Chapter 17 Chapter Seventeen I'm Natural

For the most brilliant rulers, the people below only know that there are such people, and it is enough to know that there are them.Almost, people still need to be busy getting close to them, praising them, and currying favor with them.A little bit worse, these princely officials are scary and daunting.Worse still are those rulers whom the common people scorn and ridicule: they lack credibility, they are not trusted. If you do something that is not honest enough, no one will believe you.A good ruler is one who takes his time, doesn't talk much, and words are precious.Things have been done, and the common people say that we did it ourselves.

Lao Tzu sketches an idealistic picture of administration in Chapter 17.He is not as absolute and unrealistic as the anarchists imagine.Admitting the existence of such a ruler does not have that much relationship with him, and he does not interfere with each other, and is not so close, so there will not be many conflicts, and a certain distance will be maintained.Relatives come from afar, so it is better for officials to keep a proper distance. Being close and warm, and singing praises, it’s good. If it’s too good, the expectations will be high, and if they are high, it will be easy to be disappointed: the so-called love breeds expectations, expectations breed resentment, resentment breeds troubles, troubles breed dissatisfaction, and in the end it doesn’t work out. Will turn against each other.

Being intimate and warm, singing praises, is also prone to hypocrisy, turning into means and scheming. Under the above circumstances, it is not easy for the above-mentioned people to find the problem in time and adjust and correct it in time.At the moment when the hymns are full of praise, who can wake up and who can change?Chen Yi has a poem: "Don't you love to support, and the carols are full of fairy music." Fearing people is actually a fact that must be faced, because on the one hand, countries use violence to maintain their rule.On the other hand, superstitious violence will only kill itself.Because only power without trust is dangerous, and it is easy to collapse in a blink of an eye.

It would be even more ideal for the common people to feel that they are doing their own thing well. This is to liberate themselves and save themselves.The way of governing lies in trusting people and giving full play to people's initiative and creativity.No matter how brilliant and great the ruling group is, the things that can be accomplished are actually limited, and if the strength and enthusiasm of the common people are fully exerted, the things that can be done are much greater.Those who can't do this can't succeed in politics.The more ordinary people can have the ability to manage their own affairs, have the feeling of helping themselves, can digest problems by themselves, can help themselves, comfort and strengthen themselves, can do things for themselves without interference, and only receive support, this country will be in great order.