#13 To Be Spiritually Free
Tao Te Ching, Chapter 13: Getting untethered from praise and disgrace
Welcome back to The Wisdom of Lao Tzu.
Today, we are reading the thirteenth chapter of Tao Te Ching.
Before we get started, you can think about this question: what is my response to honor and disgrace?
The key message from this chapter is Lao Tzu’s advice on achieving spiritual autonomy by dealing with external honor and disgrace.
Another important insight from Lao Tzu is that a person who practices self-care and self-regulation can be entrusted with managing human affairs.
Let’s get started.
**13**
寵辱若驚，貴大患若身。
何謂寵辱若驚？寵，為下得之若驚，失之若驚，是謂寵辱若驚。
何謂貴大患若身？吾所以有大患者，為吾有身；及吾無身，吾有何患！
故貴以身為天下，若可寄天下；愛以身為天下，若可託天下。
Border-crossings: English translations
#1 Lin Yutang’s version
Favor and disgrace cause one dismay;
What we value and what we fear are within our Self.
What does this mean:
“Favor and disgrace cause one dismay?”
Those who receive a favor from above
Are dismayed when then receive it,
And dismayed when they lose it.
What does this mean:
“What we value and what we fear are within our Self?”
We have fears because we have a self.
When we do not regard that self as self,
What have we to fear?
Therefore he who values the world as his self
May then be entrusted with the government of the world;
And he who loves the world as his self—
The world may then be entrusted to his care.
#2 Edmund Ryden’s version
Grace and disgrace strike unexpectedly;
Honour and dishonour are self-inflicted.
What is meant by grace and disgrace strike unexpectedly?
Grace for those of low estate:
When it comes, comes unexpectedly;
When lost, it is also unexpectedly.
This is what is meant by grace and disgrace strike unexpectedly.
What is meant by honour and dishonour are self-inflicted?
I come across a great disaster because I have a self.
Now, if I did not have a self then what disaster could befall me?
Therefore,
One who values regulating himself as much as regulating the world,
May be entrusted with the world.
One who loves himself as much as he loves the world,
May be granted keep of the world.1
#3 D. C. Lau’s version
Favour and disgrace are things that startle;
High rank is, like one's body, a source of great trouble.
What is meant by saying that favour and disgrace are things that startle?
Favour when it is bestowed on a subject serves to startle as much as when it is withdrawn. This is what is meant by saying that favor and disgrace are things that startle.
What is meant by saying that high rank is, like one’s body, a source of great trouble?
The reason I have great trouble is that I have a body. When I no longer have a body, what trouble have I?
Hence he who values his body more than dominion over the empire can be entrusted with the empire.
He who loves his body more than dominion over the empire can be given the custody of the empire.2
Deeper dive
This chapter starts with a contrarian statement, “Favor and disgrace cause one dismay.”
We would generally be very pleased if we received favor and grace from others, particularly those above us.
But here, Lao Tzu says that favor or grace is something we should not think highly of. We are surprised when we get it. And we are startled when it is taken from us.
Wang Bi’s insight resonates with this explanation, as he says, “Favor is followed by disgrace. Honor is followed by trouble. Thus, favor and disgrace are equals. Honor is the same as trouble.” （「寵必有辱，榮必有患，寵辱等，榮患同也。」）
This interpretation differs from the three English translations, which convey the same message that favor from above will cause dismay because it is not up to us.
Regardless of what we get from above, grace or disgrace, we are swayed and troubled by these external rewards and reputations.
So, a different way is to treat favor and disgrace equally. These external labels and perceptions should not meddle with our spiritual autonomy and integrity.
When we carefully guard the independence of mind, we know it is equally vital to practice self-regulation to subtract the irrelevant and non-essential elements in our lives.
Lao Tzu’s advice is to be careful and conscious about our position in life. When we proactively treat threats, dangers, and risks, we do a service to our safety.
In other words, since our body can attract troubles and even great danger, it is natural that we pay special attention to it.
Spiritual Taoism
But why exactly do self-care and self-regulation matter?
From Lao Tzu’s perspective, being conscious about one’s positioning in life is critical for self-preservation and building trust with others.
When people cultivate and strengthen their bodies and minds, they realize they should value others’ lives.
When people proactively think about risks and dangers and carry out plans to mitigate and circumvent them, they understand the importance of creating and building a safe environment for themselves and extend this pursuit to others in society because social harmony is a common and shared goal for any thinking person.
With this precondition, they can be entrusted with managing public affairs because they approach things with a humane and caring attitude.
That’s why Lao Tzu would state, “Hence he who values his body more than dominion over the empire can be entrusted with the empire. He who loves his body more than dominion over the empire can be given the custody of the empire.”
Since self-care is the foundation of trust, political responsibility should only be delegated to someone who does not even want to possess and wield power and resources.
For the Taoists, the principle of self-preservation would require them to adopt a simple life philosophy. And the purpose of political participation is to retreat from this line of work eventually.
“Retire when your work is done. Such is Heaven’s way.”3
Thanks for reading!
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See you next week,
Yuxuan
Daodejing, trans. Edmund Ryden. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008), 29.
Laotzu Tao Te Ching, trans. D. C. Lau. (London: Penguin Classics, 1963), 17.
Lin Yutang, “Chapter 9,” in The Wisdom of Laotse (Beijing: Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press, 2009), 36.