04道德经英译本85种-第485节
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And are not sufficient in themselves。
Therefore; they should be subordinated
To a Higher principle:
See the Simple and embrace the Primal;
Diminish the self and curb the desires!
20
HAVE done with learning;
And you will have no more vexation。
How great is the difference between 〃eh〃 and 〃o〃?
What is the distinction between 〃good〃 and 〃evil〃?
Must I fear what others fear?
What abysmal nonsense this is!
All men are joyous and beaming;
As though feasting upon a sacrificial ox;
As though mounting the Spring Terrace;
I alone am placid and give no sign;
Like a babe which has not yet smiled。
I alone am forlorn as one who has no home to retum to。
All men have enough and to spare:
I alone appear to possess nothing。
What a fool I am!
What a muddled mind I have!
All men are bright; bright:
I alone am dim; dim。
All men are sharp; sharp:
I alone am mum; mum!
Bland like the ocean;
Aimless like the wafting gale。
All men settle down in their grooves:
I alone am stubborn and remain outside。
But wherein I am most different from others is
In knowing to take sustenance from my Mother!
21
IT lies in the nature of Grand Virtue
To follow the Tao and the Tao alone。
Now what is the Tao?
It is Something elusive and evasive。
Evasive and elusive!
And yet It contains within Itself a Form。
Elusive and evasive!
And yet It contains within Itself a Substance。
Shadowy and dim!
And yet It contains within Itself a Core of Vitality。
The Core of Vitality is very real;
It contains within Itself an unfailing Sincerity。
Throughout the ages Its Name has been preserved
In order to recall the Beginning of all things。
How do I know the ways of all things at the Beginning?
By what is within me。
22
BEND and you will be whole。
Curl and you will be straight。
Keep empty and you will be filled。
Grow old and you will be renewed。
Have little and you will gain。
Have much and you will be confused。
Therefore; the Sage embraces the One;
And becomes a Pattern to all under Heaven。
He does not make a show of himself;
Hence he shines;
Does not justify himself;
Hence he becomes known;
Does not boast of his ability;
Hence he gets his credit;
Does not brandish his success;
Hence he endures;
Does not compete with anyone;
Hence no one can compete with him。
Indeed; the ancient saying: 〃Bend and you will remain whole〃 is no idle word。
Nay; if you have really attained wholeness; everything will flock to you。
23
ONLY simple and quiet words will ripen of themselves。
For a whirlwind does not last a whole morning;
Nor does a sudden shower last a whole day。
Who is their author? Heaven…and…Earth!
Even Heaven…and…Earth cannot make such violent things last long;
How much truer is it of the rash endeavours of men?
Hence; he who cultivates the Tao is one with the Tao;
He who practices Virtue is one with Virtue;
And he who courts after Loss is one with Loss。
To be one with the Tao is to be a welcome accession to the Tao;
To be one with Virtue is to be a welcome accession to Virtue;
To be one with Loss is to be a welcome accession to Loss。
Deficiency of faith on your part
Entails faithlessness on the part of others。
24
ONE on tip…toe cannot stand。
One astride cannot walk。
One who displays himself does not shine。
One who justifies himself has no glory。
One who boasts of his own ability has no merit。
One who parades his own success will not endure。
In Tao these things are called 〃unwanted food and extraneous growths;〃
Which are loathed by all things。
Hence; a man of Tao does not set his heart upon them。
25
THERE was Something undefined and yet complete in itself;
Born before Heaven…and…Earth。
Silent and boundless;
Standing alone without change;
Yet pervading all without fail;
It may be regarded as the Mother of the world。
I do not know its name;
I style it 〃Tao〃;
And; in the absence of a better word; call it 〃The Great。〃
To be great is to go on;
To go on is to be far;
To be far is to return。
Hence; 〃Tao is great;
Heaven is great;
Earth is great;
King is great。〃
Thus; the king is one of the great four in the Universe。
Man follows the ways of the Earth。
The Earth follows the ways of Heaven;
Heaven follows the ways of Tao;
Tao follows its own ways。
26
HEAVINESS is the root of lightness。
Serenity is the master of restlessness。
Therefore; the Sage; travelling all day;
Does not part with the baggage…wagon;
Though there may be gorgeous sights to see;
He stays at ease in his own home。
Why should a lord of ten thousand chariots
Display his lightness to the world?
To be light 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;
Good speech leaves no mark to be picked at;
Good calculation makes no use of counting…slips;
Good shutting 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。
Hence; the Sage is always good at saving men;
And therefore nobody is abandoned;
Always good at saving things;
And therefore nothing is wasted。
This is called 〃following the guidance of the Inner Light。〃
Hence; good men are teachers of bad men;
While bad men are the charge of good men。
Not to revere one's teacher;
Not to cherish one's charge;
Is to be on the wrong road; however intelligent one may be。
This is an essential tenet of the Tao。
28
KNOW the masculine;
Keep to the feminine;
And be the Brook of the World。
To be the Brook of the World is
To move constantly in the path of Virtue
Without swerving from it;
And to return again to infancy。
Know the white;
Keep to the black;
And be the Pattern of the World。
To be the Pattern of the World is
To move constantly in the path of Virtue
Without erring a single step;
And to return again to the Infinite。
Know the glorious;
Keep to the lowly;
And be the Fountain of the World。
To be the Fountain of the World is
To live the abundant life of Virtue;
And to return again to Primal Simplicity。
When Primal Simplicity diversifies;
It becomes useful vessels;
Which; in the hands of the Sage; become officers。
Hence; 〃a great tailor does little cutting。〃
29
DOES anyone want to take the world and do what he wants with it?
I do not see how he can succeed。
The world is a sacred vessel; which must not be tampered with or grabbed after。
To tamper with it is to spoil it; and to grasp it is to lose it。
In fact; for all things there is a time for going ahead; and a time for following behind;
A time for slow…breathing and a time for fast…breathing;
A time to grow in strength and a time to decay;
A time to be up and a time to be down。
Therefore; the Sage avoids all extremes; excesses and extravagances。
30
HE who knows how to guide a ruler in the path of Tao
Does not try to override the world with force of arms。
It is in the nature of a military weapon to turn against its wielder。
Wherever armies are stationed; thorny bushes grow。
After a great war; bad years invariably follow。
What you want is to protect efficiently your own state;
But not to aim at self…aggrandisement。
After you have attained your purpose;
You must not parade your success;
You must not boast of your ability;
You must not feel proud;
You must rather regret that you had not been able to prevent the war。
You must never think of conquering others by force。
For to be over…developed is to hasten decay;
And this is against Tao;
And what is against Tao will soon cease to be。
31
FINE weapons of war augur evil。
Even things seem to hate them。
Therefore; a man of Tao does not set his heart upon them。
In ordinary life; a gentleman regards the left side as the place of honour:
In war; the right side is the place of honour。
As weapons are instruments of evil;
They are not properly a gentleman's instruments;
Only on necessity will he resort to them。
For peace and quiet are dearest to his heart;
And to him even a victory is no cause for rejoicing。
To rejoice over a victory is to rejoice over the slaughter of men!
Hence a man who rejoices over the slaughter of men cannot expect to thrive in the world of men。
On happy occasions the left side is preferred:
On sad occasions the right side。
In the army; the Lieutenant Commander stands on the left;
While the Commander…i