Tao Te Ching · 23 of 81 · tr. James Legge

Chapter 23

Abstaining from speech marks him who is obeying the spontaneity of his nature. A violent wind does not last for a whole morning; a sudden rain does not last for the whole day. To whom is it that these (two) things are owing? To Heaven and Earth. If Heaven and Earth cannot make such (spasmodic) actings last long, how much less can man! Therefore when one is making the Tao his business, those who are also pursuing it, agree with him in it, and those who are making the manifestation of its course their object agree with him in that; while even those who are failing in both these things agree with him where they fail. Hence, those with whom he agrees as to the Tao have the happiness of attaining to it; those with whom he agrees as to its manifestation have the happiness of attaining to it; and those with whom he agrees in their failure have also the happiness of attaining (to the Tao). (But) when there is not faith sufficient (on his part), a want of faith (in him) ensues (on the part of the others).

§ Ask Guru about this passage →

Themes

Correspondencecosmology

The Hermetic axiom that the structure of the cosmos is reflected at every scale — 'as above, so below; as within, so without' — making each level a legible map of the others.

The comparison between Heaven and Earth's inability to sustain spasmodic acts and man's lesser capacity reflects a scaling of cosmic principles.

All passages →

Detachment Gelassenheitpraxis

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.

Obeying the 'spontaneity of his nature' suggests a radical letting-go of coercive will or artificial effort to align with the flow.

All passages →

Inner Silencepraxis

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

[auto] The passage explicitly states that abstaining from speech marks one who obeys the spontaneity of their nature.

All passages →

Microcosm Macrocosmcosmology

The human being as a small-scale image of the entire cosmos; the body, soul, and intellect mirroring the structure of the heavens and the divine — distinct from correspondence in that it makes the human the privileged mirror.

Man is compared to Heaven and Earth, implying the human reflects or is a smaller version of the cosmic order.

All passages →

Mystical Unionsoteriology

The merging of the individual soul or self with the divine, transcending personal identity.

The text describes 'attaining to it' (the Tao) through agreement and pursuit, indicating a merging or unification with the divine principle.

All passages →

Opposites Transcendedanthropology

The dissolution of binary oppositions (male/female, inner/outer, above/below) as a mark of spiritual completion.

The passage states that both those succeeding and those failing in the Tao agree with the sage and attain happiness, transcending the binary of success and failure.

All passages →

Paradox As Teachingethics

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

[auto] The passage presents the paradoxical idea that those failing in their pursuit still attain happiness through agreement in their failure.

All passages →

Self Knowledgesoteriology

The recognition of one's own true divine nature as the primary path to liberation; 'know thyself' as soteriology.

[auto] Obeying the spontaneity of one's nature implies recognizing and aligning with one's true inner state as a path to the Tao.

All passages →

Unity Of Beingtheology

The doctrine that all existence is ultimately one substance or one divine reality; non-duality as a theological claim.

[auto] The text suggests a fundamental resonance where all states, including failure, align with the Tao practitioner, implying an underlying unity.

All passages →

Wu Weipraxis

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 explicitly defines the sage as one who abstains from speech and obeys the spontaneity of nature, embodying effortless action without coercion.

All passages →

Related passages · 7 parallels

western_esoteric|The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Manly P. Hall)|The Human Body in Symbolism-a

“THE oldest, the most profound, the most universal of all symbols is the human body. The Greeks, Persians, Egyptians, and Hindus considered a philosophical analysis of man's triune nature to be an indispensable part of ethical and religious…”

Shared concept: Microcosm Macrocosm — The human being as a small-scale image of the entire cosmos; the body, soul, and intellect mirroring the structure of the heavens and the divine — distinct from correspondence in that it makes the human the privileged mirror. (derived)

christian_mysticism|The Life and Doctrines of Jacob Boehme|Chapter 1 (part 4)

“Let them, therefore, again go out with their will from their wilful ignorance or malignity and enter again into the will of God." ( Menschwerdung , 3, 5.) All this goes to show that it is useless and vain to seek for divine wisdom, meaning…”

Shared concept: Self Knowledge — The recognition of one's own true divine nature as the primary path to liberation; 'know thyself' as soteriology. (derived)

christian_mysticism|Meister Eckhart's Sermons (Field translation)|PREFACE-a

““ Meister Eckhart ,” who has been called the “Father of German thought,” was a Dominican monk, and one of the most profound thinkers of the Middle Ages. He was born about 1260 A.D. in Thuringia, and died at Cologne 1327 A.D. In 1295 he w…”

Shared concept: Detachment Gelassenheit — 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. (derived)

hinduism|Yoga Sutras of Patanjali, Book IV|Sutra 16

“Nor do material objects defend upon a single mind, for how could they remain objective to others, if that mind ceased to think of them? This is but a further development of the thought of the preceding Sutra, carrying on the thought that, w…”

renaissance_hermeticism|The Heroic Enthusiasts, Part II (Gli Eroici Furori)|First Dialogue-g

“Wherefore not only can we never discourse about things divine, but we cannot even think of them without detracting from, rather than adding to the glory of them; so that the best thing to be done with regard to them is, that man, in the pre…”

Shared concept: Inner Silence — The practice of stilling the mind and speech to open receptivity to divine knowledge or presence. (derived)

neoplatonism|Iamblichus: On the Mysteries|Chapter II

“The hostile opposition, therefore, in the things that are now proposed, may be easily dissolved by demonstrating the dignity of wholes with 226 respect to parts, and by recalling to your recollection the exempt transcendency of the Gods abo…”

Shared concept: Opposites Transcended — The dissolution of binary oppositions (male/female, inner/outer, above/below) as a mark of spiritual completion. (derived)

hermeticism|Corpus Hermeticum 13: The Discourse of Hermes to Tat|Section 1a

“The Secret Sermon on the Mountain <This dialogue is in many ways the culmination of the whole Corpus, summing up the theory of the Hermetic system at the same time as it provides an intriguing glimpse at the practice. The focus of the dial…”

Shared concept: Inner Silence — The practice of stilling the mind and speech to open receptivity to divine knowledge or presence. (derived)