The all-encompassing Tao includes all of us, the good as well as the bad. It is easy for most of us to embrace the good, but how can we embrace the bad when we want to distance ourselves from them?

Some may suggest that this is a distinction between good and bad in the Tao, but this is not quite correct. The actual teachings are quite specific about this, and instruct us to approach the two sides differently.

Chapter 27 of the Tao Te Ching tells us to regard the good people as models to emulate. It also tells us that those who lack the wisdom to handle life skillfully are demonstrations of what to avoid. There is always something we can learn from them, so they are our resources. In that sense, they are no less valuable than the good people who are our teachers.

Identify the resources in your life and consider specific ways they serve as counterexamples. Do they treat others poorly? Are they inconsistent in what they say and do? Do they have trouble facing the frustrations in life? For every area where they lack skills and wisdom, think about how you would handle the same thing with greater composure and effectiveness.

Derek Lin

Namaste

Mark