In this manner, the sage governs people: Emptying their minds, Filling their bellies, Weakening their ambitions, And strengtheni
ng their bones. If people lack knowledge and desire Then they cannot act; If no action is taken Harmony remains. —Laozi, Dao De Jing What does a wise ruler do to maintain order among his people? a. praises the good c. punishes the weak b. empties their minds d. takes no action Please select the best answer from the choices provided A B C D
From the passage, the Sage/leader's only way to achieve harmony is by keeping the masses ignorant hence feeding them full and making sure that there are no ambitions since there is no knowledge.
Therefore, according to Laozi, Dao De Jing the masses can only stay in harmony if there is no contention( as a result of knowledge) in the aim to acquire value. For example if the people do not know that gold is valuable and worth a lot of money, there will be no contention to get gold or theft of gold.
