Occasionally, I get emails from people asking me what my site logo is and what it means. I use the same ☵☲ for my gravatar too. Some assumed that I was a big fan of Snake Eye or Storm Shadow from G.I. Joe since they have the same symbol on them. I am a fan, but that’s not the reason why I use it though.

My long time readers are aware that I started this blog originally with the intention of translating Taoism books to English. While I have stopped writing about the philosophical Tao, its teachings are still dear to me. There are sixty four chapters in I-Ching(易經 Book of Changes) and each chapter is associated with a hexagram. A hexagram is comprised of two trigrams.

Trigrams

A trigram is made up by three lines. Each line is either solid or broken. Together, the two lines symbolize “Yin” and “Yang,” or any two opposing forces. Balance through opposites is one of the main themes of the philosophical Taoism. There are total of eight possible trigram combinations and each trigram has an element assigned to it.

Did you know the trigrams were the earliest known binary counting system? Broken line = 0, solid line = 1. 2³ = 8 possible combinations. Hexagrams have 8² = 64 combinations. From above, you can also see the opposing forces have opposing line makeup as well: ☰ sky v.s. ☷ earth, ☵ water v.s. ☲ fire.

After Completion

Speaking of water and fire, ☵☲(water over fire) is the hexagram of chapter 63 in the book I-Ching. The designer in me loves the minimalist aesthetics of these symbols, and the geek in me is intrigued by their logic operands. Every chapter of the book describes a situation and how we should handle it. Chapter 63 resonates with me the most. The title of the chapter is 既濟, roughly translates to “after completion,” or “end of sailing.” The gist of the content is: even though you have a achieved success or completed a journey, you should remain cautious. Things may be at a perfect equilibrium right now, but any additional disturbance will ruin it. Avoid being complacent or arrogant. Now it’s time to reflect and welcome a new phase.

The water over fire symbolism fits this theme perfectly too:

When water in a kettle hangs over fire, the two elements stand in relation and thus generate energy (cf. the production of steam). But the resulting tension demands caution. If the water boils over, the fire is extinguished and its energy is lost. If the heat is too great, the water evaporates into the air. These elements here brought in to relation and thus generating energy are by nature hostile to each other. Only the most extreme caution can prevent damage. In life too there are junctures when all forces are in balance and work in harmony, so that everything seems to be in the best of order. In such times only the sage recognizes the moments that bode danger and knows how to banish it by means of timely precautions.

source

Finding balance in life is also the teaching in chapter 2 of Tao Te Ching, another Taoism book I love. I translated the chapter it a while back. The other parts of I-Ching are worth reading too. You may just find a chapter that’s most relate-able to you. Keep in mind though, I’m talking about the philosophical Taoism, not the religious one. The two are polar opposites, and almost have nothing in common in essence.

If we adore beauty alone and ignore the ugliness, then beauty isn’t true.
If we’re fixated on kindness only and forget the unkind, then kindness is superficial.
That’s why the truth comes from balancing the opposing forces such as full vs. void; long vs. short; high vs. low; voice vs. melody; front vs. back.
One’s actions and words must be based on natural selflessness(Wu Wei).
Just like how the universe operates: it creates without possessing, nourishes without wanting, succeeds without boasting.
When one follows the selfless way of Tao, he/she will be as eternal.

My wife and I love steak. There’s nothing better than a hefty piece of ribeye t-bone thick cut steak fresh off the grill, still sizzling with its meaty melody, smoldering with the aroma that massages every nerve from the nostril all the way to the back of the head. I prefer mine rare and seasoned with nothing but Mccormick. When I put a slice in the mouth, it’s like a piece of heaven just melted on my tongue. It’s that good. Before we had kids, we had a lot of steak, almost all the time, perhaps too much. Life sure changes fast. Three kids and a D.C. mortgage later, we find ourselves hardly spending any money on ourselves. Steak is expensive. But after a while, I started to miss steak. Not for its taste, but as a reminder of the quality time my wife and I spent when it was just the two of us. We decided to grill steak once a month to treat ourselves. That way, we’re not putting much of a dent on saving, and we get to indulge a bit. Life has been good since.

Chapter two of Tao Te Ching introduces two key Taoism concepts: Balance and Wu Wei.

Balance

Balance is achieved when the equilibrium is reached between two opposing aspects. But how do we find balance if we don’t have an equal amount of awareness and understanding of the two aspects? Lao Zi uses simple analogies to illustrate the point that knowledge and wisdom lie in the contrast. Knowing the contrast, one can find balance. As kids, we were taught simple concepts Lao Zi mentioned. High vs. low and long vs. short are ideas even a three year old can grasp. But what about the other things in life that are not as obvious?

A father who focuses too much effort and time on his career, hoping to earn more money to buy his kids nice things may miss out what’s truly important: time spent with his kids. Conversely, a man who does the opposite may not secure a job that can offer his family a comfortable living.

As we grow older and journey further in the paths of life, we encounter more situations that call for a balance. Sometimes the forces, or aspects in these situations may not be as clearcut as black and white. At home, I face frugality vs. self-indulgence; time with kids or the wife or quiet time to myself; family vs. a night out with friends. At work doing web design, I have to balance between function vs. form; artistry vs. content; my assertion vs. client’s inputs. These are just a few examples.

If we’re too focused on one side, we’d only be seeing the grand scheme of things through a tiny window. There’s a Chinese saying: “A frog that lives in the bottom of the well thinks the sky is round.” Understanding the opposites allows us to think objectively, otherwise it’s very easy to slip into a state of dichotomy and extremism.

Wu Wei

Many English translations I’ve read have 無 為 Wu Wei as “non-action.” Wu means “none” or “void,” and Wei means “action.” Even though “non-action” is a correct literal translation, I feel it doesn’t do the word justice.

So what is Wu Wei? Well obviously it’s not just sitting there doing nothing. Wu Wei is when you do something good and kind, you do it so naturally that you don’t realize what you just did. You don’t do a good deed for the sake of doing a good deed or hoping to be praised; doing so makes it superficial therefore not good. This is a simple concept to grasp, but extremely hard to live by. Motivated actions lead to expectations. When those expectations are not met, that’s when you cause stress upon yourself. In my younger years, much of my anxiety was self-imposed. When I helped people I’d expect gratefulness or payback in return. Looking back, if I practiced Wu Wei I would have saved myself a lot of grief. Of course, it’s easier said than done. I think we all have the instinct of wanting to be praised or acknowledged. It’s something I’m still working on.

The Tao that can be described, is not the eternal Tao.
The name that’s used as a mere label, is not everlasting.
When the universe was first formed, it was a nameless void;
When names came to existence, that’s when everything started.
So, when people are void of earthly desires, that’s when they can clearly see the marvelous essence of the universe;
If not, then they can merely see superficial things on the surface.
The two outcomes came from looking at the same source, but differ in name.
Tao is found within that void source.

Only in that void source, lies the gateway to enlightenment.

Growing up in Raleigh, North Carolina, my biggest desire was to move to New York City after college. I hated Raleigh with a passion. It was boring, uneventful, bad shopping, no good restaurants. I longed for the imagined life I’d have in NYC: living in a cool loft; hanging out with new trendy people I’d meet; eating out at the best restaurants the city has to offer; and shopping for name brand clothes on 5th ave. I didn’t know if I actually lived that life, I’d be happy or not. In fact, I wasn’t sure. I just knew I wanted it, because it wasn’t Raleigh.

I never got to move to New York.

Instead, I met a wonderful girl in Raleigh whom I married. We now have three wonderful boys. Last year, I moved up to the Washing D.C. area for my new job. It was then, I realized how much I miss Raleigh and what a wonderful town it is. Raleigh is peaceful, people are friendly and laid back. It’s the place where my parents and all my old friends live. It’s the exact same town I grew up in, nothing’s changed. I however, have changed. I no longer care about the materialistic life I didn’t get to experience in NYC.

In the opening of chapter one of Tao Te Ching, Lao Zi doesn’t spell out what Tao is, but he tells us what Tao is not. It can’t be spelled out clearly, therefore can’t be described in words. Tao is amorphous, and it’s everywhere. Tao has to be experienced rather than taught. Tao is achieved when a person lets go of all his/her emotional flaws. Without distraction, one can truly see the universe for what it is. Objective thinking is part of Tao. “The Universe(Heaven+Earth)” in the original text doesn’t limit to a cosmic level. It means everything: people, animals, plants, objects, events, etc.

I’m sure we all have had that moment of clarity, when we encounter the same thing/people/event again later on in life, you see it from a totally different perspective. A once rebellious young man returning from college may suddenly realize how wise his “uncool” dad is. His dad hasn’t changed a bit, but he has. /*raises hand*.

It’s increasingly hard for us to stay objective in the modern world. Temptations around us are more abundant than ever. The world has become a lot more materialistic. People are driven by their earthly desires: sex, fame, power, spite, etc. By “earthly desires,” Lao Zi talks about personal agendas and flawed emotions. True clarity is only achieved when one is void of those traits. Some of these traits are more subtle than others, so subtle we may not even realize them. For example:

When we have impatience, we see a crying baby as a nuisance; without impatience, we see it as miracle of life.

When we have arrogance, we dismiss people’s advices; without arrogance, we listen and learn.

When we have ego, we see an exotic car as a desired status symbol; without ego, we see it as the result of fine craftsmanship.

When we lust for someone, we only see a man/woman as a sexual object; without lust we can cherish him/her as a valuable companion.

The path is pathless and those who walk it must be desire-less.

The concept of Tao came from the book Tao Te Ching(道德經 Dao De Jing²) by Lao Zi, written over 2500 years ago. The book was also known as Tao Te Zheng Ching(道德真經), Lao Zi(老子) and 5000 Characters(五千言). Tao Te Ching is considered as the main writing of Taoism, and Lao Zi as being the founder of the philosophy. The book has total of 81 chapters and is divided into two parts. The first part(chp1-37) is Tao Ching(道經), and the latter(chap38-81) is Te Ching(德經). 經 means “scripture” in Chinese. The title translates to “The Scripture of the Way and Virtue.”

Each chapter of Tao Te Ching is very brief, written in only a few verses. Despite its simplicity in form, it’s considered one of most difficult books to comprehend even for modern Chinese. The language of the book was written in ancient Chinese, lacked punctuation and often used ambiguous metaphors.

The exact birthday of the author Lao Zi is unknown. According to the historians, he lived around 462-302BC, in Henan province during the Spring and Autumn Period of Ancient China. China was divided into many feudal nations and was in constant warfare. It was an era of chaos and turmoil. It was during this time Lao Zi started his philosophy on rules of nature, people, governing and knowledge. Those aspects condensed into Tao Te Ching, a book on the way and virtue. Taoist teaching was carried on by Lao Zi’s student Zhuang Zi, who wrote several influential books of his own. “Zi” is a suffix given to accomplished men.

So what is Tao? Well, that’s hard to say. Taoism philosophy is lived, not described or overly studied. I cannot tell you what “true Tao” is, doing so would be an oxymoron. However, I do believe when one gets the essence of Tao, then everything will be clear.

I plan to translate all 81 chapters of Tao Te Ching on this site, in blog entry form. There are several English translations of the book out there already, so why would I bother? Well, I’ve read several of them. While some of the authors did a superb job of translating the original text literally, I feel the translation isn’t relatable to a modern day western audience. What do “ten thousand things” and “hay dogs” mean?

I had some reservations about starting this task. First of all, I think if Lao Zi were alive today, he wouldn’t approve the idea of over studying the text. After all, he was a man who didn’t care much for isms. He believed in label-lessness and free thinking. Secondly, Tao Te Ching is a very hard to read, even for a native Chinese such as myself. Even modern day Chinese scholars debate furiously over particular characters in the text.

What compelled me to write is because I feel even though the book was written over 2500 years ago, the principles of its teachings benefit the modern world we live in greatly. A lot of things have changed since Lao Zi’s days. Technology has made the world smaller, but are we more distant as a society in whole? There are more things money can buy, but are we easily content? There are more labels around, but do they truly make us different? There are less wars, but is the suffering any less? Can ego and inner peace co-exist?

Things change, human nature doesn’t. That’s why Lao Zi’s wisdom is timeless. Everything stems from “self” to “other.”

I’d like to note future chapters will be comprised of the original Chinese writing, and my English translation. Also, I’ll write how Taoist living affects me personally. It will be “MY” understanding of Tao. The Tao of Tao Te Ching is a way of life, not a religion. There is however a religious Taoism, which I will not talk about here.