Daodejing - Laozi

Not raising the clever, causes the people to not compete. Not valuing treasures that are difficult to acquire, causes the people to not become thieves. Not seeing that which can be desired, causes hearts to not become unstable. Therefore this is the way that sages rule [others], By emptying their minds and filling their stomachs, By weakening their ambitions and strengthening their bones. Always causing the people to be without knowledge and without desire. Letting them know non-daring, non-action, that is all. Thus, nothing is not managed. 不尚賢，使民不爭； 不貴難得之貨， 使民不為盜； 不見可欲，使心不亂。 是以聖人之治， 虛其心，實其腹， 弱其志，強其骨。 常使民無知無欲。 使夫知不敢弗為而已， 則無不治矣。 This chapter discusses how to manage people (whether a country, a state, a company, or a team). By avoiding behaviors that cause others to become toxic, one is able to keep their state or team stable, happy, and peaceful. The sage can manage their team by: Filling their stomachs; this refers to physiological needs (s...

All under heaven know that beauty is beautiful; thus ugliness is already [known]. All know good, thus bad is already [known]. Thus having and nothing are birthing each other, Difficult and easy are becoming each other, Long and short are comparing each other, High and low are filling each other, Tone and noise are harmonizing each other, Front and back are following each other. Therefore, a sage keeps to non-action to do his works, And teaches by doing and not saying; The myriad things all do not start, Acting without presuming, Work is achieved yet [the sage] does not dwell. Only as he does not dwell, Therefore this [the achievements] does not leave. 天下皆知美之為美，斯亞已。 皆知善，斯不善已。 故有無相生，難易相成， 長短相較，高下相盈， 音聲相和，前後相隨。 是以聖人居無為之事， 行不言之教； 萬物昔而弗始， 為而不恃，功成而弗居。 夫唯弗居，是以不去。 This chapter discusses non-action, or wuwei (無為): Everything exists for us because of the existence of their opposites In the same way, non-action is the opposite of action, existing as it...

The way that can be spoken of is not the perpetual Way. The name that can be named is not the perpetual name. Heaven and earth began with no name, Being named was the beginning of the myriad things. If one always has no desires, then one will perceive the mysteries. If one always has desires, then one will perceive the boundaries. These two, come out together but are of different names, together are called profound. The profound of profound. The gates to the multitude mysteries. 道可道，非常道。 名可名，非常名。 無名天地之始； 有名萬物之母。 故常無欲，以觀其妙； 常有欲，以觀其徼。 此兩者， 同出而異名， 同謂之玄。 玄之又玄， 衆妙之門。 The Mawangdui Laozi texts are only different in minor aspects, such as using the word 恆 instead of 常 (synonyms for "perpetual"), or using alternate characters for words (like 噭 instead of 徼 for "boundary"). The last 4 lines are slightly different as such (but generally mean the same thing): Both come from the same source, They have different names but are cal...

The Daodejing (道德經) , or "Classic of the Way and Integrity," was written around the 5th century BC by Laozi (老子) , but "Laozi" just means "old master" - true to Daoist ideals, we aren't sure who he was, or even if he was just one person or more. Since its penning, the Daodejing has remained the primary text of Daoism, one of China's traditional philosophies. Unlike the studious but stuffy and hierarchical Confucianism , Daoism has long presented a freer and deeper counterview to its more famous and influential (in Asia) rival. More than half a millenium later, Buddhism from India entered China to become the third of the "three teachings" of China that would long coexist with each other, in part because Daoists found in Buddhism many similarities with their own teachings, and so initially thought that the Buddha was Laozi himself, who after all was said to have departed westwards after penning the Daodejing. Thus, Buddhism was initial...