Welcome back to The Wisdom of Lao Tzu.
This week we are reading the fifth chapter of Tao Te Ching, one of the most misunderstood and misrepresented chapters in the text.
In fact, without a comprehensive understanding of Taoist thought, it is quite easy to cherrypick ideas in this chapter and conclude that Taoist philosophy supports some manipulative political practices, such as advocating that leaders should use manipulation tactics in collecting popular support.
Let’s dive in.
**5**
天地不仁,以萬物為芻狗;
聖人不仁,以百姓為芻狗。
天地之間,其猶橐籥乎!
虛而不屈,動而愈出。多言數窮,不如守中。
Border-crossing: English translations
#1 Lin Yutang’s version
Nature is unkind:
It treats the creation like sacrificial straw-dogs.
The Sage is unkind:
He treats the people like sacrificial straw-dogs.
How the universe is like a bellows!
Empty, yet it gives a supply that never fails;
The more it is worked, the more it brings forth.
By many words is wit exhausted.
Rather, therefore, hold to the core.
#2 Edmund Ryden’s version
Heaven and earth are not benevolent:
They treat the myriad things as a straw dog.
The Sage is not benevolent:
He treats the common people as a straw dog.
Heaven and earth are like the bellows and the blow-tube:
As emptiness increases, they inhale less and less;
As they press together, they expel more and more.
To talk too much is merely chatter;
It cannot match retaining emptiness1.
#3 D. C. Lau’s version
Heaven and earth are ruthless, and treat the myriad creatures as straw dogs;
The sage is ruthless, and treats the people as straw dogs.
Is not the space between heaven and earth like a bellows?
It is empty without being exhausted:
The more it works the more comes out.
Much speech leads inevitably to silence.
Better to hold fast to the void2.
Deeper dive
Straw dogs are used in sacrificial rituals as offerings, and are usually discarded after the rituals are finished.
He Shanggong (approximately 200 BC - ?) commented on the sayings of “Nature is unkind” 天地不仁 that “Heaven and earth cultivate and transform (the myriad things), not based on the principles of benevolence and favor, but follow the principle of naturalness” (「天施地化,不以仁恩,任自然也。」).
And he interpreted the saying “The Sage is unkind” 聖人不仁 as “The sage takes a gentle and caring approach to people (in the realm), and models after how heaven and earth operate and practice naturalness instead of depending on benevolence and favor.”(「聖人愛養萬民,不以仁恩,法天地,行自然。」)
Wang Bi’s (226 - 249 AD) comments share a similar meaning to He Shanggong’s insights. And both authors touched on the core idea of naturalness in Taoism.
But Wang Bi pointed out a crucial point: the agency of the myriad things for self-governance.
Moreover, he held the view that a benevolent person is inclined to grant favor and preferences to what he or she deems reasonable, which is not impartial and eventually harms the organic whole.
Here’s his comment on the first sentence, “Heaven and earth operate naturally, and they follow wu-wei (nonaction) and do not construct (falsify). The myriad things achieve self-governance without considering heaven and earth as benevolent. He who is benevolent is inclined to intentionally cultivate and make changes, giving favors and acting purposefully. To construct, establish, cultivate, and make change will cause things to lose their purity. Giving favors and acting purposefully will not help all the myriad things preserve themselves… By applying the principle of wu-wei, the myriad things can find ease with themselves, which is sufficient.” 「天地任自然,無為無造,萬物自相治理,故不仁也。仁者必造立施化,有恩有為。造立施化,則物失其真。有恩有為,則物不具存。... 無為於萬物而萬物各適其所用,則莫不贍矣。」
From what I see, the tricky thing to reach a clear understanding of this chapter is that manipulative political opportunists in history would abuse some lofty ideas and slogans to confuse the minds and hearts of the average individuals.
In other words, Lao Tzu is telling us that there will be political agents who would package themselves as benevolent, impartial, and just rulers, while in reality, they were the opposite of these qualities.
Nevertheless, they could still take advantage of these positive ideals and promulgate their roles to “serve” the people.
The Taoist sage ruler, from the text of Tao Te Ching, models after the way heaven and earth operate, which means holding no preferences and personal views. They do not give favors to particular groups, families, and individuals.
But we know from history and experience that such an impartial and just leader who does not project his own will and perspectives on others and does not rule by favoritism is rare, if not impossible to identify.
I leave this week’s cultural note blank as I’m aware that history abounds in negative examples of political leaders and rulers who could not represent the image of a Taoist sage ruler.
And I think having Taoism as a guide can at least help us become more resourceful in navigating sophisticated and complex situations in life.
Because one of the most daunting challenges of modern times is not a lack of information but arriving at intelligent judgment and decisions through connecting and rising above the sources of information, just like grasping the essence of the message from this chapter of Tao Te Ching.
Until next week,
Yuxuan
Daodejing, trans. Edmund Ryden. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008), 13.
Tao Te Ching, trans. D. C. Lau. (London: Penguin Classics, 1963), 9.