Laozi, Daodejing, Part One

道可道，非常道，名可名，非常名；

The Dao that can be spoken is not the constant Dao; the name that can be named is not the constant name. (Dao is a word Laozi borrows to refer to the origin and manner of operation of all things; in itself it cannot be described.)

無名，天地之始，有名，萬物之母。

The nameless is the beginning of heaven and earth; the named is the mother of all things.

故常無欲，以觀其妙，

Therefore, always look from the standpoint of "non-being" to observe its subtlety,

常有欲，以觀其徼；

and always look from the standpoint of "being" to observe its boundaries.

此兩者，同出而異名，同謂之玄。玄之又玄，眾妙之門。

These two come from the same source but have different names, and both may be called profound (deep and unfathomable). Profound upon profound: this is the gateway to all subtle transformations.

天下皆知美之為美，斯惡已。皆知善之為善，斯不善已。故有無相生，難易相成，長短相較，高下相傾，音聲相和，前後相隨。

When everyone in the world knows beauty as beauty, the notion of ugliness comes along with it; when everyone knows good as good, the notion of not-good comes along with it. Thus being and non-being give rise to each other, difficult and easy complete each other, long and short define each other, high and low lean on each other, tone and sound harmonize with each other, before and after follow each other.

是以聖人處無為之事，

Therefore the sage handles affairs entirely through non-action (wuwei: not forcing things by subjective will, letting things run according to their own nature, not doing nothing at all),

行不言之教；萬物作焉而不辭，生而不有，為而不恃，

and carries out teaching without words. All things arise and grow, and he does not interfere; he gives life to them without possessing them, acts without relying on his own ability,

功成而弗居。

and when his work is accomplished, he does not claim credit.

夫唯弗居，是以不去。

Precisely because he does not claim credit, his merit never leaves him.

不尚賢，使民不爭；不貴難得之貨，使民不為盜；不見可欲，使民心不亂。

Do not exalt the worthy, so that the people do not contend; do not prize goods that are hard to obtain, so that the people do not become thieves; do not display what arouses desire, so that the people's hearts are not disturbed.

是以聖人之治，虛其心，實其腹，

Therefore, in governing, the sage empties the people's minds and fills their bellies,

弱其志，強其骨。

softens their ambitions and strengthens their bones.

常使民無知無欲。

He keeps the people always free of cunning schemes and free of excess desires,

使夫智者不敢為也。

and makes those who think themselves clever dare not act recklessly.

為無為，則無不治。

When one acts through non-action, there is nothing that is not well governed.

道沖而用之或不盈，淵兮似萬物之宗；挫其銳，解其紛，和其光，同其塵，湛兮似或存。吾不知誰之子，象帝之先。

The Dao is empty, yet no matter how it is used it is never filled; how deep it is, like the ancestor of all things. It blunts sharp edges, unties tangles, softens the glare and merges with the dust; how hidden it is, seeming to exist and yet not to exist. I do not know whose offspring it is; it seems to have come before the Lord of Heaven.

天地不仁，以萬物為芻狗；

Heaven and earth are not partial; they treat all things as straw dogs used in sacrifice, letting them live and die of themselves;

聖人不仁，以百姓為芻狗。

the sage too is not partial; he treats the people as straw dogs, letting them live and multiply naturally.

天地之間，其猶橐籥乎？虛而不屈，動而愈出。

Is not the space between heaven and earth like a bellows? It is empty within yet never exhausted; the more it is worked, the more wind comes out.

多言數窮，不如守中。

Too many decrees only hasten ruin; better to hold fast to emptiness and stillness.

谷神不死，是謂玄牝。玄牝之門，是謂天地根。緜緜若存，用之不勤。

The valley spirit never dies; this is called the mysterious female (the valley spirit and the mysterious female both figure that which is empty yet gives birth to all things). The gate of the mysterious female is called the root of heaven and earth. Continuous and unbroken, it seems to exist; use it, and it is never exhausted.

天長地久。天地所以能長且久者，以其不自生，

Heaven is long-lasting and earth enduring. The reason heaven and earth can last long is that they do not live for themselves,

故能長生。是以聖人後其身而身先；外其身而身存。非以其無私邪，故能成其私。

and so they can live long. Therefore the sage puts himself last and yet comes first; he sets himself outside and yet is preserved. Is it not because he has no self-interest? That is why he is able to fulfill himself.

上善若水。水善利萬物而不爭，處眾人之所惡，

The highest good is like water. Water is good at benefiting all things without contending with them, and it settles in the low places that everyone dislikes,

故幾於道。

and so it is closest to the Dao.

居善地，心善淵，與善仁，言善信，正善治，事善能，動善時。夫唯不爭，故無尤。

In dwelling, be good at choosing the place; in mind, be good at depth and stillness; in giving, be good at kindness; in speech, be good at keeping faith; in government, be good at order; in affairs, be good at using ability; in action, be good at timing. Precisely because one does not contend, one is free of fault.

持而盈之，不如其已；

To hold a basin filled to the brim and still try to add more is not as good as stopping in time;

揣而梲之，不可長保。

a blade hammered sharp and keen will not keep its edge for long.

金玉滿堂，莫之能守；

When gold and jade fill the hall, no one can guard them;

富貴而驕，自遺其咎。

to become rich and noble and then grow arrogant is to leave calamity for oneself.

功遂身退，天之道。

When the work is done, withdraw: this is the way of heaven.

載營魄抱一，能無離乎？

Can you hold the spirit-soul and bodily soul together in one embrace, without letting them separate?

專氣致柔，能嬰兒乎？

Can you concentrate your vital energy (qi, the flowing substance that makes up and runs through all things) until it is soft and yielding, like an infant?

滌除玄覽，能無疵乎？

Can you cleanse the stray thoughts from your mind and contemplate the profound, without a single flaw?

愛國治民，能無知乎？

Can you love the state and govern the people without using cunning? (The source text reads "love the state and govern the people," while the standard Wang Bi edition reads "love the people and govern the state," with the two words reversed; here the source text is translated as it stands, without changing the wording to match the standard edition.)

天門開闔，能為雌乎？

When the gates of heaven open and close, can you keep to the female, the soft?

明白四達，能無為乎？

Can you understand and penetrate in all directions without using cleverness?

生之，

Give birth to all things,

畜之。

and nurture all things.

生而不有，為而不恃，長而不宰，是謂玄德。

Give birth without possessing, act without relying on one's ability, lead without ruling over: this is called profound virtue (virtue here means the capacity that the Dao shows when embodied in concrete things, not virtue in the ethical sense).