Thomas Merton in THE WAY OF CHUANG TZU writing on how “the central pivot of tao: relates to an artist and craftsman and to all of us in our pursuits:
[W]e see that the accomplished craftsman does not simply proceed according to certain fixed rules and external standards. To do so is, of course, perfectly alright for the mediocre artisan. But the superior work of art proceeds from a hidden and spiritual principle which, in fasting, detachment, forgetfulness of results. and abandonment of all hope of profit, discovers precisely the tree that is waiting to have this particular work carved from it. In such a case, the artist works as though passively, and it is Tao that works in and through him. This is a favorite theme of Chuang Tzu, and we find it often repeated. The “right way” of making things is beyond self conscious reflection, for “when the shoe fits, the foot is forgotten.”
Merton, THE WAY OF CHUANG TZU, The Abby of Gethesmani (1965) at 31.
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