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THE TAO TE CHING,
OR
THE TAO AND ITS CHARACTERISTICS
by Lao Tzu
translated by James Legge
(Edited by Zee Sing*)
Selection 9
The Tao which originated all under the sky is to
be
considered as the mother of them all.
When the mother is found, we know what her children should be.
When one knows that he is his mother's child, and proceeds to guard
the qualities of the mother that belong to him, to the end of his
life he will be free from all peril.
Let him keep his mouth closed, and shut up the portals of his
nostrils, and all his life he will be exempt from laborious exertion.
Let him keep his mouth open, and spend his breath in the promotion
of his affairs, and all his life there will be no safety for him.
The perception of what is small is the secret of clear-
sightedness; the guarding of what is soft and tender is the secret
of strength.
Who uses well light,
Reverting to its source so bright,
Will from his body ward all blight,
And hides the unchanging from men's sight.
If I were suddenly to become known, and put into a position
to conduct a government according to the Great Tao, what I should
be most afraid of would be a boastful display.
The great Tao or way is very level and easy; but people love the
by-ways.
Their court-yards and buildings shall be well kept, but their
fields shall be ill-cultivated, and their granaries very empty.
They
shall wear elegant and ornamented robes, carry a sharp sword at
their
girdle, pamper themselves in eating and drinking, and have a
superabundance of property and wealth;--such (princes) may be called
robbers and boasters. This is contrary to the Tao surely!
What Tao's skilful planter plants
Can never be uptorn;
What his skilful arms enfold,
From him can ne'er be borne.
Sons shall bring in lengthening line,
Sacrifices to his shrine.
Tao when nursed within one's self,
Vigour will make true;
And where the family it rules
What riches will accrue!
The neighbourhood where it prevails
In thriving will abound;
And when 'tis seen throughout the state,
Good fortune will be found.
Employ it the kingdom o'er,
And men thrive all around.
In this way the effect will be seen in the person, by the
observation of different cases; in the family; in the neighbourhood;
in the state; and in the kingdom.
How do I know that this effect is sure to hold thus all under the
sky? By this method of observation.
He who has in himself abundantly the attributes of the Tao is
like an infant. Poisonous insects will not sting him; fierce beasts
will not seize him; birds of prey will not strike him.
The infant's bones are weak and its sinews soft, but yet its
grasp is firm. It knows not yet the union of male and female, and
yet
its virile member may be excited;--showing the perfection of its
physical essence. All day long it will cry without its throat
becoming hoarse;--showing the harmony in its constitution.
To him by whom this harmony is known,
The secret of the unchanging Tao is shown,
And in the knowledge wisdom finds its throne.
All life-increasing arts to evil turn;
Where the mind makes the vital breath to burn,
False is the strength, and o'er it we should mourn.
When things have become strong, they then become old, which may
be said to be contrary to the Tao. Whatever is contrary to the Tao
soon ends.
He who knows the Tao does not care to speak about it; he
who is ever ready to speak about it does not know it.
He who knows it will keep his mouth shut and close the portals
of his nostrils. He will blunt his sharp points and unravel the
complications of things; he will attemper his brightness, and bring
himself into agreement with the obscurity of others. This is called
'the Mysterious Agreement.'
Such a one cannot be treated familiarly or distantly; he is
beyond all consideration of profit or injury; of nobility or
meanness:--he is the noblest man under heaven.
A state may be ruled by measures of correction; weapons of
war may be used with crafty dexterity; but the kingdom is made one's
own only by freedom from action and purpose.
Selection 1, 2,
3, 4,
5, 6,
7, 8,
9, 10,
11, 12,
13, 14,
15
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*Because the Legge translation is
rather old, it has been edited slightly to update the language to
a more contemporary standard.
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