Subtle...........................

Why scurry about looking for the truth?
It vibrates in every thing and every
not-thing, right off the 
tip of your nose.
Can you be still and see it in the
mountain?  the pine tree?  yourself?

Don't imagine that you'll discover it by
accumulating more knowledge.
Knowledge creates doubt, and
doubt makes you ravenous
for more knowledge.
You can't get full eating this way.
The wise person dines on something
more subtle:
He eats the understanding that the named
was born from the unnamed, that
all being flows from non-being,
that the describable world emanates
from an indescribable source.
He finds this subtle truth inside his own
self, and becomes completely content.

So who can be still and watch the
chess game of the world?
The foolish are always making impulsive
moves, but the wise know that victory
and defeat are decided by something
more subtle.
They see that something perfect exists
before any move is made.

This subtle perfection deteriorates when
artificial actions are taken, so be
content not to disturb the peace.
Remain quiet.
Discover harmony in your own being.
Embrace it.

If you can do this, you will gain
everything, and the world will
become healthy again.
If you can't, you will be lost in the
shadows forever.

-Hua Hu Ching:  The Unknown Teachings of Lao Tzu
Verse 38
as channeled by Brian Brown Walker