Lynn's - Daode jing of Laozi

If one’s bravery is expressed in daring, he will be killed.

Such a one will surely not get to die a natural death. (1)

If one’s bravery is expressed in not daring, he will live.

Such a one will surely enjoy the full span of his years.

But both these two sometimes result in benefit, sometimes in harm.

Both involve bravery, but those who exercise bravery differ, so the same benefit or harm does not always occur.  Thus the text says they might “sometimes result in benefit, sometimes in harm”.

When Heaven is cruel, who understands why ?  Therefore even the sage finds this fraught with danger.

Shu [which one] means shei [who].  In other words, who is able to understand Heaven’s intentions ?  It is only the sage. (2)  However, because even the sage with his perspicacity finds bravery expressed in daring to be fraught with danger, how much more true this should be for those who lack the perspicacity of the sage yet want to rush right into it !  This is why the text says that “even the sage finds this fraught with danger”.

The Dao of Heaven is such that one excels at winning without contending.

It is exactly because one [the sage ruler] does not contend that none among all under Heaven can contend with him. (3)

He excels at making people respond without speaking.

Compliance means good fortune, and opposition means misfortune. (4)  This is how “he excels at making people respond without speaking”.

He spontaneously attracts without summoning.

As he takes a low position, the people gravitate to him naturally. (5)

He excels at planning while utterly at ease.

Because Heaven reveals good fortune and misfortune by hanging images [in the sky], (6) the plans that he sets are verified before things actually happen.  When secure, he does not forget danger, and he makes plans while things are still in the premanifest [weizhao] stage. (7)  Thus the text says: “He excel at planning while utterly at ease.”

The net of Heaven spreads far and wide.  Though its mesh is coarse, it never loses anything.

Text, in Italics above, is Wang Bi's commentary.

The notes below, are from the translator, Richard John Lynn -

(deb's note - "section" is used for verse in these notes.)

(1)  Cf.  section 42, last passage.

(2)  Both Hatano Taro and Lou Yulie cite evidence that the base text of Wang’s commentary is corrupt, and both suggest that the quotation of this passage in Zhang Zhan’s (fl. Ca. 340-400) commentary to the Liezi (Sayings of Master Lie) (fourth century CE, but containing earlier material) is the reliable reading, so that is the text translated here.  For the text as quoted in the Liezi, see Liezi, 6:214C.  For textual scholarship on this passage, see Hatano, Roshi Dotokukyo kenkyu, 422-23; and Lou, Wang Bi ji jiaoshi, 183 n. 3.

(3)  Cf. section 22, last passage.

(4)  Cf. Wang’s commentary to section 42, second passage.

(5)  Cf. section 28, first passage; section 32, last passage; section 61, first passage; and section 66.

(6)  Cf. section 11 of the Xici zhuan (Commentary on the Appended Phrases), Part One, of the Yijing (Classic of changes), which reads in part: “Heaven produced numinous things, and the sages regarded these as ruling principles.  Heaven and Earth changed and transformed, and the sages regarded these as models.  Heaven hung images in the sky and revealed good fortune and bad, and the sages regarded these as meaningful signs” (Lynn, The Classic of Changes, 66; see Zhouyi zhengyi [Correct meaning of the Changes of the Zhou], 7:29b).

(7)  Cf. section 64, first passage.

From Stephen Mitchell - tao te ching - A New English Version

The Tao is always at ease.
It overcomes without competing,
answers without speaking a word,
arrives without being summoned,
accomplishes without a plan.

Its net covers the whole universe.
And though its meshes are wide,
it doesn't let a thing slip through.

From Bryon Katie - A Thousand Names For Joy - Living in Harmony with the Way Things Are

The Tao is always at ease.

The balanced mind is always at ease. It isn't for or against anything; it only wants what is. It's at ease because there's nothing it is opposed to. Nothing opposes it, nothing holds it back, it acts as creation unfolding in the moment, and its action is swift and free.

It's not attached to pleasure, because it doesn't need more than it has already. Usually pleasure is a subtle form of discomfort, because even as you're enjoying sex or food, for example, you cling to your enjoyment; you want it to last, you want more of it, or you're afraid of losing it even as it's happening. The difference between pleasure and joy? Ohhh … the distance is from here to the moon - from here to another galaxy ! Pleasure is an attempt to fill yourself. Joy is what you are.

Once you understand yourself, you are the pleasure you were seeking; you are what you always wanted. Pleasure is a mirror image of what you already have before you look away from what really is. When you stop seeking, the beauty concealed by the seeking becomes evident. What you wanted to find is what remains, beyond all stories.

When you no longer believe your thoughts, you experience pleasure with a feeling of gratitude and joy, because there's no control in it. The taste of broccoli - what could be more enlightening than that? Or sex - it's the epitome of letting go, surrendering to God, which is another name for reality. When sex is without control, you have no idea what can happen. An orgasm can be so intense and last so long that you feel it's going to kill you. But because there's nothing that you can attach to, you give yourself to it completely.

For twenty years I haven't met a story I didn't love. If you're having the most beautiful dream, would you want someone to wake you up ? I love my happy dream: “This is a perfect world. People are kind. God is good.” But if you're having a nightmare, you may want to wake yourself up, though it will cost you your suffering.

Many spiritual paths, I'm told, take a stand against pleasure. But life becomes difficult when you are against anything. It's painful to have an enemy. It's the war with the self. Thoughts are friends, they're part of reality, and until you deeply see that not even thoughts are real, you'll spend your whole life struggling against them.

Love is the power, and the beautiful dream is nothing more than a clear mirror image of love. All identification is felt within that. It's felt as a balance and celebration of its true nature. And, true or not, it is balanced. All the pain we have ever suffered, all the pain that any human being on this planet has ever suffered, is over in this present moment. We live in a state of grace.

Dr Dyer's Essay for Verse 73 -

Once again you're asked to see the Tao through a paradoxical lens. After all, what is “the net of heaven” ? It is the invisible world wherein all of the 10,000 things originate. And while it appears to have many openings - ways to escape the inevitability of the intentions of the Tao - no one and no thing can exist beyond what the Tao orchestrates.

Here in this 73rd verse, you're encouraged to be a respectful, cautious being under the net of heaven. All the translations I've studied say the same thing in different words. Here's one, for instance, that's brief and to the point:

Reckless bravery: death.
Cautious bravery: life.
Therefore the sage behaves in a cautious manner.

So Lao-tzu is asking you to change the way you look at bravado and courage. Rather than seeing these qualities as admirable, he asks you to be less of a dauntless hero and more vigilant and alert in order to live the Great Way. Note that the way of heaven is to eschew bold actions and remain cautious.

Lao-tzu offers you four examples of how the net of heaven holds everything within its grasp without having to be forceful or reckless, and you're encouraged to emulate that in all of your undertakings:

1. “It is heaven's way to conquer without striving.” See how the Tao is peaceful, silent, and always the conqueror. No human can command the sun to cool down, ocean currents to stop, winds to subside, rain to cease, or crops to quit growing - this is all handled naturally and perfectly without any effort by the Tao. Nature always wins because the Tao simply does it all without needing to attack or strive. Be like this and relax in heaven's net.

2. “It does not speak, yet it is answered.” Heaven's net is invisible and silent - the force that provides you with every breath and holds the universe together at the same time does so without commanding, yelling, or even mildly cajoling. So be in harmony with heaven's way of being more cautious and reserved. Listen more and speak less, trusting that your answers will come to you without any notice and most assuredly without any screaming.

3. “It does not ask, yet it is supplied with all that it needs.” You have an infinite supply of all that you will ever need available to you, so you needn't demand anything or even ask for it. All is in Divinely perfect order with heaven's way, and you are a component of that perfect order. Your supply will arrive if you require less and welcome all that shows up. You simply cannot slip through heaven's net, no matter how many holes you may perceive there to be. Everything is arriving on schedule - by trusting in this, you'll be guided to a rendezvous with your destiny, and you'll marvel at how it all comes together without your asking or demanding.

4. “It does not hurry, yet it completes everything on time.” How can the Tao hurry up ? Imagine giving such a request to heaven: “I'm tired of winter and insist that you bring me spring flowers in the middle of these long freezing nights. I want my potatoes today, even though I only planted the seeds yesterday. Hurry up, I insist !” The Tao works with Divine timing, so everything is completed precisely as it should be. You're invited to slow your pace so that it harmonizes with heaven's way. Even if you think that what you want is late, in reality it is all on time.

The more you hurry, the less you get done. Try rushing through a shower after running a 10k and notice how your body continues to sweat profusely. Then try slowing your mind down, relaxing, and allowing the water to course over you - and notice how your body feels clean without sweating in precisely the same amount of time that you used in your hurry-up mode. Even if your ego doesn't grasp it, this is the truth: Everything is on time under heaven's net.