Can you at the same time
remain not involved and
not interfere?
Raise your people with care!
Feed your people!
Raise them without saying
they are your own!
Do your work
without setting
any value to it!
Be one to be followed,
not one who commands!
This is called Hidden Powers.
This is true harmony.
11
Thirty Spokes
converge upon a single hub;
It is on
the hole in the center
that the use
of the cart hinges.
We make a bowl or cup
from a lump of clay;
It is the empty space
within the vessel
that makes it useful.
We make doors
and windows
for a room;
It is the
empty spaces
that make the
room livable.
Thus,
Take advantage of
what is visible,
By making use of
What is not visible.
12
The five colors
blind the eye.
The five tones
deafen the ear
. The five flavors
stick to the palate.
Racing and hunting
make crazy the mind.
Temptations make men do wrong.
The Complete Thinker
takes care of
the hunger,
not the senses.
Prefers
the substance within
not the illusion.
13
"Welcome disgrace
as a pleasant surprise.
Prize misfortunes
as your own body."
Why should we
"welcome disgrace
as a pleasant surprise"?
Because a lowly state is a boon:
Getting it is a pleasant surprise,
And so is losing it!
That is why we should
"welcome disgrace
as a pleasant surprise."
Why should we
"prize misfortunes
as our own body"?
Because our body
is the very source
of our misfortunes
. If we have no body,
what misfortunes
can we have?
Only he
who is willing to
give their body
for the sake of the world
is fit to be
entrusted
with the world.
Only they
who can do it
with love
and regard themselves
as the world
are worthy of being
the steward of the world.
This lesson is known
by all Complete Thinkers.
14
Look at it
but you cannot see it!
Its name is Formless.
Listen to it
but you cannot hear it!
Its name is Soundless
. Try to hold it
but you cannot get it!
Its name is Incorporeal.
These three attributes
are to deep to measure;
They mix together
into one.
Its upper side is not bright:
Its under side is not dim.
Always the Not Namable
moves on,
Until it returns
beyond the world of things.
We call it
the formless Form,
the imageless Image.
We call it
the not describable
and unimaginable.
Confront it and
you do not see its face!
Follow it and
you do not see its back!
Yet equipped with this
timeless Tao (the Laws of the Universe),
You can control
present realities and deal with the past.
To know the ancient origins
( the beginning of the Universe ) is
to know the true Tao (the Laws of the Universe)
15
In times past
the Complete Thinkers of the Tao (the Laws of the Universe)
were not obvious
about what they did and
could change to
meet the circumstance,
Their minds,
strong and
widespread,
were too deep to be measured.
Because their minds
are unmeasurable,
One can only describe them
unclearly by their appearance.
Slow to start
like one crossing thin ice;
Shy as if surrounded by danger
on all sides;
Careful and polite like a guest;
Unbouded like ice on the point of melting;
Genuine like an
uncarved block;
Hollow like
a cave;
Disordered like
a muddy pool;
And yet who else could
quietly and gradually
change from the muddy to the clear?
Who else could
slowly but steadily
move from the lifeless to the living?
The who keep the Tao (the Laws of the Universe)
does not want to be full.
But precisely because they are never full,
They can always
remain open in thought,
They do not become rigid in thought.
16
Achieve the utmost Emptiness.
Cling single-heartedly to
interior peace.
Become a part
of all things,
In this way
see the pattern.
Flourish they do,
Each of them will
return to its root.
To return to
the root is
to find peace.
To find peace is
to fulfill one's destiny.
To fulfill one's destiny is
to be unchanging.
To know the Unchanging is
called Insight.
If one does not
know the Unchanging,
One runs blindly
into disasters.
If one knows
the Unchanging,
One can understand and
embrace all.
If one understands and
embraces all,
One is capable of
doing justice.
To be just is
to be a leader;
To be a leader is
to be one with nature;
To be one with nature is
to be one with the Tao (the Laws of the Universe);
To be one with
the Tao (the Laws of the Universe) is to become immortal.
Such a one will be safe and whole,
Even after the death of body.
The Tao does not decay.
17
The best type of leader
is one of whose existence
the people are barely aware.
Next comes one
whom they love and praise.
Next comes one
whom they fear.
Next comes one
whom they despise and defy.
When you are
lacking in faith,
Others will be
unfaithful to you.
The Complete Thinker is
quiet and uses few words.
When tasks have been
accomplished and
things have been completed,
All the people say,
"We ourselves have achieved it!"
18
When the Great Tao (the Laws of the Universe)
was abandoned,
There appeared
duty and justice.
When intelligence
and jokes arose,
There appeared people
who said they were one way but lived the opposite.
When the family
lost their compatibility,
There appeared respectful devotion
and fatherly kindness.
When darkness and disorder
began to control a country,
There appeared
the loyal and trustworthy patriots.
19
Drop wisdom,
abandon cleverness,
And the people will be
benefited a hundred fold.
Drop humanity,
abandon morality,
And the people will
return to their natural affections.
Drop cleverness,
abandon greed,
And robbers and thieves
will cease to be.
These three are a
pattern of Tao (the Laws of the Universe),
And are not sufficient in themselves
they are only symptoms.
They should be subordinated
to a Higher principle;
People need
personal remedies.
See the simple True Self
and embrace
your original nature.
Forget you habits and desires,
simplify you life.
20
Have done with rote learning,
And you will have no more frustration.
How great is the difference between agreement and being the servant?
What is the difference between "construction" and "destruction"?
Must I fear what others fear?
What difficult stupidity this is
! All are joyous and beaming,
As though feasting upon a sacrificial ox, As though mounting the SpringGarden;
I alone am peaceful and give no sign, Like a babe which has not yetsmiled.
I alone am forgotten as one who has no home to return to.
All have enough and more:
I alone appear to possess nothing.
What a not knowing person I am!
What a confused mind I have!
All are bright,
bright:
I alone am dim,
dim.
All are sharp,
sharp:
I alone am silent, silent!
Tasteless like the ocean,
Aimless like the drifting wind.
All settle in their paths:
I alone am stubborn and remain outside.
I am most different from others
In knowing
to take support from
my Eternal Mother!
21
It lies in the nature of
Power
To follow the Tao (the Laws of the Universe) and
the Tao (the Laws of the Universe) alone.
Now what is the Tao (the Laws of the Universe)?
It is Something slippery and shifty. Shifty and slippery!
And yet It contains within Itself a Form. Shifty and slippery!
And yet It contains within Itself a Substance.
Shadowy and dim!
And yet It contains within Itself a Core of Energy ( the Force of Life).
The Core of Energy ( Force of Life ) is very real,
It contains within Itself an unfailing Honesty.
Throughout the ages
Its Name has been preserved
In order to recall the
Beginning of all things.
(We can see and hear the background radiation that was the Big Bangthe beginning of
our Universe.)
How do I know the ways of all things at the Beginning?
By what is within me.
(For are we not made of recycled Star Stuff.)
22
Accept and you will be whole.
Bend and you will straighten.
Empty and you will fill.
Grow old and you will be renewed.
Have little and you will gain.
Have much and you will be confused.
The Complete Thinker
embraces the One,
Becomes a Pattern to
all under Heaven.
Does not make a show,
Then shines;
Does not justify self,
Then becomes known;
Does not brag of ability,
Then gets credit;
Does not show success,
Then lasts;
Does not compete with anyone,
Then no one can compete with the Complete Thinker.
Indeed, the ancient saying:
"Accept and you will remain whole"
is no idle word.
Once whole,
Turn within and concentrate your Power.
The world is as your home.
23
Only simple and
quiet words will
ripen of themselves.
For a whirlwind
does not last a
whole morning.
A sudden rain
does not last
a whole day.
Who is their creator?
Heaven-and-Earth!
Even Heaven-and-Earth
cannot make such
violent things
last long;
The same is true of the
reckless efforts of humans.
Who helps the Tao (the Laws of the Universe)
is one with the Tao (the Laws of the Universe);
Who thinks with Power
is one with Power;
And who seeks the hand of loss
is one with Loss.
To be one with
the Tao (the Laws of the Universe)
is to be a welcome addition to
the Tao (the Laws of the Universe);
To be one with Power
is to be a welcome addition
to Power;
To be one with Loss
is to be a welcome addition
to Loss.
Failure of faith
on your part
Creates faithlessness
on the part of others.
24
One on tip-toe
cannot stand solid.
Sitting on a horse
you cannot walk.
Who shows off
does not shine
. Who brags
has no glory.
Who boasts of ability
has no merit.
Who parades success
will not last.
In Tao (the Laws of the Universe) these things are called
"unwanted food and
extra growths,"
Are rejected
by all things
. A person of the Tao (the Laws of the Universe)
does not want them.
They turn away from them.
25
There was Something undefined and complete in itself,
Born before Heaven-and-Earth.
Silent and
endless,
Standing alone
without change,
Being within all,
It may be thought of as
the Mother of the world.
I do not know its name;
I write it
"Tao (the Laws of the Universe)";
Without a better word,
call it
"The Great."
To be great is
to go on,
To go on is
to go far,
To go far is
to return.
Therefore,
"Tao (the Laws of the Universe) is great,
Heaven is great,
Earth is great,
The Leader is great"
Thus the Leader is
one of the great four in the Universe.
Humans follows
the ways of the Earth.
Earth follows
the ways of Heaven,
Heaven follows
the ways of Tao (the Laws of the Universe),
Tao (the Laws of the Universe) follows
its own ways.
26
Heaviness is
the root of lightness.
Peace of mind is
the master of restlessness.
The Complete Thinker,
traveling all day,
Does not leave
the baggage-wagon;
There may be
gorgeous sights to see,
But stays
peacefully at home.
How can a leader
Have a light hearted position in the world?
To be light hearted
is to be separated from one's root;
To be restless
is to lose one's self-mastery.
27
Good walking leaves
no track behind it,
but the walking was true;
Good speech leaves
no mark to be picked at,
but the speech was true;
Good calculation makes
no use of counting-slips,
yet the counting is true;
Good tting makes
no use of bolt and bar,
And yet nobody can undo it;
Good tying makes
no use of rope and knot,
And yet nobody can untie it.
The Complete Thinker is
always good at saving humans,
And nobody is abandoned;
Always good at savings things,
And nothing is wasted.
This is called
"following the guidance of the Insight."
Good humans are the
teachers of destructive humans,
Destructive humans
depend on constructive humans.
Not to honor one's teacher,
Not to value one's dependent,
Is to be on the wrong road,
