78

Nothing in the world takes it easier than water.

Also, it is good at cleaning pee-stains from a rug.

Just as the easy undermine the uptight,

The bums will undermine the achievers.

Takes a minute.

The Stranger says:

“I like your style dude;

Just one thing, Dude—

Do you have to use so many cuss words?”

The fuck is he talking about?

This is the parlance of our times.

When the whole world has gone crazy,

Only the crazy fucks are happy.

Tao Te Ching: 78

Nothing in the world is as soft and accommodating as water,

And yet for overcoming the hard and inflexible,

There is nothing more effective.

Everyone knows that the liquid undermines the adamant,

That the yielding wears away at the unyielding,

Yet few of us are able to put this principle into play.

Therefore the sage says:

Only he who can embrace a society’s shame

Is qualified to rule over the entire country.

And only he who can bear its burden

Deserves to be carried on its shoulders.

These ideas may seem paradoxical at first glance,

But Tao is often like that.