Hung Ying-ming is the author of a book written in the early 1600′s titled, The Unencumbered Spirit.  It stands out as the preeminent book to articulate the “Three Creeds” of ancient China: Confucianism, Taoism, and Zen Buddhism.

It offers in poetry and prose so many delightful and insightful sayings for daily living!  I’ll be randomly selecting one each day on which I personally will be reflecting and posting them here for your enjoyment and benefit.

If you strive to make Truth your home,
You may sometimes be lonely:
But fawning on the powerful and influential,
You will feel the chill of solitude for the ages.
BK1#1
 
Time is, by its nature, long;
But the preoccupied person hurries restlessly along.
Heaven and Earth are, by their nature, expansive;
But the mean of heart are naturally narrow.
The seasons’ breezes, flowers, snow, and moon are, by
their nature, tranquil;
But the person who toils and fusses is afflicted of his own
free will.
BK2 #4
 
When winds grow bitter and rains angry,
Even small birds are frightened and sad.
When shies become clear and breezes are bright,
The grasses and trees are fresh and full of  joy.
From this it can be seen that
Heaven and Earth are unable to go one day without
harmony;
The human heart is unable to go one day without joy.
BK1#6
 
When literature is taken to its highest level,
There is nothing particularly extraordinary about it:
It is simply appropriate.
When human character is developed to its fullest,
There is nothing particularly wonderful about it:
It is simply natural.
BK1#102
 
Simply because people of this world
rely too much on the truth of the “self,”
Preferences and desires are many and sundry,
Many and sundry are passions and lusts.
A person of former times said,
If I did not know the self existed,
How would I know the desirability of things?
Someone also said,
If you know that the body is not the self,
How can lusts and passions be a bother?
These are truly penetrating words.
B2#56
 
When encountering a person of deep resistance,
Do not for a moment communicate your mind.
When meeting a person of high-strung self-satisfaction,
Do your best to keep them from opening their mouth.
B1#122
 
When my inclinations are in harmony with the moment,
Shoeless, I walk leisurely through fragrant grasses.
Then the birds put off their scolding and become, at
times my friends.
When my surroundings are in accord with my mind,
I loosen my collar and sit at ease beneath falling
blossoms,
Then the silent white clouds approach unperceived and
remain at my side.
B2#108
 
To rid yourself of worldliness is extraordinary.
Yet to deliberately respect the ordinary
Will not make you so: it will only make you look
strange.
To remain aloof from the world’s contamination is purity.
Yet to sever ties with the world and seek the pure
Will not make you so: it will only make you look
extreme.
B1#166
 
When you have come to an understanding of yourself,
You can, for the first time, let the world take care
of its own. 
When you return all under heaven to itself,
You can, right now, transcend society without leaving
it at all.
B2#117
 
When the fish swims freely in water,
Both water and fish forget the other.
When the bird rides the wind and flies far away,
It knows nothing of the wind’s existence.
If you understand such things, you can transcend
external involvements,
And enjoy all that Heaven performs.
 B2#68
 
For every pleasant situation,
There is an unpleasant one waiting to be its
complement.
For every desirable condition,
There is an undesirable one checking and balancing.
Just eating your daily meals
And enjoying your usual surrounding-
Only this is the dwelling of peace and joy.
B2#60
 
When I have rank and people respect it,
They are respecting my tall cap and great sash.
When I am destitute and people despise me,
They are despising my cotton garb and straw sandals.
If this is so, they do not respect me from the first,
So why should I be happy?
They do not despise me from the first,
So why become upset?
B1#169
 
The wind soughs through the bamboo,
And when it has passed,
the bamboo has no sound.
The geese fly over the cold clear pool,
And when they have gone,
the pool retains no image.
Therefore, for the wise person,
A thing is manifest when it appears
for the first time in their mind;
When the thing has ceased,
their mind commits itself
to the void.
B1#82
 
The man who takes things lightly
Will necessarily be doubted by those of a more
obstinate disposition.
A man both strict and severe
Will many times be loathed by those more self-indulgent.
The wise one places themselves in these situations
And should neither change from their former integrity
Nor be too revealing of their own skills.
B1#98