Roots of Wisdom

The following quotes came from Back to Beginnings, Reflections on
the Tao by Huanchu Daoren, translated by Thomas Cleary. They were written around 1600 by a retired Chinese Scholar, Hong Yingming, whose Taoist name, Huanchu Daoren, means "A Wayfarer Back to Beginnings."

In it can be seen a form of lay Taoism dating many centuries further back into history, in which the historical and sociological insights of pristine Confucianism
are combined with the advanced educational and psychological knowledges and methodologies of Buddhism and Taoism.

Nothing is really known of Huanchu Daoren, except that he wrote these meditations on the Tao which were originally entitled, "Vegetable Root Talks." He identifies himself as a Confucian, which means that he is a layman; his Taoist epithet, "Back to Beginnings," says in calendrical symbolism that he has passed the age of sixty, has retired from public affairs, and has started a new cycle of life.


People are considered pure of heart when they do not approach
power and pomp; but those who can be near without being affected
are the purest of all. People are considered high-minded when they
do not know how to plot and contrive; but those who know how yet do
not do so are the highest of all.


When you are constantly hearing offensive words and always
have some irritating matter in mind, only then do you have a
whetstone for character development. If you hear only what pleases
you, and deal only with what thrills you, then you are burying your
life in deadly poison.

Late at night, when everyone is quiet, sit alone and gaze into
the mind; then you notice illusion ending and reality appearing.
You gain a great sense of potential in this every time. Once you
have noticed reality appearing yet find that illusion is hard to
escape, you also find yourself greatly humbled.

Blessings often give rise to injury, so be careful when things
are going your way. Success may be achieved after failure, so
don't just give up when you've been disappointed.

Think about food on a full stomach and you find you don't care
about taste. Think of lust after making love, and you find you
don't care about sex. Therefore, if people always reflect on the
regret they will feel afterward to forestall folly at the moment,
they will be stable and will not err in action.

One should not seek happiness, just nurture the spirit of joy
as the basis of summoning happiness. One should not try to escape
misfortune, just get rid of viciousness as a means of avoiding
misfortune.

The eyes and ears, seeing and hearing, are external
plunderers; emotions, desires, and opinions are internal
plunderers. But if the inner mind is awake and alert, sitting
aloof in the middle of it all, then these plunderers change and
become members of the household.

When thoughts arise, as soon as you sense them heading on the
road of desire, bring them right back onto the road of reason.
Once they arise, notice them, once you notice them, you can change
them. This is the key to turning calamity into fortune, rising
from death and returning to life.

When water isn't rippled, it is naturally still. When a
mirror isn't clouded, it is clear of itself. So the mind is not to
be cleared; get rid of what muddles it, and its clarity will
spontaneously appear. Pleasure need not be sought; get rid of what
pains you, and pleasure is naturally there.