The Tao Te Ching is a book that is very well known in the scholarly community. The text itself appears to have a myriad on self-contradictions, not to mention the debate many scholars have over the various translations available. One of the more interesting contradictions on the Tao Te Ching is over learning. In the book it is often referenced that learning is important when it comes to the way, but then goes on to say in other sections that learning should essentially be exterminated.
I propose that the difference between learning and not learning is not contradictory because the Tao Te Ching is not against learning, but closed-mindedness and teachings that may go against a ruler. The Tao Te Ching continually references things that are pure, uncarved, or empty. Thus saying that the mind should be open to new knowledge. But that doesn’t mean a lack of other knowledge as the Tao Te Ching also references those with knowledge being better and more desirable. The piece that explains this contradiction is part of the Tao talking of using the elimination of knowledge as a method of control.
A helpful thing to know for a ruler. To begin the dialogue on having an open mind, the Tao must paint the picture on why that is important. On page twenty-five the Tao states, “I alone am meddled… And value being fed by the mother”. Looking at the material on page twenty-four, particularly after line 51, where it is also talking about a blank mind. The phrase “And value being fed by the mother” suggests that the way only comes to a person with a blank mind. This is reinforced by a piece about the sage on page fifty-six saying, “The sage has no mind of his own.
He takes as his own the mind of the people. ” This is a great example of having an open mind. Only a person who is entirely willing to be passive can attain the collective mind of the people. Letting yourself be blank and passive is the name of the game for the way so it seems. This is evidenced by, “Let your wheels only move along old ruts”, on page eight. A non-passive way of moving your’cart’ would be too pull yourself out of the ruts and form your own path. Yet to follow the way, you should let your wheels fall into those ruts and not try and fight your way out.
Another great example of being passively open minded is from page sixty-three where it states, “One who knows does no speak, one who speaks does not know”. One who is open minded often listens to problems and ideas, while someone who is ignorant disregards the thoughts and states their own. This page also further backs up the idea of passiveness by mentioning ‘Let your wheels only move along old ruts” again. Therefore, the idea of being open minded by passivity is evidenced again. The Tao certainly doesn’t paint those who have knowledge as bad though.
In fact, on page thirty-two, the good man is described as being the teacher of the bad man. Even though on that page it states not to value the teacher, that is referring to one’s discernment in not valuing the teacher over the bad man and vice versa. The Tao even puts true knowledge as favorable according to page seventy-eight where it says, “To know yet to think that one does not know is best. Not to know yet to think one knows will lead to difficulty. ” This gives the quality of being humble in your knowledge as favorable and assigns negativity to the person without knowledge.
Page seventy-eight also goes on to talk more about how the sage avoids difficulty. It specifically states that, “The sage meets with no difficulty. It is because he is alive to it that he meets with no difficulty. ” Being alive to it suggests that the sage is aware to the difficulties. But, unlike those who do not know, the sage’s mind is open to the difficulties, therefore, they won’t affect him. An open mind in the aspect of Taoism is substantially important. To book seems to say if you cloud your mind and choose to be gnorant of everything else, then you will never find the way. The Tao also doesn’t say you learn less as you practice the Tao either. In fact, on page fifty-five the Tao says, “In pursuit of learning one knows more every day; in pursuit of the way one does less every day. ”
The key word here is does. This line doesn’t state that an individual learns less, but simply that they refrain from acting. This is further built upon on page seventy where it states, “Do that in which consists taking no action; pursue that in which is not meddlesome… This references the common occurrence of telling a person to not be meddlesome throughout the entirety of the book, suggesting that the main point of Taoism is not acting upon other people or things, but focusing on your own mind and therefore, knowledge. The main point of contention for the contradiction between learning and not learning is where the book says to exterminate the sage (pg. 23). But, upon reading this, I took it as directions for a ruler to keep his populace from the thought of anything else.
Because on the very next line of page twenty-three it goes through a list of things to eliminate, which includes things like ingenuity, and their benefits such as the elimination of thieves. This seems to fit nicely, because further on the page says, “The people must have something upon which to attach themselves. ” The book mentions on page sixty-six that a ruler should be sparing when it comes to his governance. In that manner the ruler can be said to follow the way from the start, which in turn grants him virtue. This virtue then gives a ruler the power to overcome anything, therefore, making the way essential to his power.
But if the way gives this power to the ruler, then it is possible that the people could acquire this power as well. That may be why the book instructs the sage to be exterminated. This ties into not learning because keeping a populace ignorant is a good way to keep their admiration. On page seven this is mentioned clearly, firstly with, “Not to honour men of worth will keep the people from contention; not to value goods which a hard to come by will keep them from theft; not to display what is desirable will keep them from being unsettled of mind.
This section enforces the idea that removing value from everything will placate the people and keep them calm. Which again, would be perfect for a ruler. The kicker for page seven is a quotes about the sage, “Therefore in governing the people, the sage empties their minds but fills their bellies, weakens their will but strengthens their bones. ” The sage when ruling purposefully deprives them of knowledge. And, although, this could be considered part of teaching the way, the next line disproves that by saying, “He always keeps them innocent of knowledge and free from desire, and ensures that the clever never dare to act. This line fully supports the idea of using the lack of knowledge to suppress the people.
This lack of knowledge isn’t about educating the mass of the way. But what of clearing the mind and embracing the uncarved block as a part of learning the way? While it’s true that one must open themselves to the knowledge that is the way, it is clearly depicted differently on page twenty-four than on page seven. When the Tzu says on page twenty-four that his mind is blank and therefore values being fed, he is referring to gaining knowledge from the way. On page seven what is described is the purposeful lack of knowledge to maintain order.
Learning is good for the ruler or disciple of the way, but in the hands of the people is painted as the cause of disorder. After all, how can people know what is better if they know nothing? Even if the Tao was partially a teaching for those destined to be rulers, it is still an incredible work which talks highly of allowing yourself to be fully open to new experiences and ideas, letting yourself get shaped by the way. Through the way one would enter a perfectly tranquil peace of mind and begin to have a unique balance to all things. As a part of that process you have to clear your thoughts and have a perfectly open mind to work with.
Though, as a part of the process, you still maintain your wisdom, knowledge from all your years, but use it through much more passive means. The way also seems like a perfect state of mind for a ruler, where the people can feel as though they think for themselves, yet the ruler is in control and uses the way to bring disorder into order. That is why there is a contradiction for and against learning, the Tao is against having a closed, clouded mind. And the parts that are explicitly against learning, fit to the tune of how a ruler can reign over their people.
Part of the confusion, and many ways of interpretation, come from how the Tao is written. By being broken up into so many sections, ones that are not necessarily in logical order, it causes a reader to have to jump around the book to formulate any solid ideas from their reading. And the translation barrier also causes meanings to change and structure to differ as evidenced by the line on page twenty-four that some scholars believe is in the wrong place. But that is why this relatively short, ancient text, is full of contradictions that many a scholar still debate about today.