What does it mean when a superior officer hears the Tao and practices it diligently; when a sergeant hears the Tao, he or she lives or perishes; when a junior officer hears the Tao, he laughs; not lau

What does it mean when a superior officer hears the Tao and practices it diligently; when a sergeant hears the Tao, he or she lives or perishes; when a junior officer hears the Tao, he laughs; not laughing is not enough to practice the Tao."

It means: The sergeant listened to Tao’s theory and worked hard to implement it; the sergeant listened to Tao’s theory and sometimes kept it in mind and sometimes forgot it; the corporal listened to Tao’s theory and laughed. If it is not ridiculed, it is not enough to be called the Tao.

Original text:

When a sergeant hears the Tao, he practices it diligently; when a sergeant hears the Tao, he lives or perishes; when a corporal hears the Tao, he laughs. Not smiling is not enough for the Tao. Therefore, there is a suggestion: the way to enlightenment is like ignorance, the way to advance is like retreat, and the way to confusion is like treacherous. Superior virtue is like a valley; enlightenment is like a disgrace; wide virtue is like an insufficiency; building virtue is like stealing; quality is like a sincerity. The magnificence has no corner; the great talent comes late; the great sound is loud; the elephant is invisible; the Tao is nameless. The husband is just the way, good at lending and successful.

Translation:

The sergeant listened to Tao’s theory and tried hard to implement it; the sergeant listened to Tao’s theory and sometimes kept it in mind and sometimes forgot it; Theory, laugh out loud. If it is not ridiculed, it is not enough to be called the Tao.

Therefore, the ancient sages said something like this: The bright way seems like darkness; the way forward seems like retreat; the smooth way seems like ruggedness; the lofty virtue is like a canyon, and the purest things contain dirt. Broad virtue seems to be insufficient; strong virtue seems to be lazy; simplicity and innocence seem to be turbid.

The most square thing has no edges and corners; the most capable container does not contain anything; the loudest sound sounds silent; the largest image has no shape. The Tao is secluded and has no name, nameless and silent.

Source: "Tao Te Ching" - Spring and Autumn and Warring States · Laozi

Extended information

In the beginning of this chapter, we talked about "sergeant", "sergeant", "Corporal" reflects the Tao. "Sgt" refers to the clever little slave-owning nobles, "sergeant" refers to mediocre nobles, and "corporal" refers to shallow nobles. Upper, middle and lower are not in terms of political hierarchy, but in terms of their level of ideological understanding.

The essence of "Tao" is hidden behind the phenomenon, and shallow people cannot see it, so we don't call it "Tao" unless we are ridiculed. Among the twelve idioms cited below, the first six refer to "Tao" and "De". The words "Zhi Zhen", "Da Bai", "Da Fang", "Da Qi", "Da Yin" and "Elephant" in the last six sentences refer to "Tao" or the image of Tao, or the nature of Tao.

So after quoting these twelve maxims, I can summarize them in one sentence: "Tao" is obscure and nameless, its essence is the former, and its appearance is the latter. These twelve sentences demonstrate the universality of contradiction and reveal the true meaning of dialectics from the essence and phenomena of various things in various fields such as tangible and intangible, existence and consciousness, nature and society. This is extremely wise.

Baidu Encyclopedia - Tao Te Ching · The sergeant hears the Tao and practices it diligently