The Maddening Na-TAO-re of things (with Quo-TAO-tions)

"...Racing and hunting cause one’s mind to be mad.

Goods that are hard to get injure one’s activities..." 

Tao Te Ching, 12

As what President Snow of the movie "Hunger Games" said: "It is the things we love most that destroy us". Just like for example: As students, we desire to pass our subjects as required. I mean, we would love it if we are to have a satisfactory grade; especially if it is higher than the average. But, in order to attain such, we must make an effort; there is a resistance which we are to push/carry. In other words,  there is this little (or not that little) suffering that we must deal with first before we can attain such desires of ours.

As what the popular statement would say: "There is no glory without sacrifice". Of course, there is no suffering-free success; there is always this natural way of things that entails compensation of  good and bad. To attain good, you must have some of that bad. Just like buying food: You receive food, yet you give money in return. Or focusing on your studies: You gain good grades, yet you lose your other priorities like that of your friends, etc. Or just by simply exercising: You acquire muscles, yet you lose calories. Anyway, the point is, in every good, there comes something not-good. Even that famous statement in the movie "Spiderman" would justify such: "Great power comes with great responsibility". I mean, why not great power only? Why does Spiderman need to burden his self with such responsibility?

What message Lao Tzu is telling us is that, like negative things that carry positiveness with them, positive things, by nature, also bring with them negativeness. If things like "racing" and "hunting" causes one joy, it also causes one anger or madness. In other words, Lao Tzu here is instilling us the prudence we need to accept the fact that things, no matter how good it may appear, will always carry out something that is not that good with it. Simply speaking, he wants as to see the tragic side of life, that we must not be complacent and ignorant to see that this world is only about good stuffs and all. For him, we must accept the fact that, just like what the movie "Feng Shui" suggested: "Pag may swerte, mayroon ding malas".