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"The government of the perfect Sage," explained Chi Ch'ê, "consists in influencing the hearts of the people so as to cause them to complete their education, to reform their manners, to subdue the rebel mind, and to exert themselves one and all for the common good. This influence operates in accordance with the natural disposition of the people, who are thus unconscious of its operation. He who can so act has no need to humble himself before the teachings of Yao and Shun. He makes the desires of the people coincident with virtue, and their hearts rest therein."
Source Chuang Tzu, chapter 12, §9 · 📖 Read the full passage
✨ To meditate on today
According to Chuang Tzu, the great sages did not govern by constraint: they awakened in each person the desire to become better, then let it grow in its own way, rekindling the spark of goodness that dwells in every heart, without even copying Yao and Shun, the ancient model emperors. Today, instead of lecturing someone, sincerely encourage a quality you see in them, and let it grow.
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