Awakening to the Tao

«The body of heaven is extremely high . Open , round, immeasurable, it is boundlessly vast. Covering everything, containing everything, it produces n1yriad beings without presuming on its virtue, it bestows blessings on myriad beings without expectation of reward . Whether people are respectful or insincere, supportive or antagonistic, is left up to them. Whether people are good or bad , attractive or repulsive, and whether creatures are violent and stubborn or docile and obedient, they are allowed to be so of themselves, without any contnvance» — abre El alto del cielo, el espesor de la tierra, primera contemplación del libro: el cielo cubre y contiene todo, produce sin presumir de su virtud y otorga sin esperar recompensa, y deja a cada quien ser como es; la capa de texto imprime *n1yriad* y *contnvance*

«The earth is very thick. Lowly , below all else, it bears everything and nurtures all beings. It can bear even the weight of the great mountains , and it can endure even the erosive force of great waters. It tolerates being pierced by plants and trees, and it submits to the tread of birds and beasts. It does not mind being cheapened by pollution» — y la mitad terrestre de la misma contemplación: la tierra soporta el peso de las montañas y la erosión de las aguas, tolera ser horadada y pisada, y no se ofende de ser abaratada por la contaminación

«What I realize as I observe this is the Tao of emulating heaven and earth. If people can be open-minded and magnanimous, be receptive to all, take pity on the old and the poor, assist those in peril and rescue those in trouble, give of themselves without seeking reward , never bear grudges, look upon others and self impartially, and realize all as one, then people can be companions of heaven» — la fórmula fija con que Liu Yiming cierra cada contemplación, aquí por primera vez: lo que observa es el Tao de emular al cielo y la tierra, y quien sea de mente abierta, imparcial y desprendido puede ser compañero del cielo

«The way the sun works, it climbs into the sky in the daytime, thus illuminating the outward, then goes behind the earth at night, thus illuminating the inward . The way the moon works, in the first half of its cycle it produces light, thus iJJuminating the outward, then in the last half of its cycle it withdraws it light, thus nurturing the inward. Sun and moon, iJJuminating outside and inside, are aJI one light» — El brillo del sol y la luna: el sol ilumina lo de fuera de día y lo de dentro de noche, la luna produce luz en la primera mitad de su ciclo y la retira en la segunda, y las dos iluminaciones son una sola luz; la capa de texto imprime *iJJuminating* y *aJI*

«If people can use illumination inwardly, do away with falsehood and maintain truthfulness, leave confusion and return to reality, learn to master emotions, clear up feelings, clean the mind, melt away the human mentality and activate the awareness of Tao, carefully avoiding even the slightest errant thought, then they can illumine the inward as do the sun and moon» — la vía interior que Liu Yiming saca de esa contemplación: dejar la falsedad, volver de la confusión a la realidad, dominar las emociones, fundir la mentalidad humana y activar la conciencia del Tao

«When developed to its ultimate state, this is a round luminosity which nothing can deceive, the subtle body of a unified spirit, pervading the whole universe» — y el término de esa misma vía: una luminosidad redonda a la que nada engaña, cuerpo sutil de un espíritu unificado que penetra el universo entero

«Thunder is fierce, intense, and strong; wind is gradual , far-reaching, and soft. When \vind and thunder combine, then there is soft gentleness in the midst of hard intensity , and there is hard intensity in the midst of soft gentleness . Hardness and softness complement each other» — Trueno y viento: el trueno es fiero e intenso y el viento gradual y suave, y al combinarse hay blandura dentro de la dureza y dureza dentro de la blandura

«When people practice the Tao to develop character, dealing with events and society , if they are always hard they will be impetuous and aggressive, excessively impatient, so their actions will lack perseverance and their keenness will be blunted . Then again, if people are always soft, they will vacillate, fearful and ineffective, and be too weak to succeed in their tasks. That softness is useless» — el doble desvío que la misma contemplación describe: quien es siempre duro sale impetuoso y sin perseverancia, quien es siempre blando vacila y es demasiado débil para cumplir sus tareas

«Therefore a classic written by a sage says, "Balance is the mainstay of the world, harmony is the way the world arrives on the Tao. Achieving balance and harmony, heaven and earth are in their places therein, myriad beings grow up therein. " Such i s the importance» — Liu Yiming remata Trueno y viento con un clásico escrito por un sabio, al que no nombra: el equilibrio es el sostén del mundo y la armonía la vía por la que el mundo llega al Tao; el impreso espacia *i s*

«Now what I mean by subtraction here is the subtraction of excess in strength and volatility, and what I mean by addition is addition to fill the Jack caused by pliability and weakness. Being strong without Jetting strength go too far, being flexible without becoming ineffective, strength is joined to flexibility and flexibility is applied with strength» — lo que Liu Yiming llama ahí Tao de la causación mutua, de la sustracción y la adición: sustraer el exceso de fuerza y volatilidad y añadir para llenar lo que falta a la blandura; la capa de texto imprime *Jack* por lack y *Jetting* por letting

«Strength and flexibility matching each other, yin and yang matching each other, it is possible to be high or low, great or small ; it is possible to advance or withdraw, to go along or oppose. Adapting uninhibitedly, indirectness and directness working parallel, one then merges with the order of the four seasons. Changing freely , there is a heaven and earth in one's own body , a Creation in one's own mind , yet one is not constrained by heaven, earth, and Creation» — y el resultado que anuncia: hay un cielo y una tierra en el propio cuerpo y una Creación en la propia mente, sin quedar constreñido por ellos

«The moon is originally pure yin, without yang-it only gives off light after borrowing the sun's rays. The waxing and waning of the moonlight depends on the position and proportion of the sunlight» — La luna toma prestada la luz del sol: la luna es puro yin sin yang y solo alumbra tras tomar prestados los rayos del sol

«The human body is originally pure yin without yang-it must borrow the yang of other to become yang» — y la aplicación: Liu Yiming llama a eso el Tao de tomar prestado el yang para transmutar el yin, y dice que el cuerpo humano es también puro yin sin yang y debe tomar prestado el yang de lo otro

«called "yang of other" is the primordial open unified energy , which is the undying human being» — y la definición de ese yang ajeno: la energía primordial abierta y unificada, que es el ser humano que no muere; la frase arranca en la plana anterior

«If you know this energy is in other, and gradually steal it back to return it to self, restoring the existence of the nonexistent, regaining what had been lost, that is like the moon shining by borrowing the light of the sun. This is the celestial mechanism of taking over Creation and reversing yin and yang» — la operación que la misma contemplación prescribe: robar de vuelta esa energía y restituir la existencia de lo inexistente, lo que llama mecanismo celeste de tomar la Creación y revertir yin y yang

«When alchemists cook medicines, first they must steady the furnace and set up the cauldron. The quality of the cauldron is firmness, whereby the medicine is contained; the quality of the furnace is flexibility , whereby the firing is operated . If the cauldron is not strong, the medicine is easily lost; if the furnace is not steady , the fire flies off at random» — Asentar el horno y montar el caldero, contemplación tomada del taller alquímico: la cualidad del caldero es la firmeza y la del horno la flexibilidad, y sin ellas la medicina se pierde y el fuego se dispara

«Firmness of determination in cultivating the Tao is the cauldron. Becoming stronger with perseverance, never turning back even though foiled a hundred times, being imperturbable, unwavering-this is "setting up the cauldron. " Alert observation at all times is the furnace. Working gradually, serenely , unpressured-this is "steadying the furnace» — la traducción interior que Liu Yiming hace de ese aparato: la firmeza de la determinación es el caldero y la observación alerta el horno; el paralelo es el eje de la contemplación

«When the slag is gone and the gold is pure, you get rid of the old and take the new. Now you change the furnace and cauldron, and set aside the tongs and bellows, to do advanced work, melting the real gold down into liquid and frost, returning to the state before birth» — y la fase siguiente: cambiar horno y caldero, dejar tenazas y fuelle, y fundir el oro verdadero para volver al estado anterior al nacimiento

«So it is that the alchemical classics and writings of the adepts consider steadying the furnace and setting up the cauldron the first priority» — con lo que Liu Yiming apoya la contemplación en los clásicos alquímicos y en los escritos de los adeptos, que ponen esa operación en primer lugar

«A fire-making mirror is able to take fire from the sun, even at an immense distance. A water-collecting mirror is able to take water from the moon, even at a vast remove. This is because the energies of the fire and water mirrors are the same kind as those of the sun and moon» — Espejos de fuego y de agua: el espejo ígneo saca fuego del sol y el acuoso agua de la luna a cualquier distancia, porque sus energías son del mismo género

«The yin and yang in the human being are originally combined into one energy; it is because of mixture with temporal conditioning that yin and yang separate. Once yin and yang have separated , the energy of life decreases day by day and the energy of death increases day by day . As the energy of life decreases more and more while the energy of death increases more and more, in the end there is only death» — lo que llama Tao de absorber yin y yang: separados los dos por el condicionamiento temporal, la energía de la vida mengua y la de la muerte crece día a día

«Dung beetles roll balls of dung, from which their offspring arc born after a time. Balls of dung arc originally dead things, with nothing in them, but by the communion of female and male energies joining into one energy that does not disperse, the spirit congeals and the energy coagulates, and is thus able to produce substance and form where there was no substance or form» — Escarabajos peloteros: de bolas de estiércol, cosas muertas, nacen crías porque las energías hembra y macho se juntan en una que no se dispersa; la palabra se parte a fin de renglón

«What I realize as I observe this is the Tao of producing being from within nonbeing. People are born with the two energies of heaven and earth, yin and yang, so they have these two energies, yin and yang, within their bodies . If people can bring the yang to the yin, and cause the yin to follow the yang, yin and yang adhere to each other. In the midst of ecstatic trance there is a point of living potential , coming into being from nonbeing, whereby the spiritual embryo can be formed and the spiritual body can be produced» — la lectura de esa contemplación: el Tao de producir el ser desde el no ser, con el embrión espiritual formado cuando el yang se lleva al yin y el yin sigue al yang

«When this practice reaches its consummation, you break through space and have a body outside your body . Walking on the sun and moon without form, penetrating metal and stone without hindrance, you transcend Creation» — y su término: romper el espacio y tener un cuerpo fuera del cuerpo, que anda sobre el sol y la luna sin forma y atraviesa metal y piedra

«In material alchemy, when quicksilver is exposed to fire, it flies off. When lead is put into quicksilver, the quicksilver is stabilized; and they combine to form a mass without volatility» — Plomo y azogue: en la alquimia material el azogue vuela al fuego y el plomo lo estabiliza hasta formar una masa sin volatilidad. Liu Yiming nombra aquí la alquimia material como tal, distinta de la lectura que hace de ella

«The human mind is mercurial and unpredictable; it gives rise to emotions about what it experiences, and stirs up confusion after exposure to external influences. This is like quicksilver flying off when exposed to fire» — y su correspondencia: lo que llama Tao de controlar el yin por el yang, con la mente humana volátil e impredecible como el azogue al fuego

«Spring, summer, autumn, winter-these are the four seasons. In spring things sprout, in summer things grow» — La alternancia de las cuatro estaciones: la enumeración arranca aquí y la frase sigue en la plana siguiente, donde cosecha y guarda cierran el ciclo encadenado en continuo

«If the mind of 'lao is always present, warding off danger, and one is always aware, then the human mind has no room to arise. This is like quicksilver being stabilized by lead» — cierre de Plomo y azogue: si la mente del Tao está siempre presente, la mente humana no tiene sitio donde surgir, como el azogue estabilizado por el plomo; la capa de texto imprime *'lao* por Tao

«If you then go on to work diligently at increasing the positive energy of the mind of Tao while reducing the negative energy of the human mind, increasing and reducing until no more increase or reduction is possible, then the human mind dies and the mind of Tao is stable» — y la operación que propone: aumentar la energía positiva de la mente del Tao y reducir la negativa de la mente humana hasta que no quepa más aumento ni reducción, con lo que la mente humana muere y la del Tao queda estable

«The seed of realization is then in your hands, and with it you can become a sage, an immortal , a buddha . At this point the foundation of essence and life is established» — y lo que declara conseguido en ese punto: la semilla de la realización en la mano, con la que se puede llegar a sabio, inmortal o buda, y el fundamento de la esencia y la vida establecido

«If you plant wheat, you get wheat; if you plant flax, you get flax . Flax does not produce wheat, wheat does not produce flax-the seeds are different» — Plantar trigo y plantar lino: el lino no produce trigo ni el trigo lino, porque las semillas son distintas

«Good and bad thought are the cause of events, receiving blessings and bringing on misfortune are the effect of events. When there is a cause, it will surely have an effect. It cannot be that the fruit of good seed is not good, nor can it be that the fruit of bad seed is not bad. The consequences of good and bad are like shadows following forms, certain and invariable» — lo que llama Tao de causa y efecto en acción: el pensamiento bueno o malo es la causa y la bendición o la desgracia el efecto, y las consecuencias siguen como la sombra a la forma

«Therefore superior people consider the beginning when they do things; being careful about things in the beginning, they are able to complete them in the end» — y la consecuencia práctica con que cierra la contemplación: las personas superiores atienden al comienzo, y por eso pueden completar lo que hacen

«When a peach tree is old, graft on a young branch and it will again bear peaches. When a plum tree is old, graft on a young branch and it will again bear plums. This is because even when a tree is old it still has energy in its roots» — Injertar duraznos e injertar ciruelos: al árbol viejo se le injerta una rama joven y vuelve a dar fruto, porque aun viejo conserva energía en las raíces

«People age because they indulge in emotions and passions-a hundred worries affect their minds, myriad affairs weary their bodies. Expending their vitality, exhausting their spirit, they take the false to be real and take misery for happiness» — lo que llama Tao de injertar cuando la gente envejece, con su diagnóstico: se envejece por entregarse a emociones y pasiones, gastando la vitalidad y tomando lo falso por real

«Because the root is unstable, they grow old and die. This cannot be attributed to fate, for they bring it on them» — y su negativa a cargarlo al destino: como la raíz está inestable, envejecen y mueren, y eso no se atribuye al hado sino a ellos mismos; la palabra se parte a fin de plana

«An ancient adept said, "Even at the age of seventy or eighty , as long as you still have one breath left in you, restoration is possible» — con lo que Liu Yiming apoya el injerto en un adepto antiguo al que no nombra: mientras quede un aliento, a los setenta u ochenta, la restauración es posible

«If a hair faJls into a puddle of water and is exposed to hot sunshine, it takes on the form of a water snake. Why is this? Though a hair is a dead thing , when it is moistened by water and warmed by the sun, the moisture and heat coalesce into an energy with a subtle potential that produces movement. Therefore the hair swims around in the water like a snake» — Un pelo que se vuelve culebra de agua: el pelo es cosa muerta, pero humedecido y calentado la humedad y el calor cuajan en una energía con potencial sutil que produce movimiento; la capa de texto imprime *faJls*

«The yang energy in people is associated with fire, while the yin energy is associated with water. When yin and yang combine, the energies of water and fire balance each other. There is a point of living potential there, which is at first vague but becomes clearly apparent, producing life without cease» — lo que llama Tao de estabilizar la raíz y solidificar la vida: el yang se asocia al fuego y el yin al agua, y al combinarse aparece un punto de potencial vivo, al principio vago y luego manifiesto

«The crane is good at nurturing the spirit, so it lives for a thousand years. The tortoise is good at nurturing energy, so it can survive a century without food» — La grulla y la tortuga: la grulla nutre bien el espíritu y vive mil años, la tortuga nutre bien la energía y aguanta un siglo sin comer

«If people are able to humbly lower themselves, to be yielding, plain, and sincere, not wasting energy but always nurturing energy, then they will be full of energy . I f people can be free from cogitation and rumination , have few desires and little ambition, not belabor their spirit but always maintain their spirit, then their spirit will be complete» — lo que llama Tao de prolongar la vida, repartido en los dos términos de la contemplación: nutrir la energía sin gastarla y mantener el espíritu sin fatigarlo

«Water freezes into ice when it is cold, ice melts into water when it is warm. What I realize as I observe this is the Tao of becoming either a sage or an ordinary person» — La congelación del agua y el deshielo del hielo, contemplación que Liu Yiming lee como el Tao de volverse sabio o persona común

«At first, human nature is basically good . There is originally no distinction between the sage and the ordinary person. It is because of the energy of accumulated habits that there comes to be a difference between sages and ordinary people» — y la tesis que saca: la naturaleza humana es buena de origen y no hay distinción original entre el sabio y la persona común, que viene de la energía de los hábitos acumulados

«If those who are originally good do not know enough to be careful and prudent, and instead become affected by external influences and become habituated to what is not good, then they lose the divinely bestowed nature, and even though they have been sages they become ordinary people» — el reverso que la misma contemplación consigna: quien era bueno de origen y se habitúa a lo que no lo es pierde la naturaleza dada, y aun habiendo sido sabio se vuelve persona común

«Therefore the path of great learning lies in the clarification of the quality of illumination, and in resting in the ultimate good» — y el cierre, que repite la fórmula de apertura del Gran Aprendizaje confuciano sin nombrarlo: clarificar la cualidad de la iluminación y reposar en el bien último. La frase arranca en la plana anterior, donde la capa de texto parte *Therefore*

«The original vitality, original energy, and original spirit of human beings are the wellspring of essence and life. When the original vitality is undiminished, the body is complete. When the original energy is undamaged, life is secure. When the original spirit is unobscured , the essence is clear» — El florecer de los árboles, la extensión de las corrientes: la vitalidad, la energía y el espíritu originales son el manantial de la esencia y la vida, y a cada uno intacto le corresponde el cuerpo completo, la vida segura y la esencia clara

«\Vhen the body is whole, life is secure, and the essence is clear , then myriad things cannot move you, Creation cannot constrain you; your nature and destiny are up to you, not up to llcavt'n» — y la consecuencia con que cierra: nada mueve entonces ni la Creación constriñe, y la naturaleza y el destino quedan en manos propias y no del cielo. el renglón abre con la corrupción de la capa de texto por *When* y remata en *llcavt'n* por *heaven*

«Most people, however, do not know enough to preserve and maintain the fundamental ; instead they act on the outgrowths, imagining falsely that they will thereby attain the Tao. This is like looking for fish in a tree-it will turn out to be in vain after all. Is this not foolish» — y el reproche que añade: obrar sobre las ramas imaginando que así se alcanza el Tao es buscar peces en un árbol

«The heart of the pine is solid , the joints of bamboo are hard; therefore they do not wither in the cold of winter, but continue to flourish even through snow and frost» — El corazón del pino, los nudos del bambú: por sólidos y duros no se marchitan en el frío y siguen floreciendo entre nieve y escarcha

«If people can avoid what is shameful, be serious, sincere, and impartial , then their hearts will be solid . When the heart is solid, one cannot be corrupted by wealth or status, one cannot be moved by poverty or lowliness, one cannot be suppressed by authority or force» — lo que llama Tao de establecer la vida por cultivo y disciplina: con el corazón sólido no corrompen la riqueza ni el rango, no mueven la pobreza ni la bajeza, no somete la autoridad ni la fuerza

«Dealing with events fearlessly, undisturbed by difficulty, the fortunes or misfortunes one may encounter are up to others, while the creation of life is up to oneself» — y el reparto que enuncia en la misma contemplación: la fortuna o la desgracia que a uno le toquen dependen de otros, la creación de la vida depende de uno mismo

«When wood is exposed for a long time it rots, but if it is fired into charcoal it will never rot. Water and earth combine to make clay, which dissolves in the rain; fire it into brick, however, and it will last indefinitely» — Madera y carbón, arcilla y ladrillo: la madera se pudre pero hecha carbón ya no, la arcilla se deshace en la lluvia pero cocida en ladrillo dura sin término

«The reason people are unable to attain the Tao is because they have not yet been "fired" in the furnace of Creation» — lo que llama Tao de cocer para cultivar la realidad, y el diagnóstico que le pone: no se alcanza el Tao por no haber pasado aún por el horno de la Creación. El propio texto entrecomilla el término

«If one walks with every step on the ground of reality in the furnace of Creation, experiencing everything that comes along, being in the doorway of life and death without wavering, like gold that becomes brighter the more it is fired, like a mirror that becomes clearer the more it is polished, fired and polished to a state of round brightness, clean nakedness, bare freedom, where there is neither being nor nonbeing, where others and self all become empty , then one will be mentally and physically sublimated , and will merge with the Tao in reality. T his is like wood and clay passing through fire to become charcoal and brick, never to decay» — y la vía entera de esa contemplación: andar en el horno de la Creación sin vacilar en el umbral de la vida y la muerte, como el oro que brilla más cuanto más se cuece y el espejo que se aclara cuanto más se pule

«Laozi (Lao-tzu) said , "The reason I have a great affliction is that I have a body . Had I no body, where would affliction come from» — La carne y el pelo de los cadáveres: Liu Yiming cita a Laozi, a quien el impreso da con las dos romanizaciones, para sostener que la gran aflicción es tener cuerpo

«So we know that this body is our great affliction . If we can escape this affliction, then that which is unafflicted will remain. Only that which is unafflicted is the true self» — y lo que saca de esa cita: si se escapa de la aflicción queda lo no afligido, y solo eso es el verdadero yo

«Nevertheless, many practitioners of Taoism take the other for the self, take affliction to be reality. Emotionally attached to it, they take this ghost for a neighbor and refuse to give it up» — el reproche que Liu Yiming dirige en la misma contemplación a los practicantes del taoísmo: toman lo otro por el yo y la aflicción por la realidad, apegados al fantasma como a un vecino

«There are even ignoramuses who do inner exercises based on this great affliction, imagining they will attain the Tao thereby. People like this are all taking the servant for the master, taking a thief to be one's child. Not only are they unable to get rid of the affliction, they even increase the affliction» — y la variante que le parece peor: quienes hacen ejercicios interiores sobre esa misma aflicción figurándose alcanzar el Tao, que toman al criado por el amo y al ladrón por hijo

«Water is basically cool , fire is basically hot. When fire rises and water descends, water and fire are in different places and cannot offset each other. If water rises and fire descends, then that which is hot does not flame, and that which is cold can become warm» — Agua que sube, fuego que baja: si el fuego sube y el agua baja no se compensan, y si el agua sube y el fuego baja lo caliente no llamea y lo frío se entibia

«When firmness and flexibility are balanced , yin and yang are in harmony ; essence and sense merge, water and fire offset each other. This is what is called the inversion of water and fire» — lo que llama Tao de la separación y unión del yin y el yang, y el nombre técnico con que lo cierra: la inversión del agua y el fuego

«Inside every melon are seeds, inside every seed is a germ. The germ is twofold , and within those two parts there is also a single heart. This heart is the point of living potential . The growth of a melon all comes from this . This is what is called the heart of heaven and earth» — Semillas de melón: dentro del germen doble hay un solo corazón, punto de potencial vivo del que sale todo el crecimiento, y a eso llama corazón del cielo y la tierra

«The heart of heaven and earth is the basis of ongoing growth; those who attain this heart become sages, buddhas, immortals; those who lose this heart become animals, ghosts, demons . \Vhether one has this heart or lacks this heart is all a matter of whether yin and yang are separated or united» — y lo que hace depender de él: quien alcanza ese corazón llega a sabio, buda o inmortal, y quien lo pierde a animal, fantasma o demonio, según el yin y el yang estén separados o unidos

«The reason why people's minds are not clear and their natures are not stable is that they are full of craving and emotion. Add to this eons of mental habit, acquired influences deluding the mind, their outgrowths clogging up the opening of awareness-this is like water being murky, like a mirror being dusty . The original true mind and true essence are totally lost. The feelings and senses are unruly, subject to all kinds of influences, taking in all sorts of things, defiling the mind» — lo que llama Tao de clarificar la mente y percibir su esencia, con su causa: el ansia y la emoción más eones de hábito mental tapan la abertura de la conciencia

«Generally speaking, when people are active, this gives rise to heat; when people sit quietly, this gives rise to cold. When one is cold, if one moves about this will again produce heat. When one is hot, if one sits still this will again produce coldness . In other words, cold and heat do not depend on the weather but on the person» — El calor del movimiento, el frío de la quietud: la conclusión que Liu Yiming saca de la observación es que el frío y el calor no dependen del tiempo sino de la persona

«A high earth mound is built up from the ground; a giant tree of enormous girth grows from a seed. This does not come about in a day and a night, but takes place gradually. What I realize as I observe this is the Tao of profound attainment of self-realization» — Montículos de tierra, árboles gigantes: el montículo se levanta desde el suelo y el árbol enorme sale de una semilla, no en un día y una noche sino poco a poco

«The matter of essence and life is the most important thing in the world. Keeping essence and life whole is the most difficult thing in the world . It cannot be done easily, and cannot be attained in one leap. It requires application to reality with every step, through everything one experiences» — y lo que la contemplación fija como su regla: la esencia y la vida son lo más importante y lo más difícil de conservar entero, y no se alcanzan de un salto

«Therefore a sage said that people without constancy cannot even become seers or physicians, much less attain completeness of essence and life» — y el sabio sin nombrar con que la remata: sin constancia no se llega ni a vidente ni a médico, mucho menos a completar la esencia y la vida

«A concavity becomes full over a long period of time, while a protuberance wears away over a long period of time. This is because that which is empty is bound to be filled, and that which is high is bound to be lowered . What I realize as I observe this is the Tao of decrease and increase, of emptiness and fulfillment» — Llenar las concavidades, desgastar las protuberancias: lo vacío se llena y lo alto se rebaja, y a eso llama Tao de la disminución y el aumento, de la vacuidad y la plenitud

«When people elevate and aggrandize themselves, confident of their talent and ability , strutting around as though they were sages, then others often detest them; time and again they bring error on themselves by self-satisfaction, and eventually they will fall below others, becoming anything but elevated . This is like a protuberance of earth gradually being worn away by people treading on it» — la mitad del contraste que la contemplación desarrolla: quien se engrandece y se pavonea de sabio acaba por debajo de los demás, como la protuberancia que el paso desgasta

«Therefore in the case of developed people, the loftier their path becomes the more humble their hearts are. Their virtue grows day by day, yet they become daily more circumspect, until all pride is gone and all agitation is dissolved» — y su cierre: en la gente desarrollada, cuanto más alto el camino más humilde el corazón, y la virtud crece a la par que la circunspección

«ங1urky water is turbid ; let it settle and it clears. A dusty mirror is dim; clean it and it is bright» — Agua turbia, espejo empolvado: el agua turbia aclara al posarse y el espejo opaco brilla al limpiarse. La capa de texto abre la palabra con un signo tamil ajeno al inglés, donde el impreso pone la M capitular

«If one can suddenly realize this and change directions, wash away pollution and contamination» — y la operación que propone esa contemplación: reconocerlo de golpe, cambiar de rumbo y lavar la contaminación; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente, donde el refinado de la escoria deja el oro puro

«Able to be strong , able to yield , according with truth and according with the time, knowing when to advance and when to withdraw» — lo que llama Tao de tomar la creatividad del yin y el yang: poder ser fuerte y poder ceder, conforme a la verdad y al tiempo, sabiendo cuándo avanzar y cuándo retirarse; la enumeración sigue en la plana siguiente

«and able to step down, able to be passive and able to be active, one can thereby take over Creation, turn around life and death, reverse the mechanism of energy, leave death and go to life. This is like activity producing heat and quiet sitting producing cold; human power can reverse nature» — y su remate en la plana siguiente: así se toma la Creación, se da vuelta a la vida y la muerte y se invierte el mecanismo de la energía, porque el poder humano puede revertir la naturaleza

«It is said that carp can turn into dragons and foxes can turn into fairies. This is because when the spirit is whole the» — Carpas y zorros: Liu Yiming consigna como dicho que la carpa puede volverse dragón y el zorro hada, y lo explica porque con el espíritu entero la forma cambia; la frase termina en la plana siguiente

«Fish and foxes have partial energies of heaven and earth. \Vhat they depend on is only a part of consciousnt·ss . It is humans who are the most conscious of beings ; they have the true energy of heaven and earth . In them the five forces are complete, the five virtues are inherent. They abide in the middle of the triad of heaven , earth, and humanity , and have the total capacity of heaven and earth» — la comparación que abre esa contemplación: peces y zorros tienen energías parciales, mientras que el humano, el más consciente de los seres, tiene la energía verdadera, las cinco fuerzas completas y las cinco virtudes, y ocupa el medio de la tríada de cielo, tierra y humanidad

«If one can nurture the true energy of heaven and earth and preserve the harmonious energies of the five forces without partiality or imbalance, they merge into a single flow of energy . Then one has the creativity of heaven and earth , and can transform into a sage, change into an immortal . Physically and spiritually sublimated, one then merges into reality with the Tao, and is able to transform in countless ways, not only m appearance» — y lo que llama Tao de la transformación por poder espiritual: nutrir esa energía verdadera sin parcialidad la funde en un solo flujo, y con él se transforma en incontables modos y no solo de apariencia

«A dragon , as spiritual luminosity, can be large or small , can rise or descend, can disappear or appear, can penetrate rocks and mountains, can leap in the clouds and travel with the rain. How can it do all this? It is done by the activity of the spirit» — Transformaciones de un dragón espiritual: el dragón crece y mengua, sube y baja, aparece y desaparece, y todo eso lo hace por actividad del espíritu

«The reason humans can be humans is because of the spirit. As long as the spirit is there, they live. When the spirit leaves, they die» — lo que llama Tao de la transmutación espiritual inconcebible, con su tesis: el humano lo es por el espíritu, y vive mientras el espíritu está y muere cuando se va

«One who can use the spirit skillfully changes in accordance with the time, and therefore can share the qualities of heaven and earth, share the light of sun and moon, share the order of the four seasons, command nature in the primordial state, and serve nature in the temporal state. This is like the transformations of a spiritual dragon, which cannot be seen in the traces of form» — y lo que atribuye a quien lo usa con destreza: compartir las cualidades del cielo y la tierra, mandar a la naturaleza en el estado primordial y servirla en el temporal, sin dejar rastro de forma

«When a tree is dead there is no flame when you burn it; when ashes are cold there is no warmth when you stir them. What I realize as I observe this is the Tao of transformation of temperament» — Árboles muertos, cenizas frías: el árbol muerto no llamea y la ceniza fría no calienta, y eso le da el Tao de la transformación del temperamento

«When people become temperamental , the harm is very great; the slightest offense sets them off into a rage. It damages nature and injures reason, so that they are unaware of their own greed and passion, they do not understand their own narrowness, they do not care about essential life, they are not mindful of life and death. The troubles this causes are not simple» — el daño que atribuye al temperamento en esa contemplación: la menor ofensa enciende la ira, que daña la naturaleza y hiere la razón hasta volver a uno inconsciente de su propia codicia

«If one can master oneself and exercise restraint, turn back from inflexibility and become yielding, sweep away all anger, resentment, and annoyance, get rid of all contentiousness, change the aggressive and violent nature back into a gentle taciturn nature, concentrate the energy and n1ake it flexible, empty the mind and nurture the spirit , be selfless and impersonal , not discriminate between self and others, view one's ow n bot.ly as having no such bod y , view one's mind as having no such mind , have no discrimination and no knowledge, and» — y la disciplina que propone: barrer la ira y el resentimiento, cambiar la naturaleza agresiva en una apacible, vaciar la mente, no discriminar entre uno y los otros y ver el propio cuerpo como si no lo hubiera; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente

«One can thereby be in the midst of Creation without being influenced by Creation, be in the midst of yin and yang without being constrained by yin and yang» — y el resultado que le pone: estar en medio de la Creación sin ser influido por ella y en medio del yin y el yang sin quedar constreñido

«Something in prolonged contact with rouge eventually becomes red; something in prolonged contact with soot eventually becomes black. What I realize as I observe this is the Tao of habituation to good and bad» — Contacto con el carmín, contacto con el hollín: lo que toca carmín se enrojece y lo que toca hollín se ennegrece, y eso da el Tao de la habituación a lo bueno y a lo malo

«Good and bad people are said to be so by nature, but most become so through habit. Therefore wise people choose their associates carefully» — el remate de esa contemplación, que Liu Yiming enuncia contra el lugar común: se dice que buenos y malos lo son por naturaleza, pero la mayoría lo llega a ser por hábito, y de ahí que el sabio escoja compañía

«What I realize as I observe this is the Tao of restoration of innocence. If people are able to radically wake up and turn around , shedding attachments to things, to dwell in the realm of nothingness and formlessness, to uproot the senses and objects conditioned by history and sweep away the force of habit acquired in the present life, letting go everywhere to be open and clear, pure and clean, then even if the body is old the nature is restored; outwardly one may be weak, but inwardly one is robust» — lo que llama Tao de la restauración de la inocencia: desarraigar los sentidos condicionados por la historia y barrer el hábito adquirido restaura la naturaleza aunque el cuerpo esté viejo

«This is the restoration of youth, the original state of the infant. Otherwise, once natural reality is lost, even if one is physically strong and fat as a pig or an ox, what is the benefit» — y la objeción con que cierra: perdida la realidad natural, de nada sirve estar fuerte y gordo como un puerco o un buey

«A bellows has holes on either side, and at the opening of each hole is a flap. Inside is empty, while the frame is straight. The emptiness inside is the essence, the straightness of the frame is the function. The two holes are the passages of exit and entry; the two flaps are the mechanism of opening and closing . As the frame is worked back and forth, taking in and pushing out, it empties without exhaustion, moves to produce wind , opening and closing naturally» — Fuelles: la vacuidad de dentro es la esencia y la rectitud del armazón la función, los dos agujeros son las vías de entrada y salida y las dos tapas el mecanismo de abrir y cerrar; se vacía sin agotarse

«It is said that where the handle of the Big Dipper points is auspicious, while where it sits is inauspicious . What I realize as I observe this is the Tao of turning around the working of energy» — El mango del Gran Carro: Liu Yiming parte de la creencia de que es propicio donde el mango apunta y aciago donde se asienta, y de ahí saca el Tao de dar vuelta al obrar de la energía

«The energy of strength i n people may be likened to the handle of the Big Dipper in the sky: When the energy of strength is used outwardly, it is outwardly auspicious but inwardly inauspicious; when the energy of strength is used inwardly, it is inwardly auspicious but outwardly inauspicious. This is like the astrological belief that where the handle of the Big Dipper points is auspicious, while where it sits is mausptCIOUS» — y la correspondencia que traza: usada la fuerza hacia fuera es propicia por fuera y aciaga por dentro, y al revés si se usa hacia dentro. El propio texto llama a esto creencia astrológica; la capa de texto corrompe la última palabra

«After people are born and get mixed up in temporal conditioning, their strength is all used outwardly in the struggle to prevail and the desire for power. They accept the false and abandon the real, which is injurious to the inner three treasures of vitality, energy , and spirit. Thus, beneficial energy is dispersed outwardly, while harmful energy is taken in. Over a long period of time the positive is exhausted and the negative becomes total-thus death is inevitable» — y el diagnóstico de la misma contemplación: mezclados en el condicionamiento temporal, todos gastan la fuerza hacia fuera en la lucha por prevalecer, en perjuicio de los tres tesoros interiores, vitalidad, energía y espíritu

«Therefore advanced people turn the dipper handle around, in the sense that they use strength inwardly to destroy debilitating influences, get rid of drainage through the senses, cut off entanglements and sweep away objects. Not letting the false damage the real , not letting externals disturb them» — y la operación inversa: los avanzados dan vuelta al mango usando la fuerza hacia dentro para cortar la fuga por los sentidos; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente

«If a lunatic jumps over a fence, he may stumble, but he will not get hurt. If a drunkard falls from a cart, he may get hurt, but he will not die. Why is this? Because they are oblivious of their bodies» — Lunáticos y borrachos: el lunático que salta una cerca tropieza sin lastimarse y el borracho que cae del carro se lastima sin morir, porque están olvidados de sus cuerpos

«The life of human beings is dependent on the three treasures of vitality, energy , and spirit; when the three treasures are together, people live , and when the three treasures are scattered , people die. If you want to get the three treasures together, first you must be selfless» — lo que llama Tao de nutrir la vida y hacer entero el cuerpo: la vida depende de los tres tesoros, y juntarlos exige primero no tener yo

«Lunatics and drunkards can even avoid death simply by forgetting their bodies; how much the more so is it possible to preserve life by completeness of spirit, fullness of energy , and stability of vitality» — y el argumento de mayor a menor que cierra: si el lunático y el borracho evitan la muerte con solo olvidar el cuerpo, cuánto más se conserva la vida con el espíritu completo y la energía llena

«When you straighten out a net, you lift the main rope; when you fold a robe , you pick it up by the collar» — Levantar la cuerda, levantar el cuello: la red se endereza por la cuerda maestra y la túnica se recoge por el cuello, imagen de empezar por el punto esencial al conjunto

«The mind is the master of the body , and is the basis upon which sagacity , enlightenment, and wizardry can be achieved . When the mind is quiet, all objects are silent; when the mind stirs, a jumble of thoughts arises at random» — lo que llama Tao de preparar la base de la realización: la mente es el amo del cuerpo, y quieta calla todo objeto mientras que agitada levanta un revoltijo de pensamientos

«Washing gold out from sand and sorting jades out from rocks cannot be done by acting at random-these processes require intense effort and thoroughgoing work» — Lavar el oro, separar el jade: ni el oro se saca de la arena ni el jade de la roca obrando al azar, sino con esfuerzo intenso y trabajo cabal

«The true treasure of the primordial is like gold, l ike jade; the artificial things that are temporally acquired are like sand and stone. When acquired artificialities bury the primordial treasure of reality, that is like sand and stone burying gold and jade» — lo que llama Tao de practicar el cultivo gradual: el tesoro primordial es como el oro y el jade, y lo artificial adquirido en el tiempo como la arena y la piedra que lo sepultan

«When an infant is first born, it has no conscious knowledge, no attachment to pleasures and possessions, no sentimental bonds» — La realidad natural del infante: recién nacido no tiene conocimiento consciente, ni apego a placeres y posesiones, ni lazos sentimentales; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente y la palabra se parte a fin de renglón

«is open-nothing defiles it, for it is indifferent, equanimous, purely natural» — y el cabo de esa descripción, ya en la plana siguiente: para el infante todo está abierto, nada lo mancha, es indiferente, ecuánime y puramente natural

«If you can be empty and clear, with nothing whatsoever on your mind, not producing thoughts from within, not taking in things from without» — y la vía que propone: no producir pensamientos desde dentro ni recoger cosas desde fuera; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente, donde la mente queda clara como espejo y quieta como lago

«Therefore, if you want to seek the primordial reality , you must shake off acquired artificial ity . That which is real is the conscious root of the unified primord ial energy» — la operación que Lavar el oro, separar el jade propone: sacudirse la artificialidad adquirida, porque lo real es la raíz consciente de la energía primordial unificada; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente

«Thus, since reality cannot be easily attained , it is necessary to use the power of gradual cultivation to shed the artificial in order that the real may appear. Shedding and shedding until there is nothing more to shed , you see, when everything artificial is gone, that the real is spontaneously clear right there before your eyes. This is like seeing the gold or the jade when the sand or pebbles are cleared away . This is the accomplishment of "sweetness after bitterness» — y el cierre de esa misma contemplación: despojarse hasta que no quede nada que despojar, con lo que lo real aparece solo ante los ojos, en lo que el texto llama la dulzura tras la amargura

«When a well sweep draws water, the bucket goes down empty and comes up full, drawing water in a continuous cycle to water the fields» — Sacar agua con un cigoñal: el cubo baja vacío y sube lleno en ciclo continuo para regar los campos

«If people can empty their hearts and be humble towards others, they will receive benefits that will fill them within and elevate them beyond others. The more they become empty and humble, the more they are fulfilled and elevated» — lo que llama Tao de las dos funciones gemelas de vaciar y llenar: cuanto más se vacía uno y se humilla, más se llena y se eleva

«Continually becoming empty , continually being fulfilled, continually becoming humble, continually being elevated , so that one is empty yet full , full yet empty , low yet high, high yet low , one attains to a state in which above and below are in communion , emptiness and fulfillment correspond» — y el estado al que dice que se llega: vacío y a la vez lleno, bajo y a la vez alto, con lo de arriba y lo de abajo en comunión

«When it says in the Hook ě( Changes " Accord is in lowliness-it is good» — Liu Yiming cierra esa contemplación citando el Libro de los Cambios, que la capa de texto imprime *Hook ě( Changes*: el acuerdo está en la bajeza; la cita se corta en el cambio de plana

«it is a general reference to the fact that the more elevated the path the humbler the mind» — y la lectura que hace de esa cita del Libro de los Cambios, ya en la plana siguiente: cuanto más elevado el camino, más humilde la mente

«Plants and trees first flower and then produce fruit, each in its season . This is why they can live a long time. If they miss their season, this is a foresign of death, because it is abnormal» — Las flores y los frutos de las plantas y los árboles: florecen y fructifican cada cual en su estación y por eso viven largo, y errar la estación es presagio de muerte

«When events take place people cannot but respond to them, and when things come up they cannot but deal with them. Using events to control events, organizing things according to what is there, not looking forward to what has not come, not dwelling on what has passed , the spirit is not injured and the energy is not dissipated . This is like plants and trees flowering and fruiting in season; this is the enlivening path» — lo que llama Tao de ir con el tiempo: usar los sucesos para regir los sucesos, sin adelantarse a lo que no ha llegado ni demorarse en lo pasado

«If people are greedy and passionate, ambitious and always conniving, forming strategies for events that are yet to come, clinging to events that have already passed , the spirit and energy become worn out. This is like plants and trees flowering and blooming out of season; this is the road to death» — y su reverso en la misma contemplación: urdir estrategias para lo que aún no ocurre y aferrarse a lo ya pasado gasta el espíritu y la energía, como florecer fuera de estación

«Therefore wise people are as careful of their vitality and spirit as one would be of jewels . When they are used , they shine without dazzle; when put in storage, they are silent and still . Wise people act when it is appropriate to do so, stop when it is appropriate to stop. Action and stillness in their proper place, they do not damage the real with the artificial» — y la conducta que deriva: cuidar la vitalidad y el espíritu como joyas, que usadas brillan sin deslumbrar y guardadas quedan silenciosas

«Effigies made of wood or clay are basically inert, but if people sincerely worship them for a long time, miraculous effects ensue. What I real ize as I reflect on this is the Tao of rising from death and returning to life» — Efigies: las de madera o barro son inertes, y sin embargo del culto sincero y prolongado salen efectos milagrosos, de donde saca el Tao de levantarse de la muerte y volver a la vida

«People from all over the world take what is artificial to be real, and think what is misery is pleasurable. By day they roam among the objects of the world , by night they enter the realm of dream illusions. This is the road of death; there is no real life in it. The body may be alive, but the mind is already dead; one may exist physically yet be spiritually deceased. When this goes on day after day, year in and year out, positive energy is used up and only negative energy remains-how can death be avoided» — el diagnóstico de esa contemplación: de día se vaga entre los objetos del mundo y de noche se entra en el reino de las ilusiones del sueño, con el cuerpo vivo y la mente ya muerta

«If you know the things of the world are all artificial, and experience an intense awakening, reverse your direction, and then are sincere and undivided, not thinking about anything but essence and life, being attentive and careful , guarding against insidious tendencies, over a long time your accomplishment will deepen; the mind will become spontaneously clear, the spirit will become spontaneously effective, inner thoughts will not arise, outer objects will not enter in, and there will be rcalitv with no falsehood» — y la salida que propone: un despertar intenso, invertir la dirección y no pensar en otra cosa que la esencia y la vida, hasta que ni los pensamientos de dentro surjan ni los objetos de fuera entren

«When lamplight shines inside a room , then the room is light while outside is dark. \Vhen the lamp is moved out side , then outside is light while inside the room is dark» — Luz de lámpara: alumbrada dentro del cuarto lo de fuera queda a oscuras, y sacada fuera se oscurece el cuarto

«People's intellect and knowlege are like the light of a lamp. If that light is mistakenly used outside, in a contentious and aggressive manner, aiming for name and gain , scheming and conniving day and night, thinking a thousand thoughts, imagining ten thousand imaginings, chasing artificial objects and losing the original source, light on the outside but dark inside, this will go on until the body is injured and life is lost» — lo que llama Tao del uso propio de la iluminación: el intelecto usado hacia fuera, en la contienda y el afán de nombre y ganancia, deja claro por fuera y oscuro por dentro hasta perder la vida; la capa de texto imprime *knowlege*

«If people give up artificiality and return to the real, dismiss intellectuality and cleverness, consider essential life the one matter of importance, practice inner awareness, refine the self and master the mind, observe all things with detachment so all that exists is empty of absoluteness, are not moved by external things and are not influenced by sensory experiences, being light inside and dark outside, they can thereby aspire to wisdom and become enlightened» — y el uso inverso: dejar la artificialidad, despedir la astucia, refinarse y no dejarse mover por las cosas externas, claro por dentro y oscuro por fuera

«Light that does not dazzle progresses to lofty illumination; therefore a classic says, "The great sage appears ignorant, the great adept seems inept» — y el clásico sin nombrar con que remata esa contemplación: el gran sabio parece ignorante y el gran adepto parece inepto

«It is because fermented mash has the energy of wine to begin with that it can produce wine, and it is because rice is the essential part of the grain that it can make gruel-each accords with its own kind» — y la razón que da: el mosto tiene de antemano la energía del vino y el arroz es la parte esencial del grano, y cada cosa concuerda con su propio género

«Essence here means the natural essence, not temperament. It is the essence in which temperament is sublimated and dissolved. Life means the natural life, not a short or long span. It is the life which is not different, whether the span is short or long» — la precisión terminológica de esa contemplación: esencia es la esencia natural y no el temperamento, y vida es la vida natural y no un lapso corto o largo

«The seed is outside, yet is not a material substance. The seed is inside, yet is not bodily fluid or air. Anything that has form is not of a kind with our essence and life , and so cannot be used to realize essence and life» — y la definición negativa de la semilla: está fuera sin ser sustancia material y dentro sin ser fluido ni aire, y nada que tenga forma es del mismo género que la esencia y la vida

«If you want to know the true seed of essence and life, it is nothing but the original , innate, primal, true, unified energy. This energy is imperceptible and ungraspable; it cannot be found in the body , nor can it be found outside the body. It is not apart from the body , yet it is not attached to the body either. It is between ecstasy and trance, hidden in the realm» — y su definición positiva: la energía original, innata, primordial, verdadera y unificada, imperceptible e inasible, ni dentro ni fuera del cuerpo, entre el éxtasis y el trance

«The absolute, complete awareness, the gold pill-though there are three names, the actuality is one. This alone is the true seed of essence and life» — y la identificación que hace de los tres: tres nombres y una sola realidad, que es la verdadera semilla de la esencia y la vida

«Therefore the classic Triplex Unity says, "It is easy to work with the same kind , hard to work with what is not of the same kind . " This is like the need for fermented mash to make wine and rice to make gruel» — y el clásico que cita por su nombre para cerrarla, el Triplex Unity o Cantong qi: es fácil trabajar con lo del mismo género y difícil con lo que no lo es

«When a bell is struck it rings, when a drum is beaten it resounds. This is because they are solid outside and empty within. It is because they have nothing inside that they are able to ring and resound» — Suenan las campanas, retumban los tambores: suenan por ser sólidos por fuera y vacíos por dentro, y es por no tener nada dentro que pueden sonar

«True emptiness is like the inner openness of a bell or a drum; ineffable existence is like the sounding of a bell or a drum when struck. If people can keep this true emptiness as their essence, and utilize this ineffable existence as their function, ever serene yet ever responsive, ever responsive yet ever serene, tranquil and unstirring yet sensitive and effective, sensitive and effective yet tranquil and unstirring, empty yet not empty, not empty yet empty, aware and efficient, lively and active, refining everything in the great furnace of Creation, then when the dirt is gone the mirror is clear, when the clouds disperse the moon appears; revealing the indestructible» — lo que llama Tao de la vacuidad verdadera y la existencia inefable: guardada la una como esencia y usada la otra como función, se refina todo en el gran horno de la Creación; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente

«The reason a marionette can nod its head and a kite can fly into the sky is because someone is manipulating it with a stnng» — Marionetas y cometas: la una asiente y la otra vuela porque alguien las maneja con un hilo; la capa de texto imprime *stnng*

«The human body is like a marionette or a kite» — lo que llama Tao del obrar espiritual del movimiento y la quietud en el cuerpo humano: el cuerpo es lo inerte, el espíritu es la persona y la energía es el hilo

«The spirit operates the energy , the energy operates the body. Therefore it is possible to act and rest, it is possible to speak. If those who cultivate reality know how to control the energy by the spirit and nurture the spirit by the energy, then spirit and energy combine, and in the midst of ecstatic trance there is something, there is vitality» — y lo que se sigue para quien cultiva la realidad: regir la energía por el espíritu y nutrir el espíritu por la energía junta a los dos, y en medio del trance extático hay algo, hay vitalidad

«A parrot can be taught to speak, a monkey can be taught to act; they are able to do these things not because of their original natures, but because people gradually teach them» — Loros y monos: hablan y actúan no por su naturaleza original sino porque alguien se los enseña poco a poco, de donde saca el Tao de buscar maestros y encontrar compañeros

«To make wine you must use fermented mash; without fermentation mash does not make wine. To make gruel you» — Vino del mosto, atole del arroz: sin fermentar, el mosto no da vino; la frase sobre el arroz sigue en la plana siguiente

«It cannot be communicated in words, cannot be depicted in writing. If we were to insist on an illustration, it would simply be a circle. \Vhen names are forced on it, Confucians call it the absolute, Buddhists call it complete awareness, 'laoists call it the gold pill» — y los tres nombres que la misma contemplación consigna para esa semilla, que no se comunica en palabras ni se dibuja y que forzando una figura sería un círculo: los confucianos la llaman el absoluto, los budistas conciencia completa y los taoístas la píldora de oro

«The crane and the tortoise can live long, even though one only keeps its spirit complete and one only keeps its energy complete; how much the more so when both spirit and energy are kept complete» — y el remate por argumento de mayor a menor: si cada animal vive largo guardando entero uno solo de los dos, cuánto más quien guarde los dos. La pregunta que cierra queda fuera de la cita porque el impreso usa el guion como raya y el troceo lo suelda a la palabra

«If learners can blend yin and yang without partiality or bias, ending up in correct balance, then the heart of heaven and earth will reappear. When the heart of heaven appears, whatever is at hand is the Tao, wherever one walks is reality» — la salida que Semillas de melón ofrece a quien aprende: mezclar yin y yang sin parcialidad hasta el equilibrio correcto hace reaparecer el corazón del cielo y la tierra, y entonces lo que está a mano es el Tao. El cabo, que el resorte de la Creación queda en la propia mano, se deja fuera porque el guion de raya lo suelda a la palabra anterior

«If people can be essentially empty within and he functionally straightforward in mind, without bias, without greed , letting the celestial design flow through them, then tirmness and flexibility will match each other, action and stillness will combine appropriately» — lo que Fuelles llama Tao de la esencia y la función de cultivar la realidad: vacío por dentro y recto en la mente, sin sesgo ni codicia, dejando fluir el diseño celeste, la firmeza y la flexibilidad se corresponden. El tramo se corta antes de una palabra que la capa de texto parte y corrompe

«If you know enough to submit to enlightened teachers, associate with good companions, sincerely concentrate on clarification of truth, borrow their knowledge to break through your own ignorance, borrow their lofty vision to expand your own ignorant views, then even if you are ignorant you will become enlightened, and even if you are weak you will become strong. Then there is no reason why you cannot become a spiritual immortal and a buddha» — lo que Loros y monos llama Tao de buscar maestros y encontrar compañeros: tomar prestado el conocimiento y la visión alta de otros para romper la propia ignorancia

«Ignorant students follow their own minds and act arbitrarily. Indulging in guesswork, they consider themselves bright and will not humble themselves. Thus they misapprehend the road ahead . Though they are said to deceive others, in reality they are deceiving themselves. This is looking on the great matter of essence and life as child's play. It is no wonder they strive all their lives with no attainment. Is this not a pity» — y el reproche con que cierra: los estudiantes ignorantes se creen brillantes y no se humillan, y aunque se diga que engañan a otros en realidad se engañan a sí mismos

«In spring most things sprout, but the elm sheaths fall. In autumn most things become dormant, but the shepherd's purse and wheat grow. This is representation of negativity within positivity and positivity within negativity» — Vainas de olmo, bolsa de pastor y trigo: en primavera casi todo brota pero las vainas de olmo caen, y en otoño casi todo aletarga pero la bolsa de pastor y el trigo crecen, figura de lo negativo dentro de lo positivo y al revés

«Benevolence is the soft path, based on compassion and love. Duty is the hard path, based on judgment and administration. If one is only benevolent, without duty, then love will» — lo que llama Tao del uso combinado de la benevolencia y el deber: la benevolencia es la vía blanda de la compasión y el deber la dura del juicio; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente

«When benevolence and duty are used together, then there is decisiveness within benevolence, so that right and wrong do not get mixed up; there is flexibility within duty , so that there is no dogmatic rigidity. Thus the path of balance and harmony is not lost» — y su composición: usadas juntas hay decisión dentro de la benevolencia y flexibilidad dentro del deber, con lo que no se pierde la vía del equilibrio

«When the weather is hot you want water; drink water, and you experience relief from the heat. When the weather is cold you want fire; if you have fire you will not be cold» — Desear agua y fuego: con calor se quiere agua y con frío fuego, y cada uno alivia lo suyo

«The Tao does not arise from lone yin, does not grow from isolated yang. When yang culminates, yin succeeds it; when yin culminates, yang succeeds it: There is neither excess of yang nor bias towards yin; yin and yang are in harmony, firmness and flexibility balance each other» — lo que llama Tao de la necesidad mutua del yin y el yang, enunciado como tesis: el Tao no surge del yin solo ni crece del yang aislado, y cada uno sucede al otro al culminar

«Thus when one unified energy flows, the original source is complete, the mechanism of life is unceasing; essence can be fulfilled , life can be established . Unmoved by myriad things , not burdened by myriad affairs , one is beyond the world while in its very midst» — y lo que promete de esa unidad: la esencia se cumple y la vida se establece, y se está más allá del mundo en medio del mundo mismo

«When you head south, you turn your back on the north; you see the south and not the north . When you head north, you turn your back on the south; you see the north and not the south» — Ir al sur, ir al norte: quien va al sur da la espalda al norte y quien va al norte da la espalda al sur, y ve solo lo que tiene delante

«If you see good you do not see bad, if you see bad you do not see good-falsehood and truth do not stand together, loyalty and treachery do not coexist» — lo que llama Tao de escoger lo bueno y sostenerlo: falsedad y verdad no se sostienen juntas, ni lealtad y traición coexisten

«Therefore developed people see good as something they have yet to attain, and they see what is not good as like plunging into boiling water. They preserve the Tao as though they were guarding a treasure, with single-minded will. Even though thwarted a hundred times, they do not turn back. They never change, even until death, and do not stop working until they have reached profound attainment of self» — y la conducta que atribuye a la gente desarrollada: ven lo bueno como lo que aún les falta y lo no bueno como zambullirse en agua hirviendo, y guardan el Tao como un tesoro; la palabra se parte a fin de plana

«When you cut weeds, it is necessary to dig out the roots, for if the roots are not eliminated the weeds will regrow» — Cortar hierbas, plantar árboles: la hierba vuelve a salir si no se arrancan las raíces, y el árbol se seca si las raíces no quedan firmes

«People's personal desires and habit energies arc all artificial . The artificial is like weeds. People's basic essence and natural goodness are what is real . The real is like a tree» — lo que llama Tao de eliminar lo artificial y cultivar lo real, con su equivalencia: los deseos personales y las energías del hábito son la hierba, la esencia básica y la bondad natural son el árbol

«When you cultivate the real , it is necessary to be constantly aware of the fundamental root of inherent natural reality, nurturing it at all times, irrigating it with the water of the spirit, keeping it warm with the fire of truth, not letting it be moved or disturbed, protecting it in every way, watching out for its safety in every condition» — y el cuidado que prescribe para la raíz de la realidad natural: regarla con el agua del espíritu y calentarla con el fuego de la verdad, sin dejar que se mueva ni se perturbe

«An ancient scripture says, "As long as there is the slightest negative energy remaining, you will not become immortal . As long as there is the slightest positive energy remaining, you will not die» — y la escritura antigua, sin nombrar, con que la remata: mientras quede la menor energía negativa no habrá inmortalidad, y mientras quede la menor energía positiva no habrá muerte

«When water fills a pitcher, it overflows, and when it overflows there is lack. \Vhen water half fills a pitcher, then it does not leak out, and when there is no leakage there is always a sufficiency» — Un cántaro lleno, un cántaro a medias: el lleno se derrama y de ahí la falta, el que va a medias no se derrama y de ahí la suficiencia

«When people are self-satisfied and complacent, presuming upon their ability and talent, knowing how to go forward but not how to withdraw, knowing how to be strong but not how to be weak, regarding only themselves and ignoring others, proud and arrogant, then eventually this will bring on calamity. Then their self-satisfaction will be useless» — lo que llama Tao de llenar y vaciar, calamidad y fortuna, en su mitad adversa: saber avanzar y no retirarse, saber ser fuerte y no débil, acaba por traer calamidad

«Therefore it is said that the modest receive increase, while the self-satisfied bring on loss. Modesty is better than self» — y el dicho con que cierra: los modestos reciben aumento y los satisfechos de sí acarrean pérdida; la palabra se parte a fin de renglón

«The basic constitution of human beings when they are born is pure and flawless, but when it mixes with temporal conditioning, senses and objects are activated, intellectual knowledge opens up; added to this are accumulating habits and attachments. Those who like drink are deluded by drink, those who like sex are deluded by sex, those who like material goods are deluded by material goods, those who like energy are deluded by energy, those who like wealth and status are deluded by wealth and status, those who like sport are deluded by sport» — lo que llama Tao de volver a la simplicidad y regresar a la pureza: la constitución de origen es pura, y mezclada con el condicionamiento temporal cada gusto engaña a quien lo tiene

«People pursue their ambitions with al l sorts of scheming and cleverness, follow their desires with deceit and hypocrisy. All of their doings, all of their actions, are in pursuit of the false. They take what is painful for pleasure, take poison for medicine. Their original basic constitution is completely buried away. This goes to such an extreme that they lose their health and forfeit their lives without a care, bringing calamity and misfortune on themselves without even realizing it» — y el cuadro que traza: se persigue lo falso tomando lo doloroso por placer y el veneno por medicina, hasta perder la salud y la vida sin advertirlo

«This is why the ancient sages taught people to understand the good and go back to the beginning, to return to simplicity and purity, simply to restore the original state» — y lo que atribuye a los sabios antiguos: enseñar a entender el bien y volver al principio, que es restaurar el estado original y no añadir nada

«Pottery has a basic constitution, and is formed without artifice. Decorate it with colors, inlay it with gold and jade» — Alfarería y decoración: la pieza tiene constitución básica y se forma sin artificio, y a eso se le añaden colores, oro y jade; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente, donde dice que así pierde esa constitución

«When you restore the original state, you are clean and naked , bare and untrammeled . Without a trace of defilement, having shed clinging to objects entirely , this state is the embryo of sagehood , the seed of immortal enlightenment» — y el término de esa vuelta a la simplicidad: desnudo y sin rastro de mancha, estado que llama embrión de la santidad y semilla de la iluminación inmortal

«This is what is called the real human being» — y el nombre con que Liu Yiming remata Alfarería y decoración al abrir la plana siguiente: el verdadero ser humano

«People receive the energy of the temporal five forces, which form their bodies. In the body is stored the energy of the five forces. This energy in the human body acts up to become the five robbers, which are joy , anger, sadness, happiness, and craving. These five robbers are cohorts that strip away the real basis. Therefore what has birth must have death» — lo que llama Tao de desprenderse del nacimiento y la muerte, con su mecanismo: la energía de las cinco fuerzas temporales se alborota en el cuerpo y se vuelve los cinco ladrones, que son alegría, ira, tristeza, dicha y ansia

«Perfected human beings transform the temporal and restore the primal . They rest their bodies in open space, store their spirits in silent tranquillity . Uninvolved with the energy of the five forces, they are unmoved by myriad things. They have no smoke, no fire, like dead wood or cold ashes; they have no form, no shape, like the sky or a valley . Heaven and earth cannot constrain them, Creation cannot rule them» — y lo que atribuye a los seres perfeccionados: descansan el cuerpo en el espacio abierto y guardan el espíritu en la quietud silenciosa, sin humo ni fuego, sin forma ni figura, fuera del alcance del cielo y de la tierra

«This is called taking over yin and yang, controlling the working of energy . You master your own life, and are not mastered by heaven. This is because heaven and earth can employ what has a body , but cannot employ the bodiless; heaven and earth can employ what has energy, but cannot employ what has no energy; heaven and earth can employ what has mind , but cannot employ the mindless» — y el argumento con que lo sostiene: el cielo y la tierra pueden emplear lo que tiene cuerpo, energía y mente, pero no lo que carece de ellos

«When a person shouts in an empty valley, there is a reverberation of sound . In folklore this is called the valley spirit. Because it has a voice but no form, it is called the spirit of the valley» — Un valle vacío que transmite una voz: el eco, que el folclor llama espíritu del valle porque tiene voz y no tiene forma

«People of the world are full of personal desires that block up the spiritual opening, polluting it in a hundred ways-how can they have a valley? Since they do not have the valley , they are confused and troubled, like drunkards or dreamers; their spiritual energy wanes away, so how can they have the spirit? Once they have lost the spirit, even though alive they are as if dead» — y el reverso: los deseos personales tapan la abertura espiritual, de modo que no hay valle, y perdido el espíritu se vive como muerto

«If you can sweep away all entanglements and wash away accumulated obsessions, so as to be clean and naked, bare and free, with nothing at all , then in that empty valley there will naturally be something indefinable with essential vitality, a nonpsychological spirit that is responsive, effective, and wise. Let go, it fills the universe; wrapped up, it is stored in secrecy. Thereby one can be a peer of heaven above and earth below» — y lo que promete a quien barre los enredos: en ese valle vacío aparece algo indefinible con vitalidad esencial, un espíritu no psicológico que soltado llena el universo y recogido se guarda en secreto

«The medicinal ingredients are the two energies, yin and yang. The firing process is the practical course of cultivation. Correct balance, not being one-sided, is like a scale; order in advance and withdrawal is like a ruler» — Balanza y regla: lo que llama Tao de operar el proceso de fuego de los ingredientes medicinales, con su clave de lectura, los dos ingredientes son yin y yang y el proceso de fuego es el curso práctico del cultivo

«When you cull yin and yang energies according to the rule of correct balance, they match each other in gravity, neither too much nor too little-then the medicinal substances are sufficient. When you operate the firing process of practical cultivation according to the law of order in advance and withdrawal, the length of time is measured, there is advance and there is withdrawal, the work is accomplished in one attempt-then the firing process is successful» — y el criterio de las dos medidas: pesados los ingredientes por el equilibrio correcto y ordenado el fuego por el avance y la retirada, la obra se cumple de un intento

«To know when to hurry and when to relax, to distinguish what bodes well from what bodes ill, is a matter of expert judgment. To understand when to go forward and when to retreat is impossible for the ignorant. The medicinal ingredients and the firing process are not easy to know» — y la reserva con que cierra esa contemplación: distinguir el apuro de la calma es cosa de juicio experto, y los ingredientes y el proceso de fuego no son fáciles de saber

«To cross a river you need a raft; once the river has been crossed, the raft can be left behind . To catch fish you need a net; once the fish are caught, the net may be put away» — Balsa y red: cruzado el río se deja la balsa, pescados los peces se guarda la red

«Techniques are methods, methods of cultivating reality. Once yang has peaked in people, giving rise to yin, every day a hole is punctured in their completeness-the six senses rebel, the five forces damage each other, the three parasites make trouble within, the seven feelings run amok outside. This cuts away at the spiritual root day by day , until it is nearly gone» — lo que llama Tao de usar técnicas para extender la vida, con su diagnóstico: culminado el yang y surgido el yin, los seis sentidos se rebelan, las cinco fuerzas se dañan, los tres parásitos y los siete sentimientos hacen estrago

«Unless you have the great method of overcoming the dragon and conquering the tiger, the expert skill to tum the dipper handle, how can you destroy aberrant energy, how can you restore sane energy to wholeness? This is why the method ts necessary» — y la razón que da para el método: sin el gran método de vencer al dragón y someter al tigre y la destreza de dar vuelta al mango del carro no hay cómo destruir la energía aberrante

«The great Tao is natural and spontaneous, without artifice-why is it necessary to use a method of deliberate action? The reason it is indeed necessary to use the method is to get rid of degeneracy . When all degenerations are effectively done away with, then the method is not needed , just as a raft needed to cross a river is to be left behind once the river is crossed, and a net needed to catch fish is to be put away once the fish have been caught» — y la objeción que Liu Yiming se plantea a sí mismo en esa misma contemplación: si el gran Tao es espontáneo y sin artificio, para qué un método de acción deliberada; responde que el método sirve para quitar la degeneración y se abandona cuando ya no hace falta

«At the end of autumn, insects go into hibernation . In the spring, they return to life. Their rebirth is based on their hibernation» — Insectos que hibernan y vuelven a la vida: renacen en primavera y el renacimiento se funda en la hibernación

«The reason people do not attain lasting life is that they are unable to die first. To die means to make the human mentality die, to live means to make the mind of Tao live» — lo que llama Tao de hallar la vida en medio de la muerte, con su formulación más apretada: no se alcanza vida duradera por no saber morir primero, y morir es hacer morir la mentalidad humana

«If you want to give life to the mind of Tao, you must first cause the human mentality to die. When the human mentality dies, the whole gang of pillagers dies of itself like a snake without a head . When it has been destroyed to the point where there is nothing more to destroy, the mind of Tao gradually comes to life and sane energy gradually returns» — y la operación: muerta la mentalidad humana, la cuadrilla de saqueadores muere sola como serpiente sin cabeza, y la mente del Tao vuelve poco a poco

«This is what is meant by the saying that when the darkness has lasted a long time the light is bright. Returning to life from death is like insects returning to life after hibernating» — y el dicho con que la remata: cuando la oscuridad ha durado mucho, la luz es brillante

«The spiritual embryo is the embryo of sages, the original basis of our lives . When the original basis is restored, the spiritual embryo forms. This is like when an oyster has a pearl or a hen has an egg, but they are not yet completed and have not been produced» — lo que llama Tao de incubar el embrión espiritual: el embrión espiritual es el de los sabios y la base original de la vida, y restaurada esa base el embrión se forma

«At this time there is no room for forced effort. One should just keep the attention focused single -mindedly , not letting the water evaporate, not letting the fire get cold. Guarding against danger, wary of peril , incubate the embryo so that it develops from tenderness to firmness, from faintness to clarity» — y el régimen de la incubación: nada de esfuerzo forzado, sino atención fija sin dejar que el agua se evapore ni que el fuego se enfríe

«Naturally there will be a tiny pearl , which bursts forth from the furnace of Creation. Pervading the heavens, penetrating the earth, up and down and across, forwards and backwards, it cannot be obstructed by anything, being one with space» — y su término: una perla diminuta que estalla del horno de la Creación y que nada puede obstruir, una con el espacio

«A phoenix appears but rarely, so it is considered an auspicious omen . Peacocks are always showing off their feathers, so they are taken captive» — El fénix y el pavorreal: el fénix aparece rara vez y se tiene por presagio propicio, el pavorreal se pavonea siempre y por eso lo cautivan

«Those who bring misfortune on themselves are those who use their brilliance outwardly . Those who bring on good fortune are those who use their brilliance inwardly. Outward application means accepting the artificial and losing the real, wearing out the vitality and using up the spirit, walking into the road of death. Inward application means getting rid of falsehood and maintaining truthfulness, building up the vitality and nurturing the spirit, returning to the doorway of life» — lo que llama Tao del ocultamiento y la revelación: quien usa el brillo hacia fuera acepta lo artificial y anda el camino de la muerte, quien lo usa hacia dentro vuelve a la puerta de la vida

«Good and bad fortune, life and death, are directly connected to the internal or external use of awareness. Therefore enlightened people cut off externals to govern the internal , while petty people strive for externals and thereby lose the internal» — y el reparto que hace: la gente iluminada corta lo externo para gobernar lo interno y la mezquina se afana por lo externo y pierde lo interno

«\Vhatevcr has a body assumes form and so must disintegrate. Whatever has energy is born and so must die» — Tener cuerpo, tener energía: lo que tiene cuerpo toma forma y por eso se desintegra, y lo que tiene energía nace y por eso muere; la capa de texto corrompe la primera palabra, que el impreso da como *Whatever*

«\-Vhen an oyster forms a pearl and a hen hatches an egg, in both cases it happens because spirit and energy are not scattered» — La perla de la ostra, el huevo de la gallina: las dos cosas ocurren porque el espíritu y la energía no se dispersan; la capa de texto corrompe la primera palabra, que el impreso da como *When*

«At midday, the sun begins to set; once the moon is full, it begins to wane. This cycle of yin and yang, filling and» — Mediodía y luna llena: al mediodía el sol empieza a ponerse y llena la luna empieza a menguar; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente, donde llama a ese ciclo patrón establecido e inmutable

«Before the original basis has been restored, you use intensive effort to summon it, causing it to grow and develop. Then when the original basis has been restored to completeness, it is like the sun at midday , like the full moon-yang energy is complete» — lo que llama Tao de los procesos civil y marcial en el cultivo de la realidad: antes de restaurar la base original se la convoca con esfuerzo intensivo, y restaurada es como el sol a mediodía y la luna llena

«At this point, you should receive the yang energy with yin, immediately employing the path of flexibility to incubate it, getting rid of hard hot energy and preventing danger. Concealing illumination, nurturing it in secret, with undistracted unified attention , seal it tightly and store it away» — y la fase siguiente: recibir la energía yang con yin, incubarla por la vía de la flexibilidad, ocultar la iluminación y sellarla

«This is called the strong, healthy , unadulterated vitality . The spiritual embryo is completely formed, and there is a separate heaven and earth that is not of the human world. This is the primal within the primal . Go on to do advanced work, building up this vitality bit by bit, at first faint, eventually becoming evident, and this becomes the unknowable sanctity that is called spirit» — y su término, la vitalidad fuerte y sin mezcla: formado el embrión espiritual hay un cielo y una tierra aparte que no son del mundo humano, y de lo primordial dentro de lo primordial sale lo que llama espíritu

«When a sleeper dreams, he sees things that make him joyful, angry , sad , and happy-scenes of wealth, nobility, fame, and gain . The dreamer takes these to be real , and does not know he is dreaming them» — El soñar del durmiente: ve riqueza, nobleza, fama y ganancia, las toma por reales y no sabe que las sueña

«This is because the root of the trouble has not yet been thoroughly extracted . How can we test this? We can test it in dreams. If, when people are dreaming, the energies of alcohol, sexuality, and possessions cannot influence them, and emotions and desires cannot cling to them, if they are imperturbable and unshakable, pure and clear, perfectly lucid, not confused by anything artificial, only then are they seeing reality» — lo que llama Tao de la hondura del poder práctico en el cultivo, con la prueba que propone: el sueño, donde se ve si el alcohol, la sexualidad y las posesiones todavía influyen

«Therefore it is said that perfected people have no dreams. In those who have no dreams, the power of practice has reached its consummation. In those who have dreams, the power of practice is not yet consummate. If you have dreams, yet while in the midst of the dreams you know they are dreams, this means the power of practice has advanced . If you have dreams and while dreaming are unaware that they are dreams, this means the power of practice is nil» — y la escala que deriva de esa prueba: quien no sueña tiene consumado el poder de la práctica, quien sueña sabiendo que sueña ha avanzado, y quien sueña sin saberlo no lo tiene

«If you can actually reach the consummation of the power of practice, so that you have no dreams at all, then Creation is in your hands. Even though you sleep, it is like being awake. Even though dead , you are still alive. This is because what» — y lo que promete a quien la consuma: dormido es como estar despierto y muerto sigue vivo; la explicación sigue en la plana siguiente

«dies is the material body , whil e what lives is the spiritual body . \Vhat sleeps is the eyes and cars, what is wakeful is the original spirit» — y el cabo de esa explicación en la plana siguiente: lo que muere es el cuerpo material y lo que vive el cuerpo espiritual, lo que duerme son los ojos y los oídos y lo que vela el espíritu original

«Whoever would engage in commerce must first raise capital, and then must know how to use it. Only if one has capital and knows how to use it can one make a profit. If one has capital but does not know how to use it, or if one knows how to operate but lacks capital , one cannot do business» — Comercio: sin capital no hay negocio y sin saber usarlo tampoco, de donde saca lo que llama Tao de la doble función del método y la riqueza

«People who cultivate reality build up virtues and carry out undertakings, accumulate vitality and nurture spirit, remain consistently firm and stable, growing stronger the longer they persevere, never changing all their lives, working with a sincere heart. This is like accumulating wealth» — y la mitad de la equivalencia que corresponde a la riqueza: acumular virtudes, vitalidad y espíritu con firmeza sostenida es acumular capital

«Seeking personal instruction from a guide to know the beginning and the end, understand when to proceed and when to withdraw, recognize when to hurry and when to relax, understand what bodes well and what bodes ill, and know when to stop at sufficiency . Proceeding in an orderly manner, finding the real medicinal ingredient, not deviating from the firing process, is having method» — y la mitad del método: pedir instrucción personal a un guía para conocer el principio y el fin, hallar el ingrediente medicinal verdadero y no desviarse del proceso de fuego

«Therefore true aspirants to reality first seek in themselves and then seek from others, so that they will have both method and wealth complete. Only then will they avoid going wrong» — y el orden que fija para las dos: buscar primero en uno mismo y después en otros, para tener completos método y riqueza

«The nature of the monkey is wild and uncertain, but if you leash it, it will follow human direction, unable to do whatever it wants. The nature of the horse is stubborn and intractable, but with a bridle and headstall on, it will follow human direction, unable to gallop off» — El mono salvaje, el caballo terco: el mono atado sigue la dirección humana y el caballo embridado no se desboca

«The stubborn mind of humans comes and goes irregularly, its home unknown, like the wildness of a monkey, without a moment's peace and quiet. The wandering intentions of humans arise and disappear inconsistently, suddenly here, suddenly there, like the stubbornness of a horse, never at rest for a moment. The two of these are in cahoots, increasing human desires and obscuring their celestial reality. Because of this, essence and life are gradually destroyed, so the trouble they cause is most intense and the harm they cause is most great. So the first priority for practitioners is to rectify the mind and make the intent sincere» — lo que llama Tao de rectificar la mente y hacer sincera la intención: la mente terca va y viene como la salvajez del mono y la intención errante surge y desaparece como la terquedad del caballo

«Genuine effort involves being careful of yourself, wary of what is unseen and unheard , consciously aware at all times, examining yourself again and again, not letting the stubborn mind or its arbitrary intentions stir at all , even in secret» — y en qué consiste el esfuerzo genuino que esa contemplación pide: cuidarse, recelar de lo no visto ni oído, examinarse una y otra vez y no dejar que la mente terca se agite ni en secreto

«Since ancient times the immortal real people have likened the mind to a monkey and the intent to a horse, because they truly saw that when the mind and intent are wild and foolish this is a tremendous obstacle on the Way , and they did not allow a moment's looseness» — y el linaje que invoca para la imagen: desde antiguo los reales inmortales comparan la mente con un mono y la intención con un caballo

«n the world, when a man and a woman mate they produce children, who eventually produce grandchildren, continuing from generation to generation . If there is a man without a woman , or a woman without a 1nan , then solitary yin docs not give birth , isolated yang does not promote • growth-the productive n1echanis1n stops» — Macho y hembra que se reproducen: de la unión salen hijos y nietos en cadena, y sin la otra parte ni el yin solitario da a luz ni el yang aislado promueve crecimiento; la capa de texto espacia la inicial y corrompe la última palabra

«When people are first born, yin and yang arc harmoniously combined and the spiritual embryo is perfectly complete. Then when they get involved in acquired temporal conditioning, yin and yang separate, and the spiritual embryo is damaged» — lo que llama Tao de producir inmortales y budas: al nacer, yin y yang están combinados y el embrión espiritual completo, y el condicionamiento temporal los separa

«People of superior quality have a basic foundation that is deep and thick; if they meet adepts early on , before yin and yang separate, then they practice the Tao of nondoing and climb directly up onto the shore of the Tao, immediately equaling the sages in rank» — y la primera de las dos vías que reparte por capacidad: los de calidad superior, si encuentran adeptos antes de que yin y yang se separen, practican el Tao del no obrar y suben derecho

«As for middling and lesser people, when their primal energy is full, the energy of acquired conditioning acts up; true yang and true yin are separated and do not interact. Thus the living potential fades away, nearly to extinction. If they do not first practice the Tao of doing in order to harmoniously combine yin and yang, how can they restore the spiritual embryo» — y la segunda: los medianos y menores tienen que practicar primero el Tao del obrar para combinar yin y yang y restaurar el embrión

«However, true yang has wandered outside, and resides in the house of another; it has gotten lost and does not come back. It is necessary to make intense efforts to get it back. Do not be intimidated by the fact that the road is long-seek carefully, search slowly, and someday you will see its face. Then you can call it back to your own house and mate it with true yin» — y la figura con que describe esa recuperación: el yang verdadero anda fuera, en casa ajena, y hay que buscarlo despacio hasta verle la cara y llamarlo de vuelta a la casa propia

«Then when husband and wife are reunited, their intimacy is extraordinary. Naturally there is a point of living potential that comes from nothingness to congeal into an embryo. Incubate this for ten months, and you will have a body outside your body . Go on to do the work of suckling it for three years, and it will become a form when it clusters and an energy when it diffuses . Disappearing and appearing unfathomably , it becomes an adamantine indestructible body» — y la gestación que sigue: incubar diez meses da un cuerpo fuera del cuerpo, y amamantarlo tres años lo hace forma al agruparse y energía al difundirse

«This Tao is no different from the way men and women reproduce human beings. It is just that ordinary fathers and mothers produce the material body, while the spiritual father and mother produce the real body. One is ordinary, one is holy-reproduction of humans and reproduction of immortals are as far apart as sky and earth» — y la distinción con que cierra: padres ordinarios producen el cuerpo material y el padre y la madre espirituales el cuerpo real, y las dos reproducciones distan como el cielo y la tierra

«The blind of the world who use the reversal of man and woman to practice the false art of gathering sexual energy can only form the seeds of hell thereby-how can they form the spiritual embryo» — y el uso que rechaza en la misma contemplación: quienes toman esa inversión por el arte de recoger energía sexual solo forman semillas del infierno

«When the doors are open, the air passes through. When the shutters are open, the light shines in. If the doors are closed, there is no circulation between the inside and outside. If the shutters are closed , the energy of the light is kept outside» — Abrir puertas y postigos: abiertas las puertas pasa el aire y abiertos los postigos entra la luz, y cerradas quedan fuera las dos

«People in the world today who practice Taoism go into the twisted byways of sidetracks, some closing their eyes and gazing into emptiness, some staying inactive in isolated and quiet places, some deliberately sitting and thinking of the spirit» — lo que llama Tao del gran uso del gran potencial, y el reproche que abre: los taoístas de hoy se meten por atajos torcidos, unos mirando al vacío con los ojos cerrados, otros inactivos en sitios apartados

«They think they have the 'lao, but they have not realized that the lao is the lao of creative evolution of yin and yang of heaven and earth. This 'lao, this \Vay , fans out everywhere in the universe, but this does not multiply it; it is concentrated in one energy , but this does not make it less» — y lo que les opone: el Tao es el de la evolución creadora del yin y el yang del cielo y la tierra, que se despliega por el universo sin multiplicarse y se concentra en una energía sin menguar

«The Real Human Sanfeng said, "Going along makes you» — Liu Yiming cita por su nombre al Real Human Sanfeng en Macho y hembra que se reproducen; el troceo corta aquí porque reemite el marcador de plana a mitad de la 66, y la sentencia sigue en la línea siguiente

«mortal, going in reverse makes you immortal . It is all a matter of the reversal in between» — y el cabo de esa sentencia de Sanfeng: *ir con la corriente hace mortal, ir en reversa hace inmortal, y todo está en la inversión de en medio*

«All beings in the universe, animate and inanimate, the myriads of different beings, all live and develop on the basis of this. Everything and everyone has it. It is just that while people are in the midst of the Tao they are not conscious of the Tao, as while fish are in water they are not conscious of the water» — Abrir puertas y postigos: todos los seres viven sobre ese Tao y todos lo tienen, y estando en medio de él no lo advierten, como los peces en el agua

«If you want to practice this Way, you must do it in the creative evolution of yin and yang of heaven and earth, realize its experience in the midst of all things and all events, and practice and hold it in the presence of all people» — y dónde dice que hay que practicarlo: en la evolución creadora del yin y el yang, en medio de todas las cosas y sucesos y ante toda la gente

«If you want to attain the Way by shutting the door and sitting quietly with a blank mind , that is like shutting the doors and shutter.s and hoping to see the sun. What "way" does that accomplish? It must be the way of dark rooms, I guess» — y la objeción con que remata contra el retiro mudo: pretenderlo con la puerta cerrada y la mente en blanco es cerrar puertas y postigos esperando ver el sol

«Understanding Reality says, "Practice, mixing in with the ordinary people and integrating your illumination. When it is time to be round, be round; when it is time to be square, be square. As you appear and disappear, now reversing, now going along, no one can fathom you, since you make people unable to know what you are doing» — Liu Yiming cita por su nombre el clásico Understanding Reality: practicar mezclado con la gente común e integrando la propia iluminación, redondo cuando toca ser redondo y cuadrado cuando toca ser cuadrado

«It also says, "You should know that the great recluses live in the cities and towns; why stay still and alone deep in the mountains» — y la segunda cita del mismo clásico, que Liu Yiming pone a continuación: los grandes ermitaños viven en las ciudades y los pueblos

«Only when you mix with the ordinary people, integrating illumination, living in the cities and towns, are you activating great use of great potential . This is the real function of practicing and holding the Great Way» — y la conclusión que saca de las dos: mezclarse con la gente común y vivir en las ciudades es lo que activa el gran uso del gran potencial

«Essence is inward , sense is outward . Let us say essence is yin, and is of the eastern house, and sense is yang, and is of the western house. When essence and sense are separated, yin and yang are blocked off from one another, like when the girl in the eastern house and the boy in the western house cannot meet face to face» — lo que llama Tao de juntar armoniosamente la esencia y el sentido, con su reparto: la esencia es yin y de la casa del este, el sentido es yang y de la casa del oeste

«The go-betweens are our true intent, our true will , also called true faith. Faithfulness can effect communication between other people and ourselves, faith can combine yin and yang. It is the first true treasure of those who cultivate the Way-from beginning to end, doing and not doing, culling medicine and working the fire, crystallizing the pill and freeing it from the matrix-the Way is not to be left for a moment» — y quién es el casamentero en esa lectura: la intención verdadera y la voluntad verdadera, también llamadas fe verdadera, primer tesoro de quien cultiva la Vía

«Understanding RealitD'V says, "If you have water and fire but not the two earths, even if you include the four forms you will not produce the pill . Only when both of you embrace the true earth will you get the gold pill to revert» — Liu Yiming vuelve a citar Understanding Reality, cuyo título sale corrompido de la capa de texto: con agua y fuego pero sin las dos tierras no se produce la píldora, aunque se incluyan las cuatro formas

«The two earths arc the celestial earth and the mundane» — y la glosa que Liu Yiming pone a esa cita: las dos tierras son la celeste y la mundana; el troceo corta en el cambio de plana y la frase sigue allí

«earth, true faith in the n1iddlc of true wil l . The faith of celestial earth is the external go-between , the faith of mundane earth is the inner go-between , like the married couple that serves as go-between in the marriage of a girl and boy» — y su continuación, ya en la plana siguiente: la fe de la tierra celeste es el casamentero externo y la de la tierra mundana el interno

«These two are the true go-between in our bodies . I f you know this go-between and use it to harmonize essence and sense, then essence and sense will be harmonized . Harmonize yin and yang, and yin and yang then meet; the two join to make one family , and the gold pill very subtly takes on the impression of form» — y lo que promete de esa armonización: juntos yin y yang en una familia, la píldora de oro toma sutilmente la impresión de la forma

«When you eat something, you should chew it carefully and slowly . When you sense the sourness, sweetness, bitterness, and pungency , then you know the flavor. When you know the flavor, you eat what tastes good and reject what tastes bad . Some things you take, some you reject, according to your own judgment» — Saborear lo que comes: masticar despacio hasta sentir lo ácido, lo dulce, lo amargo y lo picante es lo que permite escoger y rechazar por juicio propio

«The science of essence and life is the most recondite, most profound, most subtle of learning. If your knowledge of it is not real, your practice of it is not right. Not only is there no gain , there is even loss» — lo que llama Tao de investigar a fondo el principio para hallar lo verdadero: si el conocimiento de la ciencia de la esencia y la vida no es real, la práctica tampoco lo es, y no solo no hay ganancia sino pérdida

«Therefore it is imperative to study principle thoroughly first. When you have found out one part of the principle, you can do one part of the work; when you have found out ten parts of the principle, you can do ten parts of the work. Fulfilling your nature and arriving at your destiny is all a matter of determining the higher and the lower by thoroughly investigating principle» — y la proporción que enuncia: averiguada una parte del principio se puede hacer una parte del trabajo, y averiguadas diez, diez

«shallow to the deep, from the rough to the fine. When you are done with one level , then you enter another level , finishing with one after another, entering one after another, until there is no more to set aside and no more to enter into, and you see what is underneath it all , recognizing the original source. Only then have you realized the ultimate accomplishment. This is like tasting food before eating it» — la regla de esa investigación: de lo somero a lo hondo y de lo basto a lo fino, nivel tras nivel hasta reconocer la fuente original; la frase arranca en la plana anterior

«However, even if you have some spontaneous understanding, if it seems to be right but is really not, you will inevitably fumble, so it is still necessary to have the witness of someone of elevated awareness, to broaden your own perception, affirm what is correct, and reject what is wrong. Only then will you accomplish the task» — y el límite que le pone en la misma contemplación: aun con comprensión espontánea hace falta el testimonio de alguien de conciencia elevada, porque lo que parece correcto puede no serlo

«The Book of Changes says, "Investigate principle, fulfill essence, thus attain to life» — Liu Yiming cita el Libro de los Cambios por su nombre: investigar el principio, cumplir la esencia y así llegar a la vida

«Ignorant Taoists mistakenly consider essence to be in the heart and life in the genitals, or some say essence is in the top of the head and life is in the lower abdomen. Some concentrate on the genitals to cultivate life, some fix their minds to cultivate essence. Some keep their minds blank to cultivate essence, some practice culling to graft life . Some keep their attention on the forehead to nurture essence, some take pills and herbs to prolong life» — y el catálogo de localizaciones que rechaza en la misma contemplación: la esencia en el corazón y la vida en los genitales, o la esencia en la coronilla y la vida en el bajo vientre, con sus prácticas correspondientes

«These people are all deluding themselves, and will eventually perish . People like this do not even know essence and life, yet vainly imagine perfecting essence and life. Is this not foolish» — y su juicio sobre quienes las siguen: se engañan a sí mismos e imaginan en vano perfeccionar una esencia y una vida que ni siquiera conocen

«When you climb a mountain, you put forth effort with every step, not resting until you reach the summit . When you cross a river you take care with every step, not relaxing your attention until you reach the other shore. Even if you have climbed a mountain nearly to the summit, if you leave off that last step to rest your feet, you are still on the way, not yet there. Even if you have crossed a river nearly to the other shore, if you take a single careless step, there is still danger» — Subir un monte, cruzar un río: dejar el último paso para descansar deja a uno todavía en camino, y un solo paso descuidado al cruzar deja el peligro en pie

«The Great Way is hard to know, so you are lucky if you come across it and know about it, and your efforts should be to really put it into practice, to actually tread the Way to its completion, thereby to repay your debt to whoever taught you about it» — lo que llama Tao del esfuerzo físico para llevar a cabo la Vía, con la obligación que le anexa: andarla hasta el final para pagar la deuda con quien la enseñó

«No laziness can be admitted here, because the science of essence and life is the most important thing in the world, and it is also the most difficult thing in the world . It requires a stable mind and a firm will, "taking a stand without changing," "working by day and wary by night," getting stronger with perseverance. Only after that can you accomplish it» — y las dos fórmulas que entrecomilla dentro de esa exigencia: tomar posición sin cambiar, y trabajar de día y velar de noche

«Do not let a little bewilderment make you change your mind, do not let a little experience of its effect induce you to relax your work. Do not let a little material hardship divide your mind, do not be discouraged that your strength is insufficient. Do not have false imaginings about attainment of the Great Way, do not fear that the road is long. Keep going with steadfast determination, keeping your attention on the» — y la serie de advertencias con que la desarrolla: ni un poco de desconcierto, ni un poco de efecto, ni la penuria material, ni el temor al camino largo; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente

«Just think-ever since you were born, your whole inner and outer being has been a coil of mundanity. Though you have a bit of celestial energy, it is concealed and invisible. If you do not establish a sense of purpose so firm that life and death cannot change it, and use the great strength of an indestructible man of iron, how can you transform the mundane back into the celestial , climb a mountain ten miles high, and get out of the immeasurable ocean of suffering» — y el cierre de esa contemplación: el ser entero es un ovillo de mundanidad con la energía celeste escondida, y sin un propósito que ni la vida ni la muerte cambien no hay cómo salir del océano del sufrimiento

«Moths fly into lamps, throwing themselves into fire and dying. Worms seeking warmth bring on their own death by exposure. Both of these creatures destroy their lives by their liking for light» — Polillas y gusanos: las polillas se echan al fuego y los gusanos que buscan calor mueren de exposición, y las dos criaturas se destruyen por su gusto por la luz

«Worldly people follow what they desire-they compete for fame, grab for profit, indulge in drink and lust. They take artificialities for reality , take irritants for pleasure. Day and night they struggle uncertainly , anxious and worried all the time, wearing out their vitality and spirit. They are not willing to stop until the day they die» — lo que llama Tao de ir hacia la buena fortuna y evitar la mala, con el retrato que le pone: la gente del mundo compite por fama y ganancia, toma lo artificial por realidad y no se detiene hasta el día que muere

«If you know in yourself the value of life, see through emotional entanglements and sensual cages, leap out of the net of fame and profit, be like a complete simpleton , learn to be a flexible, yielding ignoran1us . Do not contend for what others contend for, do not love what others love. In all situations, lower yourself and honor others. In all affairs, do not be impulsive or forward» — la salida que Polillas y gusanos propone: ver a través de los enredos y las jaulas de los sentidos, ser como un simplón cabal, no contender por lo que otros contienden ni amar lo que otros aman

«Be like a fish submerged in the depths, like a turtle in the mud . Then criticism and praise do not reach you , calamity and fortune do not affect you . You live spontaneously without seeking life, you avoid death by not bringing on death» — y la figura con que la cierra: como pez hundido en lo hondo y tortuga en el lodo, se vive sin buscar la vida y se evita la muerte por no acarrearla

«Silkworms originally spin their thread for protection, not knowing that people will kill them for the thread . Bees originally produce honey for nourishment, not knowing people will take their l ives for the honey . Both creatures want to enhance their l ives , but in the process hasten their deaths» — El hilo del gusano de seda, la miel de la abeja: los dos producen lo suyo para protegerse o nutrirse y por eso los matan, queriendo realzar su vida y apresurando su muerte

«People all fear death and therefore seek to live. Since they seek to live, they have to do something about food and clothing. They spend their days laboring mentally and physi» — lo que llama Tao de la interdependencia del beneficio y el daño: por temer la muerte se busca vivir, y por buscar vivir hay que ocuparse del comer y el vestir; la palabra se parte a fin de plana

«How do we know it is so? The more serious people are about making a living, the less serious they are about preserving the body . They work day and night, resulting in unknown damage to their vitality and spirit, deterioration in their energy and circulation. They have already entered the road to death» — y la proporción inversa que enuncia: cuanto más en serio se toma uno el ganarse la vida, menos en serio se toma el conservar el cuerpo

«People of great wisdom have a different way of preserving life. They do not keep their minds on food and clothing, they do not focus their attention on material gains. They give up worldly wealth to accumulate spiritual wealth, they slight the material body to nourish the real body. Nothing can move them, so what can profit or harm them» — y la conducta opuesta que atribuye a la gente de gran sabiduría: dejan la riqueza mundana para acumular riqueza espiritual y desatienden el cuerpo material para nutrir el cuerpo real

«What is called seed here is the primal , real , unified energy . When this energy flows the usual way , it produces ordinary people; when it flows in reverse, it produces immortals. Therefore the alchemical classics and writings of the masters all regard this energy as the seed of reality of enlight» — lo que llama Tao de tomar prestada semilla en el cultivo de la realidad, con la identificación de la semilla: la energía primordial, real y unificada, que fluyendo del modo usual produce gente común y fluyendo en reversa produce inmortales; la palabra se parte a fin de renglón

«This energy is inherent in all people, complete in everyone. But because it becomes mixed with acquired conditioning, negative energy develops and positive energy wanes, so that the true seed is buried, no longer visible at all» — y lo que le ocurre a esa energía: está en todos y completa, pero mezclada con el condicionamiento adquirido queda sepultada y ya no se ve

«Borrowing seed means one seeks from others. What belongs to others is not to be taken outright with empty hands, it must be sought courteously. With humility you gain the pleasure of others, and only then can you borrow the seed of reality» — y el modo de pedirla que la contemplación prescribe: lo ajeno no se toma con las manos vacías sino que se pide con cortesía, y con humildad se gana el agrado de otros

«Cultivating reality without the seed of reality is like cooking an empty pot. It will never produce any real results» — y la imagen con que cierra: cultivar la realidad sin la semilla de la realidad es cocinar en una olla vacía

«When turtles hide in the mud, they come to no harm. When they emerge from the mud, people catch them» — Tortugas escondidas, peces al acecho: la tortuga en el lodo no sufre daño y al salir la atrapan; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente con los peces

«The reason that people ordinarily cannot enhance life, and tend to hasten to their doom, is that they cannot hide their light and nurture it in darkness--confident of their intelligence, they use their talent and wit too much» — lo que llama Tao de dañar la vida y de realzarla, con su causa: no saber esconder la propia luz y nutrirla en lo oscuro, por confianza en la inteligencia

«This is why adept humans do not give rise to thoughts from within and do not take in things from without. They appear to lack what they do in fact have; though fulfilled , they appear empty. They appear to be simpletons; they have understanding that they do not employ , they have illumination that they do not allow to shine» — y la conducta contraria que atribuye a los adeptos: parecen carecer de lo que tienen, tienen entendimiento que no emplean e iluminación que no dejan brillar

«When you meet such people, you cannot tell where they are going; when you follow such people, you cannot tell where they have been. Even Creation cannot constrain them, so what harm can befall them? They are like turtles gone into the mud where people cannot catch them, like fish lurking in the depths where birds cannot kill them» — y el rasgo con que los cierra: al encontrarlos no se sabe adónde van ni al seguirlos de dónde vienen, y ni la Creación los constriñe

«When its oil runs out , a lamp goes out. If you regularly add oil before it runs out, then the lamp can continue burning» — Cuando se acaban el aceite y el carbón: la lámpara se apaga al acabarse el aceite y sigue ardiendo si se le añade antes de que se acabe; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente con el carbón

«Heaven and earth have the virtue of love for life. They only want people to live long, they do not want people to hasten death . What happens, however, is that people bring death on themselves and attribute that to fate. This is foolish» — lo que llama Tao de acicalar la vida para añadir al destino: el cielo y la tierra tienen la virtud del amor a la vida y solo quieren que se viva largo, y es la gente la que se acarrea la muerte y se la carga al hado

«Observe how myriad beings are born in spring, grow in summer, mature in autumn, then go dormant in winter, only to be born again in spring and grow again in summer. Those who live on undying are those who follow the natural order of the four seasons, and do not do anything extra. This is why they can live on» — y el ejemplo de los seres: viven sin morir los que siguen el orden natural de las cuatro estaciones y no hacen nada de más

«Only humans have the same energy of yin and yang and the five forces but cannot follow it naturally . They cultivate unnecessary habits, take pain for pleasure, take poison for medicine. Greedily and gladly following their desires, they chop away at the root of life. Eventually their vitality and spirit wear out, their real consciousness fades away, just as a lamp goes out when the oil is gone, and a fire goes out when the charocal is used up. They will only come to the brink of extinction» — y la excepción humana: con la misma energía y las mismas cinco fuerzas, el humano no la sigue, cultiva hábitos innecesarios y toma el dolor por placer y el veneno por medicina; la capa de texto imprime *charocal*

«If people are really beyond the world, they consider essence and life important. They protect their vitality and spirit as one would protect gold and jade. They take care of the true consciousness as one would take care of rare gems. They do not set foot in a pit of fire, they do not show up in the arena of right and wrong» — y la conducta opuesta: proteger la vitalidad y el espíritu como se protege el oro y el jade, sin poner pie en un pozo de fuego ni aparecer en la arena de lo justo y lo injusto

«This is what is meant by the saying that enlightened people work on the fundamental; when the fundamental is established , the way comes into being. This is like adding oil to keep a lamp from going out, like adding charcoal to keep a fire burning. Those without life can have life, the unborn can live forever. Is the question of whether to live or die to be left up to heaven alone» — y el dicho con que la remata, seguido de una pregunta: la gente iluminada obra sobre lo fundamental, y si dejar la vida o la muerte al cielo solo es cosa que Liu Yiming deja planteada

«The stem of the lotus is hollow, so on emerging from the mud it is extraordinarily clean . The flower of the chrysanthemum is late, so on meeting the autumn frost it is extraordinarily fresh. When the inside is hollow, then outside things cannot leave their mark; when the flower is late, the energy is full and resistant to cold» — El loto en el lodo, el crisantemo en la escarcha: el tallo hueco del loto sale limpio del lodo y la flor tardía del crisantemo llega fresca a la helada

«The reason Creation can constrain us, the reason things can influence us, the reason calamity can harm us, is not that Creation can actually constrain us, or that things can actually influence us, or that calamity can actually harm us-it is all because we get emotional about what we experience. Encounters with things arouse our minds, like wind rousing waves in whatever direction it blows. If we know how to go ahead but not how to stay behind , if we know how to be forceful but not hov ... to be yielding, we constrain ourselves, influence ourselves, and harm ourselves» — lo que llama Tao de cultivar lo interior y ser inmune a lo externo, con la tesis que lo sostiene: ni la Creación ni las cosas ni la calamidad nos constriñen de veras, sino que nos emocionamos con lo que vivimos

«If a lamp has no cover a draft will put it out, but if the lamp is enclosed in a cover, it will not go out even if there is a gust of breeze. If a brazier has no screen it will get dusty, but if the brazier is screened it will not be fouled even by flying dust» — La cubierta de la lámpara y la pantalla del brasero: cubierta la lámpara no la apaga la ráfaga, y con pantalla el brasero no se ensucia con el polvo

«Our conscious awareness is like a lamp or a brazier, awareness of reality is like a lamp glass or a brazier screen. If conscious awareness is not covered and protected by awareness of reality, the discriminating spirit will use consciousness to produce illusions, so it will be influenced by objects. Then the artificial will be in charge, the real will withdraw; aberrant energy will cover up sane energy. Like a lamp being extinguished , like a brazier being fouled, we lose our original selves» — lo que llama Tao de resguardar el fundamento de la conciencia: la conciencia es la lámpara o el brasero y la conciencia de la realidad es el vidrio o la pantalla, y sin esa cobertura el espíritu discriminador produce ilusiones

«If conscious awareness is mated with awareness of reality , and awareness of reality i s used to control conscious awareness while conscious awareness is used to follow awareness of reality, then the discriminating spirit has no way to emerge, the energy of consciousness has no way to fly» — y el remedio: apareadas las dos, con la conciencia de la realidad rigiendo a la conciencia y esta siguiendo a aquella, el espíritu discriminador no tiene por dónde salir

«\\'hat farmers consider most important is their seed . Those who have land and have seeds are all set, and do not need to seck to borrow from someone else. When it comes to poor families, however , they n1ay have land but lack seed» — Tomar prestada semilla de otro: lo que más importa al labrador es la semilla, y quien tiene tierra y semilla no necesita pedir prestado, pero las familias pobres tienen tierra y les falta semilla; la capa de texto corrompe la primera palabra, que el impreso da como *What*

«If you are actually able to hold back your talent and wit, being skillful but appearing clumsy , being wise but appearing ignorant, acting unobtrusively , first to yield flexibly, then calamity and fortune cannot reach you , criticism and praise cannot affect you» — y la conducta que El loto en el lodo propone: retener el talento y el ingenio, ser hábil pareciendo torpe y sabio pareciendo ignorante, con lo que la calamidad, la fortuna, la crítica y el elogio no alcanzan; la comparación con el crisantemo se corta en el cambio de plana

«If you are actually able to be such that nothing occurs to you and not a single thought arises, always clear and calm» — y la primera mitad de esa misma conducta en El loto en el lodo: que nada le ocurra a uno y ni un solo pensamiento surja, siempre claro y calmo; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente, donde queda como loto salido del agua sin mancharse

«Things that are round roll, things that are square remain still . The round cannot remain stationary, the square cannot roll around஖ach has its own nature» — Redondez y cuadratura: lo redondo rueda y lo cuadrado se está quieto, y ninguno hace lo del otro porque cada uno tiene su naturaleza; la capa de texto empasta la raya con la palabra siguiente

«When you can be round and can be square, following the rules of the compass and square, then you do not fall into stagnant fixation or random suggestibility . Outwardly you are lively and active, inwardly you are calm and sure» — y el resultado de juntarlas: ni fijación estancada ni sugestibilidad al azar, vivo y activo por fuera y calmo y seguro por dentro

«Using things of the world to cultivate the Tao, using human events to complete the Way to l-leaven, you plant lotuses in a fire, ha ul a boat through muddy water, appearing and disappearing according to the time, active or passive as appropriate to the situation . Even the spirits of sky and earth cannot fathom you-how much less can your fellow human» — y dónde dice que se hace esa obra: con las cosas del mundo y los asuntos humanos, plantando lotos en el fuego y arrastrando una barca por agua lodosa; la palabra se parte a fin de plana

«Therefore practitioners of the Tao need to include both squareness and roundness, for only this is the true domain of great effective action» — y la exigencia con que cierra: el practicante necesita las dos, cuadratura y redondez, porque solo ahí está el dominio de la acción eficaz

«When a pot is broken, repair it and you can use it to cook as before. When a jar leaks, fix it and you can use it to hold water as before» — Una olla rota, una jarra que gotea: reparadas, la una vuelve a cocinar y la otra a guardar agua

«When people are first born, their three treasures-vitality, energy, and spirit-are a solid whole. Then when the cognitive consciousness opens up, these treasures leak out through the senses. They are infected by the germs of emotionalized action, playthings of parasites. Their sense experiences wear them down, their attraction to stimulation deludes their natures; greed, anger, folly, and attachment drain them of reality» — lo que llama Tao de rehacer lo arruinado: los tres tesoros, vitalidad, energía y espíritu, son al nacer un todo sólido, y abierta la conciencia cognitiva se fugan por los sentidos

«Chipped away by day and by night, the three treasures dwindle away; the whole body is sick, inwardly and outwardly spoiled. The original complete treasure has been made into a rotten, worthless object-just like a broken pot or a leaking jar, it is a useless vessel» — y el estado en que quedan: el tesoro completo de origen convertido en objeto podrido e inservible, como la olla rota o la jarra que gotea

«Increase what is to be increased, diminish what is to be diminished, until you reach the point where there is nothing more to increase and nothing more to diminish. Then you will naturally not leak vitality, so your vitality will be whole; you will not waste energy, so your energy will be whole; you will not belabor your spirit, so your spirit will be whole. What you have lost, you will regain; what was ruined will be recreated» — y la operación de la reparación: aumentar y disminuir hasta que no quede nada que aumentar ni que disminuir, con lo que no se fuga la vitalidad ni se malgasta la energía ni se fatiga el espíritu

«Nevertheless, people who are broken and leaking themselves are not aware of their misery. They take the false to be real, chopping away at their very lives day and night, breaking themselves down until the day when the pillars rot and the walls crumble, and they have nowhere to rest» — y el reproche con que remata: los rotos y goteantes no advierten su miseria y se talan la vida hasta el día en que se pudren los pilares y se caen los muros

«A fierce tiger will not harm an infant, a hungry hawk will not grab an infant. How can it be like this? Because the infant is mindless» — La ausencia de mente del infante: ni el tigre fiero lo daña ni el halcón hambriento lo agarra, porque el infante no tiene mente

«The reason people cannot attain the Way is always because they have minds. Having a mind means having an ego, which means seeing others as others and self as self» — lo que llama Tao de la función sutil de la no mente: no se alcanza la Vía porque se tiene mente, y tener mente es tener un yo que ve a los otros como otros

«This is why true seekers of the Way make haste to overthrow egoism and abandon selfish behavior. In their lives and response to the world , they regard themselves and others impartially , and regard all classes as equal . Dealing with things as they arise, true seekers respond to them but do not take them in; they pass by and do not linger. They handle all sorts of situations without minding» — y la conducta que le opone: derribar el egoísmo, mirarse a sí y a los demás con imparcialidad, responder a las cosas sin recogerlas y pasar de largo sin demorarse

«Not minding, they are egoless. Being egoless, they are inwardly pure. Being inwardly pure, they are flawlessly clear, wholly integrated with the design of nature» — y la cadena con que lo remata: sin mente no hay yo, sin yo hay pureza interior, y con ella una claridad sin falla integrada con el diseño de la naturaleza

«This is called mystic virtue. Mystic virtue is formless and traceless, unseen and unheardகnly thus do you share in the virtues of heaven and earth, the brilliance of sun and moon, the order of the four seasons, and the luck of the ghosts and spirits. Creation cannot constrain you, myriad things cannot harm you» — y el nombre que le da, virtud mística, sin forma ni rastro, con la que se comparten las virtudes del cielo y la tierra y el brillo del sol y la luna; la capa de texto empasta la raya con la palabra siguiente

«The first priority in cultivating reality is to refine the self and control the mind. When you refine yourself, selfish desires leave; when you control the mind, your will becomes firm» — lo que llama Tao de trabajar sobre la base del cultivo de la realidad: refinarse a sí mismo hace irse a los deseos egoístas y gobernar la mente hace firme la voluntad

«If the basis is not firm, and the will is not single-minded, you will go willy-nilly from one thing to the next, diligent in the beginning but lazy in the end, losing what you do over and over again, falling behind in your eagerness to get ahead, wasting your strength. This is like the foundation l isting, so that even if the house is still upright, it will eventually lean and tilt» — y su reverso: sin base firme y voluntad de un solo propósito se va de una cosa a otra, diligente al principio y flojo al final, como el cimiento que se ladea

«An alchemical workshop is needed for refining elixir, vessels are needed to hold the medicines . Without an alchemical workshop and vessels, there is no place to put the furnace and cauldron, no place to store the medicines . The alchemical workshop and vessels are essential to chemists» — El taller alquímico y los vasos: sin taller ni vasos no hay dónde poner el horno y el caldero ni dónde guardar las medicinas

«What is reality ? The real five forces are referred to as metal , wood, water, fire, and earth. The heart is associated with fire, whose virtue is courtesy . The kidneys and genitals are associated with water, whose virtue is intelligence. The lungs are associated with metal, whose virtue is justice. The liver is associated with wood , whose virtue is humaneness. The spleen is associated with earth, whose virtue is truthfulness» — y el reparto de las cinco fuerzas y sus virtudes por órgano: corazón y fuego con la cortesía, riñones y genitales con el agua y la inteligencia, pulmones y metal con la justicia, hígado y madera con la humanidad, bazo y tierra con la veracidad

«When the spirit hidden in the heart bursts out as delight, the vitality hidden in the genitals bursts out as sorrow, the mundane soul hidden in the lungs bursts out as anger, the heavenly soul hidden in the liver bursts out as joy, and the intent hidden in the spleen bursts out as desire, these are temporally acquired artificialities» — y el reparto paralelo de lo que sale de cada órgano: deleite del corazón, pena de los genitales, ira del alma mundana en los pulmones, alegría del alma celeste en el hígado y deseo de la intención en el bazo, todo ello artificialidad adquirida en el tiempo

«The question of how long a house will last is all a matter of the first part to be built, the foundation. If the foundation and ground are firm and solid, the house will be stable and» — Poner cimiento y levantar casa: lo que decide cuánto dura una casa es lo primero que se construye, el cimiento; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente

«the organs in the body are like vessels . The physical body has a real body hidden in it, the organs have five forces hidden in them. Cultivating reality does not mean cu ltivating the physical body and its organs; it means cultivating the real bodv and refining the five forces. It is simply a matter of borrowing this artificial body and its organs to cultivate the forces of the real body» — lo que llama Tao de tomar prestado lo artificial para cultivar lo real: el cuerpo físico es el taller alquímico y los órganos son los vasos, y lo que se cultiva no es el cuerpo físico sino el cuerpo real escondido en él; la frase arranca en la plana anterior

«After people are born, the primal is mixed into the temporal , and the temporal is mixed into the primal. Considering this mixture and adulteration, if we do not refine away acquired artificialities, then the primal will not return» — y la mezcla que diagnostica en El taller alquímico y los vasos: nacido uno, lo primordial y lo temporal se entreveran, y sin refinar la artificialidad adquirida lo primordial no vuelve

«borrow the temporal to refine the primal while using the primal to transform the temporal , when the temporal is completely transformed and the primal is completely whole, this frees a radiant pearl whose light pervades heaven and pene» — y la operación que El taller alquímico y los vasos propone: tomar prestado lo temporal para refinar lo primordial y usar lo primordial para transformar lo temporal, hasta liberar una perla radiante; el *si* condicional queda en la plana anterior y la última palabra se parte a fin de plana

«Then you may soar straight up or go straight ahead, go against or go along-everywhere is the Way . When your achievements are complete and your practices are fulfilled, you break through space, fly to heaven in broad daylight, and shed the flesh-and-blood skin bag, which is now as useless as the alchemical workshop and vessels once the elixir has been perfected» — el remate de El taller alquímico y los vasos: cumplida la obra se rompe el espacio y se deja el saco de piel de carne y sangre, ya tan inútil como el taller y los vasos una vez perfeccionado el elixir

«Ignorant people who do not know the metaphors used on the Way make wild assumptions and follow wilder practices. This is what is meant by the saying that if there is no seed of reality in the cauldron, it is like boil ing an empty pot. Ancient immortals have said not to cling to this body as the Way; you should know there is a body beyond the body . Worldlings who work on their physical bodies, as well as those who worry about their ovens and minerals, are fools» — y el reproche que le anexa, que es una clave de lectura de todo el libro: quienes no saben que la Vía habla por metáforas hacen suposiciones salvajes, y los inmortales antiguos dijeron que no hay que aferrarse a este cuerpo como si fuera la Vía

«Caterpillars weave cocoons, polliwogs form from cells; eventually the cocoons break open to produce moths, the cells develop to produce frogs» — Orugas y renacuajos: de los capullos salen polillas y de las células ranas

«Those who cultivate reality assemble the five forces, join the hundred spirits, merge with the ultimate; one energy coalesces, whole and pure, not consciously cognized. Now the spiritual embryo has form, like when the caterpillar weaves its cocoon or the polliwog forms its cell» — lo que llama Tao de la transformación liberadora del embrión espiritual: juntadas las cinco fuerzas y los cien espíritus, una energía cuaja entera y pura sin ser cognoscida

«Store the spirit and energy away in mystical darkness, and the bit of spiritual root will grow from faintness to clarity, from softness to strength. When the process ׸s complete, suddenly you will break through space to reveal the pure spiritual body, leaping beyond the worlds» — y la incubación que sigue: guardar el espíritu y la energía en oscuridad mística hasta que la raíz espiritual pase de la vaguedad a la claridad y se rompa el espacio

«Therefore the aftermath of accomplishment of the Way is sometimes referred to as developing the power of flight, and sometimes called shedding the shell and becoming real . These expressions mean that you reproduce a real body inside your physical body . This real body is inherent in everyone, but people are fooled by the objects of their senses, deluded by illusory appearances, so they do not recognize the real body, even though it is right there» — y los dos nombres que consigna para lo que sigue al cumplimiento: desarrollar el poder de vuelo y mudar la cáscara para volverse real, que quieren decir reproducir un cuerpo real dentro del físico

«A racehorse, a swift runner, can travel hundreds of miles in a day . A nag, ambling along, takes ten days to cover the same distance. Although one is fast and one is slow, yet what they achieve is the same» — El caballo de carreras y el jamelgo: uno hace en un día lo que el otro en diez, y aun así lo que consiguen es lo mismo

«Generally speaking, people are sharp or dull by nature, greater or lesser in strength. If people who are dull by nature want to emulate those who are sharp by nature, or those of little strength want to emulate those of great strength, they will be unable to keep up, and will injure themselves by the strain» — lo que llama Tao de la velocidad relativa del trabajo eficaz, con su advertencia: el de naturaleza roma que quiera emular al agudo no podrá seguirle el paso y se dañará con el esfuerzo

«knowing a rc the best , those who know by learni ng are next, and those who learn the hard way are next after that . When it comes to the knowledge itself, however, that is one. Some may carry this out calmly, some may carry it out swiftly , some may carry it out forcibly. When it comes to the achievement , however, that is one. Among these three kinds of people, it may be difficult for some and easy for others, slow for some and fast for others, but all are able to know the Tao and attain the Tao» — y la escala de tres que Liu Yiming atribuye a un sabio cabal: los que nacen sabiendo, los que saben por aprender y los que aprenden a las malas, con el saber uno solo y la hazaña una sola; la frase arranca en la plana anterior

«The only trouble is when people have no will. Without wiJI, not only is it impossible to act on the Tao, it is impossible even to know it. If you have the will , study it widely , question it closely, ponder it carefully, understand it clearly , carry it out earnestly; multiply the efforts of the ordinary person a hundredfold , and you can actually master this Tao» — y lo único que da por impedimento: la falta de voluntad, porque sin ella no solo no se obra el Tao sino que ni se lo conoce

«Nevertheless, there are many Taoists in the world who cannot with a true heart regard essence and life as most important. They talk about the virtues of the Tao, but in their hearts they are criminals and gangsters . They want their imaginings of the Tao, and they want their greedy ambitions too. They are easily angered and unreceptive» — y el reproche que Liu Yiming dirige a los taoístas de su tiempo: hablan de las virtudes del Tao y en el corazón son criminales, y quieren a la vez sus imaginaciones del Tao y sus ambiciones codiciosas

«The intellectuals among them depend on their ability to memorize a few "spiritual" sayings, and think they have the Way . Consequently they disregard others and will not seek enlightened teachers or visit capable friends, thus mistaking the road ahead» — y el reparto de esa censura en dos clases, la primera: los intelectuales que se fían de recordar unos cuantos dichos espirituales y por eso no buscan maestros iluminados

«This is why those who study Taoism may be as numerous as hairs on a cow, but those who accomplish the Way are as rare as unicorn horns» — y la proporción con que lo cierra: los que estudian el taoísmo son tantos como pelos de vaca y los que cumplen la Vía tan raros como cuernos de unicornio

«If you are a strong person who can be so utterly aloof of all things as to step straight into the Way , like steel forged a hundred times, with an unrelenting will to visit enlightened teachers respectfully and to investigate true principles thoroughly , then it does not matter whether you are sharp or dull by nature-eventually you will emerge on the Way, and will definitely not have wasted your years» — y la salida que deja abierta: con voluntad tenaz de visitar maestros iluminados e investigar los principios a fondo, da igual ser agudo o romo por naturaleza

«Red flowers may be beautiful, but they need the support of green leaves. If there are flowers but no leaves, the flowers will not be bright; if there are both flowers and leaves, the flowers are yet more colorful» — Flores rojas y hojas verdes: la flor necesita la hoja, y sin hoja no luce

«The Way is to complete oneself, virtue is to benefit others. Cultivation of the Way is internal work, cultivation of virtue is external work. Among those who have embraced the Way since ancient times, there has never been one who did not cultivate virtue» — lo que llama Tao de la necesidad mutua de la Vía y la virtud: la Vía es completarse uno y la virtud beneficiar a otros, la una obra interna y la otra externa

«Ancient sages first practiced the Way and then cultivated virtue. Ancient worthies first cultivated virtue and then practiced the Way. The sages were those of highest wisdom, the worthies were middling people. The sages attained comprehensive understanding and transcended directly to the shore of the Way; for them practice of the Way was easy, so they did that first and cultivated virtue afterwards to complete the Way with virtue. The worthies had to strive before they could enter nondoing; for them practice of the Way was hard , so they cultivated virtue first and practiced the Way afterwards to support the Way with virtue» — y los dos órdenes que distingue: los sabios antiguos practicaron primero la Vía y cultivaron después la virtud, y los dignos antiguos al revés, según su capacidad

«Students of the Way with higher wisdom are very rare, hardly one or two in ten thousand; middling and lesser people are countless . Among the middling and lesser people, those with shallow foundations, small perceptions, great afflictions, and deep attachments must first accumulate virtue. Great virtue can overcome ghosts and spirits, can move heaven and earth , can affect people and animals. Use this to learn the Way , and the Way is easy to learn; use this to achieve the Way, and the Way is easy to achieve» — y el consejo que saca para la mayoría: los de fundamento somero deben acumular virtud primero, porque la gran virtud vence a fantasmas y espíritus y mueve al cielo y a la tierra

«This is because the Way is the substance of virtue, virtue is the function of the Way . The furthest reach of virtue is called mystic virtue. Mystic virtue is profound and unfathomable, near to the Way» — y la relación que traza entre las dos: la Vía es la sustancia de la virtud y la virtud la función de la Vía, y el alcance último de la virtud es la virtud mística

«Students nowadays do not build up virtue or do good works; when they happen to hear a saying, they immediately rush into practice in hopes of immortality , without discerning whetht·r what thev have heard is correct or not» — y el reproche a los estudiantes de su tiempo: sin acumular virtud ni hacer obras, al oír un dicho se lanzan a practicarlo esperando la inmortalidad y sin discernir si es correcto

«People with mentalities like this, rushing this way and that, are uselessly wasting their lives, never to achieve anything. What they do not realize is that the Way is not apart from virtue, and virtue is not apart from the Way. How can you ignore virtue and speak only of the Way ? How can you omit virtue and practice only the Way? Those who would practice the Way must first accumulate virtue» — y el cierre de la primera parte del libro: la Vía no está aparte de la virtud ni la virtud aparte de la Vía, y quien quiera practicarla debe acumular virtud primero

«The dull ones do not know to investigate principles, and do not distinguish the false from the true. Having studied some "side-door" practices» — y la segunda clase que censura El caballo de carreras y el jamelgo: los romos que no investigan principios ni distinguen lo falso de lo verdadero y que se quedan en prácticas de puerta lateral; el término es del propio texto y la frase sigue en la plana siguiente

«The lao has become obscure to peoplt.'-who can clearly recognize essence and life? People compete for status and reputation, and cannot get free of emotional entanglements . They are skilled only in artifice and opinion . All people like this are pursuing dead matter. It takes an extraordinarily brave person to realize this, turn away from it, and wake up» — Perseguir materia muerta, primera pieza de la segunda parte del libro, Refrains of Lament: el Tao se ha vuelto oscuro para la gente, que compite por posición y fama y solo es diestra en artificio y opinión

«The Tao is no longer really valued . The mediocrities and the ignoramuses all have their many taboos, and they are suspicious when they hear people talk about the Tao. When they see people practice the Tao, they criticize and denounce them. They pay no attention to essence and life, they do not nurture the vital spirit. They only crave drink and passion, to fill their guts . Few people walk on the road to heaven-most of them compete to savor the taste of hell» — Valores: los mediocres y los ignorantes tienen sus muchos tabúes, sospechan cuando oyen hablar del Tao y denuncian a quien lo practica; pocos andan el camino al cielo

«The gateway to the Tao is open-anyone can come in. If you know how to change directions, the goal is near at hand» — La puerta abierta: la entrada al Tao está abierta a cualquiera, y quien sepa cambiar de rumbo tiene la meta cerca

«The Tao is no longer understood . There is an endless» — El ciego que guía al ciego, pieza de la segunda parte: el Tao ya no se entiende y los desvíos no tienen número; el troceo reemite aquí el marcador de plana a media frase y la enumeración sigue en la línea siguiente

«number of side doors and twisted byways, constituting a few basic groups . There are those who are fixated on voidness and those who are attached to forms, and those who do psychosomatic exercises. There are seventy-two schools of material alchemy, and three thousand six hundred aberrant practices. Since the blind lead the blind, they lose the right road; they block students and lead them into a pen» — y el cabo de esa enumeración: fijados en la vacuidad, apegados a las formas y practicantes de ejercicios psicosomáticos, con setenta y dos escuelas de alquimia material y tres mil seiscientas prácticas aberrantes, donde el ciego guía al ciego

«If you can act with a straightforward mind, this is a spiritual treasure. By knowing the One you extend the life of essence; when you perceive the Two, you congeal the spiritual embryo. Since ancient times, all the enlightened have dealt with people, but there is hardly any good material in the mundane world» — La puerta abierta: obrar con mente derecha es un tesoro espiritual, y conociendo el Uno se prolonga la vida de la esencia mientras que percibiendo el Dos se cuaja el embrión espiritual

«Taoism is in a lamentable state. Why don't people who study it make a careful and thorough investigation? The great matter that concerns us most intimately is treated like child's play , the principles of the sages are taken for granted . People are selfish and inconsiderate, full of arrogant pride. They want to be at leisure and are afraid of suffering, yet they imagine ways to immortality ; they seem to imagine that greed for leisure and fear of pain are prescriptions for immortality . If you don't know how to empty your mind to seek guidance, how can you understand the real yin and yang» — Busca guía: el asunto que más íntimamente concierne se trata como juego de niños, y quien quiere ocio y teme el sufrimiento parece tomar esas dos cosas por recetas de inmortalidad

«The Tao is natural . All forced manipulations and concoctions are in vain. Some people guard their minds and settle their ideas and thoughts, some people hold their breath and keep it in the abdomen, some people perform psychosomatic energy -circulation exercises. When these people come to the end of their lives and find everything they did was useless, they will resent the gods, also uselessly» — Ejercicios artificiales: el Tao es natural y toda manipulación forzada es en vano, sea guardar la mente, retener el aliento en el vientre o hacer ejercicios psicosomáticos de circulación de energía

«The Tao is forever. If you lack perseverance, don't set off at random. People ask about the Mysterious Pass the minute they enter the gate; they want to get started before they have even learned how. In the beginning they are diligent, but eventually they slack off, their wills are not firm. Openly pious while secretly devious, many incur blame. They only want to impress people by revealing the celestial mechanism; the unseen spiritual immortals laugh at them» — Cabeza de dragón, cola de serpiente: se pregunta por el Paso Misterioso nada más entrar y se quiere empezar antes de haber aprendido, con celo al principio y flojera después

«sayings and proverbs accord with the Tao of sages. The foundation of wizardry exists in daily and nightly activities. The mysterious, marvelous Inner Design is perfectly obvious, but the ignorant do not contemplate it carefully» — y el cabo de esa pieza: los dichos y refranes comunes concuerdan con el Tao de los sabios, y el fundamento de la hechicería está en las actividades del día y de la noche

«The Tao has been obscure for a long time. The spiritual immortals from the Han to the Tang dynasties (ca. 200 B . C . E . - 900 c.E.) all withdrew into concealment. Because people accept the false and do not recognize the real , the enlightened have hidden their light and developed themselves in obscurity. Even though they had compassion, there was no way to exercise it; they had mastered the celestial mechanism, but whom could they tell ? When they met someone who really cared about Life, then they would speak their minds» — La invisibilidad del taoísmo: Liu Yiming sitúa el retiro de los inmortales espirituales entre las dinastías Han y Tang, con la equivalencia entre paréntesis que pone la edición inglesa, y dice que por aceptarse lo falso los iluminados escondieron su luz

«The Way of the Tao must be taught. If you do not meet an enlightened teacher, everything goes awry . A succession of adepts handed on revelations of the mechanism, a succession of lamps pointed out the primal . There is nothing real in the entire physical body, neither in the brain nor the belly-none of the myriad phenomena you may experience are the Ark of Truth. If you understand what is before birth, shortly you will be growing gold lotuses in fire» — La enseñanza de la Vía: sin maestro iluminado todo sale torcido, y nada del cuerpo físico es real, ni el cerebro ni el vientre ni los fenómenos que se experimenten

«Awakening is important for the Way. If you do not awaken , how can vou set out? First vou should find out the source of essence on your own , then seek a teacher to be» — Despertar: primero se averigua por cuenta propia la fuente de la esencia y después se busca maestro; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente

«certain about life. The primal and acq uired are very dissimilar, the inner and outer five forces are on separate road s. When you thoroughly penetrate the secret of the celestial mechanism, you may transcend the ordinary and enter among the sages» — y el cabo de esa pieza, ya en la plana siguiente: lo primordial y lo adquirido son muy distintos y las cinco fuerzas internas y externas van por caminos separados

«The Way is in flexibility . To act with flexibility is the best strategy . If you are conceited, how can you climb the right road? If you are impetuous , how can you get beyond the ordinary human condition ? Later life is a manifestation of the . life you led before; retreat, after all , stems from advance. If you seek to attain the Tao with a competitive attitude, you are like a blind man jumping over a deep ditch» — Flexibilidad: buscar el Tao con actitud competitiva es como saltar una zanja honda estando ciego, y la vida posterior es manifestación de la anterior

«To attain the Tao requires resolution, cutting decisively through whatever holds you back. If you cannot put aside sentiment, it will bind you hand and foot; if you do not get rid of greed and resentment, your intentions will be base. If you want to cultivate the Tao of immortals, first shed banality. If you want to rise to the realm of sages, what you have to do now is eliminate what ails you . People who study Taoism or Buddhism yet cannot wrap up the complications in their lives completely and effectively are ridiculous» — Resolución: sin apartar el sentimiento este ata de pies y manos, y quien quiera el Tao de los inmortales ha de despojarse primero de la banalidad

«The Tao is not a petty affair. The ignorant are just wandering in circles outside the gate. They do not know how to seek the root of creation. They wish to get the secret whereby they can perfect life, but it is only when one enters deeply into the recesses of inner design that one sees reality . When you open up the mysterious female, then for the first time light is allowed to pass through . There is one thing supporting the universe , complete-if you can recognize it, you can transcend things» — Abrir la hembra misteriosa: solo entrando hondo en el diseño interior se ve la realidad, y abierta la hembra misteriosa se deja pasar la luz por primera vez

«The Tao is useful-if you know it, Creation cannot move you. Younger people should work diligently, for when they get old and decrepit, medicine will hardly help. When you learn the Tao, you can transcend ordinary categories; when you practice the Tao, you can climb up onto the foundation of enlightenment. Students everywhere are lazy, letting the time slip away until they have spent their whole lives wandering» — La utilidad del Tao: los jóvenes deben trabajar con diligencia porque de viejos y decrépitos poco ayuda la medicina

«Goodness is important on the Tao. Once you turn to the Tao, why fear old age? The spiritual immortals have left methods of grafting life energy , which aspirants should practice with a true heart. Going back to the root produces life» — Dentro y más allá del mundo: los inmortales espirituales dejaron métodos de injertar la energía de la vida; la palabra se parte a fin de plana

«prolonging tea; turning the attention inward is a restorative balm. If you do not cultivate yourself in this life, how will you know what road to return on in the coming life? Harmony is important on the Tao-what is the purpose of quietistic escapism? One of the ancient adepts used commerce to complete the great Way , another nurtured the spiritual tree while serving as an official . To be in the world yet beyond the world is the road transcending the ordinary; detached from society while in society, one enters the lair of immortals. So many realized people since ancient times have refined themselves in cities and towns» — y el cabo de esa pieza: un adepto antiguo usó el comercio para cumplir la gran Vía y otro nutrió el árbol espiritual siendo funcionario, porque estar en el mundo y a la vez más allá es el camino que trasciende lo ordinario

«Unfortunately the Tao is not apparent to many people. How many understand that it is permeated with unity? This one lectures on ingesting elixirs, that one talks about flying. People pursue trivialities, acting out their whims, their practice ignorantly mired in cults. All such people have abandoned the real and play with the false-after all, who among them can reach the true goal» — Trivializaciones y bastardizaciones: uno diserta sobre ingerir elixires y otro habla de volar, con la práctica atascada en cultos

«Sincerity is important on the Tao. Why do students not bring forth their true feelings? When people go into debt to try to expiate their sins by religious contributions, charlatans go after their goods. An enlightened teacher is like a parent who gives you renewed life, the secret teaching is like the citadel of highest happiness-if you are deceitful and contemptuous of others, who will explain the celestial mechanism to you» — Sinceridad: cuando la gente se endeuda para expiar sus pecados con donativos religiosos, los charlatanes van tras sus bienes, y al desleal nadie le explica el mecanismo celeste

«The Tao is a treasure. If you understand it, it can extend your life span. This has nothing to do with material alchemy. It is utterly simple, utterly easy, there is no difficulty involved . It is completely spiritual, true goodness. The ridiculous thing is that foolish people seek mysterious marvels , when they do not know enough to preserve the mysterious marvel that is actually present» — La maravilla del Tao: extiende el lapso de vida y no tiene nada que ver con la alquimia material, y lo ridículo es buscar maravillas misteriosas sin saber conservar la que ya está presente

«The Tao is based on nonreification. It is formless, imageless, impossible to draw or diagram. Listen for it and you don't hear it, look at it and you don't see it. Try to get at it and you've already lost it; to discuss it is a hoax. It is so vast it contains the universe, yet as small as a tiny pearl . There are so many people in the world trying to cultivate realization who nevertheless look for the way in psychic phenomena» — No reificación: sin forma ni imagen, no se dibuja ni se diagrama, y discutirlo es un engaño; tan vasto que contiene el universo y tan pequeño como una perla diminuta

«The Tao is profound and mysterious-is there anyone to whom it can be spoken of? People lack inner sincerity , and are often proud and arrogant. They are not transformed, but claim to be immune to the world . Outwardly they pretend to be mature, while inwardly they are thieves. If you behave like this and still hope to cultivate immortality , you 'II waste your life and suffer the consequences» — Falsos estudiantes: por fuera aparentan madurez y por dentro son ladrones, y así no hay cómo cultivar la inmortalidad

«The Tao is most noble, beyond subjective feelings and ignorant judgments . It cannot be passed on through ordinary» — Acceso al Tao: no se transmite por las líneas ordinarias; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente

«lines of transmission; it cannot even be handed on from father to son. It cannot be bought, even for ten thousand ou nces of gold. If you are wholehearted , without duplicity , then you can benefit from the Tao. Apart from those who have gone beyond categories and ascended to the skies, who can easily talk about the secret» — y el cabo de esa pieza: ni de padre a hijo se hereda ni se compra por diez mil onzas de oro, y solo el que va sin duplicidad se beneficia

«Quietistic inactivists are ridiculous, idly imagining they will realize essence and life by blanking their minds» — y el reproche con que esa pieza cierra: los inactivistas quietistas imaginan en vano realizar la esencia y la vida poniendo la mente en blanco

«The Tao is as deep as can be-who is willing to pursue it closely ? If you don't go into the tiger's lair, how can you catch its cub? If you don't wash out the stone and sand, how can you pick out the gold ? Lower your head and bore into the hole of open nonreification; carefully seek the heart of heaven and earth with firm determination. Suddenly you will see the original thing; everywhere you meet the source, all is a forest of jewels» — Encontrar el Tao: si no se entra a la guarida del tigre no se agarra al cachorro, y si no se lava la piedra y la arena no se saca el oro

«on high and mighty airs . By their greedy schemes for patronage, they run up their debts. How can they digest the food they buy with unearned money? How can those who act in such a way as to produce faults know about self-discipline? Take a look at those confused insects-they have all spoiled the teachings of the Tradition» — y el cabo de esa pieza: por sus tramas codiciosas para conseguir mecenazgo se endeudan, y Liu Yiming los llama insectos confusos que han estropeado las enseñanzas de la Tradición

«People with a l iking for the strange have already missed the road . The colorful symbol i sm of 'Ewist texts is just that» — El Tao normal, donde Liu Yiming enuncia la clave de lectura de su propio libro: quien gusta de lo extraño ya erró el camino, y el simbolismo colorido de los textos taoístas es solo eso; la capa de texto corrompe *Taoist* y la frase sigue en la plana siguiente

«The Tao lacks affiliates anymore. So many practitioners are merely skipping rope--with one or two Zen phrases they pretend to be great hermits, having done a little meditating» — Diletantes vacuos: con una o dos frases zen se hacen pasar por grandes ermitaños; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente, donde se llaman a sí mismos sabios avanzados

«The Tao is centered and straight. To practice the Tao it is imperative to rely on worthy action. Only when you are» — Acción digna: para practicar el Tao es imperativo apoyarse en la acción digna; el troceo reemite aquí el marcador de plana a media frase y la condición sigue en la línea siguiente

«imbued with worthy qualities and also act on them do you become real . Without virtue in action, it is impossible to become a sage. When your inner qualities are great, ghosts and spirits will render occult assistance; when your practice is deep, misleading influences cannot stand up to it» — y el cabo de esa condición: solo obrando lo que se tiene se vuelve uno real, y sin virtud en la acción no hay modo de llegar a sabio

«The Tao is nearby, yet people seek wonderful doctrines far away. Right before your eyes you are always seeing beau» — Cerca y sin embargo lejos: el Tao está cerca y se buscan doctrinas maravillosas lejos; la palabra se parte a fin de plana

«tiful goJden flowers, in everyday life you have the seed of realization-if you can recognize this you will shortly master yin and yang, if you can understand this you will immediately reverse life and death. This is something you cannot guess on your own-the instruction of an enlightened guide is necessary» — y el cabo de esa pieza: en la vida diaria está la semilla de la realización, pero eso no se adivina por cuenta propia y hace falta la instrucción de un guía iluminado; la capa de texto imprime *goJden*

«The Tao is a long road-you need to find out where it begins and ends; and what the route is. When you cull medicine, you must distinguish true and false. When you refine medicine, you must know hard and soft. When you operate the firing, distinguish when to hurry and when to relax. When you form the embryo, carefully add and subtract. The slightest error results in an enormous loss; how can a few words express it» — Un camino largo: hay que distinguir lo verdadero de lo falso al recoger la medicina, saber lo duro y lo blando al refinarla, y el menor error cuesta una pérdida enorme

«The Tao must be learned. If you don't learn the way, how can you return to great awareness? First recognize the crescent moon in the southwest, the hexagram return; then investigate the overturned bowl in the northeast, the hexagram stripping away. At the gate of birth of the self you stabilize the root of life, at the door of death of the self you strip off the skin shell . How many people are there on the road of birth and death, and how many among them can take hold of Creation» — Aprender la Vía: Liu Yiming nombra dos hexagramas del Libro de los Cambios, el retorno en la luna creciente del suroeste y el despojamiento en el cuenco volcado del noreste

«The Tao is completely balanced in the center, not leaning to one side at all . Who can go all the way through on this» — Equilibrio en el centro: el Tao está enteramente equilibrado en el centro y no se inclina a un lado; la pregunta sigue en la plana siguiente

«Way ? Black and white fitting together make the matrix of the pill, the unification of form and openness is the true work. In the mating of female and male is stored the will for life, the balancing of yin and yang arouses a peaceful breeze. If people can understand the meaning of central balance, they will be known as great heroes, whether they go vertically or horizontally, go against or go along» — y el cabo de esa pieza: lo blanco y lo negro ensamblados hacen la matriz de la píldora, y quien entiende el equilibrio central pasa por gran héroe

«There is no deception in the Tao--even a little bit of falsehood already sets you far astray. It is essential to detach from the energies of wine, physical beauty, and material goods. Aggression, greed, and stupidity should all be eliminated. With a true heart and a true will, exert your strength to the utmost in practice. Pretend to be deaf and mute, let people criticize you if they will. When you have no conscious knowledge, all objects are empty. If you want to ascend to a high place, first you should descend» — No hay modo de fingirlo: un poco de falsedad ya extravía, y hay que desprenderse de las energías del vino, la belleza física y los bienes materiales; para subir alto primero hay que bajar

«The Tao is completely impartial-it is not a question of social status, or whether you are rich or poor. Everybody has the essence and is able to return to the root; everyone has the spirit and can go back to youth . The business of realization basically needs real people to do it-if people are not real, all their labors are in vain» — La imparcialidad del Tao: no es cuestión de posición social ni de riqueza, y todos tienen la esencia y pueden volver a la raíz, pero el asunto pide gente real

«The Tao is deep, but if you want complete real ization you need to investigate it thorough l y . The parting of the roads» — La bifurcación de los caminos: el Tao es hondo y la realización completa pide investigarlo a fondo; la frase sigue en la plana siguiente

«of immortals and ordinary people is just a hairsbreadth; the doorwav of life and death is l i ke a buttonhole. Even a little bit of carelessness and you lose natural reality; the slightest attachment to anything leads you into a ghost cave. If you do not understand what is beneficial and what is harmful in this context, your thousand prescriptions and hundred programs will all bring on inner turmoil and sickness» — y el cabo de esa pieza: la bifurcación entre inmortales y gente común es de un pelo y la puerta de la vida y la muerte como un ojal, y sin entender qué daña y qué beneficia mil recetas producen enfermedad

«The Path is level , but students ' leanings take them on precipitous routes. Sexual alchemy is contrary to the true eternal Tao, quietism is not the great method . If you try forcibly to cluster energy and blood together, you will produce ulcers and toxins. If you fixate your vital spirit rigidly , you will enter a pit of fire. The single road to heaven is right before us, but we do not discern it clearly until we meet an illumined guide» — Rutas escarpadas: Liu Yiming rechaza aquí por su nombre dos prácticas, la alquimia sexual, contraria al Tao eterno verdadero, y el quietismo, que no es el gran método

«The Tao is priceless, a pearl containing Creation. In storage , it is utterly dark, without a trace. Brought out, its light shines through day and night. Becoming wise depends entirely on this-you need nothing else to be enlightened . So many 'Iaoists seek at random, all the while casting aside the treasure at hand» — La perla sin precio a la mano: guardada es oscurísima y sin rastro, sacada su luz atraviesa el día y la noche, y tantos taoístas buscan al azar desechando el tesoro que tienen a la mano

«The Tao is hard to put into practice . The first priority is to find out its inner design. Where is essence actually stored ? What ground does the root of life ultimately rest on ? The five forces are not in the internal organs, the three bases are all predicated on emptiness. Fools do not study the inner design , so they are confused from the very outset» — El diseño interior: las cinco fuerzas no están en los órganos internos y las tres bases se predican todas de la vacuidad, y quien no estudia el diseño interior se confunde desde el arranque

«The taste of the Tao is fragrant, but how many Taoists are willing to savor it carefully? When the four forms combine, this extends your life; when the five forces aggregate, you enter the realm of immortals . The spiritual light of the crescent moon is the basis of the restorative elixir, the true energy of infinite space is the medicine of medicines» — El sabor del Tao: la luz espiritual de la luna creciente es la base del elixir restaurador y la energía verdadera del espacio infinito la medicina de las medicinas

«The Tao has no beginning-the circulation of one energy is its true key . It is no use for common imbeciles to crave their own ideas of it. It only teaches those who arrive at it to preserve it nondeliberately . When you find it, put it back into the jade furnace, and forge it into a star merged with the source. If you do not understand this celestial mechanism , stop spouting off in front of people» — Hallarlo u olvidarlo: la circulación de una energía es su clave verdadera, y a quien no entienda ese mecanismo celeste le dice que deje de perorar delante de la gente

«The Tao is sublime and mysterious, a Great Way to transcend the ordinary and enter into sagehood. When people hear talk about attaining immortality, all are attracted, but when they hear about the hardship of the work, all of them burn. All over the world there are people who want to get rich on this earth and also leap into the clouds and climb up into the nine heavens, but I have never heard of a sage coming from among them» — Inmortalidad: al oír hablar de alcanzarla todos se atraen y al oír de la dureza del trabajo todos se queman, y Liu Yiming dice no haber sabido nunca de un sabio salido de los que quieren a la vez enriquecerse y subir a los nueve cielos

«The Tao is simple and convenient. There is no need to seek afar, for it is right at home. Transform yourself, and there you have the soul-restoring pill. Change your outlook, and there is the real shore of the Way . The reason the spiritual treasure does not appear to seekers is that they themselves will not allow it to do s஗what a pity that false people spend their lives madly in sidetracks» — Aquí mismo en casa: no hay que buscar lejos porque está en casa, y si el tesoro espiritual no se aparece a quien lo busca es porque ellos mismos no lo permiten

«The Tao has no bias-when essence and life are both cultivated, that completes the great restoration. In the beginning there is doing, to perfect the jewel of life; in the end there is nondoing, to understand the sky of essence. Four yins and yangs are divided into real and false, two stages of work have before and after. Gazing at the opening and gazing at the subtle, only then is there complete perfection-when there is a beginning without an end, this is an aberration» — Sin sesgo: al principio hay obrar, para perfeccionar la joya de la vida, y al final no obrar, para entender el cielo de la esencia, y un comienzo sin fin es aberración

«The Tao is fivefold-energy divides into water, fire, wood, metal, and earth. When one changes into five, this obscures the original reality. When five are one, you see the progenitor. To begin with, it is necessary to distinguish the primal from the temporal, then it is imperative to carefully discern the door of life and death. The subtle secret is between accord and reversal-if accord and reversal are not distinguished, discipline is in vain» — Inversión del tiempo: la energía se divide en agua, fuego, madera, metal y tierra, y cuando uno se vuelve cinco se oscurece la realidad original mientras que cuando los cinco son uno se ve al progenitor

«The Tao is independent. Independence means you have to love yourself. If you yourself are present, things cannot drag you around . If you yourself are absent, your essence is obscured . Ultimately, if you yourself are always home, even the king of death will withdraw in surprise. If you do not know this mechanism, then all the practices you may do will just get in your way» — Independencia: si uno mismo está presente las cosas no lo arrastran, y si uno mismo está siempre en casa hasta el rey de la muerte se retira sorprendido

«The Tao is not difficult. Difficulty is due to students' not really studying. Deep attainment ultimately should open up wisdom; if you are single -minded , eventually you will break through doubt . If you find the primal energy , you can soon crystal l ize the restored elixir. Knowing the end and knowing the beginning, you penetrate the whole course. The result follows in accord with the cause, so let there be no obstruction» — El origen de las dificultades: la dificultad viene de que los estudiantes no estudian de veras, y el resultado sigue conforme a la causa

«The Tao connects with the spiritual . Once understood , it applies to everything, going beyond the dust of the ordinary world. Recognize the original formless thing, and forge it into an adamantine, indestructible body . This is most sacred, most spiritual-the three poisons of greed, aggression, and stupidity die out, there are no calamities, no difficulties, all seasons are spring. This method has no difficulty, it is really simple and easy; nevertheless, in this world there are few real people» — El ser humano real original: reconocer la cosa original sin forma y forjarla en cuerpo indestructible apaga los tres venenos, la codicia, la agresión y la estupidez, y aun siendo simple y fácil hay poca gente real en el mundo

«The Tao has no state-its real description would be a stateless state. Tranquil and unstirring, yet sensitive and effective--call on it and it responds, in quietude it is clear. Gather it up and put it in the furnace of cosmic space, forge it into a staff coterminous with heaven» — El estado sin estado: quieto y sin agitarse pero sensible y eficaz, se recoge y se pone en el horno del espacio cósmico y se forja en bastón que llega hasta el cielo

«transmitted outside of doctrine; those who have accomplished nothing and practiced little cannot even think of aspiring to it» — y el cabo de esa pieza, ya en la plana siguiente: el secreto verdadero se transmite fuera de la doctrina, y quien nada ha cumplido ni practicado no puede siquiera aspirar a él

«The Tao is extremely recondite. The slightest deviation adds a useless burden. It is necessary that the ingredients of the spiritual alchemy be in proper proportion, and that the firing process be complete from start to finish. Only when you know what bodes well and what bodes ill can you safeguard the real . Only when you adjust it appropriately is your work successful . When you understand one part, you can apply that part. If you rush blindly into practice, your effort is wasted» — No te lances a ciegas: los ingredientes de la alquimia espiritual han de ir en proporción y el proceso de fuego completo de principio a fin, y entendida una parte se aplica esa parte

«The Tao is truly different. When you know it, it helps you wherever you go. Reversing yin and yang at the main door of the mysterious pass, revolving heaven and earth at the root of spiritual energy, picking up the luminous pearl under the red dragon's jaw, finding the vessel of truth in the tiger's den-these matters should be figured out in the company of spiritual immortals; they do not admit of the guesswork of the ordinary ignoramus» — No adivines: invertir yin y yang en la puerta del paso misterioso, recoger la perla luminosa bajo la quijada del dragón rojo y hallar el vaso de la verdad en la guarida del tigre son cosas que se resuelven en compañía de inmortales espirituales

«The Tao is most real . First you should recognize the original human in detail . Seek the original essence inside the temperamental nature, look for the real body inside the material body . The difference between right and wrong is minute; it is only in before and after that remote and near are distin» — El cuerpo real: buscar la esencia original dentro de la naturaleza del temperamento y el cuerpo real dentro del material; la palabra se parte a fin de plana

«guished . The deluded all play in the physical body-they take the secondary for the primary» — y el cabo de esa pieza: los engañados juegan todos en el cuerpo físico y toman lo secundario por lo primario

«The Tao is fundamentally open, but in this openness is a master. This is the true source progenitor that operates Creation, the great spiritual power that sustains essence and life. Entering into sagehood , transcending the ordinary, depends on its power; moving the stars, directing the North Star, it does not expend effort. It is imperative that you see what the master is really like-if you have not seen it, how can you be restored to youth» — Dominio de la apertura: en la apertura hay un amo, el progenitor fuente verdadera que opera la Creación, y hay que ver cómo es de veras ese amo

«The Tao is in the body . Within the body is hidden another person, who always accompanies you, whatever you do. Awake or asleep, it is always there; looking, listening, talking, walking, it is very very close. This is not the awareness of conditioned knowledge, it is the original sane energy, vitality, and spirit. If you seek this in terms of form or shape, you are mistaking the servant for the master» — Energía, vitalidad, espíritu: dentro del cuerpo hay escondida otra persona que siempre acompaña, y buscarla en términos de forma o figura es tomar al criado por el amo

«The Tao is subtle. Ordinary people laugh when they hear about it. One turns the mechanism of evolution of yin and yang, bores through the primal opening of chaos, picks out the staff of nonattachment, and with it scatters demons . Whether to oppose or conform is up to the mind ; on the peaks of a thousand mountains, one sings and hums forever» — La sutileza del Tao: la gente común se ríe al oírlo, y quien lo obra gira el mecanismo de la evolución del yin y el yang y horada la abertura primordial del caos

«Diligence is important on the Tao. Seek the fundamental master, even if you have to forget about food and sleep to do it. Every thought sincere, you should be wary . Reflecting inwardly time and again, you should be careful . With deep attainment, you naturally climb the shore of the Way . With ultimate sincerity, you are certain to taste the fragrant energy . If you are insubstantial and lacking in will , how can you ever transcend the ordinary crowd» — Diligencia: buscar al amo fundamental aunque haya que olvidarse de comer y de dormir, con cada pensamiento sincero y la reflexión hacia dentro una y otra vez

«If vou do not u nderstand this and seck elsewhere, you will get involved in sidetracks, wasting your life in vain imagining» — y la advertencia con que la cierra: no entenderlo y buscar en otra parte mete en desvíos y gasta la vida en imaginaciones vanas

«The Tao is multifaceted. I have experienced all kinds of Taoism, false and true. First I met a teacher who opened a clear road , later I met another who showed the great restoration. After more than twenty years, I finally knew myself; after a hundred thousand refinements, for the first time I climbed up into the Ark. If one does not persist in intensive single-minded efforts, how can one presume to muddle one's way across great rivers» — El Tao multifacético, la única pieza del libro donde Liu Yiming habla de sí en primera persona: dice haber conocido toda clase de taoísmo, falso y verdadero, haberse conocido a sí mismo tras más de veinte años y haber subido al Arca tras cien mil refinamientos

«The Tao has a beginning. To complete the beginning with the end is the message of the sages. Cultivate essence by way of life, and you then reach stability . From being return to nonbeing, and only then you rest. Give up halfway along, and you have wasted your effort; those who abandon themselves midway are not true practitioners . In many cases, the student does not recognize the real . If you recognize the real , what is the difficulty in comprehending life and death» — El comienzo del Tao: completar el comienzo con el fin es el mensaje de los sabios, y quien se abandona a la mitad no es practicante verdadero

«There are prohibitions on the Tao. The stairway of essence and life is worth ten thousand pieces of gold . If you wrongly pass it on to someone unsuitable, a star of ill omen appears; if you lightly reveal the celestial mechanism, calamity hovers near. Students may be very eager to find out the Way , but their will is deepest after a true teacher has instructed them . People without the capacity for the teaching can hardly be brought along-when you actual ly meet a connoisseur, th<..* you speak you r mind» — Prohibiciones, pieza con que cierra el libro: pasar la enseñanza a quien no corresponde hace aparecer una estrella de mal agüero, y revelar a la ligera el mecanismo celeste acerca la calamidad; solo ante un conocedor se habla con franqueza. La capa de texto corrompe la última línea

«The lao is extremely fine. Behavior has something to do with it . Control the tnind , refine the will, guard against danger keenly . Work by day , be aware at night, always as if in peril . The moment you let yourself relax , your real essence suffers; any aim for leisure, and the door of life shuts. Practicing the Tao is like walking on layered ice-one wrong step and your whole body gets injured» — Cómo obrar: practicar el Tao es andar sobre hielo en capas, y un paso en falso lastima el cuerpo entero; la capa de texto corrompe *Tao*

«The lao is unique, without duality-why do deluded people divide it into high and low ? The great ulti mate is originally a name for complete awareness, ulti n1ate sincerity is itsdf the form of the gold pil l . \Vhen you recogni ze that the principles of the sages arc the same, you w i l l real i ze that 'Ewism and Buddhism are alike» — La unicidad del Tao, donde Liu Yiming iguala las dos doctrinas: el gran último es de origen un nombre para la conciencia completa, y reconocido que los principios de los sabios son los mismos se ve que el taoísmo y el budismo son iguales; la capa de texto corrompe *Tao* y *Taoism*

«The lw is dear, yet this clarity requires you to sweep away all your dutter. At all times watch out for your own stupidity, be careful of how your mind jumps around. When nothing occurs to involve your mind , you return to true awareness. When unified mindfulness is purely real, you comprehend the great restoration. The ridiculous ones are those who try to cultivate quietude-as long as body and mind are unstable, it is madness to go into the mountains» — Estupidez y locura: la claridad pide barrer el propio desorden, y los ridículos son los que intentan cultivar la quietud, porque mientras el cuerpo y la mente estén inestables irse al monte es locura; la capa de texto corrompe *Tao* y *clutter*

«'laoism is degenerate. Most students do weird things. They haven't even understood essence and life, yet they put» — Taoístas degenerados: sin haber entendido la esencia y la vida ya se dan aires; la capa de texto corrompe la inicial de *Taoism* y la frase sigue en la plana siguiente

«The 'lao and its method s go together. \Vith the 'E1o and its methods, the root of life is planted . Nonintentionally gazing on the ineffable is the basis of the elixir; intentionally» — El Tao y sus métodos: van juntos, y con los dos se planta la raíz de la vida; mirar sin intención lo inefable es la base del elixir, y la frase sigue en la plana siguiente

«The Tao must be witnessed . I laving witnessed it , put it» — Testimonio, práctica, experiencia, transmisión: el Tao ha de ser atestiguado; el troceo reemite aquí el marcador de plana a media frase y la sentencia sigue en la línea siguiente. La capa de texto imprime *I laving* por *Having*

«into practice and you will not be fatigued on the way . Though you may awaken to essence on your own, this is not to be relied on; the science of life, transmitted by teachers, must be ascertained through experience. Innate knowledge must be completed by learned knowledge; if you have real material , you still look for a master craftsman to make sure» — y el cabo de esa pieza: aunque se despierte a la esencia por cuenta propia eso no basta, la ciencia de la vida transmitida por maestros hay que averiguarla por experiencia, y aun con material real se busca un maestro artesano

«It i s a pity that people who consider themselves intelligent get involved in twisted byways because they act impulsively on random guesswork» — y el reproche con que la remata: los que se tienen por inteligentes se meten en atajos torcidos por obrar impulsivamente sobre conjeturas

«If people can be empty within, this is the valley . Within emptiness there is a point of spiritual energy, hidden inside; this is the spirit. This valley is tranquil and unperturbed , this spirit is sensitive and effective» — lo que Un valle vacío llama Tao de nutrir el espíritu en la vacuidad: el vacío interior es el valle y el punto de energía espiritual escondido dentro es el espíritu, el uno tranquilo y el otro sensible. El tramo se corta antes de una raya que el troceo suelda a la palabra siguiente

«The marvel of the spirit is only in the valley» — y el remate de esa equivalencia en la misma contemplación: la maravilla del espíritu está solo en el valle

«In conventional society when a man and a woman are married, they cannot meet but for the go-between» — El intermediario: en la sociedad convencional el hombre y la mujer no se encuentran sino por el casamentero. El tramo se corta antes de una partición de renglón que el troceo suelda en palabra falsa

«If people get married on their own, without the offices of a go-between, they are not considered proper partners in the eyes of society, and their relationship will not last permanently» — y lo que la misma pieza añade: quien se casa por su cuenta no se tiene por pareja propia a los ojos de la sociedad y su relación no dura

«Roundness means being in the center of the compass. In the center of the compass, you respond adaptively according to the situation» — lo que Redondez y cuadratura llama Tao de usar la redondez y la cuadratura, en su primera mitad: la redondez es estar en el centro del compás y responder según la situación. El tramo se corta antes de una raya que el troceo suelda a la palabra siguiente

«Squareness means being in the center of the square. In the center of the square, right and wrong are not confused» — y su segunda mitad: la cuadratura es estar en el centro de la escuadra, donde lo justo y lo injusto no se confunden. El tramo se corta antes de otra raya soldada por el troceo

«do not act unjustly, do not live in a way you should not, being inwardly autonomous» — y el cabo de esa segunda mitad: no obrar injustamente ni vivir como no se debe, siendo autónomo por dentro

«The Great Way is not transmitted to people without social conscience, not handed on to people without goodness and virtue» — y la condición que Flores rojas y hojas verdes pone a la transmisión: la Gran Vía no se transmite a quien no tiene conciencia social ni se entrega a quien no tiene bondad y virtud. El tramo se corta antes de una raya soldada por el troceo

«There is another kind of muddled fool who does not know how to walk on the real ground and work in earnest. Fools like this may run into true teachers but will not respectfully seek teaching from them; instead they spout a lot of nonsense, imagining that they can take people in. When the celestial mechanism is revealed, they try to usurp the teaching by devious means» — y una tercera clase que censura en la misma contemplación: los que se topan con maestros verdaderos y en vez de pedirles enseñanza sueltan disparates y luego intentan usurparla por medios torcidos

«There has been a decline in the conditions of Taoism. How many Taoists know the true self» — Decadencia del taoísmo, pieza de la segunda parte: Liu Yiming pregunta cuántos taoístas conocen el verdadero yo. El tramo se corta antes de una partición de renglón que el troceo suelda en palabra falsa

«Many of them regard plant products as fruits of immortality. All of them have abandoned the normal and taken a liking to the strange. All of them seek happiness, but instead they bring on disaster. All who meet enlightened guides but do not humble themselves have already locked the door by themselves» — y el resto de esa pieza: se toman productos vegetales por frutos de inmortalidad, se abandona lo normal por gusto de lo extraño, y quien encuentra guías iluminados sin humillarse ya se cerró la puerta solo

«The Tao is a ladder to the heights-those who can ascend surely are outstanding» — Una escalera a lo alto: quien pueda subirla es de los que destacan. El tramo se corta antes de una partición de renglón que el troceo suelda en palabra falsa

«When the acquired is thoroughly sublimated, the primal appears. When the shell of mundanity is shed, the spiritual embryo is stable. The only thing is that students fear to work realJy hard, so when the end comes they scream and holler in vain» — y el resto de esa pieza: sublimado lo adquirido aparece lo primordial y mudada la cáscara de la mundanidad el embrión espiritual queda estable, y lo único que pasa es que los estudiantes temen trabajar de veras

«The Tao is unfathomable, the complete, unique absolute, with no back, no front, no before or after. Now hidden, now apparent, it is at once open yet formed. What the eye cannot see cannot be spoken of.-try to aim for it and you lose it. The spirit realizes it spontaneously» — El Tao insondable: sin espalda ni frente, sin antes ni después, oculto y manifiesto a la vez, y lo que el ojo no ve no se puede decir. El tramo se corta antes de una raya que el troceo suelda a la palabra siguiente

«If people can be flexible and yielding, humble, with self» — la mitad terrestre de la primera contemplación, El alto del cielo, el espesor de la tierra: ser flexible, ceder, ser humilde y tener dominio de sí. El tramo se corta antes de un compuesto que el troceo parte a fin de renglón y suelda en palabra falsa

«entirely free of agitation, cleared of all volatility, not angered by criticism, ignoring insult, docilely accepting all hardships, illnesses, and natural disasters, utterly without anxiety or resentment when faced with danger or adversity, then people can be companions of earth» — y la continuación de esa misma lista: sin agitación ni volatilidad, sin enojo por la crítica, ignorando el insulto, aceptando dócilmente penurias, enfermedades y desastres naturales, y así se puede ser compañero de la tierra

«In English today we have books on Taoism and investment, Taoism and management, Taoism and health, Taoism and medicine, Taoism and sex, Taoism and science, Taoism and psychology, Taoism and art, Taoism and life, Taoism and war, Taoism and education, Taoism and society, Taoism and every sort of illuminism and religion» — Cleary enumera en el prefacio los emparejamientos editoriales del taoísmo en inglés al escribir el volumen, y el libro se sitúa frente a esa lista

«but the narrowness of this definition is growing more acute day by day, as Taoism has already in the last couple of centuries extended some of its influence in the West to nearly as diverse an array of areas of human interest as it has in the East» — y acota la acepción estrecha: Cleary señala que se estrecha cada día porque el taoísmo lleva un par de siglos extendiendo su influencia en Occidente a tantos campos como en Oriente

«According to the Zen masters of ancient times, when you awaken to that unique Way at the crossroads of all ways, you then hold the key to all ways, and can succeed in any of those ways you choose to practice» — la razón que Cleary da en el prefacio para que un solo libro valga por todos esos campos, puesta en boca de los maestros zen de la antigüedad: quien despierta a la Vía del cruce de todas las vías tiene la llave de todas

«Born around 1 7 3 7, Liu writes that he first became interested in Taoism during his early teens» — Cleary abre la biografía de Liu Yiming con su nacimiento hacia 1737 y su primer interés adolescente por el taoísmo; las cifras salen espaciadas de la capa de texto

«According to his own account, he visited all sorts of supposed teachers and studied at random for several years» — y consigna como relato propio de Liu Yiming, no como dato verificado, la ronda de maestros supuestos y el estudio al azar de sus primeros años

«In his late teens he became gravely ill , and for the first time realized the uselessness of all he had studied» — el punto de quiebre que Cleary narra: la enfermedad grave de la adolescencia tardía y el primer reconocimiento de que lo estudiado no servía

«At that point, he had the fortune to meet a "Real Human, " a genuine Taoist adept, who was able to cure him» — la cura que Cleary atribuye a un encuentro, y el término que el volumen entrecomilla y que reaparecerá en el cuerpo del libro: un Real Human, adepto taoísta genuino

«Now totally committed to seeking the Tao, Liu left home at the age of nineteen to travel in search of true learning» — la salida de casa a los diecinueve años, que Cleary pone como comienzo de la peregrinación

«About three years after embarking on this pilgrimage, Liu met someone he calls the Old Man of the Valley of the Crypts, whom he thereafter regarded as his teacher» — el primer maestro según Cleary, a unos tres años de camino: el Viejo del Valle de las Criptas

«This old man explained to him the fallacies in the aberrant practices of the ever popular pseudo-Taoist cults Liu had naturally encountered, and passed on the essential psychological teaching of true Taoism» — lo que Cleary dice que ese primer maestro le transmitió: las falacias de los cultos pseudotaoístas y la enseñanza psicológica esencial

«In later years, Liu was to mention this momentous event over and over in taking his stand against deviant practices and approaches to Taoism» — y el uso que Cleary le ve dar después a ese episodio: la base desde la que Liu Yiming se planta contra las prácticas desviadas, que es el asunto de la segunda parte del libro

«There is nothing unique in this, of course, as similar warnings about sidetracks occur time and again in Taoist classics going back over two thousand years» — Cleary relativiza esa postura situándola en una serie de dos mil años de advertencias taoístas contra los desvíos

«After opening young Liu's mind to the central point of Taoism, the old man sent him home to finish his social duties and study the Taoist alchemical classics» — la instrucción que Cleary atribuye al mismo maestro: volver a casa a cumplir los deberes sociales y estudiar los clásicos alquímicos

«Neglect of social life in youth and lack of sufficient grounding in the principles of mysticism were two of the major defects that great latter-day Taoists have repeatedly pointed out in aberrant pseudo» — y la razón que Cleary da: el descuido de la vida social en la juventud y la falta de base en los principios del misticismo son los dos defectos que los grandes taoístas tardíos señalan; la palabra se corta a fin de plana

«Accordingly, Liu 1-ming made a thorough investigation of the sacred literature of Taoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism» — la lectura que Cleary le adjudica en esos años: la literatura sagrada del taoísmo, del confucianismo y del budismo a la vez

«His own explanation is that he left his teacher too soon. This resulted in twelve years of doubt and uncertainty» — la explicación que Cleary reproduce como del propio Liu Yiming para los doce años de duda que siguieron: haber dejado al maestro demasiado pronto

«During this unsettled period, Liu spent four years living in Beijing, the northern capital , two years in central China, three years in the far northwest, and four years wandering around» — el itinerario de esos años que consigna Cleary: cuatro en Pekín, dos en China central, tres en el noroeste lejano y cuatro de vagabundeo

«Finally in 1772 Liu met his second teacher, whom he calls the Old J\ilan of the Immortals' Station» — el segundo maestro, fechado por Cleary en 1772; la capa de texto imprime *Old J\ilan* donde el impreso dice Old Man, como en el Old Man of the Valley of the Crypts de la plana anterior

«Liu describes his experience under the old man's tutelage as like being raised from the bottom of an immeasurably deep pit to the top of an immeasurably high mountain» — la imagen con que Cleary traslada la experiencia de esa tutela: ser subido del fondo de un pozo insondable a la cima de una montaña insondable

«Freed from doubt forever, Liu now felt as though he "saw the whole world in the palm of his hand and encountered the 'lao wherever he was» — y la frase que Cleary entrecomilla como de Liu Yiming: ver el mundo entero en la palma de la mano y encontrar el Tao dondequiera; la capa de texto imprime *'lao* por Tao

«After sudden enlightenment comes gradual application, and I .iu further reports two profound and encompassing spiritual experiences that took place in 17 76 and 1780» — la secuencia que Cleary enuncia como principio, iluminación súbita seguida de aplicación gradual, y las dos experiencias que fecha en 1776 y 1780

«again in accord with classic principles-he spent many more years practicing concealment in company , traveling to various places and working at various jobs and professions while continuing his inner refinement» — los años siguientes según Cleary: ocultamiento en compañía, viajes, oficios varios y refinamiento interior sostenido

«Even after these experiences, Liu does not seem to have begun writing on Taoism until the 1790s, when he was already nearly sixty» — y la fecha tardía en que Cleary sitúa el comienzo de su escritura: los años 1790, cerca ya de los sesenta

«He continued to write until around 1826, a period of nearly thirty years» — el cierre del arco de escritura que traza Cleary, casi treinta años hasta 1826

«nothing else, this aspect of Taoist history testifies to the persistence of certain fascinations and the chronic lack of information among cultists» — lo que Cleary lee en esa repetición de advertencias: la persistencia de ciertas fascinaciones y la falta crónica de información entre los sectarios; la frase arranca en la plana anterior

«Liu also composed numerous essays, poems, and songs of his own, likewise employing the vocabulary of Taoist alchemy in psychological translation and expounding the essence of Taoism with unprecedented clarity» — y el resto de la obra que Cleary le adjudica: ensayos, poemas y canciones que emplean el vocabulario de la alquimia taoísta en traducción psicológica

«T he well-known Book of Changes (I Ching, or Yijing, or Zhouyi) is one of the fundamental texts of Taoism, used to illustrate a complete cycle of development» — la nota final de Cleary glosa una por una las obras que acaba de nombrar; del Libro de los Cambios dice que es uno de los textos fundamentales del taoísmo y que sirve para ilustrar un ciclo completo de desarrollo

«are the two greatest alchemical texts and are called the ancestors of alchemical literature by the Complete Reality schools of Taoism» — y de Understanding Reality y Triplex Unity, que son los dos mayores textos alquímicos y que las escuelas de la Realidad Completa los llaman ancestros de la literatura alquímica; la frase arranca en la plana anterior

«The Yin Convergence Classic (Yinfujing) is even more ancient than The Book of Changes. It is attributed to the Yellow Emperor himself, one of the greatest figures of prehistoric Taoism, who is thought to have lived nearly five thousand years ago» — lo que Cleary dice del Yin Convergence Classic: más antiguo aún que el Libro de los Cambios y atribuido al propio Emperador Amarillo, situado cinco mil años atrás; la atribución se consigna como atribución

«scholars believe it dates back at least to the Shang dynasty, roughly the second millennium B.C.E., on the grounds that there is already commentary on the classic from that period» — y la datación alterna que Cleary pone al lado sin arbitrar entre las dos: los eruditos seculares lo llevan al menos a la dinastía Shang por haber ya comentario de esa época; la frase arranca en la plana anterior, donde dice *Secular*

«This text has been interpreted in many ways; some regard it as a text on the art of warfare, while others regard it as a spiritual classic on a par with the Tao Te Ching» — y la divergencia de lecturas que Cleary consigna sin resolver: unos lo tienen por tratado del arte de la guerra y otros por clásico espiritual a la altura del Tao Te Ching

«Four Hundred Wordr on the Gold Pill Uindan Sibaizi) is a seminal alchemical dassic by the same author as Understanding Reality» — lo que Cleary dice del Four Hundred Words on the Gold Pill: clásico alquímico seminal del mismo autor que Understanding Reality; la capa de texto imprime *Wordr* por Words, *Uindan* por Jindan y *dassic* por classic

«Tapping the Lines (Qiaoyao ge) and The Hundred Character Inscription (Baizi bei) are poems by the great Ancestor Lu» — y de Tapping the Lines y The Hundred Character Inscription, que son poemas del gran Ancestro Lu; la nota lo llama abuelo del movimiento de la Realidad Completa en la plana siguiente

«The Rootless Tree (Wugenshu) is a collection of poems by the fabled Zhang (Chang) Sanfeng, legendary originator of Absolute Boxing, alchemist capable of producing both material and spiritual gold, exposer of charlatans and dummies, and all-around Taoist wizard» — el retrato que Cleary hace de Zhang Sanfeng al presentar The Rootless Tree: originador legendario del Boxeo Absoluto, alquimista capaz de producir oro material y espiritual, y desenmascarador de charlatanes

«Journey to the West (X iyouji) is one of the Four Extraordinary Books of the Ming dynasty , four great novels used as media extraordinaire for Taoist teaching in the secular society of post» — y lo que dice de Journey to the West: uno de los Cuatro Libros Extraordinarios de la dinastía Ming, novelas usadas como vehículo de enseñanza taoísta en la sociedad secular; la palabra final se parte a fin de plana

«T he following texts have been translated into English. The Book of Changes , with Liu's commentary, is in The Taoist I Ching (Boston and London: Shambhala, 1986). Understanding Reality, with Liu's commentary, is under its original title (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1988)» — las traducciones inglesas que Cleary declara disponibles al escribir: el Libro de los Cambios con comentario de Liu Yiming en The Taoist I Ching (Shambhala, 1986) y Understanding Reality con su comentario (Hawaii, 1988). Es la fecha más alta que imprime el volumen y fija el techo de lo que su aparato puede citar

«Four Hundred Wordr on the Gold Pill is in The Inner Teachings of Taoism (Boston and London: Shambhala, 1987). T he others are in a forthcoming anthology» — y el resto del mismo inventario: Four Hundred Words on the Gold Pill en The Inner Teachings of Taoism (Shambhala, 1987), y los demás anunciados en una antología entonces por salir

Microcosmos (el hombre-mundo) — La obra pone en el cuerpo humano un cielo y una tierra propios y una Creación en la propia mente, sin quedar constreñido por ellos; y lee el cuerpo físico como taller alquímico cuyos órganos son los vasos que guardan las cinco fuerzas, con el cuerpo real escondido dentro del material.

Microcosmos (el hombre-mundo) — La misma lectura vale para el valle: quien está vacío por dentro ES el valle, y el punto de energía espiritual escondido en esa vacuidad es el espíritu del valle del folclor.

Secreto (lo que se jura no fijar por escrito) — La pieza que cierra el volumen pone prohibiciones sobre el Tao: pasar la escalera de la esencia y la vida a quien no corresponde hace aparecer una estrella de mal agüero, y revelar a la ligera el mecanismo celeste acerca la calamidad; solo ante un conocedor se habla con franqueza.

Secreto (lo que se jura no fijar por escrito) — Y el propio Liu Yiming dice de la instrucción que la ocultación es parte de ella: el secreto verdadero se transmite fuera de la doctrina, y a quien no entienda el mecanismo celeste le manda dejar de perorar delante de la gente.

Decknamen (nombres cubiertos) — La obra declara el estatuto de su propio lenguaje: el simbolismo colorido de los textos taoístas es solo eso, simbolismo, y quien gusta de lo extraño ya erró el camino; los ignorantes que no conocen las metáforas usadas en la Vía hacen suposiciones salvajes y siguen prácticas más salvajes, y quienes trabajan sobre el cuerpo físico o se preocupan por sus hornos y minerales son necios.

Cadena de transmisión (quién tomó de quién) — La obra sostiene que la Vía debe enseñarse y que sin maestro iluminado todo sale torcido, con una sucesión de adeptos que fue entregando las revelaciones del mecanismo y una sucesión de lámparas que fue señalando lo primordial.

Cadena de transmisión (quién tomó de quién) — Y a la vez niega la transmisión ordinaria: el Tao no se pasa por las líneas usuales, no se hereda de padre a hijo y no se compra ni por diez mil onzas de oro.