After chapter 20's loneliness, chapter 21 supplies the reassurance: the Mother is real. The grandest virtue, it opens, follows only the Tao — character is not self-made but comes from alignment. Then the famous oscillating description: as a thing, the Tao is vague and elusive; elusive and vague, yet within it there are forms; vague and elusive, yet within it there are things; deep and dark, yet within it there is essence — and that essence is utterly real; within it there is trust.
The rhythm of the lines enacts their meaning: every admission of elusiveness is answered by an assertion of reality. The Tao cannot be pinned down, and it is not nothing — within the indefinite lives the most dependable thing there is. From ancient times until now, Lao Tzu adds, its name has not departed; through it we perceive the beginnings of all things. And his closing credential is pure Taoist epistemology: how do I know the shape of all beginnings? By this — not by argument or authority, but by direct acquaintance with the source itself.
Key verses
The grandest virtue follows only the Tao. As a thing, the Tao is vague and elusive. Elusive and vague, within it there are forms. Vague and elusive, within it there are things. Deep and dark, within it there is essence; that essence is utterly real, within it there is trust. From the present back to antiquity, its name has not departed — by it we perceive the beginnings of all things. How do I know the shape of all beginnings? By this.
Read Chapter 21 in full
Every verse with translation, word meanings, and commentary — free.
ઍપમાં મફત વાંચોપરંપરાઓને પૂછો
એક પ્રશ્ન। પાંચ પરંપરાઓના જવાબ।
એકાઉન્ટ વગર દર 24 કલાકે 2 પ્રશ્નો।