It is better to stop short than fill your cup to the brim.
If you over sharpen your knife,
The edge will soon blunt.
Don't pile up treasure that comes at great cost.
Approval and riches are easily lost.
It is better to stop short than fill your cup to the brim.
If you over sharpen your knife,
The edge will soon blunt.
Don't pile up treasure that comes at great cost.
Approval and riches are easily lost.
Retire when the work is done.
This is the only path to serenity.
So this verse,
Verse 9 of the Tao Te Ching,
Encourages us to practice some constraint or restraint on our actions,
On our desires,
On our actions.
It is better to stop short than fill your cup to the brim.
If you over sharpen your knife,
The edge will soon blunt.
It is warning us to not overdo it,
To not take it too far.
It maybe is hinting at greed or the tendency to hoard.
Piling up great treasure and approval and riches are easily lost.
How fleeting is prosperity.
How fleeting is stuff.
Ultimately,
No matter the protections,
It can all be lost.
This is a fact.
No amount of security,
Or paid help,
Or insurance can protect against everything.
And indeed,
You may be able to save your things,
But nothing stops the march of time.
There's that saying that death comes for us all.
And even if we care for no one but ourselves,
We too shall end.
And for those that do care,
We can't contend against the people that may be lost,
That will be lost.
This verse tells us to retire when our work is done.
To just do what needs to be done,
And stop,
And rest,
And be content.
This is the only path to serenity.
We don't need to overdo it,
We don't need to do more,
We just need to do what needs to be done.
Just fill the cup,
Sharpen the knife enough,
Do the work that needs to be done.
How easy is it to need more,
Or rather,
To feel like you need more?
For those of us who grew up poor,
Or in need,
Or struggling.
You very quickly get used to living off less.
But for most people,
Almost inevitably,
As their life starts improving,
As they start earning more,
As they start having access to more,
Their tastes increase with their income.
It's almost like they need more to survive.
There is a certain level of growth and change that is going to happen.
But if we don't watch out,
If we don't keep our eye on it,
If we don't sort of consider the overfilling of the cup,
The oversharpening of the knife,
The piling up of treasure,
We find ourselves in a rat race,
In which we're doing things for doing them's sake.
We're doing them because that's what we've been doing,
Because we want more.
We're in this endless treadmill that has no off,
No stop.
Why do we need more?
Because that's what we do,
We need more.
This is the inherent flaw of capitalism,
Of a lot of the way modern life forces us,
Or encourages us,
To act.
Always be profitable,
Always be growing,
Always be attaining more.
Make sure your time is used wisely.
All of these feelings take us away from serenity.
Can we just do what needs to be done,
And then rest,
And then retire,
And then step back,
To obtain serenity?
Or in doing so,
Perhaps that is what causes us to obtain serenity.
Just doing enough,
Just accepting,
And then retiring,
And then stepping back to obtain serenity.
I've caught my fish for the day,
I don't need to catch more.
In fact,
Doing so will cause unnecessary harm to the ocean,
To the fish,
To the place where the uneaten food will be left to rot.
Can we find balance?
This passage,
Different interpretations and translations of this passage,
Talks about caring for people's approval,
And becoming their prisoners.
If we are piling up approval in the same way we pile up treasure,
Gold,
Money,
Stuff.
If we pile up approval,
We're forever beholden to them,
We are forever their prisoner.
It's like,
Oh I need you,
I need you to think good of me,
All of these feelings.
What if I could just be me?
What if I could just exist?
Wouldn't I be free?
Now obviously,
This is easier said than done,
And it's hard to just let go of these feelings of care about people's approval.
But can we sit in the solitude and the sanctity of the self for a moment,
And just be?
This moment,
Right now,
The moment you are listening right now,
Is perfect.
You,
Whatever you are in this moment,
Are perfect.
There is no need to strive,
To overdo it,
To become,
To change,
Anything.
Just embrace this moment,
Accept it,
Do what needs to be done,
And then step back,
And then retire,
And then rest.
Can you be at peace in the present moment?
So now,
Let's sit in contemplation of this verse.
It is better to stop short than to fill your cup to the brim.
If you over sharpen your knife,
The edge will soon blunt.
Don't pile up treasure that comes at great cost.
Approval and riches are easily lost.
Retire when the work is done.
This is the only path to serenity.
It is better to stop short than fill your cup to the brim.
If you over sharpen your knife,
The edge will soon blunt.
Don't pile up treasure that comes at great cost.
Approval and riches are easily lost.
Retire when the work is done.
This is the only path to serenity.
So,
Well done.
This brings us to the end of the session.
At the bottom of your screen,
You'll see the option to view the classroom,
Or ask a question.
Before moving on,
I invite you to take a moment to click through and share your interpretations and inner discoveries of today's verse,
As well as to read the answers from other students,
And to hear my replies.
Remember to start your responses with verse 9,
So we all know which one you are referring to.
This is an opportunity for deep learning,
Further introspection,
And insight,
So please don't miss out.
I look forward to seeing you in the next session.
Thank you.
This track was taken from my course,
Wisdom of the Dao Te Ching.
It's available now on my InsightTimer profile.
Check it out.
