Chapter 41 Chapter Forty-Three

The weakest thing in the world can enter, run on its own, control and move the hardest and strongest thing in the world.What has no trace of existence, what is formless and soundless, can enter and play its role in what is dense and without gaps. From this, we can know that the function and benefit of doing nothing, the function and benefit of not speaking or speaking, are really incomparable to all other real things. This chapter is very famous, and the statement about infinity and infinity immediately makes people think of atoms, molecules, particles, neutrons, protons, electrons, quarks, radiation, isotopes, electromagnetic waves, B-ultrasound, CT?? Think of high-energy physics , The micro world, think of industrial technologies such as power generation, radio, nuclear energy, information, and nano.Although we know that the science fantasy elements in "Lao Tzu" are unique, but Lao Tzu's imagination coincides with the structure and principles of the physical world, which is really amazing.

This chapter may also remind people of the famous Hong Kong film "Infernal Affairs".Wujian is a fascinating philosophy-Buddhism-mystical term, which was first used by Lao Tzu.The non-intermittent in Buddhism not only refers to the absence of gaps in space, but also emphasizes the absence of interruptions in time.In Buddhism, Infernal Affairs is another name for hell.Lao Tzu here is only talking about the absence of gaps, and there is no gap, but one can still get in, go in, and affect it, relying on non-existence, because there is no gap, and any being can't get in. Here nothingness is actually a form of existence, it can be invisible, shapeless, soundless and weightless, but it is because of this that it is invincible, invincible, and invincible.This seems to be talking about supernatural power, but Lao Tzu, like Confucius, does not talk about supernatural power and chaotic gods. Later (Chapter 60) he talks about the fact that ghosts are not gods, and it is good to not be gods.

So is Laozi talking about heat energy, electric energy, neutrons, and nucleons?Lao Tzu certainly did not have such knowledge and imagination at that time, but he believed that there is something called non-existence in the world, which can enter the Infinite.In fact, according to modern physics, all matter has gaps. Lao Tzu's vision is not in physics but in philosophy. Philosophy can approach the new discoveries and theories of physics ahead of time.Lao Tzu has an imagination and a concept, which is called defeating the strong with the weak, defeating the real with the emptiness, defeating the presence with nothing, defeating the force with wisdom, using strength to fight against the enemy, defeating the enemy invisible, defeating the enemy unconsciously, Win without fighting.This is a very popular idea in China, and I think it has something to do with too many underdogs in China.Although it may not be very practical, and may not be supported by many successful cases, it is beautiful, ideal, and philosophical.The thinking of Taijiquan may be related to this, and the thinking of internal strength and qigong is also related to this.

The most advanced fighting kung fu we envisage is a thin old man who sits half-recumbent and half-sitting there, without raising his eyelids, keeping his face, barely moving or making a slight movement, and the attacking enemy will lie down and be subdued. was wiped out. This kind of thinking has a kind of ingenuity, magic and even mystery, but it is indeed a bit naive. In Lao Tzu's praise, it is a beautiful fantasy of a baby.To use today's disrespectful language, it's a bit childish.In this kind of pediatric fantasies, superstition and ignorance have appeared, such as the utopia of the Boxers who beat foreigners with kung fu.

Of course, it also has some truths: softness wins firmness, weakness wins strong, smallness wins big, nothing wins presence. Such excellent examples do not exist, but the problem is that this is not the usual way. In this model, we can imagine or think about the following better situations: one is to use our spiritual culture to defeat the strong ships and guns of the West, and to defeat the material civilization of the West with the Chinese spiritual civilization.This was once imagined by some people in the late Qing Dynasty and the early Republic of China.However, it failed. One is to use a brand new ideology to overcome the old and vulgar Western ideology.Mao Zedong once stated in the early days of liberation that an ordinary Chinese worker and peasant, because he had mastered a brand-new ideology, was far superior to a Western figure in understanding the world and history.Later, there was a so-called "spiritual atomic bomb" in China. The "Cultural Revolution" even exaggerated the role of ideology to an extremely high level.

There are still such oriental daydreams and utopias in which softness prevails over firmness and everything is seamless, such as the supernatural power craze and qigong craze in a certain period. The "soft power" we like to talk about now, in the eyes of Chinese people, will also be connected with Lao Tzu's philosophy.Speech, thought, culture, and way of life are all the most soft in the world, all are good like water, all moisten things silently, and all are soft power. At the same time, I believe that the key to whether it is soft power or powerful lies in the effectiveness of culture, that is, whether a culture can improve the quality of life of the groups it covers, whether it can help the development of productivity and the development of the groups it covers. Progress in politics, economy, culture and society.

If the same effect can be achieved, inaction is of course much better than action, and reticence is of course much better than talk.At the very least, inaction and refraining from speaking leave enough space for doing something and making a statement in the future.Doing nothing is to keep in the state of being about to start but not to start; it is the state where everything is ready, just waiting for the firing of the starting gun; it is the state of smiling but not saying anything; , the invincible state.Even if you "for" once or twice because of a real need, just like an athlete who has to move, dodge, or exert force suddenly in order to return the ball, you must immediately

That is to return to the state of inaction and preparation without interruption, grasp the center of gravity, and be ready to deal with the next surprise attack to meet the next challenge. The idea of ​​infinity and infinity is outstanding and transcendent.Let's take the famous French Maginot Line as an example: the impregnable Maginot Line after World War I can be said to be a model of "seamless", its defense has neither gaps nor pauses.But in May 1940, the German army climbed over the Ardennes, bypassed this line of defense through Belgium, and soon occupied the entire territory of France.The mythical Maginot Line turned out to be a useless gimmick and a mockery of the defeated.Endless is possible, endless without end is impossible.At the beginning of World War II, the German army did not attack at all to break through the Maginot Line.Another example is the example of our country's transformation of war criminals: at the beginning, the tenacity of criminals is completely "inseparable" and completely inaccessible.At this time, it is useless to use violence or lectures, but in other irrelevant matters, the exemplary behavior of the correctional officers may move the criminals and lead them into the world with nothing.

Although not without illusions, in the face of strength and incompatibility, intellectuals are still willing to believe that inextricability is inseparable.Intellectuals have what they have but nothing, that is, no property, no power, and no stick. However, if you are really close to the road—the truth, you may achieve certain achievements.And that unbroken power, if it breaks away from the avenue—truth, it may eventually collapse or mutate. Looking at it from another angle, intellectuals should not be satisfied with what they don't have, they should also have a little bit more actual achievements and influence.