Gengsang Chu (9)

1 A man of practice should beware of the following twenty-four responses in four categories.

2 The first one of the four categories is to repress the impulses of the will.

3 The second is to unravel the mess of thinking.

4 The third is to put away the entanglements to virtue.

5 The last is to clear away all that obstructs the free course of Tao.

6 The impulses of the will are to pursue nobility, richness, eminence, stateliness, fame and interest.

7 The factors of mess of thinking are looks, motives, sex, diction, change of mood and mind.

8 The factors to spoil virtue are evil mind, desires, happiness, anger, sadness and joy.

9 The obstacles of Tao are escape, catering for, give, take, knowledge and skill.

10 If you can control these mood responses well and keep your mood from their stimulations, your spirit finally becomes sound, tranquil and peaceful.

11 If you often keep the sound, tranquil and peaceful mind, the great wisdom will arise. With the great wisdom, nothing troubles you and blinds you. You will not be confused and worried.

12 The true factor is that all things are integrated so there is no-self, and being flexibility. Individual combines into all things as a whole. Individual disappears to be emptiness. Combining with nature, individual eventually, becomes nature, god, Bodhisattva and mighty Buddha.

13 Virtue is the concrete practice of Tao, so Tao is the creed of virtue. Life is the activity that virtue practices Tao in details. Various appearances and individuals are essence of the diverse creatures.

14 Conduct is the presentation of pure and simple nature of human. There are error and hypocrisy in the human conduct because they deviate from Tao. There is no error and hypocrisy in the conduct in the light of Tao.

15 Our experience and knowledge are employed to deal with the objective environment, and to make for the favorable condition to us in the objective environment. However, when we confront the objective environment and natural arcanum, it is discovered that there are huge difference between what we know and what we don’t know, like those seen by disabled eyes and healthy eyes; those handicap of our knowledge we must always keep in mind.

16 With such cognition, we will be very discreet in our action. We will not act unless there is no other choice. It is as wading through the river, we will to take each pace carefully until we have detected the right stones in water. The discreet action is the presentation of virtue.

17 The policy of a leader is considered right, if his primary idea is not for the interest of himself or for his close friends. Under this condition, we say, this organization is suitable for us to be there and the leader is worthy to support.

18 In general, in the respect of knowledge, we should know its limitation; in the respect of action, we should know the discreetness or the importance of inaction.

19 With this cognition, we are considered to recognize the true factor of things, so it is easier for us to deal with the objective environment.