81
SINCERE words are not sweet,
Sweet words are not sincere.
Good men are not argumentative,
The argumentative are not good.
The wise are not erudite,
The erudite are not wise.
The Sage does not take to hoarding.
The more he lives for others, the fuller is his life.
The more he gives, the more he abounds.
The more he lives for others, the fuller is his life.
The more he gives, the more he abounds.
The Way of Heaven is to benefit, not to harm.
The Way of the Sage is to do his duty, not to strive
with anyone.
The Way of the Sage is to do his duty, not to strive
with anyone.
Translated by John C. H. Wu
Interpretation by Bill Bernsen
RECONCILE
RECONCILE
I wrote this poem
In 1977
Words come to me
Every now and then
Much like the wind
One needs highs and lows
To cause the pressure
Hence the wind
There are words
For everything
But the innermost things
Which cause the pressure
Hence the wind
Tai chi Chuan
Is to heal
Not to harm
It only takes
A second
To harm
Years
To heal
If always healing
Don’t have time
To harm
Find the secret
To reversing
A second
To heal
Wait years
To harm
Perhaps
My death
Years from now
Reading this will
Heal my students
The student
Teacher’s duty
Is too past
On the art
Not to compete
With other teachers
Or schools
If a student
Brings up
Another school or teacher
Don’t compete
Listen
Don’t disagree
The truth is
The true school
Is the one I am in
It is call faith
If I have faith
Nothings can move me
Students who want
To argue
Are lacking faith
If I am faithful
Then they will
Become faithful
If not with me
Maybe
Someone else
This is called
Agnostic
How does one
Become a Master?
Don’t speak
Of the Tao
Don’t quarrel
About Tao
Give more Tao
To others
Have no sharpness
In life
Don’t strive
Think it
Do not say it
Do not think it
If it is not true
Masters always listening
Be guided
By the Masters
In all I say and do
The more I live
For the art
The fuller
My life
Words from
The masters
Are not ornate
Kowtow
To situation
I am reeling silk
With the lineage
First understand
The first 80 poems
To understand #81
To write
An autobiography
First live
Entire life
As Master
Contributes
The more
He prospers
Tai Chi Chuan
Is to heal
Not harm
Be a fulcrum
Live for the art
And Masters
Resist
With nothing
The way
Of the Masters
Is to heal
Not harm
The way
Of Tai Chi Chuan
Be an eastern Dragon
Benevolent
Not a western Dragon
Violent
My blog
“Bow to bow”
Gives to the art
Tai Chi Chuan
Is to heal
Not harm
Passive is listening
Work for
The Masters
Who have always
Worked for
The students
Tai Chi Chuan
Is passive
Healing
Not harming
If they are
Of the Tao
I will know it
Being truthful
With a student
Is sometimes
Not nice
Those that understand
Tai Chi Chuan
Is passive
Do not argue
Nor do they fight
It is beyond fighting
Control
The situation
Before it turns
Into a fight
Those who know
Tai Chi Chuan
Did not
Learn in books
The gathers
The energy
Controlling it
To redistribute it
To others
Let them understand
Themselves
By carrying/caring
To know themselves
The more he knows
The exposition has
81 gestures
In the Slow Set
The more
I teach
The more I learn
The only way
To learn
Tai Chi Chuan
Is to teach
New ideas
Never empty
Nor overflow
If it over flows
Stops/rest
Master way
Is to refine
Without dulling
Teach
Without
Competing
Assistance all
Damage nobody
Master corrections
Are very sincere
In some cases hurt
If one is always
Using fine words
When correcting
They really
Don’t care
The more given
The more received
Time, space, energy, etc.
No matter
How shape
The correction
From the Master
It will do no harm
Perhaps it is time
To give more energy
To students
Learn
To sharpen
Students
Without injuring
What I have gone thru
In the past year
Is a shaping
By the Masters
Close to getting cut
A few times
But that just made me
More alert
Tested
Avoid conflict
Use as few
True words
To answer
Master Tung’s
Teaching
Negates the erudite
Advice for teaching
Tai Chi Chuan
Heals, not harms
My words
Are not my words
Masters speaking
Thru me are
Align with the lineage
In all endeavors
Balance
The fulcrum
With few words
Live
For the lineage
A legacy
For life
To teach
Is to learn
To learn
Is to teach
The circle
Of knowledge
Masters’
Words
A manifestation
Of simplicity
In all situations
Tai Chi gestures
Must have spirit
Push hands
Rooted
In kindness
Teaching
To learn
Legacy
Of healing
Not harming
Tai Chi opposites
Weighed with
Heartfelt
Gestures
1-22-24