Chapter 66: Being the Ocean (第66章：後己)

江海所以能為百谷王者，以其善下之，故能為百谷王。
是以欲上民，必以言下之；欲先民，必以身後之。
是以聖人處上而民不重，處前而民不害。
是以天下樂推而不厭。以其不爭，故天下莫能與之爭。
☸

Translation

The reason the great rivers and seas can be the kings of all valleys
Is that they excel in staying below them.
Therefore, they can be kings of all valleys.

If you want to be above the people, you must speak as if you are below them.
If you want to be in front of the people, you must put yourself behind them.

Therefore, the Sage stands above and the people do not feel his weight;
He stands in front and the people suffer no harm.

The whole world is happy to support him and never tires of him.
Because he does not contend, no one in the world can contend with him.

✦ ◆ ✦

📜 Liuren Perspective

In Liuren Fajiao, the "Rivers and Seas" (江海) represent the Collective Power of the Lineage. This power is vast because it "stays below" all individual practitioners. A master who emulates the ocean remains humble, allowing the "streams" of spiritual energy from the ancestors and the Dao to flow into them.

"Putting yourself behind" (身後之) is the standard for a ritual leader. We do not perform magic to be "in front" (seen); we perform magic to "support" (behind). When a master follows this principle, the people they help do not feel the "weight" of the master's ego, and they "suffer no harm" from the spiritual work.

The secret of Non-contention (不爭) is the ultimate defense. By being like the sea, the master is too vast and too low to be targeted. They receive everything but are controlled by nothing. This is the "Inexhaustible Power" of the Liuren tradition.

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