The hearing that is only in the ears is one thing. The hearing of the understanding is another. But the hearing of the spirit is not limited to any one faculty to the ear, or to the mind.
ZhuangziRead
Good order results spontaneously when things are let alone
Interpretation
Good organization naturally occurs when things are left to their own devices.
This quote by Zhuangzi suggests that the natural state of things is one of harmony and order, provided that interference is minimized. It implies that when we allow things to exist without undue influence or control, they can develop in a balanced way, reflecting their true nature.
In practice
During a meditation session, one might quote this to emphasize the importance of letting thoughts settle naturally.
The hearing that is only in the ears is one thing. The hearing of the understanding is another. But the hearing of the spirit is not limited to any one faculty to the ear, or to the mind.
Either in conflict with others or in harmony with them, we go through life like a runaway horse, unable to stop.
When people do not ignore what they should ignore, but ignore what they should not ignore, this is known as ignorance.
The true man of the past waited upon Heaven when dealing with people and did not wait upon people when dealing with Heaven.
The mind remains undetermined in the great Void. Here the highest knowledge is unbounded. That which gives things their thusness cannot be delimited by things. So when we speak of 'limits', we remain confined to limited things. The limit of the unlimited is called 'fullness.' The limitlessness of the limited is called 'emptiness.' Tao is the source of both. But it is itself neither fullness nor emptiness
All the fish needs is to get lost in the water. All man needs is to get lost in Tao.
The accretion of dangerous power does not come in a day. It does come, however slowly, from the generative force of unchecked disregard of the restrictions that fence in even the most disinterested assertion of authority.
Our greatest pretenses are built up not to hide the evil and the ugly in us, but our emptiness. The hardest thing to hide is something that is not there.
I guess the definition of a lunatic is a man surrounded by them.
Which way you ought to go depends on where you want to get to.
Thought is more than a right - it is the very breath of man. Whoever fetters thought attacks man himself. To speak, to write, to publish, are things, so far as the right is concerned, absolutely identical. They are the ever-enlarging circles of intelligence in action; they are the sonorous waves of thought.
For me the present is merged in eternity. I may not sacrifice the latter for the present.
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