Sixteen Bodhisattva Precepts

 

The Sixteen Bodhisattva Precepts

The Sixteen Bodhisattva Precepts are an essential part of Zen practice. They are taken in ordinations and recited at other ceremonies such as weddings and funerals, as well as every month in the renewal of vows during Full Moon Ceremonies. One translation commonly used at Zen Center is given below.

 

Three Refuges
I take refuge in Buddha
before all beings,
immersing body and mind
deeply in the Way,
awakening true mind.

I take refuge in Dharma
before all beings,
entering deeply the merciful ocean
of Buddha's Way.

I take refuge in Sangha
before all beings,
bringing harmony to everyone,
free from hindrance.

Three Pure Precepts
I vow to refrain from all evil.
I vow to make every effort to live in enlightenment.
I vow to live and be lived for the benefit of all beings.

Ten Grave Precepts
I vow not to kill.
I vow not to take what is not given.
I vow not to misuse sexuality.
I vow to refrain from false speech.
I vow to refrain from intoxicants.
I vow not to slander.
I vow not to praise self at the expense of others.
I vow not to be avaricious.
I vow not to harbor ill will.
I vow not to disparage the Three Treasures.

Virtue Ethics

 

 

Yamas and Niyamas of Hinduism

Yamas:  Moral Observances and Restraints

 

1.  Nonviolence, Not Harming, Not Killing   Ahimsa 

2.  Truthfulness, Not Lying, Not Gossiping, Good Speech   Satya 

3.  Not Stealing, Paying Debts, Not Gambling, Keeping Promises, Not Wasting   Asteya 

4.  Divine Conduct, Immersed in Divinity, Celibacy, Following Marriage Vows   Brahmacharya

5.  Patience, Restraining Intolerance, Don't Argue, Slow Down   Kahama

6.  Steadfastness, Persistence, Perseverance, Industriousness   Dhriti  

7.  Compassion, Kindness, Helpfulness   Daya

8.  Honest, Law Abiding, Not Cheating, Fair   Arjava

9.  Moderation, Proper Eating, Simplicity, Not Greedy   Mithara and Aparigraha 

10.  Purity, Cleanliness, Proper Language, Keep Good Company   Saucha

 

Niyamas:  Spiritual Practices, Religious Observances, Values

 

1.  Remorse, Humility, Apologize, Acknowledge Wrongdoing, Correct Your Faults   Hri

2.  Contentment, Serenity, Gratitude, Simplicity, Following Spiritual Values   Santosha 

3.  Giving, Charity, Liberality, Volunteer, Support Worthwhile and Spiritual Causes   Dana

4.  Faith   Astikya 

5.  Worship, Surrender to God, Love of God   Ishvara Pujana 

6.  Scriptural Listening   Sidhanta Shravana

7.  Cognition, Self-Study, Meditation, Seek Knowledge, Follow Guru   Mati  and Svadhyaya

8.  Sacred Vows   Vrata

9.  Recitation   Japa

10.  Austerity, Fervor, Effort, Work, Energy   Tapas 

 

-   Yamas and Niyamas

    From the Indian scriptures, The Upanishads: Shandilya and the Varuha.

    From 600-100 BCE

    Hinduism's Code of Conduct

 

    See also Patanjali’s Yoga Sutra, Circa 2nd Century CE

    (Yoga Sutra, Verses 2:30 – 2:34.)

 

Don't Do Unto Others

                      The Fireplace Records, Chapter 33

Don't Do Unto Others

An acquaintance of mine, a devout Catholic, ends all his email letters with "Love, Arthur."

He has frequently mentioned the Biblical verse "Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." (Matthew 22: 38)  Love and loving phrases pepper his conversations. 

My underlying feeling was that these references to "love" were rather insincere and somewhat ungrounded, since I could not understand how two people with radically different opinions about life, religion, and politics could actually "love" one another; socialize and tolerate maybe, but "love," unlikely.  

In my teenage years, I questioned how this verse would apply to people who don't like themselves, hate themself, are ashamed of themself, denigrate themself, or don't love themselves in the slightest, etc. They would seem quite handicapped or incapable of loving their neighbor, insofar as they don't love themselves. On the opposite side, self-respect and self-love has some positive connotations, and can lead to loving others; however, carried to excess it becomes flawed and appears as egotism and narcissism.

I grew up in East Los Angeles, in the Bandini Barrio, for 20 years. It was a low income suburban LA neighborhood. I had a few friends and some good neighbors. However, as with most suburban neighborhoods, I did not know or have any relationships with 96% of my neighbors. I did not love them, nor did I have any opinion or emotion regarding them other than live and let live, let's stay at peace, and mind your own business. "Loving" them was not my concern; and, I had no ill will towards people I did not know. 

I also read, "In everything, do to others what you would have them do to you." (Matthew 7:12) If I wanted hard drugs, does this mean I should give or sell hard drugs to others? If I thought I should be severely punished if I chose not to follow Catholic doctrines, does this give me license to severely punish non-believers? If someone liked perverted sexual play, should they being doing these acts with others? Knowing that others have cheated me, should I cheat others? This moral maxim had some good applications; and, some bad/evil/wrong/destructive applications.  

In high school in 1961, I read Confucian texts.  I came across the Confucian maxim "Don't do to others what you don't want done to you." (Analects, V. 12, VI. 30, 500 BCE)  This ethical/moral/behavioral advice seemed to resonate with me more than the Christian advice. I thought I could apply this maxim more effectively in my daily life with the many people I encountered but did not know, or love. It was a way of caring for others by not harming them. I have tied to follow this practical maxim for six decades.

Comments, Sources, Observations

Gold is malleable, soft, valued, and long lasting; but, limited in other ways.
Rather than a ruler of gold, a flexible cloth tape is more practical.
Rules are useful if properly and intelligently applied.
Acknowledging exceptions to rules is a good rule to apply sometimes. 
The disadvantages loving yourself to excess are numerous.
"Love" is often just another boring cliche, a charming metaphor.
A church sign says "God is Love!" The Devil also loves his work.
Liking, preferring, and loving are cousins, sometimes distant cousins.
Yes, gold is valuable; but of what value is this value?

"Love" is rarely mentioned in Zen Koans; maybe 6 times out of 1,975 Koans. Egoistic-restraint, kindness without reciprocity, control of desires, patience, gentleness, helpfulness, asceticism, toughening, and wisdom are emphasized more.  

Golden Rule - Wikipedia

Ten Reasons Why Self-Love is Bad

Refer to my Cloud Hands Blog Posts on the topic of Koans/Stories. 

Subject Index to 1,975 Zen Buddhist Koans

Zen Buddhist Koans: Indexes, Bibliography, Commentary, Information

The Daodejing by Laozi

Pulling Onions  Over 1,043 One-line Sayings by Mike Garofalo

Chinese Chan Buddhist and Taoist Stories and Koans

The Fireplace Records  By Michael P. Garofalo

Ten Golden Rules

 Ten Golden Rules for Living the Good Life

  
“1. Examine life, engage life with vengeance; always search for new pleasures and new destines to reach with your mind.

 2.  Worry only about the things that are in your control, the things that can be influenced and changed by your actions, not about the things that are beyond your capacity to direct or alter.  

 3.  Treasure Friendship, the reciprocal attachment that fills the need for affiliation. Friendship cannot be acquired in the market place, but must be nurtured and treasured in relations imbued with trust and amity.  

 4.  Experience True Pleasure. Avoid shallow and transient pleasures. Keep your life simple. Seek calming pleasures that contribute to peace of mind. True pleasure is disciplined and restrained.  

 5.  Master Yourself. Resist any external force that might delimit thought and action; stop deceiving yourself, believing only what is personally useful and convenient; complete liberty necessitates a struggle within, a battle to subdue negative psychological and spiritual forces that preclude a healthy existence; self mastery requires ruthless cador.  

 6.  Avoid Excess. Live life in harmony and balance. Avoid excesses. Even good things, pursued or attained without moderation, can become a source of misery and suffering.  

 7.  Be a Responsible Human Being. Approach yourself with honesty and thoroughness; maintain a kind of spiritual hygiene; stop the blame-shifting for your errors and shortcomings.  

 8.  Don’t Be a Prosperous Fool. Prosperity by itself, is not a cure-all against an ill-led life, and may be a source of dangerous foolishness. Money is a necessary but not a sufficient condition for the good life, for happiness and wisdom.  

 9.  Don’t Do Evil to Others. Evildoing is a dangerous habit, a kind of reflex too quickly resorted to and too easily justified that has a lasting and damaging effect upon the quest for the good life. Harming others claims two victims—the receiver of the harm, and the victimizer, the one who does harm.  

 10.  Kindness towards others tends to be rewarded. Kindness to others is a good habit that supports and reinforces the quest for the good life. Helping others bestows a sense of satisfaction that has two beneficiaries—the beneficiary, the receiver of the help, and the benefactor, the one who provides the help.” 

-   By M. A. Soupious and Panos Mourdoukoutas, The Ten Golden Rules: Ancient Wisdom from the Greek Philosophers on Living the Good Life, 2009. 

Epicureanism

How to Live a Good Life: Advice From Wise Persons

Hedonism, Utilitarianism

Ten Transformative Practices (Paramitas)

 The Essence of the Ten Transformative Practices

"Generosity arises from unselfishness and nonattachment.

Ethics involves virtue, integrity, and self-discipline.

Patience requires resilience, acceptance, and fortitude.

Effort means courage in joyous perseverance.

Meditation implies mindfulness, concentration, reflection, and introspection.

Transcendental wisdom includes discernment and self-knowledge.

Skillful means arise from resourcefulness and imagination.

Spiritual aspirations include noble intention and resolve.

Higher accomplishments require leadership, powers, and positive influence.

Awakened awareness means pristine realization.

These are the ten arms and legs of the radiant body of the Bodhisattva,
Whose heart is Bodhicitta, selfless love and compassion.

- Buddha Is as Buddha Does: The Ten Original Practices for Enlightened Living By Lama Surya Das, 2007.

Virtue Ethics Studies
Buddhist, Taoist, Confucian, Philosophers
By Michael P. Garofalo

 

How to Live a Good Life: Advice from Wise and Respected Persons

Virtue Ethics

Paramitas

The Ethical Precepts and Philosophical Tenets of Zen Buddhism

The Ten Grave Precepts (Rules, Guidelines, Principles of Behavior)

Pragmatism

Taoism

Buddhism

 

Moral Value of Flowers

"Who can estimate the elevating and refining influences and moral value of flowers with all their graceful forms, bewitching shades and combinations of colors and exquisitely varied perfumes? These silent influences are unconsciously felt even by those who do not appreciate them consciously and thus with better and still better fruits, nuts, grains, vegetables and flowers, will the earth be transformed, man's thought refined, and turned from the base destructive forces into nobler production. One which will lift him to high planes of action toward the happy day when the Creator of all this beautiful work is more acknowledged and loved, and where man shall offer his brother man, not bullets and bayonets, but richer grains, better fruit and fairer flowers from the bounty of this earth."
- Father George Schoener (1864 -1941)
  "The Importance and Fundamental Principles of Plant Breeding"


Flowers: Quotes, Sayings, Poems, Lore: http://www.gardendigest.com/flowers.htm

Tao Te Ching Chapter 38 Dao De Jing

Dao De Jing by Laozi 
Chapter 38 

"The Master doesn't try to be powerful;
thus he is truly powerful.
The ordinary man keeps reaching for power;
thus he never has enough.

The Master does nothing,
yet he leaves nothing undone.
The ordinary man is always doing things,
yet many more are left to be done.

The kind man does something,
yet something remains undone.
The just man does something,
and leaves many things to be done.
The moral man does something,
and when no one responds
he rolls up his sleeves and uses force.

When the Tao is lost, there is goodness.
When goodness is lost, there is morality.
When morality is lost, there is ritual.
Ritual is the husk of true faith,
the beginning of chaos.

Therefore the Master concerns himself
with the depths and not the surface,
with the fruit and not the flower.
He has no will of his own.
He dwells in reality,
and lets all illusions go."
-   Translated by Stephen Mitchell, Chapter 38



"People with integrity
don't even think about it.
That's how you can tell
they have integrity.
Other people talk about
how much integrity they have,
when they really don't have much,
If any.
Truly powerful people
don't do anything,
but they get the job done. 
Other people are always busy
doing something,
but nothing ever gets done.
When kind people act,
they do so without thinking about it. 
When the just act,
they're always sure
they're doing the right thing.
But when the righteous act,
and nobody reacts, 
they try to force everyone
to do things their way.
If you're not in touch with Tao,
at least you can still have integrity. 
If you don't have integrity,
there's always kindness.
If you don't have kindness,
there's always justice. 
If you don't have justice,
all you have left is righteousness.
Righteousness is an pale imitation
of true faith and loyalty, 
and always leads to trouble.
If you've already made up your mind, 
you don't know the first thing about Tao,
and you never will.
The Masters pay attention
to what's beneath the surface.
They'll look at a tree's leaves,
but eat the fruit.
They turn all that down,
so they can accept this.
-   Translated by Ron Hogan, Chapter 38



"Those who possessed in highest degree the attributes of the Tao did not seek to show them, and therefore they possessed them in fullest measure.
Those who possessed in a lower degree those attributes sought how not to lose them, and therefore they did not possess them in fullest measure.
Those who possessed in the highest degree those attributes did nothing with a purpose, and had no need to do anything.  
Those who possessed them in a lower degree were always doing, and had need to be so doing.
Those who possessed the highest benevolence were always seeking to carry it out, and had no need to be doing so.
Those who possessed the highest righteousness were always seeking to carry it out, and had need to be so doing.
Those who possessed the highest sense of propriety were always seeking to show it, and when men did not respond to it, they bared the arm and marched up to them.
Thus it was that when the Tao was lost, its attributes appeared;
When its attributes were lost, benevolence appeared;
When benevolence was lost, righteousness appeared;
When righteousness was lost, the proprieties appeared.
Now propriety is the attenuated form of leal-heartedness and good faith, and is also the commencement of disorder.
Swift apprehension is only a flower of the Tao, and is the beginning of stupidity.
Thus it is that the Great man abides by what is solid, and eschews what is flimsy; dwells with the fruit and not with the flower.
It is thus that he puts away the one and makes choice of the other."
-   Translated by James Legge, 1891, Chapter 38 

"A man of the highest virtue does not keep to virtue and that is why he has virtue.
A man of the lowest virtue never strays from virtue and that is why he is without virtue.
The former never acts yet leaves nothing undone.
The latter acts but there are things left undone.
A man of the highest benevolence acts, but from no ulterior motive.
A man of the highest rectitude acts, but from ulterior motive.
A man most conversant in the rites acts, but when no one responds rolls up his sleeves and resorts to persuasion by force.
Hence when the way was lost there was virtue;
When virtue was lost there was benevolence;
When benevolence was lost there was rectitude;
When rectitude was lost there were the rites.
The rites are the wearing thin of loyalty and good faith
And the beginning of disorder;
Foreknowledge is the flowery embellishment of the way
And the beginning of folly.
Hence the man of large mind abides in the thick not in the thin, in the fruit not in the flower.
Therefore he discards the one and takes the other."
-   Translated by D. C. Lau, 1891, Chapter 38 

"La alta naturaleza no intenta mantener la naturaleza,
por lo tanto la tiene.
La baja naturaleza intenta no perder la naturaleza,
por lo tanto la pierde.

La alta naturaleza no actúa
porque no tiene razón para hacerlo;
la baja naturaleza actúa,
porque encuentra razón para hacerlo.

El alto humanitarismo actúa
aunque no tenga razón para hacerlo;
La alta equidad actúa
porque encuentra razón para hacerlo.

El ritual más elevado actúa
aunque no halle respuesta,
desnuda las armas y lanza una soga.

Por lo tanto cuando se pierde el Tao, hay naturaleza.
Cuando se pierde la naturaleza, hay humanitarismo.
Cuando se pierde el humanitarismo, hay equidad.
Cuando se pierde la equidad, hay ritual.

En cuanto al ritual, es el delgado filo de la lealtad y la fidelidad y el comienzo del desorden;
En cuanto a la predicción, es el florecimiento del Tao
y el comienzo de la estupidez.

Por lo tanto, una gran persona
guiándose por lo grueso
no mora en lo fino,
guiándose por la semilla
no mora en la flor.
Por lo tanto una persona así deja esto y toma aquéllo."
-  Translated by Álex Ferrara, 2003, Capítulo 38 

"Discourse on Virtue
Lun Teh

Superior virtue is not virtue-conscious,
Therefore it has virtue.
Inferior virtue never forgets virtue,
Therefore it has no virtue.
Superior virtue does not interfere,
And has no motive to interfere.
Inferior virtue interferes,
And has a motive to interfere.
Superior benevolence interferes without motive;
Superior righteousness interferes from motive;
Superior propriety interferes,
And failing to evoke any response,
Lifts its arm and resorts to violence.
Therefore,
After the loss of Tao, virtue appears;
After the loss of virtue, benevolence appears;
After the loss of benevolence, righteousness appears;
After the loss of righteousness, propriety appears.
Propriety is a mere veneer of loyalty and sincerity,
And constitutes the prime cause of confusion.
Traditional knowledge is the flower (outward show) of Tao,
And has become the origin of folly.
Therefore, men of the heroic type abide by depth,
And stay away from shallowness;
Abide by the fruit and stay away from the flower.
Forsooth, they reject this and adopt that."
- Translated by Henry Wei, 1982, Chapter 38

A typical webpage created by Mike Garofalo for each one of the 81 Chapters (Verses, Sections) of the Tao Te Ching (Daodejing) by Lao Tzu (Laozi) includes over 25 different English language translations or interpolations for that Chapter, 5 Spanish language translations for that Chapter, the Chinese characters for that Chapter, the Wade-Giles and Hanyu Pinyin transliterations (Romanization) of the Mandarin Chinese words for that Chapter, and 2 German and 1 French translation of that Chapter.  Each webpage includes a Google Translate option menu for reading the entire webpage in many other languages.  Each webpage for each one of the 81 Chapters of the Tao Te Ching [246 CE Wang Bi version] includes extensive indexing by key words, phrases, and terms (concordance) for that Chapter in English, Spanish, and the Wade-Giles Romanization.  Each webpage on a Chapter of the Daodejing includes recommended reading in books and websites, a detailed bibliography, some commentary, links, research leads, translator sources, and other resources for that Chapter.  

     A Top Tier online free resource for English and Spanish readers, researchers, Daoist devotees, scholars, students, fans and fellow travelers on the Way. 

Chapter 38, Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

Chapter and Thematic Index (Concordance) to the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

English Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Spanish Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices

Taoism: A Selected Reading List

One Old Daoist Druid's Final Journey  

How to Live a Good Life: Advice from Wise Persons

Dao De Jing, Chapter 18

Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu
Chapter 18

"When the Way is forgotten
Duty and justice appear;
Then knowledge and wisdom are born
Along with hypocrisy.
When harmonious relationships dissolve
Then respect and devotion arise;
When a nation falls to chaos
Then loyalty and patriotism are born."
- Translated by Peter Merel, Chapter 18


"The mighty Way declined among the folk
And then came kindness and morality.
When wisdom and intelligence appeared,
They brought with them a great hypocrisy.
The six relations were no more at peace,
So codes were made to regulate our homes.
The fatherland grew dark, confused by strife:
Official loyalty became the style."
- Translated by Raymond Blakney, 1955, Chapter 18


"When the great Reason is obliterated, we have benevolence and justice.
Prudence and circumspection appear, and we have much hypocrisy.
When family relations no longer harmonize, we have filial piety and paternal devotion.
When the country and the clans decay through disorder, we have loyalty and allegiance."
- Translated by D. T. Suzuki and Paul Carus, 1913, Chapter 18


"The great Tao faded and there was benevolence and righteousness.
Worldly wisdom and shrewdness appeared and there was much dissembling.
The family relationships no longer harmonious, there was filial piety and paternal love.
The state and the clans in anarchy, there was loyalty and faithfulness."
- Translatewd by C. Spurgeon Medhurst, 1905, Chapter 18


"And when the olden way of rule declined,
The words for love and serve came in.
Next came knowledge and keen thought,
Advent of lying, sham, and fraud.
When kinsmen lost their kind concord,
They honoured child- and parent-love.
In dark disorder ruling houses
Turned to loyal devoted vassals."
- Translated by Moss Roberts, 2001, Chapter 18





Audio Recordings in English by Mike Garofalo

Here is an audio recording of selected translations from Chapter 18 of the Tao Te Ching. This reading includes translations by Raymond Blakney, Peter Merel, D.T. Suzuki and Paul Carus, C. Spurgeon Medhurst, and Moss Roberts. Reading and recording by Michael P. Garofalo from the Valley Spirit Center, Gushen Grove, in Red Bluff, California.  Recorded on November 15, 2016. MP3 format.  3.5 MB.  



A typical webpage created by Mike Garofalo for each one of the 81 Chapters (Verses, Sections) of the Tao Te Ching (Daodejing) by Lao Tzu (Laozi) includes 25 different English language translations or interpolations for that Chapter, 5 Spanish language translations for that Chapter, the Chinese characters for that Chapter, the Wade-Giles and Hanyu Pinyin transliterations (Romanization) of the Mandarin Chinese words for that Chapter, and 2 German and 1 French translation of that Chapter.  Each webpage for each one of the 81 Chapters of the Tao Te Ching includes extensive indexing by key words, phrases, and terms for that Chapter in English, Spanish, and the Wade-Giles Romanization.  Each webpage on a Chapter of the Daodejing includes recommended reading in books and websites, a detailed bibliography, some commentary, research leads, translation sources, a Google Translate drop down menu, and other resources for that Chapter.   

Chapter 18, Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

Chapter and Thematic Index (Concordance) to the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu

English Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Spanish Language Daodejing Translators' Source Index

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices

Taoism: A Selected Reading List

One Old Daoist Druid's Final Journey  

Dao De Jing, Laozi, Chapter 18

Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu
Chapter 18

"When humankind strayed from the natural way of life,
Relative social disciplines began to appear. 
When intelligence and cleverness of mind are admired,
Great hypocrisy is born. 
When disharmony manifested in family relations,
Children who respected their parents
And parents who respected their children
Became rare examples. 
When chaos prevailed in the county,
Only a few loyal ministers were recognized. 
Let all people return to their true nature. 
Love, kindness, wisdom, family harmony, and loyalty
Should not be taught one by one,
Separately from an honest life. 
Then, once again,
People will regain the natural virtue of wholeness. 
The world will be naturally ordered.  
There will be no one who singly and cunningly
Works for personal interest alone."
-  Translated by Hua-Ching Ni, 1979, Chapter 18   

"When the great Tao perishes
There is jen and justice.
When intelligence is manifest
There is great deception.
When the six relationships are not in harmony
There is filial piety and compassion.
When the country is in chaos
Loyal ministers appear."
-  Translated by Charles Muller, 1891, Chapter 18 

"On the decline of the great Tao,
The doctrine of "humanity" and "justice" arose.
When knowledge and cleverness appeared,
Great hypocrisy followed in its wake.
When the six relationships no longer lived at peace,
There was praise of "kind parents" and "filial sons."
When a country fell into chaos and misrule,
There was praise of "loyal ministers." "
-  Translated by Lin Yutang, 1955, Chapter 18 

  

"It was when the Great Way declined
That human kindness and morality arose;
It was when intelligence and knowledge appeared
That the Great Artifice began.
It was when the six near ones were no longer at peace
That there was talk of “dutiful sons”;
Nor till fatherland was dark with strife
Did we hear of “loyal slaves”."
-  Translated by Arthur Waley, 1934, Chapter 18


"The mighty Way declined among the folk
And then came kindness and morality.
When wisdom and intelligence appeared,
They brought with them a great hypocrisy.
The six relations were no more at peace,
So codes were made to regulate our homes.
The fatherland grew dark, confused by strife:
Official loyalty became the style."
-  Translated by Raymond Blakney, 1955, Chapter 18  


大道廢, 有仁義, 智慧出, 有大偽, 六親不和,
有孝慈國家昏亂, 有忠臣.
-  Chinese characters, Tao Te Ching, Chapter 18


ta tao fei, yu jên yi, hui chih ch'u, yu ta wei, liu ch'in pu ho,
yu hsiao tz'u kuo chia hun luan, yu chung ch'ên. 
-  Wade-Giles Romanization, Tao Te Ching, Chapter 18 


"Wherever the cosmic order is neglected,
Goodness and morality are born.
When the heart’s awareness is repressed,
The intellect is led into hypocrisy.
When the family loses its natural harmony,
The rules of duty and honor are enforced.
When the natural society is disrupted,
The dragon of state arises,
And powerful leaders take over."
-  Translated by Brian Donohue, 2005, Chapter 18   


"When Tao is abandoned,
Benevolence and morality arise.
When wisdom and knowledge arise,
Hypocrisy flourishes.
When there is discord in the family,
Filial piety and parental affection arise.
When the country is in darkness and turmoil,
Loyal ministers appear."
-  Translated by Keith H. Seddon, Chapter 18   


"Cuando se abandona el Tao
aparecen la "ética" y la "moral".
Con la "verdad" y la "justicia"
surgen los grandes hipócritas.
Cuando no existe armonía entre los parientes,
hablan de "lealtad a la familia" y de "honrar a los padres".
Cuando hay revueltas en el reino,
aparecen el "patriotismo" y el "nacionalismo",
inventando así la fidelidad del buen súbdito.
Cuando el Tao se pierde aparece la falsedad."
-  Translation from Wikisource, 2013, Tao Te Ching, Capítulo 18   

"When people lost sight of the way to live
Came codes of love and honesty,
Learning came, charity came,
Hypocrisy took charge;
When differences weakened family ties
Came benevolent fathers and dutiful sons;
And when lands were disrupted and misgoverned
Came ministers commended as loyal."
-  Translated by Witter Bynner, 1944, Chapter 18

"When the great Tao is lost spring forth benevolence and righteousness.
When wisdom and sagacity arise, there are great hypocrites.
When family relations are no longer harmonious, we have filial children and devoted parents.
When a nation is in confusion and disorder, patriots are recognised.
Where Tao is, equilibrium is. When Tao is lost, out come all the differences of things."
-  Translated by Ch'u Ta-Kao, 1904, Chapter 18 

Chapter 18 of the Tao Te Ching

Chapter and Thematic Index (Concordance) to the Tao Te Ching

English Language Translators' Index

Ripening Peaches: Taoist Studies and Practices

Taoism: A Selected Reading List

A typical webpage created by Mike Garofalo for each one of the 81 Chapters of the Tao Te Ching (Daodejing) by Lao Tzu (Laozi) includes 20 different English translations or interpolations of each Chapter, 3 Spanish translations for each Chapter, the Chinese characters for each Chapter, and the Wade-Giles and Hanyu Pinyin Romanization of the Mandarin Chinese words for each Chapter; extensive indexing by key words and terms for each Chapter in English, Spanish, and the Wade-Giles Romanization is provided; recommended reading in books and websites, a detailed bibliography, some commentary, research leads, translation sources, and other resources for each Chapter are included.  

Easy Going and Strenuous Paths

    "Well, a vast number of our moral perceptions also are certainly of this secondary and brain‑born kind. They deal with directly felt fitnesses between things, and often fly in the teeth of all the prepossessions of habit and presumptions of utility. The moment you get beyond the coarser and more commonplace moral maxims, the Decalogues and Poor Richard's Almanacs, you fall into schemes and positions which to the eye of common‑sense are fantastic and overstrained. The sense for abstract justice which some persons have is as eccentric a variation, from the natural-history point of view, as is the passion for music or for the higher philosophical consistencies which consumes the soul of others. The feeling of the inward dignity of certain spiritual attitudes, as peace, serenity, simplicity, veracity; and of the essential vulgarity of others, as querulousness, anxiety, egoistic fussiness, etc‑-are quite inexplicable except by an innate preference of the more ideal attitude for its own pure sake. The nobler thing tastes better, and that is all that we can say. “Experience” of consequences may truly teach us what things are wicked, but what have consequences to do with what is mean and vulgar?"  ....

"The deepest difference, practically, in the moral life of man is the difference between the easy-going and the strenuous mood.  When in the easy-going mood the shrinking from present ill is our ruling consideration.  The strenuous mood, on the contrary, makes us quite indifferent to present ill, if only the greater ideal be attained.  The capacity for the strenuous mood probably lies slumbering in every man, but it has more difficulty in some than in others in waking up.  It needs the wilder passions to arouse it, the big fears, loves, and indignations; or else the deeply penetrating appeal of some one of the higher fidelities, like justice, truth or freedom.  Strong relief is a necessity of its vision; and a world where all the mountains are brought down and all the valleys are exalted is no congenial place for its habitation.  This is why in a solitary thinker this mood might slumber on forever without waking.  His various ideals, known to him to be mere preferences of his own, are too nearly of the same denominational value; he can play fast and loose with them at will.  This too is why, in a merely human world without a God, the appeal to our moral energy falls short of its maximal stimulating power.  Life, to be sure, is even in such a world a genuinely ethical symphony; but it is played in the compass of a couple of poor octaves, and the infinite scale of values fails to open up.  Many of us, indeed--like Sir James Stephen in those eloquent Essays by a Barrister--would openly laugh at the very idea of the strenuous mood being awakened in us by those claims of remote posterity which constitute the last appeal of the religion of humanity.  We do not love these men of the future keenly enough; and we love them perhaps the less the more we hear of their evolutionized perfection, their high average longevity and education, their freedom from war and crime, their relative immunity from pain and zymotic disease, and all their other negative superiorities.  This is all too finite, we say; we see too well the vacuum beyond.  It lacks the note of infinitude and mystery, and may all be dealt with in the don't-care mood.  No need of agonizing ourselves or making others agonize for these good creatures just at present.

 

When, however, we believe that a God is there, and that he is one of the claimants, the infinite perspective opens out.  The scale of the more imperative ideals now begin to speak with an altogether new objectivity and significance, and to utter the penetrating, shattering, tragically challenging note of appeal.  They ring out like the call of Victory Hugo's alpine eagle, "qui parle au précipice et que le gouffre entend," and the strenuous mood awakens at the sound.  It saith among the trumpets, ha, hat! it smelleth the battle afar off, the thunder of the captains and the shouting.  Its blood is up; and cruelty to the lesser claims, so far from being a deterrent element, does but add to the stern joy with which it leaps to answer to the greater.  All through history, in the periodical conflicts of puritanism with the don't care temper, we see the antagonism of the strenuous and genial moods, and the contrast between the ethics of infinite and mysterious obligation from on high, and those of prudence and the satisfaction of merely finite need.

 

The capacity of the strenuous mood lies so deep down among our natural human possibilities that even if there were no metaphysical or traditional grounds for believing in a God, men would postulate one simply as a pretext for living hard, and getting out of the game of existence its keenest possibilities of zest.  Our attitude towards concrete evils is entirely different in a world where we believe there are none but finite demanders, from what it is in one where we joyously face tragedy for an infinite demanders' sake.  Every sort of energy and endurance, of courage and capacity for handling life's evils, is set free in those who have religious faith.  For this reason the strenuous type of character will on the battle-field of human history always outwear the easy-going type, and religion will drive irreligion to the wall.

 

It would seem, too--and this is my final conclusion--that the stable and systematic moral universe for which the ethical philosopher asks is fully possible only in a world where there is a divine thinker with all-enveloping demands.  If such a thinker existed, his way of subordinating the demands to one another would be the finally valid casuistic scale; his claims would be the most appealing; his ideal universe would be the most inclusive realizable whole.  If he now exist, then actualized in his thought already must be that ethical philosophy which we seek as the pattern which our own must evermore approach.  In the  interest of our own ideal of systematically unified moral truth, therefore, we, as would-be philosophers, must postulate a divine thinker, and pray for the victory of the religious cause.  Meanwhile, exactly what the thought of the infinite thinker may be is hidden from us even were we sure of his existence; so that our postulation of him after all serves only to let loose in us the strenuous mood.  But this is what it does in all men, even those who have interest in philosophy.  The ethical philosopher, therefore, whenever he ventures to say which course of action is the best, is on no essentially different level from the common man.  "See, I have set before thee this day life and good, and death and evil; therefore choose life that thou and thy seed may live"--when this challenge comes to us, it is simply our total character and personal genius that are on trial; and if we invoke any so-called philosophy, our choice and use of that also are but revelations of our personal aptitude or incapacity for moral life.  From this unsparing practical ordeal no professor's lectures and no array of books can save us.  The solving word, for the learned and the unlearned man alike, lies in the last resort in the dumb willingnesses and unwillingnesses of their interior characters, and nowhere else.  It is not in heaven, neither is it beyond the sea; but the word is very nigh unto thee, in thy mouth and in thy hear, that thou mayest do it."
-  William James, The Moral Philosopher and the Moral Life, 1891

The Taliban jihadists are a more strenuous sort of men, determined to bring everyone under Allah's Thumb of Saria Law― whether others want to or not; just like the utopian communistic atheists under Lord Stalin's brutal thumb, or the Khmer Rouge liberators under Pot Pol in Cambodia, or the Maoist purists with their Red Book in hand.  Strenuous idealists too often yell a lot, and place their finger on a rifle's trigger.  

We philosophical Daoists, women and men, are more often the tender-minded and easy-going sorts of fellows.  We have a taste for dealing more peacefully, quietly, constructively, gently, and stoically with the ills of life.