TAO TE CHING
By LAO TSU.
A new translation by Gia-Fu-Feng and
Jane English.
Into Burmese by Ba Thet Gyi.
The greatest Virtue is to follow Tao and Tao
alone.
The Tao is elusive and intangible.
Oh, it is intangible and elusive, and yet within is image.
Oh, it is elusive and intangible, yet within is form.
Oh, it is dim and dark, and yet within is essence.
This essence is very real, and therein lies faith.
From the very beginning until now its name has never been forgotten,
Thus I perceive the creation.
How do I know the way of creation?
Because of this.
Yield and overcome;
Bend and be straight;
Empty and be full;
Wear out and be new;
Have little and gain;
Have much and confused.
Therefore the wise men embrace the one
And set an example to all.
Not putting on display,
They shine forth.
Not justifying themselves, They are distinguished.
Not boasting,
They never falter.
So no one quarrels with them.
Therefore the ancient say, "Yield and overcome."
Is that an empty saying?
Be really whole,
And all thins will come to you.
To talk little is natural,
High wind do not last all morning.
Heavy rain does not last all day.
Why is it? Heaven and earth!
If heaven and earth cannot make things eternal,
How is it possible for men?
He who follows the Tao
Is at one with the Tao.
He who is virtuous
Experiences Virtue.
He who lost the way
Feels lost.
When you are at one with Tao,
The Tao welcomes you.
When you are with Virtue,
The Virtue is always there.
When you are at one with the loss,
The loss experienced willingly.
He who does not trust enough
Will not be trusted.
He who stands on tip toe is not steady.
He who strides cannot maintain the pace.
He who makes a show is not enlightened.
He who boast achieves nothing.
He who brags will not endure.
According to the followers of the Tao,
"These extra food and unnecessary baggage,"
They do not bring happiness.
Therefore followers of the Tao avoid them.
Something mysteriously formed,
Born before heaven and earth.
In the silence and void,
Standing alone and unchanging,
Ever present and in motion.
Perhaps it is the mother of ten thousand things.
I do not know its name.
Call it Tao. For the lack of a better word, I call it great.
Being great, it flows.
It flows far away.
Having gone far, it returns.
Therefore, "Tao is great "
These are the four great powers of the universe,
And the king is one of them.
Man follows the earth, earth follows heaven,
Heaven follows the Tao.
Tao follows what is natural.
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The heavy is the root of light;
The still is the master of unrest;.
Therefore the sager, traveling all day,
Does not loose sight of his baggage.
Though there are beautiful things to be seen,
He remains unattached and calm.
Why should the lord of ten thousand chariots
act lightly in public?
To be light is to loose one's root.
To be restless is to lose one's control.
A good walker leaves no trace.
A good speaker makes no slips;
A good recko
Know the strength of man,
But keep a woman's care!
Be the stream of the universe!
Being the stream of the universe,
Ever true and unswerving,
Become a little child once more.
Know the white,
Keep the black!
Be an example to the world,
Ever t rue and unswerving,
Return to the infinite.
Know honor,
Yet keep humility.
Be the valley of the universe,
Ever true and successful,
Return to t he state of uncarved block.
When the block is carved, it becomes useful.
When the sage uses it, he becomes the ruler.
Thus, a great tailor cuts little.
Do you think you can take over the universe
and improve it?
I do not believe it can be done.
The universe is sacred.
You cannot improve it.
If you try to change it, you will ruin it.
If you try to hold it, you will lose it.
So sometimes things are ahead and sometimes
they are behind.
Sometimes breathing is hard, sometimes it comes easily;
Sometimes there is strength and sometimes weakness;
Sometimes one is up and sometimes down.
Therefore the sage avoid extremes, excesses,
and complacency..
Whenever you advise a ruler in the way of Tao,
Counsel him not to use force to conquer the universe.
For this would only cause resistance.
Thorn bushes spring up wherever the army has passed.
Lean years follow in the wake of a great war.
Just do what needs to be done.
Never take advantage of power.
Achieve results,
But never glory in them.
Achieve results,
But never boast.
Achieve results,
But never be proud.
Achieve results,
Because this is a natural way.
Force is followed by lost of strength,
This is not the way of Tao.
That which goes against Tao comes to an early end.
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