Making Use of Where Its Not
| Original | English Translation |
|---|---|
| 三 十 輻 共 一 轂 | 30 spokes form 1 wheel |
| 當 其 無 有 車 之 用 | where they aren't is what the car uses |
| 埏 埴 以 為 器 | shape some clay to form a pot |
| 當 其 無 有 器 之 用 | where it isn't is the pot's usefulness |
| 鑿 戶 牖 以 為 室 | chisel out doors and windows to form a house |
| 當 其 無 有 室 之 用 | where they aren't is the home's usefulness |
| 故 有 之 以 為 利 | and so we work with what we have |
| 無 之 以 為 用 | making use of its have-not |
My Comments:
This chapter is a cute observation. I wonder if it has deeper meaning, but I dont see any.
What I do see is that it makes a good case of the need for both yin and yang. Each of the things that are listed have a presence of structure, and an absense of structure. And the way the presence and absense work together is very useful. Neither complete absense, nor complete presence would be as useful.