Finally, this metaphysics of emptiness matures into an ethic. Leaders who take the “lower place,” like seas that receive all rivers, gather allegiance without coercion (Daodejing, ch. 66). Contentment prevents overreach: “Know sufficiency; you will have enough” (Daodejing, ch. 33), and “Better to stop pouring than hold it to the brim” (Daodejing, ch. 9). In a world tempted by accumulation, Laozi’s counsel is simple: empty the self, welcome the world, and the source will not run dry. [...]
