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Chapter 5 |
天地不仁，以萬物為芻狗；聖人不仁，以百姓為芻狗。天地之間，其猶橐籥乎，虛而不屈，動而愈出。多言數窮，不如守中。 |
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tian di bu ren, yi wan wu wei chu gou |
The Great Nature does not treat all things with ren for the Great Nature does not possess all things like an emperor does. Its dao simply ignites the internal fire of life of all things and encourages them to live autonomously as if they were ritual straw-dog offerings igniting their own fire. |
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sheng ren bu ren, yi bai xing wei chu gou |
The shengren does not treat all people with ren for the shengren does not possess the people like an emperor does. His de simply ignites the internal fire of life of all people and encourages them to live autonomously as if they were ritual straw-dog offerings igniting their own fire. |
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tian di zhi jian, qi |
Under the sky, the entire space is like a huge imaginary sacrificial burning device for all things able to ignite their own fire. |
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xu er bu qu, dong er |
It is so empty but its power is unsubdued. The more the Great Nature activates, the more the air is being mobilized for all things to live vigorously. Similarly, for the human being, the more the shengren activates, the more his wisdom is being mobilized for all people to live vigorously. |
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duo yan shu qiong, bu |
Any argument against this will be exhausted sooner or later. It is better to properly hold fast to this natural attitude. |