Translation by Sifu John A. Fey
1 talking about the character of the tao source of life
is fundamentally
useless
talking about the lessons of the tao way of life is
likewise useless
2 because the real way is a revealed way
awakened in yourself only through an imitation of the way as yourself
4 but where are the clues to this awakening
5 look all around yourself deliberately and attempt to see the nothing that is deliberately all around yourself
6 nothing no thing nothing
7 if you cannot see it then you are in its presence
8 try to listen deliberately to the space between the sounds of your deliberate world
9 if you do not hear anything
then you will be hearing it through its absence
10 grab hold of something with your hand and let it go now imagine some things that you cannot grab
with either your
hand or mind
then you will surely be holding it
11 invisible inaudible intangible
12 the form and function of these three components blend together
creating the tao way of lite
13 do not think of it as upper and lower or dark and bright or rise and
sink
instead view the miracle as something that is
continuously moving
unnamable and totally elusive
14 it is a formless form and a methodless method that gives birth to an image of no thing
15 when you confront it there is no face to look at
16 when you pursue it
there is no shape to follow
17 it does not tao talk it does not tao act
18 but if you look for the wisdom that it leaves in its wake
and deal with present realities accordingly
19 then you will have seized the beginning moment that is the tao way of living
1 MIND and HEART: Discourse about and intellectual investigation into the nature of the Tao is a dead end
2 HEART: The authentic Taoist Source and Way of Life can only be grasped and understood intuitively. It is beyond intellectual understanding. The authentic way is mystically revealed to the Cultivator.
3 BODY and HEART: Awaken to the Tao within you by awakening your intuition. Engineer this awakening by imitating the Tao in your day-to-day life.
4-10 HAND: These are meditative instructions that generate an awakening to the Tao Source of Life and support of the Tao Way of Life.
11-12 MIND: When the Cultivator begins to be subtly aware of the invisible, inaudible, and intangible aspects of the Tao Way of Life, a sense of the totality of the Tao begins to manifest in his consciousness.
13 MIND: Another way of saying this is that the Tao cannot be experienced when viewing extremes.
Rather, it is readable between the lines or hearable between the beats of your heart.
14 HAND: All Taoist methods of cultivation are judged according to this standard
15-16 MIND: These stanzas establish the idea of the practicing Taoist as a "hunter of the way."
17 HEART: An alternate translation of this stanza could be:
it does not sound the way you would expect it to
sound
it does not act in the way you would expect it to
act.
18-19 BODY: You know the Tao Way of Living by the signs it leaves behind. This is akin to a hunter tracking an animal through the wilderness. By examining the animal's tracks, its leavings, as well as broken twigs and other signs, the hunter comes to intrinsically know the size, shape, and character of the creature. He is able to discern the animal's direction of travel.
Eventually, though unseen by one another, the beast and the hunter begin to share a common bond. In Taoist terms, this bond is "seizing the beginning moment."