The Tao, defined as the absolute principle underlying the universe, seems to be described with a consistent ambiguity, and as an entity appears undefinable, yet all powerful. In the poem, much is made of this inability to define. For instance, “…unfathomable source of ten thousand things” is a remarkably vague attribution of power, but an attribution of power to the Tao nonetheless. Further, the Tao is described as “hidden but ever present”, a contradiction would it not be for the vagueness with which the Tao is described. The emerging theme of ambiguity is best embodied in the second to last statement of the poem, which reads, “I do not know from whence it comes.” The Tao Te Ching developed the concept of Taoism with this ambiguity in mind, and felt that it best highlighted the power and significance of the harmony, or natural order, of the universe.
Tao Te Ching (#4) – Jonathan Kerstein
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2 Responses to Tao Te Ching (#4) – Jonathan Kerstein
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I definitely agree with the ambiguity theme because the contradicting descriptions occur in several other poems as well. It is uncertain what the “Tao” is. Even in Chinese, the word “Tao” is most often used as the word “path” or “way”. Laozi never tells us what the path or way is. He just tells us it’s there with words that are anonyms of each other, creating more ambiguity. Your response reminds me of the concept of Yin-Yang, the opposite forces that co-exist in the universe. Maybe the concept of Yin-Yang is the Tao?
An empty vessel that is used but never filled sounds to me like Dark Energy, which is a component in the universe that is thought to hold all matter and dark matter together, but is also empty space.
I see what you mean by ambiguity, because when I first read poem four I definitely got a completely different interpretation. What I interpreted as the theme to this poem is what the description to who Tao might be. That Tao is so complex that we can not really put a name on exactly what it is, but at the same time we can feel it and see how complex other things are around us when we examine the universe or nature, we might even question the same quote “Oh, unfathomable source of ten thousand things!”, while doing so. We can’t see it but it’s there, “Oh, hidden deep but ever present!”.