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Revealing the Tao Te Ching
By Teacher Hu Xuezhi
ONE
The Tao that can be spoken of is not the eternal Tao;
The name that can be named is not the eternal name.
The nameless is the origin of Heaven and Earth;
The named is the root of all things.
Therefore, by being free from passions and desires,
the subtleties of the Tao can be experienced.
The things existing in the world of duality can be well known by
possessing passions and desires.
The two above-mentioned have the same source
but are given different names.
The ability of transformation between the two is a most mysterious
thing, or the door of all mysteries.
Commentary
Line one.
From the traditional Taoist scripture titled "The Serenity and Tranquility Canon" there carries a message which reads as follows: "Tao is formless, but it gives birth to Heaven and Earth; Tao is merciless and gentle, but charges and empowers the movements of the Sun and the Moon; Tao is nameless and without form, but always nourishes all of the myriad things in the Universe. We really don't know what name we should give it, being so grand, we are forced to call it Tao."
By Lao Tzi's description, Tao does exists before the division of Yin and Yang, and serves as the original source of the entire Universe, the very beginning of Heaven and Earth, the root of all myriad things, and the pivot of all transformation and change in the Universe. Tao is free of any form, appearance, shape or something that could stand for it. Tao carries no color or smell, exists everywhere, and is always in a complete and constant state. It is so grand it fills up the entire universe. It does not decline or increase but exists forever. Being formless it cannot be named, but really exists as an entity. For people's convenience to recognize, distinguish and master the essentials of it, the name of Tao came into being.
The state that existed before the Great Chaos starts to open up, the state before the division of Yin and Yang, before the cleaving up between the clean and the turbid, and before the Qian trigram and Kun trigram began to position themselves in a proper manner, can be termed the State of Ultimate Union. Then looking up people can behold the Sun, the Moon, and the glorious Stars. Wind, clouds, thunder and rain present themselves in a continuous succession of movement; looking downward, the four directions of south, east, west and north can be applied to locate a place such as mountains, valleys, lakes, and the vast deep blue oceans.
Between Heaven and Earth, birds are flying, flowers are blooming, creatures go about their business, and human society transforms itself from one generation to the next. All these phenomena have one thing in common: they cannot last forever. They all will perish at some point, because they possess form and appearance, birth and death, and the experience of growth and decline. All of the transient myriad things in the world fall into the same category which can be called "that which can be spoken of". Thus, the transient myriad things always position themselves in the transformation process of change and can not be called "The Eternal Tao."
Line two.
The name means the one, which we give to denote the Tao. It is, in essence, an eternal one, as we talked about above. But the name we give which indicates the Tao in reference is not an eternal one. It is a true contradiction. One thing has a given name, but it truly does not exist in a tangible "seen" manner. The thing comes first, being eternal and everlasting, and the name comes second. Each of the myriad things in the universe possesses many different characteristics and thus they each received names in a corresponding manner to label them. Because all of the worldly things are bound to be imposed with both birth and death, the name used for labeling them is not eternal.
Line three.
The nameless indicates the Tao, which is formless, shapeless, and free of any appearance; thus it is nameless. In fact, Tao exists far before the formation of Heaven and Earth. It is the ultimate profound truth for us to grasp. Hence, the nameless is the origin of Heaven and Earth.
Line four.
The named denotes Heaven and Earth, which boast of its form and appearances and exists as the earliest entity, which, in its turn, gave birth to all the myriad things of shape, form and duality. So, we call the named "the root of all things."
Line five.
The state of being still and free of all passions and desires can be termed one's Congenital Nature, one's Original Nature, and the True Heart. This True Heart is clean, quiet, and serene in its pure state. The True Heart is eternal and unchanging. The True Heart is composed of serene comprehensiveness and is capable of comprehending even the minute mechanism of transformation and change.
Line six.
The state of passion and desires indicates that the Congenital Nature has been disturbed and involved in motion. The Congenital Nature thus changes into the Acquired Nature, which in the extreme state is full of passions and desires. As a result, practices such as meditation, watching, listening, and using the consciousness must be applied.
Line seven.
"The above-mentioned" refers to the Congenital Nature, which is free of any passions and desires, and the Acquired Nature, which is full of passions and desires. The latter, in its final formation, results in the creation of Heaven and Earth. Although the names are different, but they share the same source of Ultimate Union.
Line eight.
The Congenital Nature and the Acquired Nature can transform into each other. Congenital Nature arises naturally from the state of stillness. Acquired Nature arises out of action and movement. Such transformation is something quite amazing in the universe, it is the most mysterious, or the door of all mysteries. We call it Mysterious Pass. We really don't know how to describe its great importance.
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The above chapter is printed here with permission from the author - Revealing the Tao Te Ching by Teacher Hu Xuezhi.
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