Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu (Chapters 1 – 37)

Tao Classic

Chapter 1

The Tao that can be spoken is not the eternal Tao

The name that can be named is not the eternal name

The nameless is the origin of Heaven and Earth

The named is the mother of myriad things

Thus, constantly without desire, one observes its essence

Constantly with desire, one observes its manifestations

These two emerge together but differ in name

The unity is said to be the mystery

Mystery of mysteries, the door to all wonders


Chapter 2

When the world knows beauty as beauty, ugliness arises

When it knows good as good, evil arises

Thus being and non-being produce each other

Difficult and easy bring about each other

Long and short reveal each other

High and low support each other

Music and voice harmonize each other

Front and back follow each other

Therefore the sages:

Manage the work of detached actions

Conduct the teaching of no words

They work with myriad things but do not control

They create but do not possess

They act but do not presume

They succeed but do not dwell on success

It is because they do not dwell on success

That it never goes away


Chapter 3

Do not glorify the achievers

So the people will not squabble

Do not treasure goods that are hard to obtain

So the people will not become thieves

Do not show the desired things

So their hearts will not be confused


Thus the governance of the sage:

Empties their hearts

Fills their bellies

Weakens their ambitions

Strengthens their bones


Let the people have no cunning and no greed

So those who scheme will not dare to meddle


Act without contrivance

And nothing will be beyond control


Chapter 4

The Tao is empty

When utilized, it is not filled up

So deep! It seems to be the source of all things


It blunts the sharpness

Unravels the knots

Dims the glare

Mixes the dusts


So indistinct! It seems to exist

I do not know whose offspring it is

Its image is the predecessor of the Emperor


Chapter 5

Heaven and Earth are impartial

They regard myriad things as straw dogs

The sages are impartial

They regard people as straw dogs


The space between Heaven and Earth

Is it not like a bellows?

Empty, and yet never exhausted

It moves, and produces more


Too many words hasten failure

Cannot compare to keeping to the void


Chapter 6

The valley spirit, undying

Is called the Mystic Female


The gate of the Mystic Female

Is called the root of Heaven and Earth


It flows continuously, barely perceptible

Utilize it; it is never exhausted


Chapter 7

Heaven and Earth are everlasting

The reason Heaven and Earth can last forever

Is that they do not exist for themselves

Thus they can last forever


Therefore the sages:

Place themselves last but end up in front

Are outside of themselves and yet survive

Is it not due to their selflessness?

That is how they can achieve their own goals


Chapter 8

The highest goodness resembles water

Water greatly benefits myriad things without contention

It stays in places that people dislike

Therefore it is similar to the Tao


Dwelling with the right location

Feeling with great depth

Giving with great kindness

Speaking with great integrity

Governing with great administration

Handling with great capability

Moving with great timing


Because it does not contend

It is therefore beyond reproach


Chapter 9

Holding a cup and overfilling it

Cannot be as good as stopping short

Pounding a blade and sharpening it

Cannot be kept for long


Gold and jade fill up the room

No one is able to protect them

Wealth and position bring arrogance

And leave disasters upon oneself


When achievement is completed, fame is attained

Withdraw oneself

This is the Tao of Heaven


Chapter 10

In holding the soul and embracing oneness

Can one be steadfast, without straying?

In concentrating the energy and reaching relaxation

Can one be like an infant?

In cleaning away the worldly view

Can one be without imperfections?

In loving the people and ruling the nation

Can one be without manipulation?

In the heavenly gate’s opening and closing

Can one hold to the feminine principle?

In understanding clearly all directions

Can one be without intellectuality?


Bearing it, rearing it

Bearing without possession

Achieving without arrogance

Raising without domination

This is called the Mystic Virtue


Chapter 11

Thirty spokes join in one hub

In its emptiness, there is the function of a vehicle

Mix clay to create a container

In its emptiness, there is the function of a container

Cut open doors and windows to create a room

In its emptiness, there is the function of a room


Therefore, that which exists is used to create benefit

That which is empty is used to create functionality


Chapter 12

The five colors make one blind in the eyes

The five sounds make one deaf in the ears

The five flavors make one tasteless in the mouth


Racing and hunting make one wild in the heart

Goods that are difficult to acquire make one cause damage


Therefore the sages care for the stomach and not the eyes

That is why they discard the other and take this


Chapter 13

Favor and disgrace make one fearful

The greatest misfortune is the self

What does “favor and disgrace make one fearful” mean?

Favor is high; disgrace is low

Having it makes one fearful

Losing it makes one fearful

This is “favor and disgrace make one fearful”


What does “the greatest misfortune is the self” mean?

The reason I have great misfortune

Is that I have the self

If I have no self

What misfortune do I have?


So one who values the self as the world

Can be given the world

One who loves the self as the world

Can be entrusted with the world


Chapter 14

Look at it, it cannot be seen

It is called colorless

Listen to it, it cannot be heard

It is called noiseless

Reach for it, it cannot be held

It is called formless

These three cannot be completely unraveled

So they are combined into one


Above it, not bright

Below it, not dark

Continuing endlessly, cannot be named

It returns back into nothingness

Thus it is called the form of the formless

The image of the imageless

This is called enigmatic

Confront it, its front cannot be seen

Follow it, its back cannot be seen


Wield the Tao of the ancients

To manage the existence of today

One can know the ancient beginning

It is called the Tao Axiom


Chapter 15

The Tao masters of antiquity

Subtle wonders through mystery

Depths that cannot be discerned

Because one cannot discern them

Therefore one is forced to describe the appearance


Hesitant, like crossing a wintry river

Cautious, like fearing four neighbors

Solemn, like a guest

Loose, like ice about to melt

Genuine, like plain wood

Open, like a valley

Opaque, like muddy water


Who can be muddled yet desist

In stillness gradually become clear?

Who can be serene yet persist

In motion gradually come alive?


One who holds this Tao does not wish to be overfilled

Because one is not overfilled

Therefore one can preserve and not create anew


Chapter 16

Attain the ultimate emptiness

Hold on to the truest tranquility

The myriad things are all active

I therefore watch their return


Everything flourishes; each returns to its root

Returning to the root is called tranquility

Tranquility is called returning to one’s nature

Returning to one’s nature is called constancy

Knowing constancy is called clarity


Not knowing constancy, one recklessly causes trouble

Knowing constancy is acceptance

Acceptance is impartiality

Impartiality is sovereign

Sovereign is Heaven

Heaven is Tao

Tao is eternal

The self is no more, without danger


Chapter 17

The highest rulers, people do not know they have them

The next level, people love them and praise them

The next level, people fear them

The next level, people despise them

If the rulers’ trust is insufficient

Have no trust in them


Proceeding calmly, valuing their words

Task accomplished, matter settled

The people all say, “We did it naturally”


Chapter 18

The great Tao fades away

There is benevolence and justice

Intelligence comes forth

There is great deception


The six relations are not harmonious

There is filial piety and kind affection

The country is in confused chaos

There are loyal ministers


Chapter 19

End sagacity; abandon knowledge

The people benefit a hundred times


End benevolence; abandon righteousness

The people return to piety and charity


End cunning; discard profit

Bandits and thieves no longer exist


These three things are superficial and insufficient

Thus this teaching has its place:

Show plainness; hold simplicity

Reduce selfishness; decrease desires


Chapter 20

Cease learning, no more worries

Respectful response and scornful response

How much is the difference?

Goodness and evil

How much do they differ?

What the people fear, I cannot be unafraid


So desolate! How limitless it is!

The people are excited

As if enjoying a great feast

As if climbing up to the terrace in spring

I alone am quiet and uninvolved

Like an infant not yet smiling

So weary, like having no place to return

The people all have surplus

While I alone seem lacking

I have the heart of a fool indeed – so ignorant!

Ordinary people are bright

I alone am muddled

Ordinary people are scrutinizing

I alone am obtuse

Such tranquility, like the ocean

Such high wind, as if without limits


The people all have goals

And I alone am stubborn and lowly

I alone am different from them

And value the nourishing mother


Chapter 21

The appearance of great virtue

Follows only the Tao

The Tao, as a thing

Seems indistinct, seems unclear


So unclear, so indistinct

Within it there is image

So indistinct, so unclear

Within it there is substance

So deep, so profound

Within it there is essence


Its essence is supremely real

Within it there is faith

From ancient times to the present

Its name never departs

To observe the source of all things

How do I know the nature of the source?

With this


Chapter 22

Yield and remain whole

Bend and remain straight

Be low and become filled

Be worn out and become renewed

Have little and receive

Have much and be confused

Therefore the sages hold to the one as an example for the world

Without flaunting themselves – and so are seen clearly

Without presuming themselves – and so are distinguished

Without praising themselves – and so have merit

Without boasting about themselves – and so are lasting


Because they do not contend, the world cannot contend with them

What the ancients called “the one who yields and remains whole”

Were they speaking empty words?

Sincerity becoming whole, and returning to oneself


Chapter 23

Sparse speech is natural

Thus strong wind does not last all morning

Sudden rain does not last all day

What makes this so? Heaven and Earth

Even Heaven and Earth cannot make it last

How can humans?


Thus those who follow the Tao are with the Tao

Those who follow virtue are with virtue

Those who follow loss are with loss

Those who are with the Tao, the Tao is also pleased to have them

Those who are with virtue, virtue is also pleased to have them

Those who are with loss, loss is also please to have them

Those who do not trust sufficiently, others have no trust in them


Chapter 24

Those who are on tiptoes cannot stand

Those who straddle cannot walk

Those who flaunt themselves are not clear

Those who presume themselves are not distinguished

Those who praise themselves have no merit

Those who boast about themselves do not last


Those with the Tao call such things leftover food or tumors

They despise them

Thus, those who possesses the Tao do not engage in them


Chapter 25

There is something formlessly created

Born before Heaven and Earth

So silent! So ethereal!

Independent and changeless

Circulating and ceaseless

It can be regarded as the mother of the world


I do not know its name

Identifying it, I call it “Tao”

Forced to describe it, I call it great

Great means passing

Passing means receding

Receding means returning

Therefore the Tao is great

Heaven is great

Earth is great

The sovereign is also great

There are four greats in the universe

And the sovereign occupies one of them

Humans follow the laws of Earth

Earth follows the laws of Heaven

Heaven follows the laws of Tao

Tao follows the laws of nature


Chapter 26

Heaviness is the root of lightness

Quietness is the master of restlessness


Therefore the sages travel an entire day

Without leaving the heavy supplies

Even though there are luxurious sights

They are composed and transcend beyond


How can the lords of ten thousand chariots

Apply themselves lightly to the world?

To be light is to lose one’s root

To be restless is to lose one’s mastery


Chapter 27

Good traveling does not leave tracks

Good speech does not seek faults

Good reckoning does not use counters

Good closure needs no bar and yet cannot be opened

Good knot needs no rope and yet cannot be untied


Therefore sages often save others

And so do not abandon anyone

They often save things

And so do not abandon anything

This is called following enlightenment


Therefore the good person is the teacher of the bad person

The bad person is the resource of the good person

Those who do not value their teachers

And do not love their resources

Although intelligent, they are greatly confused

This is called the essential wonder


Chapter 28

Know the masculine, hold to the feminine

Be the watercourse of the world

Being the watercourse of the world

The eternal virtue does not depart

Return to the state of the infant

Know the white, hold to the black

Be the standard of the world

Being the standard of the world

The eternal virtue does not deviate

Return to the state of the boundless

Know the honor, hold to the humility

Be the valley of the world

Being the valley of the world

The eternal virtue shall be sufficient

Return to the state of plain wood

Plain wood splits, then becomes tools

The sages utilize them

And then become leaders

Thus the greater whole is undivided


Chapter 29

Those who wish to take the world and control it

I see that they cannot succeed

The world is a sacred instrument

One cannot control it

The one who controls it will fail

The one who grasps it will lose


Because all things:

Either lead or follow

Either blow hot or cold

Either have strength or weakness

Either have ownership or take by force


Therefore the sage:

Eliminates extremes

Eliminates excess

Eliminates arrogance


Chapter 30

The one who uses the Tao to advise the ruler

Does not dominate the world with soldiers

Such methods tend to be returned


The place where the troops camp

Thistles and thorns grow

Following the great army

There must be an inauspicious year


A good commander achieves result, then stops

And does not dare to reach for domination

Achieves result but does not brag

Achieves result but does not flaunt

Achieves result but is not arrogant

Achieves result but only out of necessity

Achieves result but does not dominate


Things become strong and then get old

This is called contrary to the Tao

That which is contrary to the Tao soon ends


Chapter 31

A strong military, a tool of misfortune

All things detest it

Therefore, those who possess the Tao avoid it

Honorable gentlemen, while at home, value the left

When deploying the military, value the right


The military is a tool of misfortune

Not the tool of honorable gentlemen

When using it out of necessity

Calm detachment should be above all

Victorious but without glory

Those who glorify

Are delighting in the killing

Those who delight in killing

Cannot achieve their ambitions upon the world


Auspicious events favor the left

Inauspicious events favor the right

The lieutenant general is positioned to the left

The major general is positioned to the right

We say that they are treated as if in a funeral

Those who have been killed

Should be mourned with sadness

Victory in war should be treated as a funeral


Chapter 32

The Tao, eternally nameless

Its simplicity, although imperceptible

Cannot be treated by the world as subservient


If the sovereign can hold on to it

All will follow by themselves

Heaven and Earth, together in harmony

Will rain sweet dew

People will not need to force it; it will adjust by itself


In the beginning, there were names

Names came to exist everywhere

One should know when to stop

Knowing when to stop, thus avoiding danger


The existence of the Tao in the world

Is like streams in the valley into rivers and the ocean


Chapter 33

Those who understand others are intelligent

Those who understand themselves are enlightened


Those who overcome others have strength

Those who overcome themselves are powerful


Those who know contentment are wealthy

Those who proceed vigorously have willpower


Those who do not lose their base endure

Those who die but do not perish have longevity


Chapter 34

The great Tao is like a flood

It can flow to the left or to the right


The myriad things depend on it for life, but it never stops

It achieves its work, but does not take credit

It clothes and feeds myriad things, but does not rule over them


Ever desiring nothing

It can be named insignificant

Myriad things return to it but it does not rule over them

It can be named great


Even in the end, it does not regard itself as great

That is how it can achieve its greatness


Chapter 35

Hold the great image

All under heaven will come

They come without harm, in harmonious peace


Music and food, passing travelers stop

The Tao that is spoken out of the mouth

Is bland and without flavor


Look at it, it cannot be seen

Listen to it, it cannot be heard

Use it, it cannot be exhausted


Chapter 36

If one wishes to shrink it

One must first expand it

If one wishes to weaken it

One must first strengthen it

If one wishes to discard it

One must first promote it

If one wishes to seize it

One must first give it

This is called subtle clarity


The soft and weak overcomes the tough and strong

Fish cannot leave the depths

The sharp instruments of the state

Cannot be shown to the people


Chapter 37

The Tao is constant in non-action

Yet there is nothing it does not do


If the sovereign can hold on to this

All things shall transform themselves

Transformed, yet wishing to achieve

I shall restrain them with the simplicity of the nameless

The simplicity of the nameless

They shall be without desire

Without desire, using stillness

The world shall steady itself

Credit: Lao Tzu