Number 49 Clear and kind
49
kind to the unkind
faithful to the unfaithful
they are all children
Lesson # 49
Be kind
when the other person is kind.
Be kind
when the other person is unkind.
Embody unconditional kindness.
Be honest
when the other person is honest.
Be honest
when the other person is dishonest.
Embody unconditional honesty.
Treat everyone with kindness,
patience and love,
just as good parents
treat their children.
From: 81 Lessons from the Tao Te Ching
Number 49 Clear and kind
As we let go
of preconceptions identifications
opinions and judgements
our inner emptiness can become
pure receptivity
and we can truly receive another person
We can be kind when the other person is kind
We can be kind when the other person is unkind
embodying unconditional kindness
We can be honest when the other person is honest
We can be honest when the other person is dishonest
embodying unconditional honesty
With that openness the sage moves skillfully through the world
absorbing it all without personal filters
They treat everyone with kindness patience and love
as a good parent treats their children
NUMBER FORTY NINE
The Heart of the self-controlled man is always in the Inner Kingdom.
He draws the hearts of all men into his Heart.
If a man is good, he blesses him;
If a man is not good, still he blesses him with the Blessing of Teh.
If a man is faithful, he is faithful to him,
If a man is not faithful, still he is faithful to him with the Faithfulness of Teh.
The self-controlled man dwells in the world.
Patiently and persistently
He brings the whole world into active community of Heart.
All men turn their ears and their eyes towards him.
They are all children of the self-controlled man.
Isabella Mears, The Tao Teh King, A Tentative Translation from the Chinese, William McLellan, Glascow, 1916.
Number 49 (commentary) What is the right relationship between teacher and student of the Tao?
A teacher of the Tao does not try to fix, change, or improve their student.
They do not judge, and they do not hold themselves as superior.
They welcome all in and do not lose their own kindness, patience, love, or trust in the face of their student’s cruelty, impatience, rejection, or dishonesty.
The Sage’s inner state is not dependent on the actions of others.
The Buddha stated this teaching in the Metta Sutra, “Even as a mother protects with her life Her child, her only child, so, with a boundless heart, should one cherish all living beings; radiating kindness over the entire world: spreading upwards to the skies and downwards to the depths; outwards and unbounded, freed from hatred and ill-will.”
Krishna said, “To love without condition, to talk without intention, to give without reason, to care without expectation, that’s the spirit of true love.”
And Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good and sends rain to the righteous and the unrighteous.”
Tangent and Tool #49, Self forgiveness (Reflective exercise) Metta is a Buddhist meditation practice in which the meditator opens their heart/mind for the sake of cultivating loving-kindness to all sentient beings. One essential part of that meditation is the practice of giving loving-kindness to yourself. Compassionate forgiveness is a necessary prerequisite for truly loving yourself.