Explanation Of The Tao Te Ching Part Twenty Eight 

“Know the strength of man,
But keep a woman’s care!”

Have a ‘soft front and a strong back’

“Be the stream of the universe!
Being the stream of the univere,
Ever true and unswerving,
Become as a little child once more.”

Return to what you were before you were born and the mind you had as a little child before society gave you an identity.

“Know the white,
But keep the black!”

Understand and maintain the balance between yin and yang.

“Be an example to the world!
Being an example to the world,
Ever true and unwavering,
Return to the infinite.

Know honor,
Yet keep humility.
Be the valley of the universe!
Being the valley of the universe,
Ever true and resourceful,
Return to the state of the uncarved block.

When the block is carved, it becomes useful.
When the sage uses it, he become the ruler.
Thus, “A great tailor cuts little.”

By living life engaged with the Tao, understanding the source and how when it arises it becomes opposites. The ‘uncarved block’ is a reference to the potential contained in the infinite and how when bringing it into the finite very little shaping is required, the less we mess with it, the more powerful it is.