#34 The Essential Characteristic of a Taoist
Tao Te Ching, Chapter 34: Discover the liberating spirit of Taoism for autonomy and spiritual freedom. Embrace your innate agency to transform naturally.
Welcome back to The Wisdom of Lao Tzu.
We are reading chapter 34 of Tao Te Ching this week.
This chapter unveils the essence of a true Taoist: the embodiment of the Tao and reliance on its guiding principles to direct one's actions.
For the Taoists, the liberated spirit of the Tao is a beacon that illuminates their life’s journey.
Let’s dive in.
**34**
大道氾兮，其可左右。
萬物恃之以生而不辭，功成而不有。
衣養萬物而不為主，常無欲可名於小；
萬物歸焉而不為主，可名為大。
以其終不自為大，故能成其大。
Border-crossing: English translations
#1 Lin Yutang’s version
The Great Tao flows everywhere,
(Like a flood) it may go left or right.
The myriad things derive their life from it,
And it does not deny them.
When its work is accomplished,
It does not take possession.
It clothes and feeds the myriad things,
Yet does not claim them as its own.
Often (regarded) without mind or passion,
It may be considered small.
Being the home of all things, yet claiming not,
It may be considered great.
Because to the end it does not claim greatness.
Its greatness is achieved.
#2 Edmund Ryden’s version
The great Way floods her banks; she can go left or right.
She completes her tasks, pursues her affairs, yet she is given no ownership for this.
The myriad things flow back to her, yet she does not lord it over them,
On the contrary,
She is ever without yearning and can be named among the small things.
The myriad things flow back to her, yet she does not lord it over them,
She can be named among what is great.
For this reason,
The reason why the Sage can do great things is because he never himself acts as great,
Therefore he can be great.1
#3 D. C. Lau’s version
The way is broad, reaching left as well as right.
The myriad creatures depend on it for life yet it claims no authority.
It accomplishes its task yet lays claim to no merit.
It clothes and feeds the myriad creatures yet lays no claim to being their master.
For ever free of desire, it can be called small; yet as it lays no claim to being master when the myriad creatures turn to it, it can be called great.
It is because it never attempts itself to be great that it succeeds in becoming great.2
Deeper dive
Lao Tzu emphasizes the liberating spirit of the Tao in this chapter, as it is too critical as a foundational and guiding principle for the Taoists.
Tao is all-pervasive and flows everywhere in the world. As the source of all myriad creatures, it does not control, appropriate, or dominate them.
Also, Tao does not aim to treat myriad things as its subjects. Instead, it allows them to develop and transform themselves naturally.
It accomplishes its task yet lays claim to no merit.
It clothes and feeds the myriad creatures yet lays no claim to being their master.
As He Shanggong (approximately 200 BC - ?) noted, “Tao does not claim for reward and recognition. It nurtures myriad things but does not seize and possess them, which is different from rulers.”「道不名其有功也。道雖愛養萬物，不如人主有所收取。」3
Tao acts in this manner because it follows naturalness, that which is so by itself.
Being natural means recognizing one's own autonomy and free will while respecting that of all the myriad things in the universe.
Therefore, all myriad things come to it naturally due to its liberating and tolerant spirit. Instead of viewing Tao as their master, the myriad things mingle freely with it (we will have a fuller discussion in Chapter 51). What then follows is a natural order.
Spiritual Taoism
The principal mark of a Taoist is having an understanding of the liberating spirit of the Tao.
As part of the world’s myriad things, everyone is also the creation of Tao. In other words, everyone can access Tao as it flows everywhere.
All of us can use our innate creativity and drive to achieve self-development and self-transformation, guided by the principle of naturalness.
The awakened Taoists deeply understand the constant transformation of the Tao,
and is therefore always full of hope, determination, and spirit on their natural path of achieving self-fulfillment.
Embracing the liberating spirit of the Tao for the Taoists also means there is a spontaneous freedom of the heart. An unfree mind, who does not understand the unity of the self with the cosmic order, cannot find ease even in a free and open environment.
Having a profound grasp of spontaneous freedom, a Taoist should not adopt and support impulsive, arbitrary, meddling, and imposing actions, as these forces are against the principles of wu-wei and naturalness.
While not shackled by any external beliefs, ideologies, values, or ways of doing things, Taoists should respect the freedom and autonomy of others because a natural order hinges on the spontaneous creation and natural association of all.
Since Taoists follow the Tao, and the Tao follows the principle of naturalness, they possess their own spiritual autonomy and independent mind.
The implication is that Taoists do not subject themselves to political, social, cultural, or religious authorities, as Tao is higher and more significant than any of them. A breach of moral conscience and spiritual autonomy contradicts the principle of naturalness.
It is precisely because of such conviction that Taoism has been considered dangerous in traditional China, particularly from the ruling class’s perspective and religious authorities. Other schools of thought also belittled Taoism as they could not force Taoists to side with them.
Nevertheless, embodying the Tao and having inner freedom is not enough to navigate the complexity of the human world. A pragmatic approach is also needed if we must get entangled with intricate social relations and human affairs.
In the following chapters, Lao Tzu introduces us to essential psychological battles and statecraft that are critically relevant to preserving the individual and the state.
Thank you for reading!
To your spiritual journey,
Yuxuan
Daodejing, trans. Edmund Ryden. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008), 71.
Tao Te Ching, trans. D. C. Lau. (London: Penguin Classics, 1963), 39.
Wang Bi et al., Four Kinds of Laotse 老子四種 (Taipei: National Taiwan University Press, 2016), 118.
Great article !