《太平經》

The disciple of the Perfected One, Zizai, came to study the Dao before the time of Lianshi. He thought he had already learned enough, and the Celestial Master stopped teaching him. He too felt satisfied. Later, when he heard the Celestial Master speak again, he realized that he still had much to learn. Now his heart is troubled to the utmost; he does not know what more to ask, and only begs the Celestial Master to explain what he has not yet understood.

The Perfected One Xing asked the Celestial Master, “Who in the world should be considered wealthy, and who poor?”

The Celestial Master said, “By the ordinary way of speaking, those who possess much are called wealthy, and those who possess little are called poor. If you put it that way, you are both right and wrong. Why? If what someone possesses consists of deceit, flattery, or theft, can that person be called wealthy? If there are many common people but few rulers, can the ruler be called poor?”

The disciple was dull-witted. Seeing that the Celestial Master had something to teach, he dared not remain silent: he truly fell short, and feared that ordinary people did not know at all how to distinguish poverty from wealth. He now begged the Celestial Master to teach him from the beginning, as one would teach an infant, treating him as someone without understanding, so that he might learn to tell the difference.

The Celestial Master said, “Excellent! Your words are very humble, and not mistaken. Very well, Perfected One, listen carefully as I explain the whole matter.

“The word ‘wealth’ means that everything is complete and abundant. Heaven brings all things into being; this is abundance. Thus, when the Qi of the Supreme Emperor—the most flourishing Qi of Great Peace—appears, all twelve thousand kinds of beings come forth together. This is called wealth. In the Middle Emperor’s age, the kinds of beings diminish somewhat and no longer reach twelve thousand; this is called slight poverty. In the Lower Emperor’s age, they diminish further; this is called great poverty. Further still, auspicious signs and beneficial things cease to appear. This is called extreme poverty in the lowest age.

“It is like a farming household: if its storehouse has no reserves and no treasures, it is a poor household. If the kinds of beings cannot reach twelve thousand, it is a household in the lowest extreme of poverty. This is poverty on the scale of Heaven and Earth.

“All things are nourished by Earth. When Earth nourishes all things without harming them, Earth is wealthy. If there is often slight harm, Earth is slightly poor; great harm makes it greatly poor. When the terrain damages beneficial things so that they dare not grow, Earth reaches the lowest extreme of poverty and has no treasures. If half of all things are harmed, this is great destitution; if all are harmed, it is a household emptied into nothingness. Heaven is the father and Earth the mother. When the parents are poor to the utmost…”

(The original scroll is missing after this point; the sense continues with a general discussion of parents reduced to extreme poverty.)

If someone worries only about being personally poor, yet wishes to govern a country according to the Kingly Way, the two do not accord. In ancient times, a sage king was called a supremely wealthy ruler when he could bring all twelve thousand kinds of beneficial things to full abundance. If beneficial things fell short of two thirds, he was moderately wealthy; if they fell short of one third, he was slightly wealthy. If even rare and precious beneficial things were absent, he was a severely impoverished ruler. When half of all things were damaged, the household was in decline; when everything was damaged, the person was utterly impoverished. The sages of old dwelt in secluded rooms and reflected on the reach of Dao and De. Why ask about poverty and wealth? One could know by sitting quietly. Excellent, excellent! Now the Celestial Master, out of compassion, pities an emperor long afflicted by worry and unable to put his intentions into practice. How can such poverty or wealth be brought about? Excellent, excellent! Your searching question has already reached the heart of subtle teaching. What one does, and whether it succeeds or fails, is what brings it about.

Those who strenuously practice the true Dao are born of Heaven, and the spirits aid their transformation. Thus heavenly spirits appear, and beneficial things are fully provided. Those who practice De are nurtured by Earth’s Yang; spirits appear to assist their governance, and so they attain moderate wealth. Those who practice benevolence embody balance and harmony; spirits of benevolence appear to aid their governance, and so they attain slight wealth. Those who practice literary arts set out on a path of concealment and deception; deceptive spirits therefore appear to assist them, and their governance falls into some disorder. Those who practice force draw out spirits of thieves and bandits to assist them. Their governance goes against Heaven’s intent and harms good people.

The Dao is the course laid down by Heaven. Heaven is supremely spiritual, so true spirits appear to assist its transformations. Earth nurtures, so spirits of De appear to assist its transformations. Humanity is benevolent, so spirits of benevolence appear to assist its transformations. Literary arts preside over embellishment and deception, causing people to lose their roots; deceptive spirits therefore appear to assist them. When those above and below deceive one another with fine words, affairs become disordered. Force uses punishments and killing to injure people and make them submit; thieves and bandits likewise use punishments and killing to injure people and make them submit. Those who subdue people through anger, pleasure, and fierce intimidation are bandits. Thus bandits multiply, and governance turns disastrous. Since bandits cause harm through material goods, governance loses control of wealth and property.

Therefore, in ancient times, a supreme ruler used the Dao to win people’s allegiance and thereby gained Heaven’s favor in full. His governance was like a spirit’s work, free of anxiety, because he won people’s allegiance through the true Dao. A middle ruler won people’s allegiance through De; a lesser ruler, through benevolence; a disorderly ruler, through literary arts; and a ruler destined for ruin sought to win people’s allegiance through punishments and killing. Thus the supreme rulers of old governed and won people’s allegiance through Dao, De, and benevolence.

Plain-Language Interpretation

The scripture first explains that “Yang is counted as one and Yin as two”: Yang is odd and honored, while Yin is even and humble. Hence, “two Yin serve one Yang.” The pairing of two women with one man, two ministers serving one ruler, and the numerical relation of Earth as two and Heaven as one all follow this pattern. Someone then asks: If Yang is one and Yin is two, why must two Yin—two women—serve one Yang, one man? Why must two people jointly provide for one person? Why can’t an honored person have just one attendant?

The Perfected One replies:

First, the numerical principle of “two Yin and one Yang”

Yang is counted as one and Yin as two, so “two Yin serve one Yang.” The pairing of two women with one man, two ministers serving one ruler, and Earth as two and Heaven as one are all numerical relationships.

But “two Yin serve one Yang” does not mean that the rule “two people provide for one person” can be freely applied to matters of ritual and propriety. The numbers describe the structure of Yin-Yang and relative rank; they are not simply arithmetic about “how many people support how many others.”

Second, why “two people provide for one person”

The scripture says that if only one person provides support, “the honored person’s side must not be left empty”: an honored person must have attendants to assist and provide for them.

“Two Yin” refers both to the number associated with Yin and to two Yin roles—such as two women, ministers, or Earth—jointly serving and providing for one Yang, such as a man, ruler, or Heaven. This keeps the honored person’s place from being empty and accords with the principle that Yang is honored, Yin is humble, and two serve one.

Third, why not “have just one person”

If there is only one attendant, the number of Yin falls short of two, breaking the principles that “Yin is counted as two” and that “two Yin serve one Yang.” The honored person would also lack someone to assist and provide for them, which would not accord with ritual propriety.

So it is not that “one more person is unnecessary.” Both numerical principle and ritual propriety require two Yin to serve one Yang, and two people to provide for one person. The honored person’s side must not be left empty.

Fourth, how this relates to “a wealthy household” and “having everything in full measure”

Earlier, “a wealthy household” was explained as having everything fully provided: if even one thing is missing, the household is not complete. For a state or household to have everything it needs, it may have to obtain what is lacking from other states or people.

The examples of “two women serving one man” and “two people providing for one person” likewise express the need for completeness and shared support. An honored person should not be left alone, with no Yin by their side; otherwise, the arrangement is incomplete and not wealthy.

In brief: Yang is one and Yin is two, so two Yin serve one Yang. Two women paired with one man, or two people providing for one person, reflects both numerical principle and ritual propriety. Since an honored person’s side must not be left empty, there cannot be “just one attendant”; two Yin must serve one Yang.

“Let one person stand, let another sit beside them and provide what the first lacks”: this arrangement means that one represents Heaven and the other Earth. Human beings are the children of Heaven and Earth and should follow the example of their parents.

Since the world lost the Dao, people have often looked down on women and even turned to killing them, leaving fewer women than men. This cuts off Yin Qi and goes against the laws of Heaven and Earth. The Dao of Heaven abhors lone Yang without a mate, for it brings drought. Women correspond to Earth. If people throughout the world share contempt for their true mother and join in harming Earth’s Qi, then Earth’s Qi, too, will be cut off, and nothing will grow. Earth will be greatly angered and displeased, and disasters will multiply. The ruler will find it difficult to govern in peace. Can this be blamed on the ruler alone? It is ordinary people who have lost the Dao, slighted the proper order of human affairs, and joined in all manner of wrongdoing. Their offenses differ and countless troubles arise; thus government cannot be peaceful and affairs go awry.

Among the twelve thousand kinds of beings in the nature of Heaven and Earth, human life is the most precious. The crime of killing women gravely disrupts the ruler’s governance; this is a major offense. Now the Celestial Master is opening a path to peace for the ruler, and the True Scripture of Great Peace has appeared in the world so that the ruler may follow its way and govern without turmoil. If women are harmed now, this will bring great disasters. What is to be done?

(The questioner) “Excellent question—you have grasped the heart of Heaven. Yet the reason people throughout the world despise and hate women is that they consider women’s conduct bad. What do I mean? I would like to hear more and try to record it on bamboo and silk, never daring to discard it for ten thousand generations.”

(The reply) “Excellent! Now that you can record this, no one in the world will kill women again.”

(The questioner) “Yes, yes. I wish to record it and thereby avert disaster for the emperors and kings.”

(The reply) “That is what I gladly wish, to save the lives of wronged women. Excellent! You have already gained an increase in your allotted years from Heaven.”

(The questioner) “What do you mean?”

(The reply) “Indeed: to save a person is called saving oneself; to kill a person is called killing oneself. Heaven cares for you. You may have already gained additional years from the Heavenly Registrar of Life, the deity who governs longevity, and your name in the register may have been changed.”

(The questioner) “I dare not, I dare not. There is nothing more to decline.”

(The reply) “This is the natural law of Heaven. As for why people throughout the world kill girls: when ordinary people are young, their parents are already troubled and impoverished, and deprive them of clothing, food, and care. It is not only human beings; creatures that walk on legs are all the same. As for when they grow up…”

Note: The passage you cited appears unfinished at “As for when they grow up…” The text usually continues by discussing how children are looked down on as they mature and why they are killed.

Plain-Language Interpretation

Young and old, those undertaking great tasks and small ones alike, should each seek food and clothing according to their abilities. Even the myriad things leave their parents and make their own way in the world. The capable live in comfort; the incapable suffer. As children grow older and stronger, their parents grow older and weaker. Whether sons or daughters, those who are intelligent, capable, and strong enough should repay their parents’ kindness and support them. Parents should not instead follow their children around begging for food and clothing. This is called the weak supporting the strong: those with insufficient strength nourishing those with strength to spare. It is known as reversed governance. The young remain troubled, while the old bring no benefit to their parents, and so parents often kill their children. If people now kill or injure others simply because they lack food and clothing, would it not be better to keep them alive and let each person make a living? The Perfected One says: This truly severs the roots of the land, and the people are deeply ignorant. I, the young student, hear this and am overwhelmed with grief and fear. Knowing that many suffer injustice, what can be done? Those who are eager to learn but cannot obtain food and clothing will surely slacken in their studies, and the Way will come to a halt. If they can obtain food and clothing, capable people will study without stopping. Each person should be enabled to benefit from their own efforts; people should not be left to make one another suffer want.

What does this mean? Women hold no official posts. When a woman marries, just as a man enters government service, she should be able to obtain food and clothing. When she joins her husband’s household, the two should work together, united in purpose, to make a living. Together they carry on the generations under Heaven and Earth; until death, their flesh and bones remain together. By working together, they obtain food and clothing, so that the capable can be content and the unworthy can suffer. It is like a good field, which Heaven lets yield fine produce, and poor soil, which Heaven lets yield poor produce: Heaven does not take away what their natural capacities bring forth. If Heaven and Earth do not deprive you of the fruits of your efforts, how much less should other people? If things are this way, ordinary people will no longer kill their daughters. Excellent, excellent! A great and profound harm has been removed, and peace under the emperors and kings has arrived. How does the Perfected One know this? The bond between parents and children is the deepest in the world. Parents must not be left in distress and hardship, and children should not be killed. A mother who kills her child acts from the force of banditry; this is a grave violation of the Way and therefore does the greatest harm to the order of emperors and kings.

A Plain Language Interpretation of the Taiping Jing

(1)

That girls can now be born without being killed or harmed is truly a cause for great joy! You are right: this can indeed be called an understanding of the principle.

How many hundreds of millions of households are there in the world today? If each household killed one daughter, how many infant girls would die? Some families have even killed more than ten daughters. Others harm their daughters while they are still in the womb, before they have been born. The grievances and resentment of these wronged souls gather and cannot disperse, rising straight to Heaven. How could any of this make sense?

So I tell you again, with the utmost seriousness: let everyone earn their own food and clothing through their own efforts. Then women will have no divided loyalties and can focus on their work without hesitation or wavering. If they are made to suffer without seeing any results, their hearts will remain troubled and out of harmony. These are principles that accord with innate nature and follow what is natural.

The Perfected One must treat this matter with care and must not discard this book. Give it to a ruler of benevolence and virtue, and one great knot of grievance and calamity can be undone. Heed my words carefully and make them known to ordinary people throughout the world, so that no one dares abandon an infant girl again. This is how to follow the patterns of Heaven and Earth.

(2)

For a man to marry two women is a rule established by Heaven: the Yang number is odd, and the Yin number is even. Yet since the middle ages, people have gone against the Dao, killing infant girls on a vast scale. This has left many more men than women, with a severe shortage of women. It gravely violates the Dao of Heaven, condemning later generations to bear the consequences for generations to come, until the practice has become an accepted custom. People in later times have only made matters worse. The world is burdened with grave wrongdoing, painful beyond words, and without any justification!

Men inherit the lineage of Heaven, while women inherit the lineage of Earth. Now people have cut off Earth’s lineage, preventing women from continuing the family line. Countless descendants are lost, families die out without heirs—how grave is this offense! Men and women should give birth to one another and pass the line from generation to generation. Instead, people have severed Earth’s lineage and brought humanity to extinction. Thus Heaven has long cut off the lineages of these people.

(3)

Moreover, everyone is born carrying the Qi of Heaven, and every part of the body corresponds to Heaven and Earth: the head is round like Heaven, the feet are square like Earth, the limbs correspond to the four seasons, the five organs correspond to the Five Phases, and the ears, eyes, mouth, and nose correspond to the sun, moon, stars, and the seven celestial bodies and three lights. These correspondences are beyond counting; only a sage can truly understand them.

Everyone is born endowed with the two Qi of Yin and Yang and the essences of the sun and moon. After a full term in the womb, the child emerges from the birth opening and faces Heaven and Earth. The child should then carry on the lineage of the ancestors, assisting Heaven in bringing forth the myriad things and assisting Earth in nurturing their physical forms.

The spirits of Heaven and Earth trust that this family can assist them. For this reason, the divine lineages of Heaven and Earth come to dwell within it. Yet people instead harm these children. Heaven is greatly angered, while people do not restrain one another. So Heaven caused me to write this book...

An Accessible Interpretation of the Taiping Jing (Scripture of Great Peace)

I. On “Honesty” and Poverty and Wealth

Heaven regards “honesty” as fundamental, using it to govern the world and bring peace to the people. Heaven protects honest people and makes them prosperous; it punishes dishonest people and makes them poor. Poverty, then, is often linked to dishonesty, while prosperity is often linked to honesty.

Heaven wants people to understand that poverty is not inborn but results from one’s conduct. If people are honest and live within proper bounds, they can gradually become prosperous; if they deceive and act recklessly, they will grow poorer. This is a pattern in the workings of Heaven and Earth, not a matter of chance.

The scripture also mentions people who know they have done wrong but deliberately do it again. This is called “willful wrongdoing,” and it doubles their offense. The perfected person (one who has attained the Dao) should be on guard and urge himself to make amends. If someone knowingly evades a wrongdoing and refuses to change, he not only brings suffering on himself but also implicates others.

The passage concludes by explaining the principles of poverty and wealth separately: if a ruler acts accordingly, good fortune will follow. People must not be forbidden from cutting off the “continuity of Earth”—that is, reproduction and the passing on of life. When relations between men and women return to their proper course, the ruler’s government can be secure.

II. “The Method of One Man and Two Women,” Chapter Forty-Two: On Chastity and Childbearing

The perfected person asks: When the Qi of Great Peace is about to arrive and the Way of Kings is about to flourish, should people observe “chastity”?

The Celestial Master replies: The “chastity” people should observe means having few desires and avoiding disorderly conduct. It does not mean what the world calls “the man does not emit, and the woman does not transform.”

Since ancient times, ordinary people have misunderstood this. Some teachers, narrow-minded in their outlook, instead taught their disciples that “the chaste man does not emit, and the chaste woman does not transform.” When Yin and Yang do not join, there can be no descendants; this is tantamount to severing the continuity of Heaven and Earth. If two people follow this practice together, they are merely seeking an empty reputation. In reality, they will have no descendants and will lose the root of life. This is a great harm to the world.

Consider this: if your parents had not given birth to you, where would you have come from? To turn around and cut off childbearing is to incur the aversion of Heaven and Earth. This is called “a grave rebellion against the natural order.” Its consequence is that Heaven and Earth become estranged: Heaven refuses to send rain, and Earth refuses to bring forth the myriad things. Why?

In the sense of the scripture, Heaven’s failure to send rain symbolizes Yang’s refusal to join; Earth’s failure to bring forth the myriad things symbolizes Yin’s refusal to transform. When Heaven and Earth cannot work together to bring forth and transform life, it is a great calamity for the world.

What the perfected person advocates is following the instruction of Heaven and Earth and the Dao of Heaven, and willingly helping Heaven and Earth bring forth and transform the myriad things. If people follow the worldly teaching instead, they go against Heaven’s intent, and Yin and Yang will become estranged all the more. Men and women are the root of Yin and Yang. If a society loses this foundation, how could it hope for good fortune?

The perfected person recognizes the weight of his own wrongdoing and confesses it to the Celestial Master. The Celestial Master stresses that the Dao of Heaven must be the standard, and that people must no longer treat as virtuous a “chastity” that cuts off the continuity of life.

Note: This section uses “rain” and “bringing forth and transforming” as metaphors for the union of Yin and Yang and for the continuation of human populations and the myriad things. Its target is “chastity” that obstructs childbearing and ends the line of descendants, not self-cultivation and restraint in the general sense. The original text contains gaps and corrupt characters; this is a free translation based on commonly accepted readings, intended to make it easier to read.

Why is this so? The harmonious Qi of the Supreme Sovereign Heaven, the celestial realm revered in Daoism, is about to descend, so people should follow the Dao of Heaven purely. It is therefore prescribed that one man may marry two women, symbolizing Yin-Yang: Yang is odd in number, Yin is even. This is how the arrival of the Qi of Great Harmony is manifested.

If there are too many women, Yin Qi will become excessive. If there are too many men, Yang cannot form a pair; this violates the proper order and will bring danger. Why? The number of people should correspond to Heaven and Earth. If it does not, their power will be insufficient, and calamities will follow.

The emperor’s inner court corresponds to the meaning of the land. What the Perfected One said accords with my own view. Women are the spirit of the land, and the ruler is the spirit of Heaven. The ruler fears that the land may lack the spirit of Yang and that royal Qi may fail to harmonize. If there are places where the land cannot bring forth life, one woman should therefore be chosen from each province to connect its Qi. Taking joy in the land’s capacity to bring forth life reflects the fear that the ruler’s beneficence may not reach everywhere or blend harmoniously with it. Thus, women are chosen in accordance with the land’s needs and beneficence is extended everywhere. Only then can the Qi of Heaven flow freely, bringing rain at the proper time so the land can give life to all things, and the Qi of Great Peace can arrive.

One must not honor only the chaste person who remains unmarried. Keeping to oneself and remaining single is an excessive form of restraint that will make the ruler’s governance disharmonious. Ordinary people, too, should not practice chastity to excess. That is why the rule is set at one man and two women. Excellent, excellent.

(The right-hand column’s general meaning: Follow the patterns of Heaven and Earth and accord with Yin-Yang, so that men and women suffer no grievances, timely rain falls, the land brings forth life, and the ruler’s governance is peaceful.)

Method for Promoting Good and Curbing Evil, Chapter Forty-Three

The Perfected One stepped forward and said: “Now the Qi of Great Peace is about to arrive. We wish to make those who carefully uphold good conduct flourish ever more, and those who do evil decline ever further. But there are killings and assaults, thefts, banditry, and political disorder. What should be done? What does this mean? It refers to matters discovered as they happen, which should be dealt with as soon as they are known. If a ruler sits in court with doubts and wishes good people to flourish greatly and evil people to decline quickly, so that thieves and bandits are caught as soon as they arise, what should be done in governing?”

“Now, Perfected One, you should remember this well. The Celestial Master has commanded me; how could I dare not speak? If anything I say fails to accord with the Celestial Master’s teaching, why should I hold back out of modesty?”

“Since ancient times, the great sages have not demanded perfection from any one person. If what you say is mistaken, why be modest?”

“Indeed. One should simply reward the good and punish the evil, making the distinction clear. Then good people will flourish day by day, and evil people will decline day by day.”

Note: The passage’s rule of “one man and two women,” and its account of choosing women for the inner court to connect the Qi of the land, are the Taiping Jing’s discussion of marriage customs and the emperor’s inner court based on the correspondences among Yin-Yang, Heaven, Earth, and humanity. They express the work’s distinctive political and religious ethics, rather than a full account of later, general ritual law. Proper names such as Supreme Sovereign Heaven, Perfected One, Celestial Master, and the Qi of Great Peace are retained in their Daoist context.

A Vernacular Interpretation of the Taiping Jing

The disciple’s words make sense. But surely rewards and punishments have their own rules? I will not repeat myself at length. For now, I ask only that the Celestial Master give a full explanation. Please take down what I say, and I will explain it in detail.

When a senior local official arrives in the area under his jurisdiction, he should summon the local households, the former ministers, and the former clerks. The former ministers and clerks should sit facing east; those versed in the scriptures and in De should sit facing north; those who are filial to their parents and respectful toward their elder brothers should sit facing west. A tenant farmer’s son who is prudent and keeps to his proper place should sit in the southeast corner, facing northwest; unruly young men should sit in the southwest corner, facing northeast. The ruler should sit facing south.

Why must they sit this way? Because grouping people according to their kind accords with the Way of Heaven and makes it easier to encourage them to do good. It also makes thieves easier to identify and deal with. Why? The former ministers and clerks are placed in the position of “righteousness”: although they no longer hold office, they are willing to help one another through the Way of righteousness. Those versed in the scriptures and in De are placed in the position of “clarity,” so they can support one another and discern good from evil. The filial and respectful people are placed among their fellow villagers, because the truly filial devote their attention to their native community. They should also remain constantly cautious and respectful, as if attending an audience with the ruler.

All things arise in the east and delight in growing day by day. The prudent, diligent sons are placed in the southeast, the quarter of growth and nurture, so that they will take pleasure in tending and cultivating all things without growing slack. Unruly young men are placed in the southwest, where Yang Qi declines and Yin Qi begins to rise. Evil people like to scheme and play tricks on one another, and this is often where crimes and punishments begin. For this reason, agile creatures such as monkeys and apes are also placed in the quarter where Yang declines. Those facing east, west, and north should all sit in front; the imprudent sons and unruly young men should sit behind them.

Those who have wine should give each person a vessel of it. Those without wine should offer good counsel, so that people can help one another and grow wiser. Once these matters are settled, the ruler should sit inside the gate, close it himself, and then summon the people one by one in order of rank. He should ask each person to say one thing and record the speaker’s name. What they say later should match what they said before. Anyone whose later words do not match the earlier ones is guilty: a person whose words contradict one another is deeply deceitful. This makes it possible to know what should be done with the deceitful.

Those whose words remain consistent should be rewarded only after a long time; do not reward them on the spot. Why? Otherwise, resentment may arise. If a ruler or father causes his subjects or sons to feel resentful, he is no benevolent father or worthy ruler. So when the proceedings are over, send all the good people home, and leave only the unruly young men for the officials to deal with.

Plain-Language Commentary on the Taiping Jing

(The Perfected One said:) Give this book to a virtuous ruler, then have him make it known to ordinary people, so that everyone knows of this teaching. Then goodness will flourish day by day, evil will decline, and thieves, bandits, and wicked deceivers can be rooted out. Excellent, excellent! Why must it be made known first? When Heaven is about to bring rain, there must first be wind and clouds, so people understand what is coming and can gladly prepare to put things away. Making the book known in advance likewise allows those who do good to flourish day by day and those who do evil to stop. The Qi of Great Peace is now about to arrive, and I fear that people will do evil and disrupt its order. That is why they must be made aware of it first. Governance should model itself on Heaven: Heaven does not conceal people’s shortcomings, and the sages of antiquity did not do so either. A government that conceals them is called dark and obscure; it brings calamity again and again and fails to grasp the intentions of Heaven and Earth. That is why the book must be made known first. Excellent, excellent!

Why must you, ruler, stay shut away inside your private quarters, while those who have something to say remain outside? When people are about to hear confidential words, they may be unaware of their surroundings. If they lean forward, with their faces close together, others nearby will notice, putting the one who speaks at risk of harm. When a ruler accepts people’s wise counsel and then allows them to be harmed, he is said to have injured his loyal, trustworthy, and worthy ministers—the very pillars of his government. After that, no one will be willing to speak again. When wise counsel is shut out, governance falls into disorder and danger.

Furthermore, the ruler is Yang and dwells within Yin; the ministers are Yin and dwell within Yang. When Yin and Yang come together, people are pleased, and they fully trust what is said to them. This is the natural law of Heaven. Do you understand, Perfected One? Yes, yes. Go on your way, and do not speak recklessly. This is a book for bringing about Great Peace. Yes, yes.

The above: The essential method for promoting goodness and stopping evil, opening the way for wisdom and counsel, and gaining the trust of both thieves and the loyal and trustworthy.