Chapter 62第62章

The Tao is the hidden reservoir of all things — the treasure of the good person, the refuge of the not-so-good. Beautiful words can be traded in the marketplace, and honorable deeds can win people over. But as for those who aren't good — why would you reject them? So when the emperor is enthroned and the three ministers appointed, though you might offer jade discs preceded by teams of horses, it would be better to sit still and offer this Tao. Why did the ancients value this Tao so much? Didn't they say: seek and you shall find, sin and you shall be forgiven? That's why it's the most valued thing in all the world. It costs nothing, excludes no one, and yet contains everything.

The Tao as the mysterious storehouse of all ten thousand things — the good person's treasure, the not-good person's sanctuary. And this is crucial: it doesn't exclude anyone. Beautiful words can be marketed, noble conduct can elevate your social standing, but those who haven't found their way — why would you abandon them? This is the radical inclusivity of the Tao. When you install an emperor, when you appoint the great ministers of state, you could offer jade discs and four-horse chariots — but it would be better to sit and advance this Tao. Why did the ancients prize it above all? Because through it, those who seek will find, and those who have transgressed will be released. It's the universal solvent. No guilt, no exclusion, no hierarchy of worthiness. This is what makes it the most precious thing under heaven — it's the only treasure that increases by being given away.

Wang Bi says the Way is the 'ao' — the sheltering place, the refuge — of all ten thousand things. It is what provides protection and shade. For the good person, the Way is a treasure; for the person who is not good, the Way preserves and protects them all the same. Now here is the really interesting bit: beautiful words can buy and sell in the marketplace, and honored conduct can be bestowed upon others — but neither of these compares to the Way itself. Wang Bi reads the establishment of the Son of Heaven and the Three Ministers as an exercise in honoring position and elevating persons for the PURPOSE of the Way. You could offer jade discs the size of your arms, preceded by teams of four horses — and it would still not compare to simply sitting down and advancing into this Way. Nothing in existence is more precious than it. And so, says Wang Bi, whether you seek and obtain, or have faults and are pardoned, all of this comes through the Way. That is why it is valued by all under heaven.

Wang Bi glosses 奥 as 'shelter' — that which provides cover and protection. The Way is the refuge of all things. And the crucial distinction he makes is between the good person, for whom the Way is a treasure — actively valued, consciously held — and the not-good person, for whom the Way still serves as a preserver. It protects even those who are unaware of it. Then the marketplace metaphor: beautiful words can be traded, honored conduct can be conferred upon others — Wang Bi says 「美言可以市也尊行之則可以加人也」. But these are currencies of the social world. The Way operates at a deeper register. Wang Bi reads the installation of the Son of Heaven and the Three Ministers — the entire apparatus of political authority — as fundamentally oriented toward the Way. You establish positions of power in order to serve the Way, not the reverse. Even cartloads of jade and teams of four horses cannot compare to simply sitting and entering this Way. 「物無有貴於此者」 — among all things, nothing is more precious. And then the closing argument: seek and you receive; transgress and you are pardoned. Both functions — reward and mercy — derive from the same source. This is why the Way is valued by all under heaven.