Tao Te Ching, 1-12

I like the Tao, as it is much more lyrical and metaphorical than the Annalects and other works we've read, as it is composed of poem-like chapters. But bad come with good, which in this case means that the Tao is more difficult to undertand and one must strive to find the true meaning.

I really enjoyed chapter one as it does its job spendidly, as it draws in the reader by talking about "the mystery" which seems to mean the story or meaning of all things.

In chapter two, the Tao breaches what I consider to be a very modern idea, which is that with the absence of evil there cannot be good. In other words opposites are necessary.

I believe the "unfathomable source of the ten thousand things" is a reference to the mystery, but I had a hard time with chapter four, because the meaning escapes me.

I like the idea presented in chapter seven that that which is nto born cannot die, which menas that which has no beginning, has no end. This idea also struck me as modern, which really made me think about me notions of the past.