Explanation Of The Tao Te Ching Part Sixty Four

“Peace is easily maintained;
Trouble is easily overcome before it starts.
The brittle is easily shattered;
The small is easily scattered.

Deal with it before it happens.
Set things in order before there is confusion.

A tree as great as a man’s embrace springs from a small shoot;
A terrace nine stories high begins with a pile of earth;
A journey of a thousand miles starts under one’s feet.

He who acts defeats his own purpose;
He who grasps loses. 
The sage does not act, and so is not defeated.
He does not grasp and therefore does not lose.

People usually fail when they are on the verge of success.
So give as much care to the end as to the beginning;
Then there will be no failure.

Therefore the sage seeks freedom from desire.
He does not collect precious things.
He learns not to hold on to ideas.
He brings men back to what they have lost.
He helps the ten thousand things find their own nature,
But refrains from action.”

When in a state of peace, it’s easily kept, but also easily disrupted. Following the way of the Tao makes us peacekeepers, in the right mindful state we understand that peace needs to be planned for by recognising it and any disruption in its beginning stages. It’s easier to put it in place and keep it by recognising its roots.

When we are rooted in a peaceful state we won’t panic, we won’t over react and we won’t try to hold on to that which will inevitably pass or lead us astray.

If we become inattentive, particularly when we think we’ve become successful, we are liable to fail. It’s important to not become distracted from those natural roots by fame or wealth but to remain humble and connected to the Tao and letting go of all that’s unnecessary.