The Tao Te Ching must be *the* most inspired un-inspired writing in the world.

From Chapter 48:

LEARNING consists in daily accuмulating;
The practice of Tao consists in daily diminishing.

Keep on diminishing and diminishing,
Until you reach the state of Non-Ado.
No-Ado, and yet nothing is left undone.

To win the world, one must renounce all.
If one still has private ends to serve,
One will never be able to win the world.

What is meant by daily diminishing other than diminishing all that keeps us separated from God? Diminish our sinful habits, then diminish our selfishness - finally we reach the state of Non-Ado - what else does this describe but a soul that is totally submissive to Divine Providence? Such a soul strives to do nothing, but accomplishes everything.

From the 70th chapter:

MY words are very easy to understand, and very
 easy to practise:
But the world cannot understand them, nor practise
 them.

My words have an Ancestor.
My deeds have a Lord.
The people have no knowledge of this.
Therefore, they have no knowledge of me.

The fewer persons know me,
The nobler are they that follow me.
Therefore, the Sage wears coarse clothes,
While keeping the jade in his bosom.

Is this not a description of Christ and His Followers?

From the 71st chapter:

To realize that our knowledge is ignorance,
This is a noble insight.
To regard our ignorance as knowledge,
This is mental sickness.

Only when we are sick of our sickness
Shall we cease to be sick.
The Sage is not sick, being sick of sickness;
This is the secret of health.

What else do we Catholics need to cease sinning other than to be sick of sinning? Is this not the key to spiritual health?

From the last chapter:

SINCERE words are not sweet,
Sweet words are not sincere.
Good men are not argumentative,
The argumentative are not good.
The wise are not erudite,
The erudite are not wise.

The Sage does not take to hoarding.
The more he lives for others, the fuller is his life.
The more he gives, the more he abounds.

The Way of Heaven is to benefit, not to harm.
The Way of the Sage is to do his duty, not to strive
 with anyone.

Truly, reading and meditating on this ancient work is of great benefit.

Quote from: Vladimir

What else do we Catholics need to cease sinning other than to be sick of sinning? Is this not the key to spiritual health?

Yes, that insight rings true. I've attempted to read Lao-Tsu before but found him difficult to fathom.

Doesn't this statement:

MY words are very easy to understand, and very
easy to practise:
But the world cannot understand them, nor practise
them.

Have a precise parallel somewhere in the gospels?

Also reminds me of the first verses from the Last Gospel reading.

[1] In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. [2] The same was in the beginning with God. [3] All things were made by him: and without him was made nothing that was made. [4] In him was life, and the life was the light of men. [5] And the light shineth in darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

[6] There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. [7] This man came for a witness, to give testimony of the light, that all men might believe through him. [8] He was not the light, but was to give testimony of the light. [9] That was the true light, which enlighteneth every man that cometh into this world. [10] He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.

[11] He came unto his own, and his own received him not. [12] But as many as received him, he gave them power to be made the sons of God, to them that believe in his name. [13] Who are born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. [14] And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we saw his glory, the glory as it were of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. [15] John beareth witness of him, and crieth out, saying: This was he of whom I spoke: He that shall come after me, is preferred before me: because he was before me.