Here is one of the more obvious keys from the Tao te Ching. Lao Tzu says empty the mind and fill the belly. For the intellectual this comes as a curse and for the politician it might mean that they should concern themselves with the nutrition of the populace before they worry about their mental state. For the Taoist, it is very simple. It means empty the mind of thoughts and fill the belly with chi.
This statement from the Tao te Ching is not an anti-intellectual comment. Instead it is simply a suggestion for meditation, for Taiji, for life. From a state of mental stillness, we accumulate chi, readying ourselves for purified action. This state is not achieved by insight anymore than playing a flute is achieved by insight. It is a state that is achieved only through practice. Emptying the mind of thoughts is the focus of both Buddhist and Taoist mediation techniques. The insight is supplied by the wisdom of the Old Master, but initiates must perform the practices by themselves. Just as Tripitaka must take the steps himself, so must the student do his own work. The Tao te Ching only provides the keys to the Path.
One last part of the story of the Tao de Ching’s transmission bears mentioning. After giving the book to the Gatekeeper, the Old Master passes through the gates of the City to go to the Mountains. This plot element may symbolize the necessity of leaving the City to follow the Path. The City represents the normal way, the way that you are programmed to follow from birth. Instead of following the Tao of Heaven, one follows th