Weight is the root of lightness, stillness is the ruler of recklessness.

-> In the phenomenal world, weight anchors lightness.  In the spiritual world, stillness (in and of the center) persists over recklessness.

Therefore the Sage at all times stay centered at the weighted wagon.

Although in luxury and glamour, (he) remain transcended and nonattached.

-> Seeing the temporariness of phenomena, Sages identified him/herself as the center that give rise to the changing world.

How could the lord of the world rule with a lightness?

-> lightness here means not knowing the center, and attached to the changing.  How can someone who does not know its center rule his/her life?

Lightness will cost one’s foundation, recklessness will cost one’s lordship.

-> When we follow our attachments, we are led away from the center.  When we are away from the center, we lost our foundation.  Like tree without root but attempts to rule the entire tree, we become reckless and lost our true lordship and mastership.

* * *

Chapter 26 discussion:

We often describe spiritual masters as being grounded.  At where do they ground themselves to?  Laozi suggests grounding to the center.  When we realize our identity beyond, and underneath the changing body-mind-self, we realize our deeper identity as the non-personal witness-consciousness-awareness-Self, which is the stable reality underneath and beyond the changing phenomena.  When we realized this, we will not be confused by the lightness of the peripheral, and will know our everlasting home in midst of the changing phenomenal world.

bilingual text of Chapter 26: https://www.lisiming.net/philosophy/chinese-philosophy/daoist/daoist-philosophy/dao-de-jing-core-33-chapters/ddj11-3/

Reach the end of emptiness, abide in the end of stillness.  Things manifest, i see coming and going.

-> Emptiness here refers to reality beyond form.  Stillness here refers to reality beyond mind.  When one realizes this reality, one sees things coming and going, fully aware, but not affected by them.

Despite of diversity, things all eventually return to their root.  Returning to the root is stillness, is called answering to destiny.

-> Despite of diversity of forms, all things are manifested in cycles of birth-growth-wither-death. E.g animal, plants, species, planets, galaxy, etc.   Root here refers to the center that is beyond the cycle of birth-growth-wither-death.  Return to the root, or answering to destiny, means realizing and abiding in one’s center, which is beyond diversity and transitory of forms.

Answering to destiny is normal, knowing this normalness is wisdom.  Not knowing this normalness, is recklessly doing dangerous deeds.

->  Abiding in the center is normal.  Knowing, realizing, recognizing the center as normal is wisdom (ordinary people would properly think otherwise).   Where in fact, according to Laozi, not knowing this normalness and act selfishly, randomly, aimlessly, and ignorantly is reckless.

Knowing brings compassion, compassion brings impartiality, impartiality brings nobility, nobility becomes heavenly, heavenly is a quality of Dao, Dao is timeless, beyond physicality and cannot be endangered.

-> When we abide in the center and see all things come and go via this center, we can see equality of all (that we all arise from the same source), and therefore are in position to accept and be compassionate.  When we have respect, compassion, and value all equally (including one’s “self”), we can then live without personal bias and arrive impartiality.  When we live impartially ours actions and intentions are noble.  As the purification continues, ones life becomes heavenly, which is a quality of Dao (see Ch5: Impartiality and heavenly of the Dao).  This Dao is everlasting, and lasts even without form.  Therefore, when one realizes, one is freed from the attachments to, identifications with, and limitations of forms.

* * *

Chapter 16 Discussion:

The first part of this chapter describes the difference between enlightened being vs. normal people.  Enlightenment is a state where life is lived in alignment with the everlasting center, while ordinary people are lost in the diversity of forms and cycles of life and death.  Enlightenment means one knows where one is from, ordinary people do not know its source and therefore are threatened by the changes and temporariness of forms.

The second part of this chapter describes the process of Dao cultivation:  study and know about the center, which provides basis for true compassion, which when cultivated and expanded leads to impartiality, nobility, heavenly, and finally to the realization of the Dao.  How to proceed?   We learn about the center, cultivate respect and compassion, let go of personal bias and attachments,  and follow the guidance of and the flow of the universe, instead of to one’s self.

.DDJ Chapter 16 bilingual text: https://www.lisiming.net/philosophy/chinese-philosophy/daoist/daoist-philosophy/dao-de-jing-core-33-chapters/ddj11-3/

Thirty spokes, forms a wheel, together with the empty space within, yields the functionality of a car.

-> Ancient vehicle were run on wooden wheel, with 30 spokes connected to a circle in the middle of the wheel. The forms (spokes) and non-form (empty space of the circle) together yields the functionality of the wheel/car.

Clay when fashioned into vessels, together with the empty space within, yields the functionality of a vessel.

-> Form (clay) and non-form (empty space within vessel) together yields the functionality of a vessel.

Doors and windows when cut to form a room, together with the empty space within, yields the functionality of a room.

-> Form (doors and windows and walls) and non-form (empty space within the room) together yields the functionality of a room.

Therefore, beingness and nothingness together offers functionality.

-> Beingness (form)  and nothingness (non-form) cannot be separated in its functionality and manifestation in the world.  Can a wheel function as a wheel without the empty space in its center? Can a vessel be used to contain water if there is no space within? Can a room serve its purpose if it is filled?  Similarly, empty space itself cannot do the job (of a wheel, vessel, room) without their corresponding form counterparts.

* * *

Chapter 11 Discussion:

Our mind likes to separate things into categories and opposites, as if the mentally separated subjects could exist independently.  However, Laozi pointed out in this chapter, as a further elaboration to Chapter 2, with the 3 examples of wheel, vessel, and room, that it is a fallacy to separate our life into duality and opposites, and that separated and dualistic subjects do not have independent, stable and everlasting reality.   Not only does the separation of form and non-form a fallacy to the perceptive world, it is also a fallacy to separate our own life into opposites.   For example, in the classic duality of body vs. mind. Can the body be perceived without the mind? Can the mind exist without a body?  The answer is obvious. Our life consists of both the body and the mind, which are two categories we created to describe certain aspects of our life (there is more, of course).   What does it matter? It points us to perceive life as it is, beyond concepts and separation the mind created which does not stand at an objective and absolute level.  It points us to go beyond duality and separation of the mind.  It is the nature of higher truth, which when realized, liberates us from our ignorance, which is temporary, transitory, and illusive in nature.   Therefore, in the Tai-Chi symbol, the black and white (or the yin and yang) are depicted separately yet are connected and united in the center to represent the highest truth of the world.   Laozi did not teach Yin and Yang, he taught the truth beyond them.

Bilingual text of Chapter 11: https://www.lisiming.net/philosophy/chinese-philosophy/daoist/daoist-philosophy/dao-de-jing-core-33-chapters/ddj11-3/