The Arrow of Lao Tzu

When there's no "mine" or "thine" inside your heart The shadows of the enemies depart When "good" and "bad" no longer blur your eyes The fear will fade, the heavy tension dies When obligation leaves your weary mind The dust of fatal vanity's behind Beyond the laws and boundaries of men Pure life remains, and then it peaks again An arrow flying does not seek a target A flowing river does not look for walls A thought is born, we fly and we forget it While questions freeze where dead emotion crawls A true step makes no sound upon the floor The wise man walks and leaves no trace behind The movement does not ask for anything anymore Free from the heavy chains of human mind When you have shoes, you don't recall the ground When you have roofs, the sky is seldom found But when the Tao is met within your soul You lose the parts, yet finally gain the whole The wind that blows forever is unseen The daily rain grows dull and routine Excess is cruel, it takes away the light And even blessings turn to curse tonight An isolated pine stands in the gale A lotus in the mud is safe and pale Not every peak is made of heaven's blue Not every valley means the end of you The sage was never born, he knows no death He speaks with dry lips, saving every breath He simply walks and leaves no heavy trace Pure mind, pure peace, within this quiet space The arrow flies... The river flows Only the stopping makes the questions rise The wise man acts, he doesn't wait, he goes