I was in a hurry but I was able to have a number of guests before I had to run. I started with #26 and Julie joined me for #43 from the Derek Lin translation and I switched to Stephen Mitchell for newcomers Erica and Kronos for #22 and #68 respectively. Finally in a bit of a rush I covered Mitchell's #9 with Mary K.
#9
Fill your bowl to the brim
and it will spill.
Keep sharpening your knife
and it will blunt.
Chase after money and security
and your heart will never unclench.
Care about people's approval
and you will be their prisoner.
Do your work, then step back.
The only path to serenity.
#22
If you want to become whole,
let yourself be partial.
If you want to become straight,
let yourself be crooked.
If you want to become full,
let yourself be empty.
If you want to be reborn,
let yourself die.
If you want to be given everything,
give everything up.
The Master, by residing in the Tao,
sets an example for all beings.
Because he doesn't display himself,
people can see his light.
Because he has nothing to prove,
people can trust his words.
Because he doesn't know who he is,
people recognize themselves in him.
Because he has no goal in mind,
everything he does succeeds.
When the ancient Masters said,
"If you want to be given everything, give everything up,"
they weren't using empty phrases.
Only in being lived by the Tao can you be truly yourself.
#26
Heaviness is the root of lightness.
Quietness is the master of restlessness.
Therefore, the sage travels the entire day
Without leaving the heavy supplies.
Even though there are luxurious sights
He is composed and transcends beyond.
How can the lord of ten thousand chariots
Applies himself lightly to the world?
To be light is to lose one's root
To be restless is to lose one's mastery.
#43
The softest things of the world
Override the hardest things of the world.
That which has no substance
Enters into that which has no openings.
From this, I know the benefits of non-attached actions,
The teaching without words.
The benefits of actions without attachment
Are rarely matched in the world.
#68
The best athlete
wants his opponent at his best.
The best general
enters the mind of his enemy.
The best businessman
serves the communal good.
The best leader
follows the will of the people.
All of the embody
the virtue of non-competition.
Not that they don't love to compete,
but they do it in the spirit of play.
In this they are like children
and in harmony with the Tao.
