By Inaction, fame comes as the spirits of the dead come to the boy who impersonates the corpse.
See [ch. i]. In the old funeral rites of China, a boy was made to sit speechless and motionless as a corpse, for the reason assigned in the text.
By Inaction, one can become the centre of thought, the focus of responsibility, the arbiter of wisdom. Full allowance must be made for others, while remaining unmoved oneself. There must be a thorough compliance with divine principles, without any manifestation thereof.
Non mihi res, sed me rebus, subjungere conar.
All of which may be summed up in the one word passivity. For the perfect man employs his mind as a mirror. It grasps nothing: it refuses nothing. It receives, but does not keep. And thus he can triumph over matter, without injury to himself.
Without the wear and tear suffered by those who allow their activities free play.
The ruler of the southern sea was called Shu. The ruler of the northern sea was called Hu. The ruler of the central zone was called Hun Tun.
This term is generally used to denote the condition of matter before separation and subdivision into the phenomena of the visible universe.
Shu and Hu often met on Hun Tun's territory, and being always well treated by him, determined to repay his kindness.