Chapter 17

Eckhart's Abgeschiedenheit/Gelassenheit — radical letting-go of will, image, and grasping that opens the soul to God; distinct from inner_silence (quietness) and from material renunciation, and adjacent to Sufi tark and Buddhist non-grasping as a practice rather than a metaphysical claim.

The ideal rulers appear irresolute and reticent, letting go of the need to impose their will or claim credit for outcomes.

Augustinian and Plotinian doctrine that evil has no positive being of its own but is a lack, distortion, or absence of the good — denying ontological dualism while preserving moral seriousness.

The decline in governance is attributed to a deficiency or lack of faith in the Tao rather than an active positive force of evil.

The supreme God's radical concealment beyond ordinary knowledge or perception; the Hidden Father.

[auto] The ideal rulers of the highest antiquity were unknown to the people, reflecting the hidden nature of the Tao in its most perfect manifestation.

The practice of stilling the mind and speech to open receptivity to divine knowledge or presence.

[auto] The text praises the rulers' reticence and the importance they set upon their words, valuing silence over speech as a mark of virtue.

The claim that the divine realm is present inside the individual, accessible without external mediation.

[auto] The people's declaration that they are 'of ourselves' suggests a state of internal self-sufficiency and alignment with the natural order without external mediation.

Using apparent contradiction, reversal, or riddle to destabilise ordinary understanding and induce insight.

[auto] The passage illustrates the paradox of successful governance achieved through non-action and reticence, where the people attribute success to themselves rather than the ruler.

Effortless action aligned with the spontaneous flow of the Dao; non-coercive, non-striving conduct that yields results without forcing — the sage acts without acting.

[auto] The passage describes ideal governance where work is accomplished without coercion, leading people to believe they acted of themselves.