Taken from Charles Muller's Resources for East Asian Language and
Thought
Translated during the summer of 1991 by
Charles Muller
Revised, July 1997
When citing please use the URL:
http://www.human.toyogakuen-u.ac.jp/~acmuller/contao/laotzu.htm
1.
The Tao that can be followed is not the eternal Tao.
The name
that can be named is not the eternal name.
The nameless is the origin of
heaven and earth
While naming is the origin of the myriad
things.
Therefore, always desireless, you see the mystery
Ever desiring,
you see the manifestations.
These two are the same--
When they appear they
are named differently.
Their sameness is the mystery,
Mystery within
mystery;
The door to all marvels.
2.
All in the
world recognize the beautiful as beautiful.
Herein lies ugliness.
All
recognize the good as good.
Herein lies evil.
Therefore
Being and
non-being produce each other.
Difficulty and ease bring about each
other.
Long and short delimit each other.
High and low rest on each
other.
Sound and voice harmonize each other.
Front and back follow each
other.
Therefore the sage abides in the condition of wu-wei
(unattached action).
And carries out the wordless teaching.
Here, the
myriad things are made, yet not separated.
Therefore the sage produces
without possessing,
Acts without expectations
And accomplishes without
abiding in her accomplishments.
It is precisely because she does not
abide in them
That they never leave her.
3.
If you do
not adulate the worthy, you will make others non-contentious.
If you do not
value rare treasures, you will stop others from stealing.
If people do not
see desirables, they will not be agitated.
Therefore, when the sage
governs,
He clears peoples minds,
Fills their bellies,
Weakens their
ambition and
Strengthens their bones.
If the people are kept without
cleverness and desire
It will make the intellectuals not dare to
meddle.
Acting without contrivance, there is no lack of
manageability.
4.
The Tao is so vast that when you use it,
something is always left.
How deep it is!
It seems to be the ancestor of
the myriad things.
It blunts sharpness
Untangles knots
Softens the
glare
Unifies with the mundane.
It is so full!
It seems to have
remainder.
It is the child of I-don't-know-who.
And prior to the
primeval Lord-on-high.
5.
Heaven and Earth are not
jen,
And regard the people as straw dogs.
The sage is not
jen,
And regards all things as straw dogs.
The space between Heaven
and Earth is just like a bellows:
Empty it, it is not exhausted.
Squeeze
it and more comes out.
Investigating it with a lot of talk
Is not like
holding to the center.
6.
The valley spirit never
dies.
It is called "the mysterious female."
The opening of the mysterious
female
Is called "the root of Heaven and Earth."
Continuous, seeming to
remain.
Use it without exertion.
7.
Heaven and Earth
last forever.
The reason that Heaven and Earth are able to last forever
Is
because they do not give birth to themselves.
Therefore, they are always
alive.
Hence, the sage puts herself last and is first.
She is outside
herself and therefore her self lasts.
Is it not through her
selflessness
That she is able to perfect herself?
8.
The
highest goodness is like water.
Water easily benefits all things without
struggle.
Yet it abides in places that men hate.
Therefore it is like the
Tao.
For dwelling, the Earth is good.
For the mind, depth is
good.
The goodness of giving is in the timing.
The goodness of speech is
in honesty.
In government, self-mastery is good.
In handling affairs,
ability is good.
If you do not wrangle, you will not be
blamed.
9.
To hold until full is not as good as
stopping.
An oversharpened sword cannot last long.
A room filled with gold
and jewels cannot be protected.
Boasting of wealth and virtue brings your
demise.
After finishing the work, withdraw.
This is the Way of
Heaven.
10.
Pacifying the agitated material soul and
holding to oneness:
Are you able to avoid separation?
Focusing your energy
on the release of tension:
Can you be like an infant?
In purifying your
insight:
Can you un-obstruct it?
Loving the people and ruling the
state:
Can you avoid over-manipulation?
In opening and closing the gate of
Heaven:
Can you be the female?
In illuminating the whole universe:
Can
you be free of rationality?
Give birth to it and nourish it.
Produce
it but don't possess it.
Act without expectation.
Excel, but don't take
charge.
This is called Mysterious Virtue.
11.
Thirty
spokes join together in the hub.
It is because of what is not there that the
cart is useful.
Clay is formed into a vessel.
It is because of its
emptiness that the vessel is useful.
Cut doors and windows to make a
room.
It is because of its emptiness that the room is useful.
Therefore,
what is present is used for profit.
But it is in absence that there is
usefulness.
12.
The five colors blind our eyes.
The five
tones deafen our ears.
The five flavors confuse our taste.
Racing and
hunting madden our minds.
Possessing rare treasures brings about harmful
behavior.
Therefore the sage regards his center, and not his eyes.
He
lets go of that and chooses this.
13.
Accept humiliation as
a surprise.
Value great misfortune as your own self.
What do I mean by
"Accept humiliation as a surprise"?
When you are humble
Attainment is a
surprise
And so is loss.
That's why I say, "Accept humiliation as a
surprise."
What do I mean by "Value great misfortune as your own
self"?
If I have no self, how could I experience
misfortune?
Therefore, if you dedicate your life for the benefit of the
world,
You can rely on the world.
If you love dedicating yourself in this
way,
You can be entrusted with the world.
14.
Look for
it, it cannot be seen.
It is called the distant.
Listen for it, it cannot
be heard.
It is called the rare.
Reach for it, it cannot be gotten.
It
is called the subtle.
These three ultimately cannot be fathomed.
Therefore
they join to become one.
Its top is not bright;
Its bottom is not
dark;
Existing continuously, it cannot be named and it returns to
no-thingness.
Thus, it is called the formless form,
The image of
no-thing.
This is called the most obscure.
Go to meet it, you cannot
see its face.
Follow it, you cannot see its back.
By holding to the
ancient Tao
You can manage present existence
And know the primordial
beginning.
This is called the very beginning thread of the
Tao.
15.
The ancient masters of the Tao
Had subtle
marvelous mystic penetration
A depth that cannot be known.
It is exactly
because that they are unknowable
That we are forced to pay attention to their
appearance.
Hesitant, like one crossing an ice-covered river.
Ready, like
one afraid of his neighbors on all sides.
Dignified, like a guest.
Loose,
like ice about to melt.
Straightforward, like an uncarved block of
wood.
Open, like a valley.
Obscure, like muddy water.
Who can be
muddled, and use clarity to gradually become lucid?
Who can be calm, and use
constant application for eventual success?
The one who holds to this path
does not crave fulfillment.
Precisely because he does not crave
fulfillment
He can be shattered
And do without quick
restitution.
16.
Effect emptiness to the extreme.
Keep
stillness whole.
Myriad things act in concert.
I therefore watch their
return.
All things flourish and each returns to its root.
Returning to
the root is called quietude.
Quietude is called returning to life.
Return
to life is called constant.
Knowing this constant is called
illumination.
Acting arbitrarily without knowing the constant is
harmful.
Knowing the constant is receptivity, which is
impartial.
Impartiality is kingship.
Kingship is Heaven.
Heaven is
Tao
Tao is eternal.
Though you lose the body, you do not
die.
17.
From great antiquity forth they have known and
possessed it.
Those of the next level loved and praised it.
The next were
in awe of it.
And the next despised it.
If you lack sincerity no one
will believe you.
How careful she is with her precious words!
When her
work is complete and her job is finished,
Everybody says: "We did
it!"
18.
When the great Tao perishes
There is jen
and justice.
When intelligence is manifest
There is great
deception.
When the six relationships are not in harmony
There is filial
piety and compassion.
When the country is in chaos
Loyal ministers
appear.
19.
Get rid of "holiness" and abandon "wisdom" and
the people will benefit a hundredfold.
Get rid of "altruism" and abandon
"Justice" and the people will return to filial piety and compassion.
Get
rid of cleverness and abandon profit, and thieves and gangsters will not
exist.
Since the above three are merely words, they are not
sufficient.
Therefore there must be something to include them all.
See
the origin and keep the non-differentiated state.
Lessen selfishness and
decrease desire.
20.
Get rid of "learning" and there will
be no anxiety.
How much difference is there between "yes" and "no"?
How
far removed from each other are "good" and "evil"?
Yet what the people are in
awe of cannot be disregarded.
I am scattered, never having been in a
comfortable center.
All the people enjoy themselves, as if they are at the
festival of the great sacrifice,
Or climbing the Spring Platform.
I alone
remain, not yet having shown myself.
Like an infant who has not yet
laughed.
Weary, like one despairing of no home to return to.
All the
people enjoy extra
While I have left everything behind.
I am ignorant of
the minds of others.
So dull!
While average people are clear and bright, I
alone am obscure.
Average people know everything.
To me alone all seems
covered.
So flat!
Like the ocean.
Blowing around!
It seems there is
no place to rest.
Everybody has a goal in mind.
I alone am as ignorant as
a bumpkin.
I alone differ from people.
I enjoy being nourished by the
mother.
21.
The form of great virtue is something that only
the Tao can follow.
The Tao as a "thing" is only vague and obscure.
How
obscure! How vague! In it there is form.
How vague! How obscure! In it are
things.
How deep! How dark! In it there is an essence.
The essence is
so real--therein is belief.
From the present to antiquity, its name has
never left it, so we can examine all origins.
How do I know the form of all
origins?
By this.
22.
The imperfect is
completed.
The crooked is straightened.
The empty is filled.
The old is
renewed.
With few there is attainment.
With much there is
confusion.
Therefore the sage grasps the one and becomes the model for
all.
She does not show herself, and therefore is apparent.
She does
not affirm herself, and therefore is acknowledged.
She does not boast and
therefore has merit.
She does not strive and is therefore successful.
It
is exactly because she does not contend, that nobody can contend with
her.
How could the ancient saying, "The imperfect is completed" be
regarded as empty talk?
Believe in the complete and return to
it.
23.
To speak little is natural.
Therefore a gale
does not blow a whole morning
Nor does a downpour last a whole day.
Who
does these things? Heaven and Earth.
If even Heaven and Earth cannot force
perfect continuity
How can people expect to?
Therefore there is such a
thing as aligning one's actions with the Tao.
If you accord with the Tao you
become one with it.
If you accord with virtue you become one with it.
If
you accord with loss you become one with it.
The Tao accepts this
accordance gladly.
Virtue accepts this accordance gladly.
Loss also
accepts accordance gladly.
If you are untrustworthy, people will not
trust you.
24.
Standing on tiptoe, you are
unsteady.
Straddle-legged, you cannot go.
If you show yourself, you will
not be seen.
If you affirm yourself, you will not shine.
If you boast, you
will have no merit.
If you promote yourself, you will have no
success.
Those who abide in the Tao call these
Leftover food and
wasted action
And all things dislike them.
Therefore the person of the
Tao does not act like this.
25.
There is something that is
perfect in its disorder
Which is born before Heaven and Earth.
So
silent and desolate! It establishes itself without renewal.
Functions
universally without lapse.
We can regard it as the Mother of
Everything.
I don't know its name.
Hence, when forced to name it,
I call it "Tao."
When forced to categorize it, I call it
"great."
Greatness entails transcendence.
Transcendence entails
going-far.
Going-far entails return.
Hence, Tao is great, Heaven is
great, the Earth is great
And the human is also great.
Within our
realm there are four greatnesses and the human being is one of
them.
Human beings follow the Earth.
Earth follows Heaven
Heaven
follows the Tao
The Tao follows the way things
are.
26.
Heaviness is the root of lightness.
Composure
is the ruler of instability.
Therefore the sage travels all day
Without
putting down his heavy load.
Though there may be spectacles to see
He
easily passes them by.
This being so
How could the ruler of a large
state
Be so concerned with himself as to ignore the people?
If you
take them lightly you will lose your roots.
If you are unstable, you will
lose your rulership.
27.
A good traveler leaves no
tracks.
Good speech lacks faultfinding.
A good counter needs no
calculator.
A well-shut door will stay closed without a latch.
Skillful
fastening will stay tied without knots.
It is in this manner that the
sage is always skillful in elevating people.
Therefore she does not discard
anybody.
She is always skillful in helping things
Therefore she does
not discard anything.
This is called "the actualization of her
luminosity."
Hence, the good are the teachers of the not-so-good.
And
the not-so-good are the charges of the good.
Not valuing your teacher or
not loving your students:
Even if you are smart, you are gravely in
error.
This is called Essential Subtlety.
28.
Know
the Masculine, cleave to the Feminine
Be the valley for everyone.
Being
the valley for everyone
You are always in virtue without lapse
And you
return to infancy.
Know the White, cleave to the Black
Be a model for
everyone.
Being the model for everyone
You are always in virtue and free
from error
You return to limitlessness.
Know Glory but cleave to
Humiliation
Be the valley for everyone.
When your constancy in virtue is
complete
You return to the state of the "uncarved block."
The block is
cut into implements.
The sage uses them to fulfill roles.
Therefore
the great tailor does not cut.
29.
If you want to grab the
world and run it
I can see that you will not succeed.
The world is a
spiritual vessel, which can't be controlled.
Manipulators mess things
up.
Grabbers lose it. Therefore:
Sometimes you lead
Sometimes you
follow
Sometimes you are stifled
Sometimes you breathe easy
Sometimes
you are strong
Sometimes you are weak
Sometimes you destroy
And
sometimes you are destroyed.
Hence, the sage shuns excess
Shuns
grandiosity
Shuns arrogance.
30.
If you used the Tao as
a principle for ruling
You would not dominate the people by military
force.
What goes around comes around.
Where the general has
camped
Thorns and brambles grow.
In the wake of a great army
Come years
of famine.
If you know what you are doing
You will do what is necessary
and stop there.
Accomplish but don't boast
Accomplish without
show
Accomplish without arrogance
Accomplish without
grabbing
Accomplish without forcing.
When things flourish they
decline.
This is called non-Tao
The non-Tao is
short-lived.
31.
Sharp weapons are inauspicious
instruments.
Everyone hates them.
Therefore the man of the Tao is not
comfortable with them.
In the domestic affairs of the gentleman
The
left is the position of honor.
In military affairs the right is the position
of honor.
Since weapons are inauspicious instruments, they are not the
instruments of the gentleman
So he uses them without enjoyment
And values
plainness.
Victory is never sweet.
Those for whom victory is
sweet
Are those who enjoy killing.
If you enjoy killing, you cannot gain
the trust of the people.
On auspicious occasions the place of honor is on
the left.
On inauspicious occasions the place of honor is on the
right.
The lieutenant commander stands on the left.
The commander-in-chief
stands on the right.
And they speak, using the funerary rites to bury
them.
The common people, from whom all the dead have come
Weep in
lamentation.
The victors bury them with funerary
rites.
32.
The Tao is always nameless.
And even though a
sapling might be small
No one can make it be his subject.
If rulers could
embody this principle
The myriad things would follow on their own.
Heaven
and Earth would be in perfect accord
And rain sweet dew.
People,
unable to deal with It on its own terms
Make adjustments;
And so you have
the beginning of division into names.
Since there are already plenty of
names
You should know where to stop.
Knowing where to stop, you can avoid
danger.
The Tao's existence in the world
Is like valley streams
running into the rivers and seas.
33.
If you understand
others you are smart.
If you understand yourself you are illuminated.
If
you overcome others you are powerful.
If you overcome yourself you have
strength.
If you know how to be satisfied you are rich.
If you can act
with vigor, you have a will.
If you don't lose your objectives you can be
long-lasting.
If you die without loss, you are
eternal.
34.
The Tao is like a great flooding river. How
can it be directed to the left or right? The myriad things rely on it for their
life but do not distinguish it.
It brings to completion but cannot be said to
exist.
It clothes and feeds all things without lording over them.
It
is always desireless, so we call it "the small."
The myriad things return to
it and it doesn't exact lordship
Thus it can be called "great."
Till the
end, it does not regard itself as Great.
Therefore it actualizes its
greatness.
35.
Holding to the Great Form
All pass
away.
They pass away unharmed, resting in Great Peace.
It is for food
and music that the passing traveler stops.
When the Tao appears from its
opening
It is so subtle, it has no taste.
Look at it, you cannot see
it.
Listen, you cannot hear it.
Use it
You cannot exhaust
it.
36.
That which will be shrunk
Must first be
stretched.
That which will be weakened
Must first be strengthened.
That
which will be torn down
Must first be raised up.
That which will be
taken
Must first be given.
This is called "subtle
illumination."
The gentle and soft overcomes the hard and
aggressive.
A fish cannot leave the water.
The country's potent
weapons
Should not be shown to its people.
37.
The Tao
is always "not-doing"
Yet there is nothing it doesn't do.
If the ruler is
able to embody it
Everything will naturally change.
Being changed,
they desire to act.
So I must restrain them, using the nameless "uncarved
block (original mind)."
Using the nameless uncarved block
They become
desireless.
Desireless, they are tranquil and
All-under-Heaven is
naturally settled.
38.
True virtue is not
virtuous
Therefore it has virtue.
Superficial virtue never fails to be
virtuous
Therefore it has no virtue.
True virtue does not "act"
And
has no intentions.
Superficial virtue "acts"
And always has
intentions.
True jen "acts"
But has no intentions.
True
righteousness "acts"
But but has intentions.
True propriety "acts" and if
you don't respond
They will roll up their sleeves and threaten
you.
Thus, when the Tao is lost there is virtue
When virtue is lost
there is jen
When jen is lost there is Justice
And when
Justice is lost there is propriety.
Now "propriety" is the external
appearance of loyalty and sincerity
And the beginning of
disorder.
Occult abilities are just flowers of the Tao
And the
beginning of foolishness.
Therefore the Master dwells in the
substantial
And not in the superficial.
Rests in the fruit and not in the
flower.
So let go of that and grasp this.
39.
These
in the past have attained wholeness:
Heaven attains wholeness with its
clarity;
The Earth attains wholeness with its firmness;
The Spirit attains
wholeness with its transcendence;
The Valley attain wholeness when
filled;
The Myriad Things attain wholeness in life;
The Ruler attains
wholeness in the correct governance of the people.
In effecting
this:
If Heaven lacked clarity it would be divided;
If the Earth lacked
firmness it would fly away;
If the spirit lacked transcendence it would be
exhausted;
If the valley lacked fullness it would be depleted;
If the
myriad things lacked life they would vanish.
If the ruler lacks nobility and
loftiness he will be tripped up.
Hence
Nobility has lowliness as its
root
The High has the Low as its base.
Thus the kings call themselves "the
orphan, the lowly, the unworthy."
Is this not taking lowliness as the
fundamental? Isn't it?
In this way you can bring about great effect
without burden.
Not desiring the rarity of gems
Or the manyness of grains
of sand.
40.
Return is the motion of the Tao.
Softening
is its function.
All things in the cosmos arise from being.
Being arises
from non-being.
41.
When superior students hear of the
Tao
They strive to practice it.
When middling students hear of the
Tao
They sometimes keep it and sometimes lose it.
When inferior students
hear of the Tao
They have a big laugh.
But "not laughing" in itself is
not sufficient to be called the Tao, and therefore it is said:
The
sparkling Tao seems dark
Advancing in the Tao seems like
regression.
Settling into the Tao seems rough.
True virtue is like a
valley.
The immaculate seems humble.
Extensive virtue seems
insufficient.
Established virtue seems deceptive.
The face of reality
seems to change.
The great square has no corners.
Great ability takes a
long time to perfect.
Great sound is hard to hear.
The great form has no
shape.
The Tao is hidden and nameless.
This is exactly why the Tao
is good at developing and perfecting.
42.
The Tao produces
one, one produces two.
The two produce the three and the three produce all
things.
All things submit to yin and embrace yang.
They
soften their energy to achieve harmony.
People hate to think of
themselves as "orphan," "lowly," and "unworthy"
Yet the kings call themselves
by these names.
Some lose and yet gain,
Others gain and yet
lose.
That which is taught by the people
I also teach:
"The forceful do
not choose their place of death."
I regard this as the father of all
teachings.
43.
The softest thing in the world
Will
overcome the hardest.
Non-being can enter where there is no
space.
Therefore I know the benefit of unattached action.
The wordless
teaching and unattached action
Are rarely
seen.
44.
Which is dearer, fame or your life?
Which is
greater, your life or possessions?
Which is more painful, gain or
loss?
Therefore we always pay a great price for excessive love
And suffer
deep loss for great accumulation.
Knowing what is enough, you will not be
humiliated.
Knowing where to stop, you will not be imperiled
And can
be long-lasting.
45.
Great perfection seems flawed, yet
functions without a hitch.
Great fullness seems empty, yet functions without
exhaustion.
Great straightness seems crooked,
Great skill seems
clumsy,
Great eloquence seems stammering.
Excitement overcomes cold,
stillness overcomes heat.
Clarity and stillness set everything
right.
46.
When the Tao prevails in the land
The horses
leisurely graze and fertilize the ground.
When the Tao is lacking in the
land
War horses are bred outside the city.
Natural disasters are not as
bad as not knowing what is enough.
Loss is not as bad as wanting
more.
Therefore the sufficiency that comes from knowing what is enough is
an eternal sufficiency.
47.
Without going out the door,
knowing everything,
Without peaking out the windowshades, seeing the Way of
Heaven.
The further you go, the less you know.
The sage
understands without having to go through the whole process.
She is famous
without showing herself.
Is perfected without
striving.
48.
In studying, each day something is
gained.
In following the Tao, each day something is lost.
Lost and again
lost.
Until there is nothing left to do.
Not-doing, nothing is left
undone.
You can possess the world by never manipulating it.
No matter how
much you manipulate
You can never possess the
world.
49.
The sage has no fixed mind,
She takes the
mind of the people as her mind.
I treat the good as good, I also treat
the evil as good.
This is true goodness.
I trust the trustworthy, I also
trust the untrustworthy.
This is real trust.
When the sage lives with
people, she harmonizes with them
And conceals her mind for them.
The sages
treat them as their little children.
50.
Coming into life
and entering death,
The followers of life are three in ten.
The followers
of death are three in ten.
Those whose life activity is their death ground
are three in ten.
Why is this?
Because they live life grasping for its
rich taste.
Now I have heard that those who are expert in handling
life
Can travel the land without meeting tigers and rhinos,
Can enter
battle without being wounded.
The rhino has no place to plant its
horn,
The tiger has no place to place its claws,
Weapons find no place to
receive their sharp edges.
Why?
Because he has no
death-ground.
51.
Tao gives birth to it,
Virtue rears
it,
Materiality shapes it,
Activity perfects it.
Therefore, there are
none of the myriad things who do not venerate the Tao or esteem its
virtue.
This veneration of the Tao and esteeming of its virtue is something
they do naturally, without being forced.
Therefore, Tao gives birth.
Its
virtue rears, develops, raises, adjusts and disciplines,
Nourishes, covers
and protects,
Produces but does not possess,
Acts without expectation,
Leads without forcing.
This is called "Mysterious
Virtue."
52.
All things have a beginning, which we can
regard as their Mother.
Knowing the mother, we can know its
children.
Knowing the children, yet still cleaving to the mother
You can
die without pain.
Stop up the holes
Shut the doors,
You can finish
your life without anxiety.
Open the doors,
Increase your
involvements,
In the end you can't be helped.
Seeing the subtle is
called illumination.
Keeping flexible is called strength.
Use the
illumination, but return to the light.
Don't bring harm to
yourself.
This is called "practicing the
eternal."
53.
If I had just a little bit of wisdom
I
should walk the Great Path and fear only straying from it.
Though the Way is
quite broad
People love shortcuts.
The court is immaculate,
While
the fields are overgrown with weeds,
And the granaries are empty.
They
wear silk finery,
Carry sharp swords,
Sate themselves on food and
drink
Having wealth in excess.
They are called thieving
braggarts.
This is definitely not the Way.
54.
The
well-established cannot be uprooted.
The well-grasped does not slip
away.
Generation after generation carries out the ancestor worship without
break.
Cultivate it in yourself and virtue will be real.
Cultivate it
in the family and virtue will overflow.
Cultivate it in the town and virtue
will be great.
Cultivate it in the country and virtue will
abundant.
Cultivate it in the world and virtue will be
everywhere.
Therefore, take yourself and observe yourself.
Take the
family and observe the family.
Take the town and observe the town.
Take
the country and observe the country.
Take the world and observe the
world.
How do I know the world as it is?
By
this.
55.
One who remains rich in virtuous power
Is like
a newborn baby.
Bees, scorpions and venomous snakes do not bite it,
The
wild beasts do not attack it,
Birds of prey do not sink their claws into
it.
Though its bones are weak
And muscles soft,
Its grip is
strong.
Without knowing of the blending of male and female
S/he is a
perfect production,
The ultimate in vitality.
S/he cries all day without
getting hoarse.
S/he is the ultimate in harmony.
Understanding harmony
is called the Constant.
Knowing the Constant is called
illumination.
Nourishing life is called blessing.
Having control of your
breath is called strength.
After things blossom they decay, and
This
is called the non-Tao.
The non-Tao expires
quickly.
56.
She who knows does not speak.
She who
speaks does not know.
Close your holes, shut your doors,
Soften your
sharpness, loosen your knots.
Soften your glare and merge with the
everyday.
This is called mysteriously attaining oneness.
Though
you cannot possess it, you are intimate with it
And at the same time,
distant.
Though you cannot possess it, you are benefitted by it,
And
harmed by it.
You cannot possess it, but are esteemed through it
And
humbled by it.
Therefore the world values
you.
57.
*** Use fairness in governing the state.
Use
surprise tactics in war.
Be unconcerned and you will have the world.
How
do I know it is like this?
Because:
The more regulations there are,
The poorer people become.
The more people own lethal weapons,
The more
darkened are the country and clans.
The more clever the people are,
The
more extraordinary actions they take.
The more picky the laws are,
The
more thieves and gangsters there are.
Therefore the sages say:
"I do
not force my way and the people transform themselves.
I enjoy my serenity and
the people correct themselves.
I do not interfere and the people enrich
themselves.
I have no desires
And the people find their original
mind.
58.
When the government is laid back
The people
are relaxed.
When the government is nitpicking
The people have
anxiety.
Misfortune depends upon fortune.
Fortune conceals
misfortune.
What has a definite delimitation?
Or abnormality?
The
normal reverts to strangeness.
Goodness reverts to perversion.
People
certainly have been confused for a long time.
Therefore the sage squares
things without cutting.
Edges without separating.
Straightens without
lining up.
Shines but does not glare.
59.
In
governing the country and serving Heaven
There is nothing like
frugality.
Only by being frugal can you recover quickly.
When you recover
quickly you accumulate virtue.
Having accumulated virtue,
There is nothing
you can't overcome.
When there is nothing you can't overcome
Who knows the
limits of your capabilities?
These limits being unfathomable
You can
possess the country.
The Mother who possesses the country can be
long-living.
This is called "planting the roots deeply and
firmly."
The way to long life and eternal
vision.
60.
Ruling a large country is like cooking a small
fish.
When you govern people with the Tao
Demons will have no
power.
Not that they don't have power,
But their power will not harm
people.
Since the sage doesn't harm people,
The two will not harm each
other.
Here their power merges and returns.
61.
The
great state should be like a river basin.
The mixing place of the
world,
The feminine of the world.
The feminine always overcomes the
masculine by softness
Because softness is lesser.
Therefore if a large
state serves a small state
It will gain the small state.
If a small state
serves a large state
It will gain the large state.
Therefore some
serve in order to gain
And some gain despite their servitude.
The
large state wants nothing more
Than to unite and feed its people.
The
small state wants nothing more
Than to enter into the service of the right
person.
Thus both get what they want.
Greatness lies in placing
oneself below.
62.
The Tao is hidden deeply in all
things.
It is the treasure of the good
And the refuge of the
not-so-good.
With skillful words you can be successful.
With honorable
actions you can be included.
People may not be so good, but how can you
deny them?
Therefore, even though there are great jewels brought in by
teams of horses at the coronation of the emperor and the installation of the
three princes,
This is not as good as staying where you are
And advancing
in this Tao.
Why did the ancients so value the Tao?
You can't say
that it was for seeking gain
Or to have punishments to deter
crime.
Therefore it is the most prized in the
world.
63.
Do without "doing."
Get involved without
manipulating.
Taste without tasting.
Make the great small,
The many,
few.
Respond to anger with virtue.
Deal with difficulties while they are
still easy.
Handle the great while it is still small.
The difficult
problems in life
Always start off being simple.
Great affairs always
start off being small.
Therefore the sage never deals with the great
And
is able to actualize his greatness.
Now light words generate little
belief,
Much ease turns into much difficulty.
Therefore the sage treats
things as though they were difficult,
And hence, never has
difficulty.
64.
That which is at rest is easy to
grasp.
That which has not yet come about is easy to plan for.
That which
is fragile is easily broken.
That which is minute is easily
scattered.
Handle things before they arise.
Manage affairs before they are
in a mess.
A thick tree grows from a tiny seed.
A tall building arises
from a mound of earth.
A journey of a thousand miles starts with one
step.
Contriving, you are defeated;
Grasping, you lose.
The sage
doesn't contrive, so she isn't beaten.
Not grasping, she doesn't
lose.
When people are carrying out their projects
They usually blow it at
the end.
If you are as careful at the end
As you were at the
beginning,
You won't be disappointed.
Therefore the sage desires
non-desire,
Does not value rare goods,
Studies the unlearnable
So that
she can correct the mistakes of average people
And aid all things in
manifesting their true nature
Without presuming to take the
initiative.
65.
The ancients who were skillful at the
Tao
Did not illuminate the people
But rather kept them simple.
When the
people are difficult to rule
It is because of their
cleverness.
Therefore
If you use cleverness to rule the state
You are a
robber of the state.
If you don't use cleverness to rule the state
You are
a blessing to the state.
If you understand these two points, you know the
proper norm for governing To be continuously understanding the proper norm is
called
Mysterious Virtue.
How deep and far-reaching Mysterious Virtue
is!
It makes all return
Until they reach the Great
Norm.
66.
The reason the river and sea can be regarded
as
The rulers of all the valley streams
Is because of their being below
them.
Therefore they can be their rulers.
So if you want to be over
people
You must speak humbly to them.
If you want to lead them
You must
place yourself behind them.
Thus the sage is positioned above
And the
people do not feel oppressed.
He is in front and they feel nothing
wrong.
Therefore they like to push him front and never resent
him.
Since he does not contend
No one can contend with
him.
67.
The reason everybody calls my Tao great
Is
because there is nothing quite like it.
It is exactly because it is
great
That there is nothing quite like it.
If there were something that
were consistently like it
How could it be small?
I have three
treasures which I hold and cherish.
The first is compassion,
The second is
frugality,
The third is not daring to put myself ahead of
everybody.
Having compassion, I can be brave.
Having frugality, I can
be generous.
Not daring to put myself ahead of everybody
I can take the
time to perfect my abilities.
Now if I am brave without
compassion
Generous without frugality, or
Go to the fore without putting
my own concerns last,
I might as well be dead.
If you wage war with
compassion you will win.
If you protect yourself with compassion you will be
impervious.
Heaven will take care of you,
Protecting you with
compassion.
68.
The best warrior is never
aggressive.
The best fighter is never angry.
The best tactician does not
engage the enemy.
The best utilizer of people's talents places himself below
them.
This is called the virtue of non-contention.
It is called the
ability to engage people's talents.
It is called the ultimate in merging with
Heaven.
69.
Strategists have a saying:
"I prefer to be
able to move, rather than be in a fixed position
Prefer to retreat a foot
rather than advancing an inch."
This is called progress without
advancing;
Preparing without showing off;
Smashing where there is no
defense;
Taking him without a fight.
There is no greater danger than
under-estimating your opponent.
If I under-estimate my opponent
I will
lose that which is most dear.
Therefore
When opponents clash
The
one who is sorry about it will be the winner.
70.
My words
are easy to understand
And easy to practice.
Yet nobody understands them
or practices them.
My words have an origin;
My actions have a
principle.
It is only because of your not understanding this
That you do
not understand me.
Since there are few who understand me
I am
valued.
Therefore the sage wears coarse clothes.
Yet hides a jewel in his
bosom.
71.
There is nothing better than to know that you
don't know.
Not knowing, yet thinking you know--
This is sickness.
Only
when you are sick of being sick
Can you be cured.
The sage's not being
sick
Is because she is sick of sickness.
Therefore she is not
sick.
72.
When the people do not fear your might
Then
your might has truly become great.
Don't interfere with their household
affairs.
Don't oppress their livelihood.
If you don't oppress them
they won't feel oppressed.
Thus the sage understands herself
But does
not show herself.
Loves herself
But does not prize herself.
Therefore
she lets go of that
And takes this.
73.
If you are
courageous in daring you will die.
If you are courageous in not-daring you
will live.
Among these two, one is beneficial and the other is
harmful.
Who understands the reason why Heaven dislikes what it
dislikes?
Even the sage has difficulty in knowing this.
The Way of
Heaven is to win easily without struggle.
To respond well without
words,
To naturally come without special invitation,
To plan well without
anxiety.
Heaven's net is vast.
It is loose.
Yet nothing slips
through.
74.
If the people don't fear death
How will you
scare them with death?
If you make the people continuously fear death
By
seizing anybody who does something out of the ordinary
And killing
them,
Who will dare to move?
There is always an official executioner
to handle this.
If you play the role of the official executioner
It is
like cutting wood in the capacity of Master Carpenter.
There are few who
will not cut their hands.
75.
The reason people
starve
Is because their rulers tax them excessively.
They are difficult to
govern
Because their rulers have their own ends in mind.
The reason
people take death lightly
Is because they want life to be rich.
Therefore
they take death lightly.
It is only by not living for your own ends
That
you can go beyond valuing life.
76.
When people are born
they are gentle and soft.
At death they are hard and stiff.
When plants
are alive they are soft and delicate.
When they die, they wither and dry
up.
Therefore the hard and stiff are followers of death.
The gentle and
soft are the followers of life.
Thus, if you are aggressive and stiff,
you won't win.
When a tree is hard enough, it is cut. Therefore
The hard
and big are lesser,
The gentle and soft are
greater.
77.
The Way of Heaven
Is like stretching a
bow.
The top is pulled down,
The bottom is pulled up.
Excess string is
removed
Where more is needed, it is added.
It is the Way of
Heaven
To remove where there is excess
And add where there is lack.
The
way of people is different:
They take away where there is need
And add
where there is surplus.
Who can take his surplus and give it to the
people?
Only one who possesses the Tao.
Therefore the sage acts
without expectation.
Does not abide in his accomplishments.
Does not want
to show his virtue.
78.
Nothing in the world is softer
than water,
Yet nothing is better at overcoming the hard and strong.
This
is because nothing can alter it.
That the soft overcomes the hard
And
the gentle overcomes the aggressive
Is something that everybody knows
But
none can do themselves.
Therefore the sages say:
"The one who accepts the
dirt of the state
Becomes its master.
The one who accepts its
calamity
Becomes king of the world.
Truth seems
contradictory.
79.
After calming great anger
There are
always resentments left over.
How can this be considered as
goodness?
Therefore the sage keeps her part of the deal
And doesn't check
up on the other person.
Thus virtuous officials keep their promise
And
the crooked ones break it.
The Heavenly Tao has no favorites:
It
raises up the Good.
80.
Let there be a small country with
few people,
Who, even having much machinery, don't use it.
Who take death
seriously and don't wander far away.
Even though they have boats and
carriages, they never ride in them.
Having armor and weapons, they never go
to war.
Let them return to measurement by tying knots in rope.
Sweeten
their food, give them nice clothes, a peaceful abode and a relaxed life.
Even
though the next country can be seen and its doges and chickens can be
heard,
The people will grow old and die without visiting each others
land.
81.
True words are not fancy.
Fancy words are not
true.
The good do not debate.
Debaters are not good.
The one who really
knows is not broadly learned,
The extensively learned do not really
know.
The sage does not hoard,
She gives people her surplus.
Giving her
surplus to others she is enriched.
The way of Heaven is to help and not
harm.