Observations placeholder
Tzu, Lao - Fine weapons of war augur evil
Identifier
013139
Type of Spiritual Experience
Background
Right side, left brain; left side, right brain.
A description of the experience
Tao Teh Ching - Lao Tzu
Fine weapons of war augur evil
Even things seem to hate them
Therefore, a man of Tao does not set his heart upon them
In ordinary life, a gentleman regards the left side as his place of honour
In war, the right side is the place of honour
As weapons are instruments of evil
They are not properly a gentleman's instruments
Only on necessity will he resort to them
For peace and quiet are dearest to his heart
And to him even a victory is no cause for rejoicing
To rejoice over a victory is to rejoice over the slaughter of men!
Hence a man who rejoices over the slaughter of men cannot be expected to thrive in the world of men
On happy occasions the left side is preferred
On sad occasions, the right side
In the army, the Lieutenant Commander stands on the left
While the Commander-in-chief stands on the right
This means that war is treated on a par with a funeral service
Because many people have been killed, it is only right that survivors should mourn for them
Hence even a victory is a funeral.