Dao De Jing

The Classic of the Way and its Virtuous Potency

(This is a work in progress, exploring various versions and styles of translation. Everything here is subject to change and transformation.)

(Received One)

道可道，非常道。
A path can be followed as a path, neglecting the constantly enduring path, the Dao.

名可名，非常名。
Its name can be assigned and designated as a name, neglecting its eternally persisting designation.

無名天地之始；有名萬物之母。
Without name, it is of the beginnings of Heaven and Earth; with name, it is the mother of countless phenomena.

故常無欲，以觀其妙；常有欲，以觀其徼。
Because of this, constantly enduring without desire and striving, is the basis for contemplation of its inscrutable subtlety; constantly enduring with desire and striving, is the basis for contemplation of its borders and outer edges.

此兩者，同出而異名，同謂之玄。
This pairing, in sameness emerges forth and only then differs in name and designation; in their sameness we refer to them as a mysterious subtlety that merely hints at what is beyond what is apparent.

玄之又玄，衆妙之門。
Mysterious subtlety's continuing into mysterious subtleties, the gateway of numerous inscrutable subtleties.

Guodian A One (Received 19)

绝智弃便，民利百倍。
Breaking past thinking abandons clever solutions,
and the commonfolk benefit a hundred times over.

绝巧弃利，盗贼亡又。
Breaking past skilled work abandons advantages,
and thieving outlawry is undone again.

绝伪弃虑，民复季子。
Breaking past falsification abandons contemplation of what may be,
and the commonfolk return to the seasonal harvest.

三言以为吏不足，或命之。
Three phrases taking doing as low level and inadequate,
a case is made for returning to destiny,
a case is made for what to put down.

视索保朴，少厶颁欲。
Watching out for what is expected conserves simplicity,
limiting to some degree the spread of desires.

Guodian A Nine (Received 40)

天下皆智美之为美也，亚已；
Heavenly-descended all understand the excellence of things for the sake of their excellence, and so the next step down is established;

皆智善，此其不善已。
All understand goodness, here is one's not-goodness established.

又亡之相生也，难惕之相成也，长短之相型也，高下之相盈也，音圣之相和也，先后之相堕也。
Becoming and unbecoming they exist because of each other,
troubles and worries they fulfill each other,
long and short they are cast from each other,
High and low they complete each other,
reputation and peerlessness they balance each other,
before and after they fall into each other.

是以圣人居亡为之事，行不言之教。
Because of this the peerless person rests in unbecoming and carrying out the serving of that interest,
doing not speaking this teaching.

万勿作而弗始也，为而弗志也，成而弗居。
The 10,000 do not stand up and then not commence or,
do and then not attend to or,
accomplish and then not rest.

夫唯弗居也，是以弗去也。
So indeed in all cases of not resting it,
this is the means of not storing it up.