. . . These are notions of the mind, which is like a knife, always chipping away at the Tao, trying to render it graspable and manageable. But that which is beyond form is ungraspable, and that which is beyond knowing is unmanageable. There is, however, this consolation: She who lets go of the knife will find the Tao at her fingertips.

Because clarity and enlightenment are within your own nature, they are regained without moving an inch.

The nameless is the beginning of Heaven and Earth. The named is the mother of all things.

The Way is empty, yet inexhaustible, like an abyss!

Let people take death seriously, and not travel far.

First, we must do our own personal work, then we tend the necessary work of our family, then our community, then the world.

All difficult things have their origin in that which is easy, and great things in that which is small.