The Three Principle Texts of Daoism translated by ... - Bad Request

we cannot see its form. It has functions without form.”“Take the human body with all its manifold divisions.Which part of it does a man love best? Does he notcherish all equally, or has he a preference? Do not allequally serve him? And do these servitors then governthemselves, or are they subdivided into rulers andsubjects? Surely there is some soul which sways them all.”“But whether or not we ascertain what are the functionsof this soul, it matters but little to the soul itself. For,coming into existence with this mortal coil of mine, withthe exhaustion of this mortal coil its mandate will alsobe exhausted. To be harassed by the wear and tear of life,and to pass rapidly through it without possibility ofarresting one's course,--is not this pitiful indeed? Tolabour without ceasing, and then, without living to enjoythe fruit, worn out, to depart, suddenly, one knows notwhither,--is not that a just cause for grief?”“What advantage is there in what men call not dying?The body decomposes, and the mind goes with it. This isour real cause for sorrow. Can the world be so dull as notto see this? Or is it I alone who am dull, and others notso? . . . There is nothing which is not objective: there isnothing which is not subjective. But it is impossible tostart from the objective. Only from subjective knowledgeis it possible to proceed to objective knowledge. Hence ithas been said, 'The objective emanates from thesubjective; the subjective is consequent upon theobjective. This is the Alternation Theory.' Nevertheless,when one is born, the other dies. When one is possible,