¶ … Daodejing Reflections on the Tao Te Ching

This first passage invokes the idea of being quiet and still so that you are able really take in what is all around you. In my own life, I do this by getting out into nature and avoiding the TV and the Internet for a little while. It helps me to feel more focused and connected, and when I feel like I am part of nature I realize I am much more peaceful and much happier than when I am busy with all the things the world seems to throw at me each day. People need to learn more about how to be quiet and listen to all the wonderful things that can be found in the silence.

The second passage reminds me that gluttony and excess are not the ways to do things. It also makes me think that it is important to work hard but not to overdo things. I try to remember that. When I finish something for the day, I close the computer and go do something else. Tomorrow will be time enough to work on more things, but I cannot always be about work, just as I cannot always be about play. Sometimes,...

I try very hard to find that balance so that I can have more joy and peace throughout my lifetime.
Passage number three is also important. It is about the value of knowing who you are and having the strength to be who you know you are inside. Being yourself is not always a popular thing to do, but that does not mean you should ignore who you are in favor of taking the easy way out. At the same time, you should also allow others to be who they are. If you are willing to accept yourself, why would you not be willing to accept others without trying to change them? I have worked on this a lot lately, because I used to try to be who others wanted me to be. I also used to try to change others. It is difficult, but I try to be true to myself now, as well as being more accepting of people who are also being true to who they are. Encouragement goes much farther than criticism.

The Tao Te Ching characterizes Daoist teachers as being very in-tune with life and with themselves.…