I believe Taoism was corrupted by Confucian devils in order to manufacture consent for a class system. Some 500 years after the Tao te ching was written, Confucian scholars employed by the emporer, systematically corrupted the writings of Lao Tsu by the introduction of other supposed Taoist writers.(with the exception of Chang Tsu) This poem shows examples of lower class patronage... One who has attained the Tao is master of herself, and the universe is dissolved for her. Throw her in the company of the noisy and the dirty, and she will be like a lotus flower growing from muddy water, touched by it, yet unstained. ~ T'u Lung What is wrong with the noisy and the dirty? What is wrong with getting stained once in a while? This is only one example....I think Lao Tsu would have snorted thru both nostrils at this one.
I think you have a very good point, I don't know much about Confucianism so my opinion may not be the best to go by. But one way I can perceive it is that perhaps by noisy and dirty they mean those who aren't still, don't understand the concept of Wu Wei, and dirty could just be symbolism for those who aren't flowing in the Way. The "stained" concept could also be something similar. The lotus flower growing my muddy waters could symbolize a person one with the Tao, standing out from the rest (the muddy) and despite the "dirty people's" efforts, they cannot damper the Taoist believer's beliefs. I don't know if that made any sense, I'm still just beginning my journey. But I do try to give everyone the benefit of the doubt, so before i start saying people are devils and what not, I try to see if there is any good in their message. Hope I helped a little.
