, used to say: “If you’ve lost your sense of humor, you’ve lost your way!” 

Knowing an unchanging presence.
Presence is the leader.
The leader is the ruler.
The ruler is Spirit.
Spirit is Dao.
Dao is eternal. 

The stanza here walks us through the loop of practice. Find the profound center of eternal voidness and take it as your guiding light. As this relationship matures and you come to trust it, it will lead you into the life you always wanted. Once you see how real and possible it is to orient from this perspective, you surrender even more completely to your internal connection to this force: your Spirit. In a surprise twist, our individuated essence is no different than the Dao itself, animating this temporal vessel we call a body. 

Endless security.

The eternal Dao is the inner Spirit animating each moment of your life. The laws of that internal, miraculous mystery rule our lives. When those laws guide us, we discover a profound and unchanging presence permeating our experience. 

Taking this presence as the center, we discover an innate purity and infinite potential to steadily and clearly tend to the fields of our existence. In tune with our eternal nature and actively cultivating the conditions of our lives, there is nothing but security and peace. Or, as the Buddha beautifully said, 

“These awakened ones,
Dedicated to meditation,
Striving actively and vigorously,
Attain nirvana, the ultimate security.” 

The Dhammapada 2:3