Introduction

The title of this verse points, once again, to understanding the Dao through the way it manifests in our lives. The example is personal, like in Cherishing People, but the emphasis is on pointing out a natural law for us to apply. Understanding ourselves through examining the universe and understanding the universe by examining ourselves is a crucial component of wisdom traditions.

Sheathing Light evokes several layers of meaning. The concrete meaning is that when we look at how connected the universe is, we understand that our well-being emerges from our environment. Therefore, being of service and enjoying other’s success is the way we take care of ourselves, too. There is a value in being quietly competent and going about our business without making a big deal of our work. For more on this, see Cherishing People

Sheathing Light also describes the Dao by alluding to the Dao functioning as the interplay of yang (Heaven, spiritual) and yin (Earth, material). We have seen various allusions to this building up in the previous verses.

“The unnameable is the embryo of existence. The act of naming gives birth to all things.” (verse 1)
opposites are embedded in each other (verse 2)
“The Dao flows from a bottomless vessel” (verse 4)
“Pumped and even more comes out” (verse 5)
“The Generative Mother’s womb is the origin of Heaven and Earth” (verse 6)

The natural law of their dynamic interaction is made explicit and pointed to as a referent for the Wise.

Translation

Heaven is permanent; Earth is eternal.

Nature is permanent and eternal
  because it is not self-made.
Being other-made enables immortality.

The Wise, knowing this,
   Step back from themselves and find themselves ahead.
   Exclude themselves and see themselves cherished.

Is this not selflessness?
Such is the way to emerge as oneself.

Commentary

Heaven is permanent; Earth is eternal.

As the intro mentions, Heaven and Earth are corollary to yang and yin. It’s appropriate to conceptualize Heaven and Earth as poles of an electromagnetic spectrum, Heaven/yang being the positive pole and Earth/yin being the negative. The Dao is the electromagnetic force organized and given motion through this fundamental duality.

Stating that Heaven and Earth are both permanent and eternal highlights the Daoist perspective that neither can destroy the other. Further, attempting to exclude either is both futile and harmful. The Dao, Heaven/yang, and Earth/in are the component forces of existence.

Nature is permanent and eternal
because it is not self-made.
Being other-made enables immortality.

Heaven and Earth together constitute Nature, as previously mentioned. Their dynamic interplay mutually creates each other. Only because there is a receiver of force (Earth/yin) can the distributor of force (Heaven/yang) exist. Conversely, without a distributor of force, there is nothing for a receiver to receive. To be explicit, Dao is the force itself.

Yin (receiver) and yang (distributor) mutually support each other’s ongoing existence because they are the other’s cause and effect. Verse 2: Cultivating the Main Point describes this in detail.

The Wise, knowing this,

Here is our typical transition from a meta-principle to a “real-life” example. Weaving the Way is a pragmatic manual for meditative living, after all.

Step back from themselves and find themselves ahead.

We get ahead when we don’t take ourselves so seriously. Suspending our judgments and desires and putting others first is in our best interest. Like yin and yang, we and others are mutually and dynamically creating the flow of existence. Using our energy to power the dynamo of interconnectedness results in significant personal benefits.

The Chinese versions have a nuanced disagreement here. The earlier versions use 退 (tuì), while the later ones use 后 (hòu).

退 (tuì) is to step back, retreat, withdraw, recede, fade.
后 (hòu) is behind, rear, back.

The two characters often appear in compounds, with their order indicating nuances in meaning.

退后 is like turning around and going away from something. It more abstractly refers to giving up on something in the face of difficulty or changing one’s opinion in a debate.
后退 is like backing up or retreating from a fixed position, usually physically.

In the context of the contrasting statement, “finding themselves ahead,” which uses the character 先 (xiān), the opposite of 后 (hòu), it makes sense later scribes used it instead of 退 (tuì). However, our contemplation of the meaning is much deeper when we consider these nuances.

Exclude themselves and find themselves cherished.

This line points to something that many of us have seen before. The people in our lives who do not try to be the center of attention but focus on being great friends hold a special place in our hearts. Committing to humbly supporting others for longer-lasting well-being can be challenging. Especially at times when it seems like the “only way to get ahead” is through self-promotion. However, we all know it’s true when we reflect on how positively stories of true nobility impact us, while the opposite feels so icky.

Is this not selflessness?
Such is the way to emerge as oneself.

The verse wraps up by summarizing the paradox that isn’t a paradox. Selflessness itself is the most valid form of being one Self. This true Self emerges when we are unbiased toward self or other, recognizing both as co-creating aspects of a single life. The very act of giving our effort “into the other” is self-preservation.