Top 12 of the Tao Te Ching
The Path of Well Being

This verse deals with the Nature of Things. It not only describes the sequence of events in nature, it also describes the “rules”.  The “soft and weak” overcome the “hard and strong”. Water overcomes stone. Bending overcomes stiffness. Gentleness overcomes force. In the West, we have been taught the opposite. And what we have been taught is no longer useful. Think for a moment about a recent argument you have had. Was force used? If so, think about how gentle persistence could have been used more effectively. We listen to the soft. We bend to the wind.

Another concept in this verse is the idea of giving in order to receive. In order to receive love, we must give it first. In order to receive kindness, we must be kind first. In truth, we can only receive what we give. Some call this the Law of Karma. Whatever it’s name, what we give comes back to us. What we give, we receive. 

To “play” with these ideas further, reflect on the following questions:

1.     What is your Nature? (answer this question in one sentence – “My nature is….”)

2.     What do you do that goes against your Nature?

3.      What do you do that is in harmony with your Nature?

4.     What have you received that you must have given first? (make a list)

5.     What do you want to give so that you may receive it? (make a list)

Sometime during this month, do the following:

1.     Do something that is truly, honestly, purely, in Your Nature. This will be an activity that brings you joy. One that comes easily to you. One you do with a sense of “rightness for me” about it. Spend this month discovering your own Nature, and living in a way that is natural for you!

2.     Spend one day only giving (mentally, emotionally, physically) that which you want to receive. And then spend another day, and then another!

The Tao Te Ching  (pronounced Dow de ching) was written around 6th century BC  by the Taoist sage Lao Tzu, "Old Master", a record-keeper at the Zhou Dynasty court, by whose name the text is known in China. The text's true authorship and date of composition or compilation has not ever been verified. According to legend, Lao Tzu wrote the Tao as an old man, and then walked off into the hills, never to be seen again.

Tao means "way", "road", "path", or "route," but was extended to mean "path ahead", "way forward", "method", "principle", "doctrine", or simply "the Way".  Te means "virtue" in the sense of "personal character", "inner strength", or "integrity".  Ching originally meant "norm", "rule", "plan".

©September 2004 by Jill N. Henry, Mountain Valley Center, Otto NC. All rights reserved.

Dr. Jill Henry is the author of Energy SourceBook – The Fundamentals of Personal Energy (Llewellyn, 2004) and webmaster for www.mountainvalleycenter.com. She is founder, with her husband Charlie, of Mountain Valley Center metastore  and the Otto Labyrinth Park in Otto, NC. Jill is an Associate Polarity Practitioner, an Independent Distributor of the RichWay Amethyst Biomat, and developer and presenter of CEU workshops for nurses, physical therapists and massage therapists  http://www.mountainvalleycenter.com/flow.htm