The aphorisms or Sutras in this book are the direct expression of the essence of the Tao. When we allow them to empty our minds and fill our hearts, transformation will happen naturally without any effort. The Tao te Ching has an essence that is beyond time, but the words are not timeless, they are depending on the zeitgeist, the spirit of time. My intention is to express this essence in modern words. This book is an invitation to reflect, not only with the mind, even more important is to contemplate the Sutras, to feel them and to let them do the work for you. It is always better to stop reading and start feeling. The Tao is the essence of everything that exists. Life itself is born out of the Tao; it was before the beginning of time and space. Nothing exists without it. It is the oneness in all forms of life. The eternal flow of existence. All individual lifeforms are notes in the symphony of the Tao. The Tao is beyond all description. we call it the Tao because the mind needs words to understand, and through the mind, we are conscious. We could also call it the unnameable or the self, but it really doesn't matter how we name it; what counts is the experience. Our job is to consciously realize the Tao. The word Tao means, in Chinese, the way or the path. Around this path grows the knowledge of the Tao, it helps us to become the experience of our innermost nature in alignment with the essence of everything. The knowledge of the Tao is neither a teaching, philosophy nor a spiritual tradition. It is the map that indicates the way - and that's it.