Eight

Supreme virtue is like water.

It nourishes the ten thousand things without effort,

and flows in places men shun.

It is like Tao.

Stand on solid ground.

Go deep into the heart.

Speak only what is true.

In friendship, be kind.

In governing, be just.

In enterprise, be able.

In action, watch the timing.

Do not contend with nature, and nothing will go wrong.

Nine

An over-filled cup is difficult to carry.

An over-sharp point is easily broken.

Fill your house with gold and jade,

and it cannot be protected.

Become puffed with pride,

and disaster will follow.

Do only what needs doing, then forget it.

This is the way of heaven.

Ten

While maintaining a body,

can you become one?

While breathing the force of life,

can you be innocent as a babe?

While polishing the dark mirror,

can you be without dust?

While loving and ruling the people,

can you refrain from action?

While coming and going from heaven,

can you be passive as a woman?

Understanding all things,

can you abide in unknowing?

Give birth and nurture.

Create without claim.

Lead without taking command.

This is supreme virtue.

Eleven

Thirty spokes of a wheel converge

to define a hole.

Clay is molded into pots

to shape the emptiness.

Walls are hammered into rooms

to enclose space.

Windows are cut into walls

to frame absence.

Though things may have value,

without no-thing they are useless.

Twelve

The five colors confuse the eye.

The five tones deaden the ear.

The five flavors dull the palette.

Racing and hunting madden the mind.

Valuable goods hinder movement.

Therefore, the sage is guided by his gut, not his senses.

He attends to one and ignores the other.

Thirteen

Receive honor with dismay.

Accept misfortune gratefully.

Why receive honor with dismay?

Honor and dishonor cause the same disturbance.

With honor comes the fear of disgrace.

With disgrace comes anxiety and dread.

Why accept misfortune gratefully?

Misfortune weakens the bond to body and self.

Without a separate self, what misfortune is possible?

See misfortune as a condition of separation,

and you will become whole.

See the world as your body,

and All will be delivered unto you.

Fourteen

Searching, we cannot see it.

We call it ephemeral.

Straining, we cannot hear it.

We call it ethereal.

Reaching, we cannot grasp it.

We call it intangible.

These three are often confused

because they are the same.

The One is not bright above and dark below.

Transparent, it moves in and out of nothing.

Its form has no shape.

Its image has no substance.

It is indistinct, elusive.

Nothing to face, nothing to follow.

Hold to the timeless Tao.

Abide in the present.

Now is the ancient beginning.