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Chapter 29 Summary

Get out the microscope, because we’re going through this poem line-by-line.

  • Chapter 29 has a warning for all those military dictators out there.
  • It's useless to try to control the world because the world cannot be controlled.
  • Anybody who tries to control it is doomed to fail.
  • If they try to squeeze it in their hands, they'll lose it.
  • The Tao is all about balance, and everything has its place in that—leaders and followers, hot thing and cold things, strong things and weak things.
  • The sages recognize that the best thing to do is eliminate extremes, excess, and arrogance.
  • Hmm. It feels like the TTC has given us that advice before.