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Ursula K. Le Guin

3

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Not praising the praiseworthy keeps people uncompetitive.

Not prizing rare treasures keeps people from stealing.

Not looking at the desirable keeps the mind quiet.

So the wise soul governing people would empty their minds, fill their bellies, weaken their wishes, strengthen their bones, keep people unknowing, unwanting, keep the ones who do know from doing anything.

When you do not-doing, nothing’s out of order.

Note UKLG: Over and over Lao Tzu says wei wu wei: Do not do. Doing not-doing. To act without acting. Action by inaction. You do nothing yet it gets done… It’s not a statement susceptible to logical interpretation, or even to a syntactical translation into English; but it’s a concept that transforms thought radically, that changes minds. The whole book is both an explanation and a demonstration of it.

Continue reading from this chapter in the full translation.