I guess three out of seven ain’t bad. Of the seven lines of Chapter Twelve, I think I may have a relatively clear understanding of three. I think I understand what Lao Tsu means when he says racing and hunting make our minds mad, just look at the behavior of the adults at a Little League Baseball game almost anywhere in America. Americans have made a religion of competition. Not that this is unique to America, it’s just what I know from my limited experience. There is little better place to observe akrasia than at a competitive sporting event. And, I have to agree with Lao Tsu that competition is a kind of madness, all things considered. Certainly this follows when we take altruism and compassion as the highest moral goods.
I also think I understand what Lao Tsu means by, “Precious things lead one astray.” Here again, I think we have a statement of what will become the Buddhist principle that our grasping nature (Samudaya) leads to suffering (Dukkha).
And finally, I think I understand, although through a glass darkly, what Lao Tsu means by, “Therefore the sage is guided by what he feels and not by what he sees.” I think Feng and English’s translation is less than accurate here, though. The literal word used here in the Chinese is “belly” or “gut” instead of “what he feels.” I think the literal translation is more enlightening than Feng and English’s. Other translations use the more metaphorical “center,” which I like as well. Mystical navel-gazing in the cliche. The Sage trusts his gut over his “higher” senses. This I can buy
