Tao Quotes

Secret One: Tao

Chapter 1

Sentence for Sentence Translation:

道可道，非常道: Tao that can be spoken is not the absolute Tao.
名可名，非常名: Name that can be named is not the absolute name.
无名天地之始: Wuming, the nameless is Tiande, Heaven and Earth’s origin.
有名万物之母: Yoming, the named is wanwu, the ten thousand things’ mother.
故常无欲以观其妙: Therefore, always wuyu, without desires to observe its wonders.
常有欲以观其徼: Always yoyu, having desires to observe its manifestations.
此两者同出而异名: These two things come from the same source but have different names.
同谓之玄: Both are called Mysterious.
玄之又玄: Mysterious upon Mysterious.
众妙之门: All wonders’ entrance.

Interpretational Translation of Tao Te Ching Chapter 1：

It has been said for so many times and in so many ways,
- Tao that can be told is not the absolute Tao.
- Name that can be named is not the absolute name.
Oh the humble one, if you cannot tell and you cannot name, should we close the book and not look?
Yes and no. The more I talk, the less you absorb.
Absolute Tao is an unknown. To talk about something unknown is meaningless.
Absolute name is Oneness. Oneness includes all names and therefore it is meaningless to call everything Oneness.
Then, the humble one! Am I meaningless? Am I nothing?
Oh man, what can I say? What can I say!
Yes, when you are one with Tao, you are nothing but you are everything; you don’t need to be told but you know.
And when you are one with the whole you don’t need a name to play a role.
But when you begin to live, you must be told about the natural long life Tao to live here and now.
When you begin to play a role, you must have a name to be a part of the game.
Here is the game of life:
The Nameless is Tao which gives birth to Heaven and Earth.
The Named is Heaven and Earth which is the mother of the ten thousand things.
Man is one of the ten thousand things and he must play his role.
Oh man, be void of desire! Be still! Let the worldly dust settle. In silence and emptiness you can witness the wonder of creation.
Oh man, have lust for life! Be active! Live in the present moment. Right here and right now, you can experience the joy of living.
These two experiences of life come from the same source but differ in name.
They are the mysterious experiences.
Hold! Man, be humble!
There are more mysterious wonders than mysterious experiences.
Oh incomprehensible! Somewhere in the unknown is a mysterious door to all wonders.
What is behind the door?
Lo and behold. It cannot be told.

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Chapter 25

Sentence for Sentence Translation:

有物混成，先天地生: In chaos, Tao completes all things. It exists before Heaven and Earth.
寂兮寥兮: Oh silence and formless!
独立而不改: Unique and unchanging,
周行而不殆: Revolving and without danger.
可以为天下母:So Tao can be the mother of the world.
吾不知其名，字之曰道： I do not know its name. I just call it Tao.
强为之名曰大: Reluctantly, I give it a description as great.
大曰逝: Great means it flows everywhere.
逝曰远: It flows everywhere means it is infinite.
远曰反: It is infinite means it is returning.
故道大，天大，地大，王亦大: Therefore Tao is great; Heaven is great; Earth is great and the king is also great.
域中有四大，而王居其一焉: These are the four greats in the kingdom and the king is one of them.
人法地: Man follows Earth.
地法天: Earth follows Heaven.
天法道: Heaven follows Tao.
道法自然: Tao follows its own nature.

Interpretational Translation of Tao Te Ching Chapter 25：

Tao is mysteriously nothing which appears as something. It exists before Heaven and Earth.
Oh, silent and formless!
Tao stands alone and unchanging!
Yet Tao revolves eternally and is always changing!
Oh the humble one! Is it possible that Tao is unchangeable yet changeable at the same time?
Oh man! Tao is relative. It appears differently to different observers.
Yes, Tao is incomprehensible! Somehow, it gives birth to all things and becomes the mother of the universe.
Actually, I do not know its real name. I just call it Tao.
For lack of better words, I describe it as Great.
Great means it flows everywhere endlessly as a whole.
It flows far away into infinity.
Having gone far, it returns to here and now simultaneously.
Great consists of parts and each part is Tao in disguise.
Therefore, Tao is Great.
Heaven is Great.
Earth is Great.
And the king is also Great.
These are the four Greats in the kingdom,
And the king is one of them.
Well, the king might be great, but he still has to obey the natural orders of things:
Man follows the earth from dust to dust.
Earth follows Heaven from sunrise to sunset.
Heaven follows Tao from here to eternity.
Tao follows its own nature from nothing to nothing, with everything in between.

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Chapter 4

Sentence for Sentence Translation:

道冲而用之, 或不盈: Tao is empty yet its use is never exhausted.
渊兮似万物之宗: Profound oh, it seems to be the ancestor of the ten thousand things.
挫其锐: Blunt the sharpness;
解其纷: Untie the knots;
和其光: Soften the light;
同其尘: Be one with the dust.
湛兮似若存: Profoundly quiet, it seems to exist forever.
吾不知谁之子: I don't know whose child he is.
象帝之先: It exists before the great image of the birth of the universe.

Interpretational Translation of Tao Te Ching Chapter 4：

Tao is empty yet its use is never exhausted.
It is the fathomless ancestor of the ten thousand things.
Oh Tao blunts the sharp edges with the softness of water to make room for all things to roam!
Oh Tao untangles the knots among all things to develop a whole where all things can have a home!
Oh Tao softens the light so that we can have day and night!
Oh Tao merges with the dust so that we are Tao inside and out!
Oh, profound silence but ever present!
I don't even know whose child Tao is.
Oh Tao, whence you come? Whence you go?
Oh Tao, you seem to come from nowhere and go nowhere. But you are always here and there and everywhere.
Oh yes Tao, you exist even before the Emperor of all Images, the dawn of time.

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Chapter 14

Sentence for Sentence Translation:

视之不见名曰夷: Looked at, but cannot be seen; it is called yi.
听之不闻名曰希: Listened to, but cannot be heard; it is called xi.
搏之不得名曰微: Grasped at, but cannot be touched; it is called wei.
此三者不可致诘: These three things cannot be used to reach the end of inquiry.
故混而为一: Therefore, they are blended as Oneness.
其上不皦: Above is not bright;
其下不昧: Below is not dark.
绳绳兮不可名: A continuous whole beyond description,
复归于无物: It returns again to the nothingness of Tao.
是谓无状之状: This is called the form of formless forms.
无物之象: The image of nothingness of Tao.
是谓忽恍: This is called being vague and elusive.
迎之不见其首: Facing it, one cannot see its head;
随之不见其后: Following it, one cannot see its rear.
执古之道，以御今之有: Grasping this ancient Tao, one can manage today’s affairs.
能知古始，是谓道纪: Knowing the ancient beginning is called the essence of Tao.

Interpretational Translation of Tao Te Ching Chapter 14：

Look! It’s in front of your eyes but you don’t see it;
Oh invisible! That is time!
Listen! It’s next to your ears but you don’t hear it,
Oh silence! That is space!
Touch! It’s in your hands but you don’t feel it,
Oh formless! That is energy matter!
Yes, these three things elude your five senses, but they cannot escape your intuitive mind.
Therefore, space, time and energy blend into one and can only be perceived as Oneness.
Oh Oneness is a perfect harmony!
The above is not bright and the below is not dark; but a continuous whole beyond description.
It comes from the nothingness and again it returns to the nothingness of Tao.
Oh from the elusive Tao comes space! Space is intangible but it fills all forms of different sizes and shapes.
Oh from the evasive Tao comes time! Time is invisible but it gives rise to visible images of ever changing seasons.
Oh Oneness is so vast! So far! It is boundless!
Stand before it and there is no beginning.
Follow it and there is no end.
But you can grasp the way of Tao of the old and manage affairs of the new.
Oh know that Oneness is the past, future and now!
To live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, and find your eternity in every breath, this is the essence of Tao.

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Chapter 42

Sentence for Sentence Translation:

道生一: Tao begets One;
一生二: One begets Two;
二生三: Two begets Three;
三生万物: Three begets Wanwu, the ten thousand things.
万物负阴而抱阳: Wanwu carry yin and embrace yang.
冲气以为和: Fill with Chi for harmony.
人之所恶，唯孤寡不榖，而王公以为称: What people loathe the most are being orphaned, widowed, and hungry; yet the kings and lords use these words as their titles.
故物或损之而益: Therefore, things somehow detrimental become beneficial.
或益之而损: Others somehow beneficial become detrimental.
人之所教,我亦教之: What others teach, I also teach.
强梁者不得其死: He who uses brutal force will die an unnatural death.
吾将以为教父: I shall regard it as the father of all teachings.

Interpretational Translation of Tao Te Ching Chapter 42：

Tao begets One.
Oh, One is Oneness, the original Chi. Nothing can be added or subtracted from it. It is a perfect whole.
One begets Two.
Oh, Two is yin and yang, two complimentary forces.
Oh space and time！The first pair of yin and yang!
Two begets Three.
Oh, Three is yin and yang and chi.
Oh, space, time and energy matter! The first fractal of the universe!
Three begets the ten thousand things.
The ten thousand things carry yin, and embrace yang,
And breathe Chi for harmony.
Indeed, “Tao123All”is the formula for all!
Oh the humble one, can you tell us more about “Carry yin and embrace yang”?
Yes, yin and yang exist as a contradictory but complimentary pair.
For example what men hate are yin things such as being orphaned, widowed, and unproductive. But the kings and dukes, who represent yang, call themselves these names.
Therefore, men gain by losing and lose by gaining. This is the contradictory nature of yin and yang.
Oh the humble one, can you tell us more about “Breathe Chi for harmony”?
Oh yes, life is made up of breaths of Chi; and between breaths lies the moment of perfect harmony.
I teach people to love life not to destroy life; for violence breeds violence and a violent man will die a violent death.
Fill the world with unconditional love;
Teach the world to live in perfect harmony.
This is the essence of my teaching.

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Chapter 51

Sentence for Sentence Translation:

道生之: Tao begets all things;
德畜之: Te nourishes them;
物形之: Matter shapes them;
势成之: Time expressing in seasons completes their life cycles.
是以万物莫不尊道而贵德: Therefore the ten thousand things all respect Tao and treasure Te.
道之尊，德之贵，夫莫之命而常自然: The respect of Tao and the treasure of Te are not expressed in words but are self evident in nature of things.
故道生之，德畜之: Therefore Tao begets them; Te nourishes them.
长之育之: Grow them and nurture them;
成之熟之: Complete them and mature them;
养之覆之: Nourish them and protect them.
生而不有: Give birth but don’t possess;
为而不恃: Act but don’t expect;
长而不宰: Grow but don’t control.
是谓玄德: This is called Mysterious Te.

Interpretational Translation of Tao Te Ching Chapter 51：

Tao gives birth to the Oneness of all things.
Te, the Oneness, provides for all things.
Te as matter gives forms to all things,
Te as seasons completes all life cycles.
Therefore all things respect Tao and value Te.
The respect of Tao and the value of Te are not expressed in words but are self-evident in the nature of things.
Thus Tao gives birth to all living creatures,
And Te nourishes them from cradle to grave.
Let the baby grow and be nourished;
Let the young complete and mature;
Let the old rest and be buried when they die.
Oh yes! The Oneness of Tao is perfect and self-sustained.
It creates but does not possess – nothing can be added or subtracted from it; for it is whole without a hole.
It gives but does not expect to receive – giving is receiving; for one for all and all for one.
It completes but does not control – free choice for all; for it is so vast that nothing can escape from it so fast.
Oh incomprehensible! This is called Mysterious Te of Oneness.

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Chapter 6

Sentence for Sentence Translation:

谷神不死: Valley Spirit, Shen never dies.
是谓玄牝: It is called the Mysterious Female.
玄牝之门,是谓天地之根: The door of this mysterious female is the root of Heaven and Earth.
绵绵若存: Oh, continuously, continuously, it seems to exist.
用之不勤: Yet it is can be used without effort.

Interpretational Translation of Tao Te Ching Chapter 6：

The spirit of the valley, Shen, never dies.
She is the mysterious mother of all things.
From the door of this mysterious mother
Comes the root of Heaven and Earth.
Oh how wonderful! Like a mysterious umbilical cord,
It nourishes all and all.
Continuous! Continuous!
Invisible but its love is unmistakable.
Effortless! Effortless!
Life is never meant to be helpless when the supply of love is endless.

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Chapter 52

Sentence for Sentence Translation:

天下有始，以为天下母: The world has a beginning; it is the mother of the world.
既得其母，以知其子: Now that there is a mother, there must be children.
既知其子，复守其母: Now that knowing the children, then keep to the mother.
没身不殆: The whole life is not in danger.
塞其兑: Shut the openings.
闭其门: Close the doors.
终身不勤: The whole life is not laborious.
开其兑: Open the openings.
济其事: Interfere with its affairs,
终身不救: The whole life is without help.
见小曰明: Seeing the small is called enlightenment;
守柔曰强: Keeping the soft is called strength.
用其光: Use the light,
复归其明: To return again to the enlightenment.
无遗身殃: Without exposing life in danger
是谓习常: This is called Practicing the Absolute.

Interpretational Translation of Tao Te Ching Chapter 52：

In the beginning, Tao creates the world and it stays on as the mother for all.
So let it be known that there is a mother and all living creatures are her children.
Let it be known that all her children have the right to be with their mother and to live freely and eternally.
Oh child-like man! Be humble! Love mother Tao!
Close your mouth;
Shut your senses;
Effortless and joyful, you will experience life here on earth, without toiling day in and day out.
Oh egoistic man! Too proud! Too arrogant! You ignore mother Tao!
You talk too much.
You mess things up.
Hopeless and alone, you will have a hard life here on earth, toiling from dawn to dusk.
Now you have a choice, and it is up to you to
Seek the truth in small matters and be enlightened;
Find the strength in softness and be strong;
Turn the light into insight and be one with all;
And if you behave in this way, you will be away from harm’s way.
Oh yes! This is called Practicing Tao of natural long life.

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