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This chapter has an interesting format. We start with a statement, and then ask some questions about it. Let’s follow the rabbit trail…
The Master keeps her mind
always at one with the Tao;
that is what gives her her radiance.
Having ‘radiance‘ speaks to me of something internal that shines for other people to see. What is the radiance of the Tao? Tranquility? Lack of dis-ease? Openness and honesty?
Other things constantly vie for our attention, and the Tao is difficult to pay attention to. But when we ‘keep our mind‘ attuned to it, it benefits us… somehow.
The Tao is ungraspable.
How can her mind be at one with it?
Because she doesn’t cling to ideas.
How can our ‘mind be at one‘ with something we can’t understand? What does it mean to stop ‘cling[ing] to ideas‘? Is this the same as Zen, or so-called ‘new age’? I don’t think so.
The person who follows Tao know that she can’t hold on to it: it is too big and too small, too solid but also too ephemeral, all at the same time! The Tao-follower knows this, so instead of trying to grab it and hold it, she makes space for it in her mind and in her lifestyle. The Tao can’t be possessed, but it can inhabit: inhabit our lives, our relationships, and our homes. If we make ourselves empty like a valley, then the Tao, like a river, can fill us up.
The Tao is dark and unfathomable.
How can it make her radiant?
Because she lets it.
Again, the key to living in Tao is to give it space to do its work. So easy to do, and yet so difficult…
Since before time and space were,
the Tao is.
It is beyond is and is not.
How do I know this is true?
I look inside myself and see.
How can we trust the Tao? Because some smart person told us to? (Or because some silly blogs keep on talking about it…)
If Tao is the force behind everything, then we should be able to see it working in everything. I like learning from books; others learn best from personal experiences, and others in all sorts of other ways. The more we learn and understand, the more we see the Tao… if we choose to. Truth is all around us, in everything we see… but we have to have the courage to look! Do I? Do you?
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I think you hit upon the key by stating it’s all around us. If Tao is the great mystery of life, then all things encompass the Way. As long as one looks, one cannot help but see. Yet, as you point out, the key is to look in the first place.
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