SUPREME GOODNESS LIKE WATER
Supreme goodness is like water.
Water does not contend for a share with all things,
but all things cannot live without water.
Water nourishes the myriad creatures without seeking credit,
flowing toward what is low, yet never making itself mean or inferior.
A person with the Way is also like that.
No need to be better than others to prove oneself great,
no need to fight for victory to prove oneself strong.
Know how to advance when the time comes,
know how to retreat when circumstances change; meet hardness with softness,
encounter obstacles and find a path to go on.
Water does not choose high places,
but in the end it can reach everywhere.
So too is human life —
the more mature one becomes, the more one understands that humility is not weakness, patience is not losing, and not competing does not mean lacking ability.
There are people who spend their whole lives searching for the highest position.
There are others who simply live quietly true to themselves, benefit others, and hold firmly to their original mind—until one day they realize:
The highest is not standing above others, but being deep and tranquil enough that one does not need to stand over anyone.
An excerpt reflecting on “Supreme goodness is like water” from the Tao Te Ching —
Supreme goodness is like water.
It moves with circumstances yet does not lose itself.
It harmonizes with the world yet does not become tainted by the world.
Not contending in a lifetime,
and yet nothing can easily be subdued.
Supreme goodness is like water.
Water does not contend for a share with all things,
but all things cannot live without water.
Water nourishes the myriad creatures without seeking credit,
flowing toward what is low, yet never making itself mean or inferior.
A person with the Way is also like that.
No need to be better than others to prove oneself great,
no need to fight for victory to prove oneself strong.
Know how to advance when the time comes,
know how to retreat when circumstances change; meet hardness with softness,
encounter obstacles and find a path to go on.
Water does not choose high places,
but in the end it can reach everywhere.
So too is human life —
the more mature one becomes, the more one understands that humility is not weakness, patience is not losing, and not competing does not mean lacking ability.
There are people who spend their whole lives searching for the highest position.
There are others who simply live quietly true to themselves, benefit others, and hold firmly to their original mind—until one day they realize:
The highest is not standing above others, but being deep and tranquil enough that one does not need to stand over anyone.
An excerpt reflecting on “Supreme goodness is like water” from the Tao Te Ching —
Supreme goodness is like water.
It moves with circumstances yet does not lose itself.
It harmonizes with the world yet does not become tainted by the world.
Not contending in a lifetime,
and yet nothing can easily be subdued.
