Translation by Sifu John A. Fey
1 if a person wants to be at their best
then they should pattern themselves after water
2 water serves the land and the life on the land
3 it gives this life by moving through the land seeking its own balance and equilibrium
4 this is in contrast to human beings who always
look up
and think of rising to some lotty achievement
5 water will always flow around obstacles and seek out the lowest earthbound opened space
that it can find
6 in this way
it is always closer to the miracle than we are
7 the miracle talks to us through water
8 and it says
9wherever you choose to live remember the earth beneath your feet
consider how to feel it with all that you do
10 whenever you want peace remember to flow into your heartmind
plunging into the profound love that resides deep
within you
11 however difficult remember that you should speak frankly
but never drown others with your words
12 whichever instances call for leadership remember that a constant stream helps order the lifeforms around it
13 whatever business you transact remember to go steadily to the source and dutifully perform without washing up on
unprepared land
14 if you listen to me when there is a call to action
the miracle will tell you when it is time to act
15 contending causes contention
16 have no part of it and you will be a cool stream nourishing to all
COMMENTARY
1-2 BODY and HAND: Water is a metaphor that informs every facet of Taoist life and activity. Taoist art, dance, and exercise all employ the image of naturally flowing water as a model for achieving peak experience of life and living. This includes even the arts of negotiation and commerce.
3 BODY and HAND: The Taoist seeks a state of balance and equilibrium in all things as a means of connecting with the Tao Source of Life. This includes, but is not limited to, a balance between work and play, industry and leisure, sleep and wakefulness, and intellectualism and emotionalism. A balance of food types, colors, and emotions also contribute to a lite intormed by the Tao.
4 BODY and MIND: Excessive mental activity, a preoccupation with the inequities of life, dwelling on what could be over what is, all can cause turbid qi, or life-energy, to rise upward to the head, disrupting the inner workings of the bodymind.
5 MIND: Turbid qi infects the bodymind and creates the illusion of impediments to a happy and fulfilled life. To counter this, Taoist Cultivators will enter a reality structure in which they see themselves as a mass of water flowing around obstacles and seeking the earth. The Taoist movement art of T'ai Chi Chuan takes this notion as a founding principle.
6 HEART: Water is a perennial model of the Tao.
7-8 HEART: The idea that the spirit of the natural world speaks to human beings is a fundamental Taoist precept. Cultivators listen to the wind, rain, rivers, and lakes as a way to vibrate harmoniously with the Tao.
9 HAND: These are instructions in deliberate mindful stepping reinforced by an increased awareness of our terrestrial connection.
10 HAND: The heartmind is accessed through an energy cultivation point located beneath the breastbone. This energy locus governs feelings of peacefulness, compassion, and love. It also stabilizes the body's human spirit, or shen.
11-13 BODY: Speak frankly and honestly. Be a man of few words who is consistent and honorable. "Go steadily to the source" means reinforcing one's connection with the Tao.
14 MIND: During the direct transmission of the Tao Te Ching, the student is reminded that Lao-tzu himself is constantly sending a time-binding signal of wisdom that will guide and instruct the student throughout his life.
15-16 HEART: "Contending" equates with stubbornness, aggressiveness, overt assertiveness, and generally trying too hard.