Verse 19: Return to Original Honesty
Introduction
A meta-theme of Weaving the Way is the notion of “return.” Returning to an original state, returning to connection with the Dao, returning to accordance with natural law, returning to the way we all are when we haven’t forgotten our true nature.
This verse is all about a return to integrity or Truth.
The term people (民, mín) is used a few times in this verse. It works well to read the text regarding leadership or interpersonal advice, as has been the standard. I suggest recognizing its power in informing our relationship with ourselves and the “populace within.” After all, if the text is about us returning to our original state, how can it be concerned with manipulating other people?
Translation
End “knowing” and abandon debates.
The people will prosper 100-fold.
End competition and abandon profiteering.
Thieves will disappear.
End falsehood and abandon deception.
The people will return to devotion and kindness.
Just stating these three principles is not enough.
Not enough to bring them to life.
Not enough to breathe them into being.
We all must
See purity.
Protect simplicity.
Lessen conceit.
Reduce greed.
Commentary
End “knowing” and abandon debates.
The people will prosper 100-fold.
Getting into arguments and debates can be fun until it’s not. Knowing more than someone else can be satisfying in the moment. But how often does our need to know and be right end up causing us problems? It’s relatively easy to see the stress that verbal altercations with others have on us. Our minds may get trapped, rehashing the situation. Our hearts beat faster, and our breath becomes shallower.
The more insidious and destructive force of internal conflict is often less apparent. Our entire being can crumble when the “voices within” refuse to be curious and compassionate towards each other. We find ourselves speaking in hypotheticals and obligations. Our internal dialogue and external actions diverge, leading us to hypocrisy. We lose trust in ourselves and initiate a cycle of dishonesty, exacting a heavy toll on our physical, mental, and emotional well-being.
Commit to listening with an open heart. Commit to not fighting with yourself, but training all your perspectives to align with the Way. We don’t have to know how to do this because it is what we will automatically do when we stop doing the other things. Trust that your sincere intention is enough, and be honest with yourself when you fail to uphold it. Instead of avoiding guilt by falling into victim-oriented shame, recognize your power to make a different choice in the future. And do it!
End competition and abandon profiteering.
Thieves will disappear.
Constantly acquiring more has yet to prove an effective means of lasting happiness. We want more skills, more money, more accolades, more stuff, and more certifications. We are greedy to the extreme in trying to demonstrate our value to ourselves and the world. Even when we avoid the major traps, greed runs our lives in a million minor ways.
This cannot be otherwise. As biological organisms, we are driven to thrive and multiply. Our community and how others see and value us are crucial to our well-being. Many spiritual paths advocate giving all of this up as “evil ego attachment.” There is an alternative, though. We can maintain perspective, focus on the journey, and adopt a positive-sum game mindset.
Maintaining perspective means remembering that your only legacy is who you are when you do what you do.
Focusing on the journey means there is no destination; there are only ongoing processes in a world of constant change.
A positive-sum game means that more for others does not mean less for ourselves.
When we can embrace these principles, the thieves of our joy, such as greed, anger, pride, and jealousy, seem to disappear. Such a state persists in self-improvement and discovering new ways to contribute to our families, vocations, and communities.
End falsehood and abandon deception.
The people will return to devotion and kindness.
Truthfulness is a universal value. There simply is no room for dishonesty in a well-lived life. It doesn’t work. When we erect the barrier of dishonesty, devotion and kindness suffer. We all know this in our lives. Yet, are we willing to face its ramifications on our interior state? Are we willing to allow the “world in here” to be populated by honest “people”?
In my work, I routinely see that people’s suffering is primarily caused by their unwillingness or inability to accept their truth. Everyone wants things to be different. We want to feel different, be different, and have different situations and conditions. We’re in such a hurry for other things to happen that we forget to be with what is long enough to understand what we must do to get what we want. Almost always, the answer is more resources for peace, love, kindness, connection, and integrity. But, as we’ve seen throughout this text, we can only find the purest form of these qualities within ourselves.
Just stating these three principles is not enough.
Not enough to bring them to life.
Not enough to breathe them into being.
Unfortunately, saying we believe the above is true doesn’t transform our experience. Lao Zi ends this philosophical verse with the kicker that we have to do work in our lives. Gazing at the loom doesn’t weave the tapestry, after all. Neither does learning how to use it cognitively or working on the warp and woof for a minute. Only by using the appropriate tools for long enough can we create the beautiful product we long for.
What are those tools?
We all must
See purity.
Protect simplicity.
Lessen conceit.
Reduce greed.
“See purity” refers to emptying out and connecting to the Dao, the purity of one’s innermost nature.
“Protect simplicity” indicates a simple life of honesty, integrity, purpose, and clearly distinguishing one’s needs and wants. It relates to an attitude of contentment, gratitude, and appreciation.
Flipping the last two, “reduce greed” restates this verse.
“Lessen conceit” is somewhat paradoxical. There is very little need for conceit when we are firmly established in self-knowledge, well-resourced to meet our needs, and connected to purity and simplicity. Developmental psychology always places self-actualization and self-transcendence after healthy ego development. Paraphrasing Jun Po, it takes a strong ego to get over itself. We must discern what we need at whatever stage of life we are in and honor the process – there’s no shortcut to the bliss we all crave.