If we “disappeared” our holy saints and sages
and threw away our wisdom and knowledge,
it would benefit the people a hundred-fold.

Remove the kernel of humanity.
Abandon the concepts of justice and righteousness.
The people will retaliate and regenerate by
being brotherly and compassionate to one another.

If we could give up on being opportunistic, clever, or good at timing,
And let go of the profits or potential advantages that go along,

There would be no more thieves and no more thievery.

These three things are most important
to remember when culture is lacking:

Our oldest ancestors built communities and
chose to become affiliated with one another:

(1) To seem plain;
(2) To cherish simplicity;
(3) To share our individual widowed desires.

—
And if you ask me, that’s all a foofy way of saying:

Trust in your fellow human as family.
Saints, sages, knowledge, wisdom:
all of it is ultimately useless/pointless.
Do not seek to grab and keep anything for yourself,
you’re not staying, you can’t keep it.
In life, you will have whatever you need to survive.
It’s built in. We all help each other out.

When the ways of the Tao are forgotten or abolished,
there is still the kernel of humane justice and righteousness.

Wisdom and knowledge, while necessary and wonderful,
should not be used all alone to make decisions,
because the results can produce some major bullshit.

Sometimes, even incredibly smart folks are wrong.
Sometimes, they lie or forge their work, and
Sometimes, they’re just plain hypocrites!

When times roll around that no one knows who to trust,
because we can’t trust the government, popular wisdom, or knowledge,
even family members start bickering with each other.

At least we still have the teachings of brotherly love,
of paternal affection, of benevolence toward our fellow man.
Compassion and caring for one another brings people together.

When a community is confused, afraid, and lacking security,
Noble leaders move their neighbors to be more friendly & kind.
Loyalty and faithfulness heal the fraying tapestry of human empathy
through their actions and not their commands, teaching us all how to be better people.

When truly Noble, Good people are allowed to rule,
those who are their subordinates and are affected by their decisions
hardly even notice that their rights and freedoms are affected.
These great rulers are barely even noticed, they fit so nice.

Next, there are rulers who are more like kind parents.
They are loved by the people and appreciated for their benevolence.
These new, stricter laws and increased taxes, are after all,
only for their own good and the good of the country, right?

The next generation of ruler, with the stricter rules in place,
And with the trust and cooperation of the people,
needs only to remain “common” in his leadership to maintain control,
but he will not have the love of his citizenry.

This leads, sadly, to the next leader: one who is feared.
Fear leads to insult and lack of faith;
both of the leader by the people,
of the people by the leader.

Where evidence of inadequacy exists, so will distrust.

Mark Twain was right!
Even the Tao agrees that
“It is better to keep your mouth closed
and let people think you are a fool
than to open it and remove all doubt.”

This is why the Noble Leaders of Old
were so sparse with their speech.

Every major achievement made within their country
was made by the common man, and was not touted as
“Another Project Brought To You By Your Government.”

Because the individual worker was appreciated for his personal efforts,
encouraged to take personal pride in and credit for his work,
the citizens felt as though they were fully independent
even when they were working on government-funded projects.

Devote yourself to Humility.
Guard the sacred Stillness
with the same sincerity saved for serious sickness…

A great number of things (some would say ten thousand)
combine to make this summary a pretty good idea.

Every living creature (and the whole of life, in fact) has a Life cycle,
and eventually returns to its root.

Returning to the root
is achieving a state of stillness.
Stillness is still life!

It just means rest.
But destiny has built in rest stops.
It’s got to. It’s destiny!

Otherwise, even the greats would burn out.

Always know this wisdom:
Life continuously goes through this repetitious pattern.

Unknowingly, it is common
that things done rashly yield inauspicious results.
Be sure always to be aware to appear to hold honorable values.
Actually holding those values is a good idea too.

Because in this “Perception is (your) reality” world,
where people actually say “Pics or it didn’t happen!”
You’d better walk the walk you’re talkin’.

Common and therefore “king,”
“King” and therefore heavenly and comprehensive.
heavenly and therefore of the Tao.

Those of us who study the Tao understand
that The End & The Beginning meet one another so perfectly
In the circle of life that you can’t see where they blend
Aging, death, decay of the body
Don’t need to be feared, they happen to everybody.

The ancient scholarly warriors for Good
had a way of cutting through the fearsome unknown
with subtlety so profound
that it, quite simply, is ineffable. (Can’t be put into words!)

Because this wisdom cannot be communicated well to most people,
I aspire to make it clear here. (No promises.)

To protect your interests silently
while acting as a reserved humanitarian,
as though you fear your neighbors,

To act majestically dignified and diplomatically,
as though you are a constant guest of your community,

To be cool to the point that you could be melting ice,
Yet still kind-hearted and simple,

The masters are deep enough to be the valley itself.

And sure, they’ve got dirty minds,
But how else are you going to see beauty in muddy waters?

What can make sense of science?
What can make muddy water clear?
What can pacify growth?
Stillness.

Those who defend, protect, and preserve
the ancient wisdom of This Sacred Poem of Goodness
know better than to be arrogant or greedy.

Because studiers of the Tao are content
with what they have and who they are,
They have no need for the newest, latest greatest thing.

They can happily use their technological gadgetry
until they’ve reached the limits of their usefulness,
And believe it or not, these folks can even rock hand-me-downs,
and manage to make ’em look somehow fresh and new.

We look to the Unknown future, but do not see her,
yet we call her, “Barbarian.”
We humans are always afraid of what we do not know.

We hear her, but do not bother to ask questions,
pay attention, or listen to what’s said
because we listen so rarely.

Conquering her, simply, is not possible.
We are too tiny in the grand scheme of things.
(The phrase “Winning the future” is hilarious to Chapter 14!)

These three characteristics should not cause a person to convey restraint.
You only get 1 life, after all.

Life’s prior times weren’t always bright and shiny.
Life’s next times won’t necessarily be dark.
The Unknown, like an indescribable rope, pulls each of us,
Returning us to the Nothing from which we came.

To speak of disability is strong,
for nothing else is the 800 lb. Gorilla in the room everyone else is ignoring.
To speak of it indistinctly would be a terrible disappointment.
For isn’t it better to welcome it, than to meet it as your new leader later?

When we fully understand the methods of our ancestors,
we can use their knowledge to defend our existence.
When we fully understand our ancient technology,
then we can say we have entered an Age of Reason.