Hold on to the Great Image
and all under heaven will approach you.
Coming to you and not being harmed,
they will find rest, peace, and security.
A passing guest will pause at the sound of music
and the smell of fancy food.
By comparison the Tao is mild and flavorless.
It is not solid enough to be seen,
nor loud enough to [...]
The great Tao covers everything like a flood.
lt flows to the left and to the right.
The ten thousand things depend upon it
and it denies none of them.
It accomplishes its task yet claims no reward.
It clothes and feeds the ten thousand things
yet it does not attempt to control them.
Therefore, it may be called “the little.”
The ten [...]
Knowing others is to be clever.
Knowing yourself is to be enlightened.
Overcoming others requires force.
Overcoming yourself requires strength.
To know that you have enough is to be rich.
Push through and you may get your way,
but return home and you will endure.
Live out your days and you have had a long life.
The Tao is forever nameless.
Though the Uncarved Block is small,
it is not inferior to anything under heaven.
lf leaders could keep hold of it,
the ten thousand things would submit to them freely.
Heaven and earth would unite and sweet dew would fall.
The people would live in harmony
without any law or decree.
Only when the Block is carved are [...]
Weapons are ill-omened things.
Among gentle people the left side
is the place of honor when at home,
but in war the right side is the place of honor.
Weapons are not proper instruments for gentle people;
they use them only when they have no other choice.
Peace and quiet are what they value.
They do not glory in victory.
to glorify it [...]
