the short of it:
The good see the good.
79. Yielding One’s Right.
When terms are made after a great quarrel, there must be always a remaining grudge. To let matters rest will be found the best way. Therefore the sage takes care of [their] own part of the compact, and exacts nothing of others. The [person] of virtue attends only to [their] promises in the compact. The [person] without virtue attends only to [their] claims.
The Tau of Heaven has no favourites (relations). It always gives to the good [person].
79. ‘Adherence to Bond or Covenant.’
79.1 When a reconciliation is effected (between two parties) after a great animosity, there is sure to be a grudge remaining (in the mind of the one who was wrong). And how can this be beneficial (to the other)?
79.2 Therefore (to guard against this), the sage keeps the left-hand portion of the record of the engagement, and does not insist on the (speedy) fulfilment of it by the other party. (So), [those] who [have] the attributes (of the Tao) [regard] (only) the conditions of the engagement, while [those] who [have] not those attributes [regard] only the conditions favourable to [themselves].
79.3 In the Way of Heaven, there is no partiality of love; it is always on the side of the good [person].
79. Keep Your Obligations.
79.1 When a great hatred is reconciled, naturally some hatred will remain. How can this be made good?
79.2 Therefore the sage keeps the obligations of [their] contract and exacts not from others. Those who have virtue attend to their obligations; those who have no virtue attend to their claims.
79.3 Heaven’s Reason shows no preference but always assists the good [person].
The Long of It:
As Lao Tsu has said before, the ends never justify the means (Chap 74). Chapter 79 is another iteration of that. Conflict is a natural part of life. And Lao Tsu offers more of his paradoxical advice to deal with it.
“A violent wind will not outlast the morning. A pouring rain will not outlast the day” (Chap 23). In other words, all conflict comes to an end. And how we deal with the aftermath is just as important as how we behaved during the turmoil.
Demanding compensation from the loser of any conflict is as unproductive as demanding compensation from Mother Nature after a storm. It doesn’t make sense. Just rebuild, and have faith that what you did was right to begin with. Focus on what you are giving rather than what you are getting.
That’s the paradox. Human conflict begins with yang energy, and can only be put out with yin energy (see Chap 78). To fight fire with fire only enrages the fire. For example, the heavy reparations England and France levied against Germany after Word War I1. They gave the Germans a poor example to live by, and an excellent excuse to start another war.
Someone must yield. Those who do so strategically always win in the end. Those who insist storms should never happen in the first place will always get caught unawares by the next storm.
Extra Credit:
Chapter 79 ends with a second paradox. The Universe (Tao) has no preference, except the good person. That’s a preference. Choosing the good over the bad is a preference. Unless there is only the good.
Chapter 27: “the good [person] is the teacher of the [person] who [is] not good. [People] who are not good are material for the good [person]” (Wang 101).
Everyone is a version of good. The person who sees that remains good throughout. The person who forgets needs a better example to live by.
-TB
