Therefore, the sage is righteous but not prejudging,
thrifty but not stingy,
straightforward but not unrestrained,
Brilliant but not blinding.
59
In caring for others and serving heaven,
no one like farmers.
Farming depends on reliability.
Reliability depends on Virtue gathered in the past (such as seeds).
With a good store of Virtue, nothing is impossible.
Nothing is impossible,
there are no limits.
Without limitation, he can be a ruler of a country (or a harem).
Having a country, he can endure.
This is called having deep roots and a firm foundation.
This is the Tao of long life and eternal vision.
60
Ruling a big country is like cooking a small dish.
Ruling the world with Tao,
evil will have no spiritual power.
Not that evil is not a spirit,
but that spirit will not harm others.
Not only does evil spirit not harm others,
but the sage will also not harm others.
They both not harm others (or each other).
Their virtues return to Tao.
61
A great country is like low land,
the converging place of the world.
Every female, overcomes the male with peacefulness (not fighting),
lying underneath.
Therefore, a great country lay low to serve a smaller country,
conquers the smaller country.
A small country submits to a big country,
gets help from the big country.
Therefore, those who conquer must yield,
those who don't want to be conquered, must yield.
A great nation needs more people,
a small country must serve (exchange for help),
each gets what it wants.
Want to be great, better yield.
62
Tao, treasures of everything.
The treasure of good man.
As a sanctuary for the bad man.
The sweet words can buy honor.
Good (or false) deeds can gain respect.
Those bad people,
how can we distinguish them?
Crown the emperor,
Install three ministers.
Compare with jade and a team of horses,
it is better sitting in these offices.
The ancient value these offices, saying,
they demand, they get.
They do crimes, yet not guilty.
So, the world value those offices.
63
Doing, then Wu-Wei.
Working, then nothing left undone.
Tasting, then no flavor could be bizarre.
Reward denouncement with kindness.
Doing big project with small steps.
Achieving greatness in little things.
The difficult things in the world must be done with easy steps.
The great acts of the world are made up of small deeds.
The sage doe not attempt anything very big, yet achieve greatness.
Who swears often, must be untrustworthy.
View every task as a easy job, will encounter many difficulties.
Thus, the sages view every task as a difficult job,
yet nothing is difficult for them.
64
The present is easy to be grasped or maintained.
The future can easily be planned.
The brittle is easily shattered.
The minute is easily scattered.
Deal with it before it happens.
Set things in order before the chaos.
A tree as great as a man's embrace springs from a small shoot.
A terrace nine stories high begins with a pile of earth.
A journey of a thousand miles starts under one's feet.
Doing without following the above (Tao),
he fails.
Trying hold on something without following the above (Tao),
he losses.
The sage follows Wu-Wei (not doing anything against the above),
will not fail,
not holding (any wrong notion),
will not loss.
People usually give up (being paranoid) when they are on the vergeof success.
Must give as much care to the end as to the beginning;
there will be no failure.
Therefore the sage values of being not a paranoid,
does not value precious things.
He learns from Nature (not from knowledge),
not repeats mistakes of others,
follows (and utilizes) the laws of nature.
He is afraid of doing (anything not-Tao).
65
In the ancient, those who knew the art of governing,
not to educate people, keep them ignorant.
It is hard to rule,
if people are clever.
Thus, rules with education, bad to the country.
Rules by keeping people ignorant, a blessing to the country.
Knowing these two, the same as knowing Tao.
Knowing Tao is a great virtue.
When the great virtue grows deep and reaches far,
it seems to be opposite of everything,
but it truly harmonizes with everything.
66
Why is the sea, king of all streams?
Because it lies below them.
Therefore, the king of all streams.
Thus, want to be above others, must lay low.
Want to lead others, must follow behind.
In this way,when the sage rules,
people will not feel oppressed.
When he leads,
they will not be harmed.
The whole world support him, not tire of him.
He does not compete;
the others cannot compete with him.
67
Everyone, says that my Tao is great,
seemingly different (from yours).
Because it is great, it seems different.
If it were not different,
it would have vanished long ago.
I have three treasures which I hold and keep.
The first is mercy;
the second is economy (thrifty);
the third is daring not to be ahead of others (which draws jealousy).
From mercy comes courage;
from economy comes generosity;
staying behind ensures maturity and fulfillment.
Nowadays men n mercy and be brave;
abandon economy and be wasteful;
do not believe in humility, but always try to be the first.
This ensures death.
Mercy brings victory in battle and strength in defense.
If God wants to save him, makes him have mercy.
68
A good soldier is not violent.
A good fighter will not get angry.
A good winner will not always compete.
A good employer is humble.
These are, the virtues of compete (or not compete),
the way to lead people.
Since ancient times,
this has been known as an ultimate virtue.
69
There is a saying in arts of war.
I dare not make the first move, rather play the defense.
I dare not advance an inch, rather withdraw a foot.
This is called attack with without attacking.
Throw you jab without showing your arm movement,
you are invincible.
The greatest catastrophe on war is always caused by underestimatingthe enemy.
Underestimating the enemy, you could lose everything.
Because, who fight for the survival, double the strength.
Fight for survival, ensures victory.
70
My words are easy to be understood and easy to be carried out.
Yet no man understands them or practices them.
My words have ancient beginnings.
My ways are disciplined.
Because men are ignorant,
they could not understand my ways.
Those who know me are few;
who despise me are honored.
Therefore the sage wears rough clothing (looks dumb),
yet holds the jade (truth) in his heart.
71
Knowing being ignorance is knowledge.
Not knowing being ignorant is sicking ignorance.
Only if one is sick of sickness,
then he could avoid to be sick.
The sage is not sick because he is sick of sickness.
Therefore, he is not sick.
72
When men are not afraid of authority,
the supreme authority cannot enter their houses,
cannot scare their children.
Only if you try not scare them,
they will not sick of you.
Therefore, the sage (ruler) knows his authority, but makes no show;
has self-respect but is not arrogant.
He let go of that, chooses this.
73
A brave man who acts on his braveness will kill and be killed.
A brave man who not acts on his braveness will preserve life.
Of these two, one is good, the other is harmful.
God (Tien) despise something. Who knows what it is?
Even the sage is unsure of what it is.
The Tao of heaven, not compete, yet often victory,
not asking, yet often answered,
not calling, yet comes by itself,
seems unplanned, yet follows a plan.
Heaven's net (laws) casts wide.
Though its meshes are coarse, nothings slips through.
74
If men are not afraid to die,
it is of no avail to threaten them with death.
Making men fears death,
kill those who breaks laws,
who will dare to break the law?
The official executioner, does the execution.
To do his job for him,
is the same as an apprentice to perform a job of the master carpenter,
he will often hurt his own hands.
75
Why are the people starving?
Because the rulers eat up the money in taxes.
Therefore, the difficulty of governing starving people is,
caused by the rules' own doing.
Therefore, they are rebellious.
Why are the people not afraid of death?
Because the rulers demand too much for their comfort.
And people take death lightly.
Only those rulers who live on little, are good for people.
76
The flesh of living is soft,
hard and stiff after death.
Green plants are tender and filled with sap,
withered and dry after death.
Therefore, the stiff and unbending (meaning strong) is the sign ofdeath.
The gentle and yielding, the sign of life.
Thus an army without flexibility, never wins a battle.
A tree that is unbending, easily broken.
The hard and strong will fall.
The soft and weak will overcome.
77
The Tao of heaven is like the art of archery,
tall man, aim low;
short man, aim high.
If the string is too long, shorten it;
not enough, lengthen it.
The Tao of heaven is just like that,
short the long, long the short.
Man's way is different.
He takes from those who do not have enough,
to give to those who already have too much.
Who can have anything left for taking?
Only the man of Tao, as sage,
works without taking,
achieves without keeping,
does not show his greatness.
78
Nothing is more soft and yielding than water,
for cutting things hard and strong, nothing is better,
because it persists.
The weak can overcome the strong;
the supple can overcome the stiff.
Everyone knows this,
yet no one puts it into practice.
Therefore, the sage says:
who shoulders the humiliation of the people, fits to rule them,
who shoulder the country's disaster, deserves to be the king.
The truth often sounds paradoxical.
79
After the settlement of a big case,
someone could breach the agreement.
What can one do about it?
The sage keeps his half of the bargain, and not blame the others.
A man of Virtue performs his part,
A man without Virtue requires others to fulfill their obligations.
The Tao of heaven is impartial.
It awards virtuous men all the time.
80
A small country has fewer people.
Though there are machines that can work ten or hundred times fasterthan man,
they are not needed.
The people want to be buried home, not travel far.
Though they have boats and carriages, no one uses them.
Though they have armor and weapons, no one displays them.
Men return to the knotting of rope in place of writing.
Their food is good, their clothes fine, their homes secure;
they are happy in their traditions.
Though they live within sight of their neighbors,
and crowing cocks and barking dogs are heard across the way,
they will not engage (visit) each other in their entire life.
81
Truthful words are not beautiful.
Beautiful words are often not truthful.
Good man do not argue.
Those who argue are not good.
Those who know, do not know everything.
Those who know everything, do not know.
The sage never tries to store things up.
The more he does for others, the more he has.
The more he gives to others, the greater his abundance.
Tao of heaven benefits, not harms.
Tao of the sage is working without claiming.
English_GornOld_TTK
Das Tao Te King von Lao Tse
Chinese - English by
Walter Gorn-Old, 1904
1
The Tao that is the subject of discussion is not the true Tao.
The quality which can be named is not its true attribute.
That which was before Heaven and Earth is called the Non-Existent.
The Existent is the mother of all things.
Therefore doth the wise man seek after the first mystery of the Non-Existent, while seeing in that which exists the Ultimates thereof.
The Non-Existent and Existent are identical in all but name.
This identity of apparent opposites I call the profound, the great deep, the open door of bewilderment.
2
When the world speaks of beauty as being beautiful, ugliness is at once defined.
When goodness is seen to be good, evil is at once apparent.
So do existence and non-existence mutually give rise to one another, as that which is difficult and that which is easy, distant and near, high and low, shrill and bass, preceding and following.
The Sage therefore is occupied only with that which is without prejudice.
He teaches without verbosity; he acts without effort; he produces with possessing, he acts without regard to the fruit of action; he brings his work to perfection without assuming credit; and claiming nothing as his own, he cannot at any time be said to lose.
3
Avoiding distinctions of merit among the people prevents jealousy.
Not setting a value on rare things prevents theft.
Not seeking the things of peace keeps the mind in peace.
Thus the Sage governs by ridding the heart of its desires; giving the stomach due satisfaction, by resting the muscles and strengthening the bones, by preserving the world from a knowledge of evil and hence from its desire, and by making those who have such knowledge afraid to use it.
He cacts by non-action, and by this he governs all.
4
Tao is without limitation; its depth is the source of whatsoever is.
It makes shard things round, it brings order out of chaos, it obscures the brilliant, it is wholly without attachment.
