Get out the microscope, because we’re going through this poem line-by-line.
- … Aaaand here come some more seeming contradictions.
- Great perfection, a.k.a. the Tao, might seem flawed.
- Great fullness, a.k.a. the Tao, might seem empty.
- Still, the Tao does its thing without stopping.
- Sometimes something that's straight might seem bent.
- People who are super-skilled at something or are great speakers might seem like they aren't skilled or great at all.
- "Stillness overcomes movement," we're told (45.9).
- This all might be getting at the way Tao masters live simply and quietly.
- They don't do more than is necessary, but when they do something they make it count.
- They don't talk more than is necessary, but when they speak the few words they say pack a wallop.