Chapter 45

Chapter 45

The greatest accomplishments seem imperfect,
yet their usefulness is not diminished.
The greatest fullness seems empty,
yet it will be inexhaustible.

The greatest straightness seems crooked.
The most valued skill seems like clumsiness.
The greatest speech seems full of stammers.

Movement overcomes the cold,
and stillness overcomes the heat.
That which is pure and still is the universal ideal.

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It is hard to observe any case of “spotlessness.” Even the most beautiful woman’s face may have one or two flaws, because they are humans after all. We sometimes obsess over achieving a spotless record. In mixed martial arts, for example, undefeated champions are rare (Floyd Mayweather is an exceptional case in boxing and would have recorded several losses if he competed in MMA.) Even if they taste losses, champions are able to bounce back and get the gold belt back. In one way, it can be argued that their blemishes on the mixed martial arts records do not render them less great because that makes them even greater in that they overcame the pain of losses and rose to top.