"The Master Zongxuan's Treatise on the Profound Outline": Chapter 9, on the Root and Branches

Original Text Benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom are the grand principles of imperial politics. Yet why does the Daoist school alone claim that one should abandon benevolence and righteousness, and treat propriety and wisdom lightly? This is because the Dao emphasizes the root. Therefore, supreme benevolence harmonizes with the virtue of Heaven and Earth, supreme righteousness harmonizes with the appropriateness of Heaven and Earth, supreme propriety harmonizes with the demeanor of Heaven and Earth, and supreme wisdom harmonizes with the discernment of Heaven and Earth. All these are naturally endowed and cannot be attained merely by striving or envying. To artificially imitate them is to create falseness. Once falseness arises, myriad deceptions will emerge, and laws alone cannot bring order. Thus, we value the pure and ancient ways while despising the decadent and degenerate times; we place morality and virtue internally and benevolence and righteousness externally; we prioritize simplicity and uncarved wood while placing propriety and wisdom later. This is to strengthen the root in order to secure the branches. Just as deep roots lead to lush branches, and a deep source leads to a long stream, this does not mean abandoning benevolence and righteousness or treating propriety and wisdom lightly. Therefore, when the Dao is lost, virtue remains; when virtue declines, benevolence remains; when benevolence is deficient, righteousness remains; when righteousness is lacking, propriety remains; when propriety is broken, chaos follows; and wisdom merely serves to dominate the world. Thus, propriety and wisdom are the great defenses against chaos. Morality and virtue are the grand outlines for pacifying chaos. Consequently, morality and virtue are the root of propriety and wisdom, while propriety and wisdom are the branches of the Dao. Grasping the root is easy and stable; holding the branches is difficult and precarious. Therefore, the ruler should take the Dao as the mind, virtue as the body, benevolence and righteousness as the carriage and attire, and propriety and wisdom as the crown and cap. In this way, he can govern from a seated position and the world will be transformed. If one values propriety and wisdom while forgetting morality and virtue, it is like having external decorations but no inner spirit. Even if one is diligent from morning to night, the world will still be exhausted. Thus, the Three Sovereigns transformed the world through the Dao, the Five Emperors pacified it through virtue, the Three Kings regulated it through benevolence and righteousness, and the Five Hegemons led it through propriety and wisdom. Therefore, the Three Sovereigns achieved the highest order, while the Five Hegemons approached the highest chaos. Thus, abandoning morality and virtue to rely solely on propriety and wisdom is not the art of ruling from the south (as a monarch). Hence, one must first clarify morality and virtue; when morality and virtue are clear, propriety and wisdom become secondary. Laozi said: "Propriety is the thinning of loyalty and trust, and the beginning of chaos." Using wisdom to govern the state is a thief to the state; not using wisdom to govern the state is a blessing to the state. This means that when propriety is deficient, chaos arises, and when wisdom is distorted, deception occurs. Thus, we block the source of chaos and cut off the root of deception. Those like Yang Xiong and Ban Gu all criticized the Daoist school for lightly treating benevolence and righteousness and relying solely on clarity and emptiness. This is because worldly Confucian scholars do not understand the profound intent of the Profound Sages. Rough Explanation Benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and governance are the grand principles for emperors to rule the state. But why does only the Daoist school say that one should not emphasize benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom? Because the Dao cares about the fundamental root. Supreme benevolence harmonizes with the virtue of Heaven and Earth, supreme righteousness harmonizes with the appropriateness of Heaven and Earth, supreme propriety harmonizes with the demeanor of Heaven and Earth, and supreme wisdom harmonizes with the discernment of Heaven and Earth. These all come from nature and can be attained through praise or envy. If one deliberately imitates them, it becomes falseness. Once falseness exists, deception accompanies it, so laws alone cannot govern. Thus, what is more valuable is the pure and ancient way rather than the decadent era. Internally there is morality and virtue, externally there is benevolence and righteousness; with simplicity, there is propriety and wisdom. Grasping the root ensures the branches are naturally stable. This is like a tree: if the roots are deep, the branches and leaves will be lush; if the source of a river is deep, the stream will be long. This does not mean rejecting benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom. Therefore, if the Dao is lost, virtue remains; if virtue declines, benevolence remains; if benevolence is deficient, righteousness remains; if righteousness is lacking, propriety remains; if propriety is broken, chaos ensues, but in times of chaos, wisdom can still be used to dominate the world. Rulers should take the Dao as the mind, virtue as the body, benevolence and righteousness as clothing, and propriety and wisdom as hats. Then the world will transform itself. If one only values propriety and wisdom while forgetting morality and virtue, having only external appearance without inner spirit, even if one is constantly vigilant, the world cannot be governed. Thus, the Three Sovereigns used the Dao for transformation, the Five Emperors used virtue for pacification, the Three Kings used benevolence and righteousness for regulation, and the Five Hegemons used propriety and wisdom for leadership. Therefore, the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors achieved the highest order, while the Three Kings and Five Hegemons led to chaos. This is because abandoning morality and virtue to rely solely on propriety and wisdom is not the method for ruling the world. First clarify morality and virtue; when morality and virtue are clear, propriety and wisdom need not be a concern. Thus, Laozi said: "Propriety is the thinning of loyalty and trust and the beginning of chaos." Using talent and wisdom to govern the state harms the state; not using talent and wisdom to govern the state is the blessing of the state. This means that when propriety is deficient, chaos arises, and wisdom turns into deception. Therefore, one must solve chaos and deception at their root. As for Yang Xiong and Ban Gu, they claimed that the Daoist school lightly treats benevolence and righteousness and relies on nothing, because these Confucian scholars have not truly comprehended the profound intent of the Sages. Practical Cultivation Guide The heart is the ruler, and the body is the state. This article discusses the way of governing the state, but it also refers to the way of governing the body. Daoist thought advocates abandoning benevolence and righteousness, focusing on the source of morality and virtue. Why abandon benevolence and righteousness? Master Zongxuan believes that benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom are not fundamental things. If one focuses on them and tries to solve problems through them, it will not work. Because benevolence, righteousness, propriety, and wisdom are generated by morality and virtue, and they cannot guarantee that their order will always be maintained. The best example is when propriety fails, people no longer interact with proper etiquette, and naturally, friction increases. With more friction, chaos naturally arises. Once this chaos arises, wisdom, which was originally used for the right path, transforms into deception. Once it transforms into deception, the root of disaster truly begins. A real-world example: Researchers with upright hearts use wisdom for the right path, studying how to improve production efficiency and benefit the public. Those with crooked hearts, having lost the heart of benevolence and righteousness, study how to pass off gutter oil as good oil, how to pass off inferior goods as high-quality, and how to pretend in front of others. This is because there is no restraint of benevolence and righteousness, propriety is broken, and wisdom becomes deception. Understanding this helps one realize that in cultivation, if problems arise, one should not try to solve them through wisdom. Progress in cultivation does not depend on cleverness but on whether it conforms to morality and virtue. For example, if someone cultivates incorrectly and their body feels like an ice cellar, with coldness seeping in, leading to illness over time, they might use clever tricks to draw the essence of the sun and burn their body with fire to warm it. But this method, while effective, relies on burning the body with fire. If one day the fire is not used, the body suffers the cold again. Although cultivation can alleviate the symptoms, it is ultimately not the fundamental method. So how should this be resolved? One must understand the evolution of morality and virtue. The human body is like ice; this cold energy must have had a problem during the transformation of qi into all things. Qi transforms through spirit, and spirit transforms from essence. Thus, one should work on essence, qi, and spirit. With the thought of "non-thought," cultivate the correctness of spirit, and qi will transform. Once qi transforms and there is no cold, where is the cold? Other symptoms are the same; as the saying goes, "When one method is clear, all methods are understood." The method of the Great Dao is very simple to speak of, and cultivators can all comprehend it. Do not rely on wisdom to understand, do not let the mind change, only seek nature, keep the One as the model, and all methods return to the source.