Tao Te Ching Chapter 48-5 Do something

Today's Tao

If you do something, you will never get the world. (Ch.48)


"Do something for the world!"

"Do something for the planet!", people shout.

Haven't we kept on shouting this modern-day mantra for long enough?

Long enough to learn that this "Do something!" attitude never works?

If we intervene, things will get more complicated.

By blocking the natural flow of Tao, you will get stuck in your own hologram.


«Related Articles»
-Reduce 48-1
-Reduce and reduce 48-2
-Do nothing 48-3
-Get the world 48-4
-Do something 48-5
-Tao by Matsumoto / Tao Te Ching / Chapter 48


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☞Takashi Murakami is not Haruki Murakami the novelist. He is a painter with a traditional background of Nihon-ga, the Japanese painting. He is well known as a creator of the colorful Luis Vuitton design. The artist paints modern-day Japanese mandalas, using Manga-like images and a keen sense of art business.

Tao Te Ching Chapter 48-4 Get the world

Today's Tao

You always get the world by doing nothing. (Ch.48)


Doing nothing signifies accepting the fact that we are doing nothing.

It is about time we stopped bragging we are in control.

We can't even control our body, emotion, or mind.

"The world" is part of your hologram.

So, "get the world" means "accept your hologram".

We can do it right here right now, can't we?

Or, do you still want to say that you need years of mortification and meditation before you receive Satori as a diploma or something?


«Related Articles»
-Reduce 48-1
-Reduce and reduce 48-2
-Do nothing 48-3
-Get the world 48-4
-Do something 48-5
-Tao by Matsumoto / Tao Te Ching / Chapter 48


Tao answers your question!



☞ Previous video / Ch.48 text / Next video


☞«Manual of Zen Buddhism» By Taisetz Teitaro Suzuki is a good book. It is not a "manual" in the sense of a training manual in which you can find out how to do a thing, but is a manual in that of "a book of the forms to be used by priests in the administration of the sacraments." (Apple Dictionary) The book has a comprehensive collection of sutra prayers from India and admonitions by Chinese and Japanese masters.

Tao Te Ching Chapter 48-3 Do nothing / video

Today's Tao

By doing nothing, you can do everything. (Ch.48)

Japan stories

The Japanese are tired now. Not only the old ones, but also the young ones.

Especially the young male Japanese are very tired. Some of them are even too exhausted to make love.

The girls call them herbivore boys.

Men with a vital libido who do not miss a chance to "eat the meat of a girl" are considered carnivore.

Carnivore boys do not mind hanging around all night to look for their prey at Roppongi in Tokyo. On the other hand, the herbivore prefer staying at home without wasting energy.

The choice between them has nothing to do with the attractiveness of his personality or appearance. Herbivore boys are not necessarily ugly nor have bad manners. Some of them are good-looking and gentlemanly.

Simply, they do not have desire to follow his prey and to devour her heart and body. The herbivore boys are not interested in those "trifle" matters. There are much more important things in life. For example, taking the photos of trains and playing Loveplus on Nintendo DS.


Please visit Do nothing 48-3 to read the Today's Tao sentence.


Tao answers your question!

Tao Te Ching Chapter 48-2 Reduce and reduce / video

Today's Tao

You reduce and reduce it.

Eventually, you reach the state of doing nothing. (Ch. 48)

Japan stories

Some things change. Other things remain the same.

Please look at the photo. I shot it in the parking lots of a supermarket in my hometown Chiba, Japan. The place was a rice paddy when I was a child.

Can you see what the boy is looking at? Those are Yakitori. Yaki mesa "to grill" and Tori "a bird". If you speak about its meaning etymologically, the word should be used only for grilled chicken on a bamboo skewer. But these days the term is employed to describe any meat on a skewer as the contradiction in the photo shows: on the red lantern it says "Yakitori", but most of the photos with prices are inviting you to buy «pork» on a skewer.

Although the image has integrated into a Japanese landscape, a van like this is not at all an authentic Yatai, which is a sort of ricksha with a kitchen facility. The chef would pull the cart, spraying the nice smell in the neighborhood. It was hard to resist.

Well, the smell hasn't change much. All the skewered meats being grilled tickle the inside of our nostrils from the distance.

Visit Japan and taste it!



To read the text of Today's Tao sentence, please visit Reduce and reduce 48-2.


Tao answers your question!

Tao Te Ching Chapter 48-3 Do nothing

Today's Tao

By doing nothing, you can do everything. (Ch.48)


This expression "doing nothing" has been confusing the occidental world for a fairly long time.

The question is "Can you really do nothing?".

No, if you try to understand it literally.

We live, don't we?

It is already more than doing nothing.

But, yes, if you truly understand the quintessential message of any oriental philosophy.

It means "Accept all".

We can do it, can't we?


«Related Articles»
-Reduce 48-1
-Reduce and reduce 48-2
-Do nothing 48-3
-Get the world 48-4
-Do something 48-5
-Tao by Matsumoto / Tao Te Ching / Chapter 48
-Tao by Matsumoto / Tao Te Ching / Chapter 3 / Do nothing
-Tao by Matsumoto / Act without acting


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Tao Te Ching Chapter 48-2 Reduce and reduce

Today's Tao

You reduce and reduce it.

Eventually, you reach the state of doing nothing. (Ch. 48)


Just reducing doesn't seem to be enough.

Lao Tzu asks you to reduce and reduce again.

When you do Tao, you don't accumulate anything. (☞See Reduce 48-1)

Accumulating anything like experience and knowledge is considered worse than useless.

Eventually, you reach the state of absolute acceptance.

You accept all no matter how horrible it looks.

The state is called Satori, too. (You are in the state of Satori all the time since your own self does not exist. How can you accumulate something individually if the self does not exist!)


«Related Articles»
-Reduce 48-1
-Reduce and reduce 48-2
-Do nothing 48-3
-Get the world 48-4
-Do something 48-5
-Tao by Matsumoto / Tao Te Ching / Chapter 48


Tao answers your question!



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Tao Te Ching Chapter 48-1 Reduce

Today's Tao

When you study, you accumulate your knowledge everyday.

When you do Tao, you reduce everything every day. (Ch. 48)


Instead of accumulating, you reduce things in Taoism.

Reducing is much better than accumulating.

It is a bit like housekeeping.

You have to throw things away.

We keep too many things, which are not necessary at all.


«Related Articles»
-Reduce 48-1
-Reduce and reduce 48-2
-Do nothing 48-3
-Get the world 48-4
-Do something 48-5
-Tao by Matsumoto / Tao Te Ching / Chapter 48


Tao answers your question!



☞ Previous video / Ch.48 text / Next video