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上善若水。水善利萬物而不爭，處衆人之所惡，故幾於道。

居善地，心善淵，與善仁，言善信，政善治，事善能，動善時。
夫唯不爭，故無尤。

A man of morals is like water.
Water benefits everything without evoking conflicts or resistance.
It willingly takes the dirtiness that everyone hates within itself instead, so it is close to resembling “Tao.”

A man of morals always falls back and humbles himself,
His heart is deep and silent.
He treats people with love and kindness.
He has nothing but sincerity in his words.
He governs with fairness.
He is competent in business.
He chooses the right time to take action.

There is nothing to contend with,
so he is without reproach.

Image from Forbes

Our bodies are 66-70% water, so if we are too dehydrated, we cannot survive. We need water. Moreover, the earth is also called a water planet. The Earth is a watery place. About 71 percent of the Earth’s surface is water-covered. Water plays a significant role for humans and the Earth. All living creatures on this planet are dependent on the water; the water is the source of life.

You might have heard the story of the jar – a life lesson by a professor to her students. I would like to use the same ingredients to show you the character of water. If we fill the jar with large rocks, we can still put small pebbles inside, and again we can still put sand in as well. The story serves to demonstrate that we should not focus on little things that trouble us, but rather, keep in mind our large goals in the midst of them. The lesson she tells ends here, but I want to point out that the full jar can still be filled with water.

When looking at the character of water, one might notice that the water only flows downward to the lowest place. It has no constant shape nor steady flow. We see nothing in water but humbleness and harmony without competition. No wonder Lao Tzu regards water as Tao. Water fills any spaces that we lack in because it travels to the bottom and because water is shapeless as it flows. The water is the Tao in our full lives.