ABSTRACT
the great diehculty in interpreting this and similar texts1 for the European mind is due to the fact that the Chinese author always starts from the central point, from the point we would call his objective or goal; in a word, he begins with the ultimate insight he has set out to attain. Thus the Chinese author begins his work with ideas that demand such a comprehensive understanding that a person of discriminating mind must feel that he would be guilty of ridiculous pretension, or even of talking utter nonsense, if he should embark on an intellectual discourse on the subtle psychic experiences of the greatest minds of the East. For example, our text begins: ‘That which exists through itself is called the Way.’ The Hui Ming Ching begins with the words: The subtlest secret of the Tao is human nature and life.
