Tao Te Ching 44-End

Books like the Tao Te Ching are the types which make people like me realize how ignorant we have been all our lives. Hopefully, the students in this class are also beginning to take another look at the actions they make, because there is a whole other perspective to view them from. The book tells us to not study, or to not be kind and generous, but that’s how we have been our entire lives. Many of these lessons contradict the values that our elders worked so hard to make us follow. I admit that several verses confused me in this way, but there was always a message to extract from them.

I’ll share with you the most valuable lesson I found in this section.

SEVENTY-EIGHT

Under heaven nothing is more soft and yielding than water.
Yet for attacking the slid and strong, nothing is better;
It has no equal.
The weak can overcome the strong;
The supple can overcome the stiff.
Under heaven everyone knows this,
Yet no one puts it to practice.
Therefore the sage says:
He who takes upon himself the humiliation of the people is fit to rule them.
He who takes upon himself the country’s disasters deserves to be king of the universe.
The truth often sounds paradoxical.

That last sentence, I believe, was the perfect way to conclude the several ideas transmitted throughout the verse. In the beginning, I strongly agree with the concept that weak can overcome strong. This is an essential concept used in several martial arts; size should never get in the way of victory. Like it said, there is nothing on earth softer and more yielding than water, yet it is still strong enough to rust metal and eventually make it fall apart.

The verse ends by talking about humiliation and taking upon the people’s disasters. I don’t think I can make it any clearer, but by connecting it with the present I can say that almost all of today’s leaders only take upon victory and glory, but won’t admit the errors they have caused. This shows cowardice and fear, qualities that a true ruler wouldn’t have. In the end, I can conclude this entry by repeating how paradoxical the truth can actually be.

Tao Te Ching 29-43

Throughout my entire life, I have thrived to achieve results. The reason is probably because I enjoy the feeling that comes with it. There is nothing better than to finally accomplish something you have always wanted. Unfortunately, the Tao Te Ching disagrees with this concept. According to the verse that I have chosen, one must view achievements in a very different way.

THIRTY

Achieve results,
But never glory in them.
Achieve results,
But never boast.
Achieve results,
But never be proud.
Achieve results,
Because this is the natural way.
Achieve results,
But not trough violence.

Even though I believe that achievements are always things to be proud of, there are still many parts of this verse that I agree with. Of course, you shouldn’t boast your accomplishments and show them off to everyone. I also agree with the fact that one should always succeed in his/her own natural way. Nowadays, violence and cheating are getting very popular amongst people who seek glory. I don’t believe that getting first place as an athlete while using steroids is an achievement someone should be proud of, the same goes for getting and 100 on a test you cheated off. Practice and determination are one of the main roads that will lead you to success.

Tao Te Ching 13-28

After getting to know this book a bit better, I began realizing how contradictory it was from the Essential Analects.

The following verse will support my assumption:

Nineteen

Give up sainthood, renounce wisdom,
And it will be a hundred times better for everyone.

Give up kindness, renounce morality,
And men will discover filial piety and love.

Give up ingenuity, renounce profit,
And bandits and thieves will disappear.

It is confusing to see how different the minds of two of the greatest thinkers in Asia can be. Almost all their ideas are opposite to one another. We just read an entire book written by Confucius which emphasized on sainthood, wisdom, kindness and morality, everything which the writer of the Tao Te Ching tells us to renounce. I believe though that most Asians were inclined more towards The Analects, while the people in the Americas have more Taoist characteristics.

I felt that the lessons in the Analects were criticizing the way I lived while the Tao Te Ching is more of a guide. Until now, I feel way more connected to it than I did with the Analects.

Tao Te Ching 1-12

Until now, the Tao Te Ching has been an incredible text. There are so many passages that I would like to write about, but I ended up choosing the one which made me reflect the most.

Passage 11 says the following:

Thirty spokes share the wheels hub;
It is the center hole that makes it useful.
Shape clay into a vessel;
It is the space within that makes it useful.
Therefore benefit comes from what is there;
Usefulness comes from what is not there.

The lesson that these words contain is amazing. I’m not even sure, but I think it’s telling us to feel good about the things we have, but there is much more to gain from what we don’t. I began thinking of every situation possible in which this is applied. For a human, accomplishments are already there, of course it is a benefit to have them, but the question is; why should you ever put an end to it? The things that are not there are your thrusts in life, use them to realize how long the way is compared to what you have done. Emptiness is useful because it makes you want to fill it, but there is nothing left to do from a task already accomplished.

Night Part 2

After reading the book, I noticed a value that the author repeatedly emphasized on throughout his entire memoir. It was the faith in God. If a bunch of guys came, and pulled me out of my home, took my clothes away, separate me from my family, put me in a little room with a bunch of other men, hit me, torture me, and not feed me, then I would seriously start wondering if there really is a God out there watching all this cruelty and allowing it to continue. According to Eliezer, most people in the camp continued celebrating Jewish holidays and praying. Even though they were put into a situation where death was a major option, people sustained their level of faith for God throughout their entire time there. It’s surprising how much resemblance this story has with the book of Job. Both Job and the entire Jewish religion were under one of God’s tests to see whether they lost faith in him not. Although Eliezer had his doubts at some points, I still believe most of them were able to remain loyal to their religion until the end. It might have been that perseverance that kept them going through the hell they were living in. Belief in something has always driven people to do crazy things, one of which is never giving up.

Night Part 1

It always shocks me, whenever I’m reading books about the holocaust, how everything slowly begins to develop right in front of the characters own eyes. Then it all hits them when they least expect it. I mean, first they heard it in the radio, then they were warned by Moche the Beadle, and finally, the Germans actually came and stayed in their city for a while before taking them to Auschwitz. They could have reacted (like that time a man appeared through their window trying to advise them to come go with him) and probably escaped, but I don’t blame them. How could any Jew there, ever imagine what inhuman torture and pain was waiting for them in the camp? I admire each and every one of those souls lost and also the ones who were able to escape.

I have read about the holocaust several times, but it truly has to be written by someone who was actually there in order to feel the way I did while reading Night.

Final Entry of The Analects

I think that The Essential Analects was a book worth reading, and which I learned allot from. First I just read, but half the time, I spent analyzing and reflecting. Sometimes I imagined how different the world would be if everyone followed Confucian teachings. As I said in one of my past entries, I was born in Hong Kong and lived there until I was five. I still remember culture and how the people´s actions. Moving to Latin America was a huge change because absolutely everything was different. People weren´t the same. In Asia, everyone was quite, respectful, and didn´t look for attention. Most Latino´s were probably the exact opposite, and didn´t find shame in anything. I´m not saying it´s worse, it´s just that people have different principals all around the world which might seem weird in different places. Many Asians follow Confucian teachings which to people in other countries might seem way too hard to do.

Even though Confucius says that these teachings are the true way of life, I still like my life the way it is. I will though, push myself as much as I can to be filial and respectful with others.

Book 19

I chose this Book to read because it was the only one which consisted in only passages from the disciples. In the end, both Confucius and his students were prized with the satisfaction of having learned and of successfully teaching. Both are equally important because it was the task from the beginning. Having accomplished this, the pupils can then become teachers but continue to learn forever, as Confucius did. In line 19.12, Ziyou makes a wrong assumption but it is not his master who corrects him, but his colleague. The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step, and anyone with the desire to ever imagine finishing it must be willing to learn before anything else. The Way is a concept that an average human would never be able to understand, you must have the qualities of Jen (as we discussed in class) to ever get close to it. I will always admire those who dedicate themselves to this.

Books 15,17,18

¨When the multitude hates hates a person, you must examine them and judge for yourself. The same holds true for someone whom the multitude love.¨ (15.28). I chose this quote to share with you because it reminded me of one of the fallacies we worked on some time ago, Argumentum ad Populum. This fallacy uses an appeal to popular ascent, often by arousing the feelings and enthusiasm of the multitude rather than building an argument. I find it interesting how you can actually analyze someone accordingly to Confucius through their writings.



¨Women and servants are particularly hard to manage: If you are too familiar with them, they will grow insolent, but if you are too distant, they will grow resentful.¨(17.25). This quotation proves that men all around the world, and even from different time periods have something in common, their trouble to understand women. Even Confucius seemed to be confused. It´s incredible to see how they easily a woman can dominate a man but how hard it is for men to do the same. I´m not talking for everyone, there are some who do make an exception.

It is hard to make an opinion on book 18 because it is short and confusing. It tells the story of when Zilu was traveling with Confucius but ends up falling behind and meeting a farmer who invites him into his house for the night. The only message a see behind this is the goodness and respect that the farmer had for Zilu. Nowadays not many people would do such a thing because everyone is selfish and don´t trust others.