The Door of all Wonders:
The Commentary on the Tao Te Ching
by Nirguna, Chor-kok Lam
Chapter 42
The Truth (Tao) creates One; One creates Two; Two create Three;
Three create all creatures.
All creatures,
backed by Femininity (Yin), embracing Masculinity (Yang),
achieve harmony with the blending of these two generative forces.
What people dislike are the words “solitary”, “desolate” and “not good”,
yet lords and princes use these to refer to themselves.
Thus a thing is sometimes added to by being diminished and
diminished by being added to.
What others teach I also teach:
“The violent will not come to a good end.”
I shall take this as the principal of all teachings.
Review
In many Chapters,
the Tao Te Ching tells us that the Truth is One:
“In
holding the soul and embracing the Oneness,
can
you be steadfast without straying?”
(Chapter
10)
“What
cannot be seen is called colourless.
What
cannot be heard is called soundless.
What
cannot be touched is called formless.
All
these three cannot be asked questions.
They
are combined as the One.”
(Chapter
14)
“Therefore,
the sage embraces the Oneness as the
rule of the world.”
(Chapter
22)
“Those
who have attained the One since
ancient times:
The
sky in virtue of the One is limpid.
The
earth in virtue of the One is settled.
The
angels in virtue of the One are efficacious.
The
valley in virtue of the One is full.
All
creatures in virtue of the One are alive.
The
lords and princes in virtue of the One
can rule the world righteously.
It
is the One that makes them what they
are.”
(Chapter
39)
Here in this Chapter, Lao Tzu tells us how
the creation of the whole universe starting from the One as the origin:
“The Truth (Tao) creates
One.”
In Hindus philosophy, the Truth is called “Para-brahman”
which is the origin of all beings. Para-brahman is the Supreme source of all
creatures. Para-brahman is not manifest and is called “Higher Brahman” in the Upanishads.
When it manifests itself, it creates itself as the One to manifest which is
called “Lower Brahman” in the Upanishads. What Lao Tzu says, “The Truth creates
One” is exactly what the Hindus philosophy has tried to explain: the Truth is “Para-brahman”,
or the “Higher Brahman”, the Supreme; while the One is “Lower Brahman”, the
Supreme Lord to manifest in every being.
“One creates Two.”
The Lower Brahman, the Supreme Lord starts to create “Purusha”
and “Maya”. Purusha is the pure soul in all beings, the world soul as a whole
and the individual soul in each being, while Maya means the primal matter
latent before the formation of all beings. Maya is the material level of all
beings, with different names, forms and shapes when created. It is called Maya
which means delusion in Sanskrit. Our material world is the creation of
delusion which does not last forever and is subject to change without any
stability. The Higher Brahman, the Truth, creates Lower Brahman, the One; then
further creates the Purusha and Maya. Therefore, there are two, the spiritual
and material manifestations of all beings.
In Hindu philosophy, Purusha stands for the male principle,
the pure soul hidden in every being, while Maya stands for the female principle,
the substances of all beings. Without the living force of the pure soul, our
body is only a lump of clay which cannot be alive. Our life is the matching of
the spiritual and the material worlds. Both the Tao Te Ching and the Hindus
philosophy are trying to tell us the creation of the whole universe from one
aspect to two aspects.
“Two create Three.
Three create all
creatures.”
Chinese scholars know very little about how the two forces
of Yin and Yang create “Three”, and how from the Three come out all creatures.
Some scholars explain that the three stand for the heaven, the earth and the
human. Then how can the heaven, the earth and the human create all creatures?
There is almost no satisfactory explanation and understanding. However, the
Hindus philosophy can give us detailed and satisfactory explanation about the
creation of all creatures from two to three, and from three to all
creatures. In the Sankhya philosophy, one of the six schools of philosophy in
ancient India, its scriptures tell us that the creation starts from the Higher Brahman,
from Higher Brahman into Lower Brahman, then Purusha and Maya, the male and
female principles; down from the level of Purusha and Maya, there is the
creation of three Gunas. The word, “Gunas” in Sanskrit, means qualities or
attributes. Our world is the creation of Maya which comprises of three qualities
or attributes, i.e, Sattva, Rajas and Tama:
(1)
Sattva means the attributes of goodness and progresses. It comprises of light,
wisdom, tranquility, the uplifting force that makes the creatures turn into
better and better existence.
(2)
Rajas means the attributes of passions mixed with good and bad actions as well
as understandings which pull creatures up and down without actual progress in
existence. Rajas make people impetuous to external sensual objects and actions,
wandering between happiness and sorrow, good and bad with self-sense of
egoistic existence of life.
(3)
Tama means ignorance and dull without light and living energy. It makes creatures
dirty and lazy to become deluded, downfallen and degraded into worse and worse
until total destruction.
All creatures are composed of these three attributes with
different combinations. In every creature, there are One, Two and Three without
exceptions. The Supreme Lord resides in every creature, though the creature
itself does not know. Inside each creature, there is the spiritual force with
material embodiment which comprises of three attributes ever changing and
developing. The Sankhya philosophy can help us understand more about what Lao
Tzu is trying to tell us in a few words.
Surprisingly, the Holy Scripture of Sikhism, Siri Guru
Granth Sahib also mentions about the creation of the One God, exactly with the
wordings the same as what Lao Tzu says:
“First, the One create Himself; Second, the sense of duality.
Third, the three-phased Maya.” (Maajh, Third Mehl, 113)
Then, Lao Tzu continues:
“All creatures,
backed by Femininity (Yin), embracing
Masculinity (Yang),
achieve harmony with the blending of
these two generative forces.”
Our life is the combination of the male
and female principles, like the balance of day and night, functioning well for
us to act and to rest. Yang is the living force, while Yin is the material
base, the same explained in the Sankhya Philosophy. In the Upanishad, it explains
our life resembles the matching of the cripple and the blind. One cannot walk,
while the other cannot see. The cripple is our soul which can see but cannot
act without the body. The blind is the body which can act but cannot see
without the intellect of the soul. There may be more descriptions about these
two generative forces according to different levels of understanding in both
Taoism and Hinduism.
After telling us the creation of all
creatures, Lao Tzu again gears us to the virtue of the Truth, i.e., humility,
which is always emphasizing in the Tao Te Ching:
“What people dislike are the words
“solitary”, “desolate” and “not good”,
yet lords and princes use these to
refer to themselves.”
In ancient China, humility was the virtue
that people must observe when getting along with each other. The lords and
princes in the Spring and Autumn Period (770 BC -221 BC), before the emergence
of the unified great empire, Qin Dynasty (230 BC to 221 BC), unlike those
ruling class onwards when this culture all got lost, were the symbols of
virtues, who addressed themselves as “solitary”,
“desolate” and “not good”, in order to tell people that they were always humble
to the Truth. They were not aggressive to people. Then Lao Tzu tells us why we
must be humble. What is the reason behind?
“Thus, a thing is sometimes added to
by being diminished and
diminished by being added to.”
To
be humble, outwardly it seems something is diminishing which we lose and give
way but in fact we are gaining by humility that we may not see now at the
moment. To be aggressive to people, outwardly it seems people are gaining by
adding power and interest but in fact they are corrupted and will fall sooner
or later if they continue to go to exceed the limits. When people go to the
extreme, they will be destroyed by their excessive behaviours. To be humble to
the Truth is the virtue that leads us always in safety. To be humble, we can
see our defects and improve ourselves to be closer to the Truth. Lao Tzu always
tells us to be humble, gentle and mild, never be arrogant, smart and clever to
outwit other people or even to attack people, thus Lao Tzu says in the end:
“What others teach I also teach:
“The violent will not come to a good
end.”
I shall take this as the principal of
all teachings.”
Prophet Muhammad tells us about a parable
in his teaching how Allah only punishes the arrogant and tyrants but protects
the weak and rewards the righteous. The Prophet said:
“Paradise and the (Hell) Fire argued, and
the (Hell) Fire said, “I have been given the privilege of receiving the
arrogant and the tyrants.” Paradise said, “What is the matter with me? Why do
only the weak and the humble among people enter me?” On that, Allah said to
Paradise: “You are My Mercy, which I bestow on whomever I wish of my servants.”
Then Allah said to the (Hell) Fire, “You are my punishment by which I
excruciate whomever I wish of my slaves. Each of you will have its fill.” As
for the (Hell) Fire, it will not be filled till Allah puts His Foot over it
whereupon it will say, “Enough! Enough! Enough!” At that time, it will be
filled, and its different parts will come closer to each other; and Allah will
not wrong any of His creatures. As regards Paradise, Allah will create further
creatures to fill it with.”
(From Bukhari Hadith, Vol
V, no 4851)
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