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Tao #3 / Politics
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Yin of Politics
Extolling the elite gives rise to envy
accumulating treasures fosters resentment
if the people do not perceive inequality
they will not be filled with enmity
Thus the wise leader remembers the maxim
bread and circuses yield mass satisfaction
empty their minds, fill their stomachs
strengthen resolve, weaken ambition
lacking knowledge, the intelligentsia
remain frozen and don't interfere
avoid radical change, maintain status quo
work quietly and harmony will flow
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Yang of Politics
Do not extol the talented
then the average will not be jealous
Do not collect treasures and the poor will not be envious
Wise leaders instill humility and provide good jobs
discourage ambition while strengthening the heart
Wise leaders serve without fanfare,
and speak simply without guile
Not seeking radical changes
they rule unopposed all the while
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Interpretation
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Writers referenced: Muller, Lau, Ganson, Feng - English
Tao Te Ching translates to "Classic Way of Power"
China has had a tradition of warlords and families in constant struggle for power. Taoism is China's unique contribution to the Divine Sciences and was born out the need to bring"harmony and tranquillity to a kingdom wracked by wide spread disorder."*
Viewed with the understanding of the meaning of the title and the social situation in which the Tao Te Ching is rooted, one can in some ways compare the Tao with Machievelli's Prince.
People are born with varying talents and degrees of intellect and in the majority of current cultures there are degrees of economic inequity. Wise leaders demonstrate humility and work for the common good encouraging the people to "think not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country."+ Yet also one might interpret this poem as advocating keeping the people ignorant while filling their bellies with burgers and beer and their minds with ball games. This poem demonstrates the yin and yang of the Tao, in that it has an inherent polarity which can serve to liberate or to bind.
*Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of World Religions
+Kennedy
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