humility

  • What the heart holds, the eye beholds

    Su Dongpo, the famed poet, shared a close yet playful rivalry with the Buddhist monk Foyin, often trading barbs—though Su usually lost.

  • Wukong – the Great Sage, Equal to Heaven

    ‌In Journey to the West, the names and titles of the characters often carry specific symbolic meanings.‌

  • Dao De Jing – Chapter 69

    Chapter 69 employs military metaphors to unveil the Daoist philosophy of ‘retreating to advance’ and ‘softness overcoming hardness’. Lao Tzu first references ancient military wisdom: ‘I dare not take the initiative but prefer to respond; I dare not advance an inch but prefer to withdraw a foot’. This emphasizes avoiding provocation, resisting rash aggression,…

  • Dao De Jing – Chapter 67

    The Dao, due to its all-encompassing and formless nature, cannot be grasped through the perception of concrete forms. We learn to cultivate the Dao by emulating the sages.

  • Dao De Jing – Chapter 66

    The reason rivers and seas can become kings of the hundred valleysis that they excel at being lower than them—thus they can become kings of the hundred valleys. Therefore, whenever the sage wishes to lead the people,he places himself lower than them in speech;whenever he wishes to stand ahead of the people,he puts himself…

  • Dao De Jing – Chapter 64

    Chapter 64 emphasizes preventive action, alignment with natural cycles, and the wisdom of addressing problems before they arise.

  • Dao De Jing – Chapter 62

    This chapter from Tao Te Ching – Dao De Jing centers on the Dao as the origin of all things and a universal law, emphasizing its all-encompassing inclusivity and redemptive power transcending moral binaries. Both the virtuous (those aligned with the Dao) and the non-virtuous (those yet to awaken to it) can benefit from…

  • Dao De Jing – Chapter 61

    Chapter 61 from Tao Te Ching – Dao De Jing centers on the principle that “the greater must dwell below.”‌ Through metaphors such as “a great nation, like a river or sea, positions itself humbly downstream” and “the feminine and yielding overcomes the masculine and forceful,” Laozi articulates a diplomatic philosophy rooted in humility…

  • Dao De Jing – Chapter 55

    Chapter 55 teaches that true power arises from simplicity, naturalness, and harmony. It critiques humanity’s obsession with control and growth, urging a return to the infant’s wisdom: Live softly, trust innate rhythms, and let go of artificial striving.