Loko Osh Katsw
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The Outer Realm is a chaotic mix of opposites.
It is empty, yet it gave birth to the many worlds.
It is cold, yet it is filled with warming suns.
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The Outer Realm can last for ever because it does not exist for itself.
Without the suns and worlds it holds it would have no meaning and no purpose.
In the same way, a wise leader guides his people by putting himself last,
for without the governed the governor would have no meaning and no purpose. -
All beings are insignificant when compared to the stars,
so there is no shame in being unimportant,
and no real importance in loss or gain.All living beings are vulnerable to injury and death because of their very nature,
so injury and death should be accepted as a natural part of life. -
A plant cannot be forced to grow, nore can time be willed to pass.
No amount of effort will keep ripples from the surface of water.
It is only through waiting and stillness that these come about,
through the use of time and patience.Nature may sometimes be guided, and people may sometimes be lead,
but nothing can truly be forced against its nature. -
Complexity in sight and sound and touch are easily perceived and can dazzle,
but this is only because of their limits in space and time.
Their existence relies upon the darkness and silence and smoothness around themSimplicity of sight and sound and touch are hard to perceive.
They do not dazzle, but can go on forever.The darkness provides background for light, the silence provides pauses between the sounds,
and the empty provides space for the structured. -
The utility of a bowl rests in where the wood is not,
just as the utility of a room is in where the walls are not.Things are useful because of what is around them,
just as people are defined by what they do. -
Excess is as unproductive as lack.
Just as an overfilled cup can easily spill and an oversharpened blade will quickly blunt,
a great treasure trove cannot be protected from thieves.It is far better to have just enough than to have too much.
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Excess of light blinds the eye, excess of sound deafens the ear,
and excess of salt deadens the palate.It is only through moderation that one can see, hear, and taste all that is really there.
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Altruism is like water,
it flows to the lowest places and raises the lowest things. -
The world does not behave like a human.
It does not want gratitude for creating life,
nor does it expect hatred for destroying.The world only does what it must do, and expecting something else is madness.
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The emptiness of the Outer Realm can never be exhausted.
It stretches between the worlds, touching all of them, and will outlast them.
It is eternal because it is nothing.
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The only thing that is unchanging is change itself.
The only name that does not change is the name of the universe.To give something a name is to identify it,
but since all things change then no name can be valid for long.To understand all things you must give up the desire to name them.
For to name something is to cease understanding it.A bright light only creates impenetrable shadows.
Allow your eyes to adjust to the darkness and more will be seen. -
Good and evil are two sides of the same coin.
For there to be good there must also be evil,
and without one there cannot be the other.It is the same way with high and low, and with beauty and ugliness.
It is impossible for there to be only one side.By taking one viewpoint, it establishes the other.
Only by keeping to the center is the extreme avoided. -
If the powerful do not hold themselves above others
then the weak won't be able to pull them down.If the wealthy do not keep valuables to themselves
then the poor could not steal from them.Gathering to oneself more food and money and influence than is posessed by others
only creates a target for hatred and envy and fear. -
The violent storm does not last all day, and the billowing wind does not last all night.
If the world cannot make these last forever, then how long can any being survive?
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The Outer Realm was formless and perfect, infinite and empty,
before the world was born.The world is great and beautiful, chaotic and finite.
It feels limitless, but is surrounded by the Outer Realm. -
The darkness is the source of all light,
and the still is the source of all movement.Adding light to light creates only blindness,
and adding movment to movement causes confusion. -
Do not rely on force or weapons or wars to change a nation.
Force rebounds, weapons cut both ways, and wars are followed by chaos.Instead do what is needed and then stop, lead by example,
and allow the world to help you succeed in its own way. -
The Outer Realm is eternally nameless.
It is only when beings divide things up that names become necessary,
and once there are names there is also ownership and conflict. -
Understanding others is knowledge,
Understanding oneself is enlightenment;Overcoming others is power,
Overcoming one's limitations is strength;Not losing one’s property is to endure,
To never be forgotten is immortality.